Happy Merryneum!
Merryneum is the "official name" for the awkward bit in between Christmas and New Year. A time where leftovers and eating pants reign if you celebrate Christmas, and where sales are decent if you don't. To honour this awkward in-between period here's a list of awkward things to enjoy. Happy Merryneum!










Awkward Family Holiday Photos
Mike Bender (2013)
Holidays are memories in the making. Some of those memories are warm and cheerful, some memories are awkward and cringe worthy. Awkward Family Holiday Photos captures those cringe worthy family moments to share with the world.
The IT Crowd
The Complete First Season - DVD (2009)
“Hello IT. Have you tried turning it off and on?” Roy, the slovenly, on the hunt, beatings prone, IT technician and his counterpart the socially awkward, interpersonally inept Maurice Moss, bumble their way through life and work with their pathologically lying department head/relationship manager. Weirdness, absurdity, hilarity and the occasional desk fire abound.
The Office
The Complete Series One & Two and the Special - DVD (2004)
You may be familiar with The (American) Office, but did you know that it all started with The (British) Office? There are no overt jokes, no laugh tracks, nothing to cut the discomforting combination of identification and mortification. The Office is the very pinnacle of awkward watching.
A Field Guide to Awkward Silences
Alexandra Petri (2015)
Some people are born awkward. Some achieve awkwardness. Some have awkwardness thrust upon them. Alexandra Petri is all three. Sure to tickle your awkward fancy.
The Vicar of Dibley
Series One - DVD (2003)
The sleepy village of Dibley is blindsided by the arrival of its new vicar. Heartwarming, side-splitting, and occasionally excruciating, the vicar and all the eccentric residents of Dibley will provide you with pure awkward joy.
Awkward
Season One - DVD (2011)
Surreal humour + real emotion = awkwardness. Well-meaning but amusingly dysfunctional parents, the absurdity of sex and love and the minefield that is social politics, awkward land-mines all.
Wreck the Halls
Cake Wrecks Gets "Festive"
Jen Yates (2011)
Thankless Thanksgiving turkeys, confusing Christmas conundrums, Hanukkah horrors, and New Year's meltdowns, Wreck the Halls has an icing smeared disaster for every occasion.
Flight of the Conchords
The Complete First Season - DVD (2007)
Instead of a laugh track we occasionally are treated to a spontaneous song and dance break. Songs are humorous and catchy ("Frodo, Don't Wear the Ring," “Hiphopopotamus vs. Rhymenoceros,” and "Business Time") about girlfriends, pop culture, homicidal robots, toothpaste and weird dreams.
Awkward
What to Do When Life Makes You Cringe: A Survival Guide
Samantha Scholfield (2011)
Too much Christmas cheer results in drunk texting your boss? Running into your ex and their gorgeous new partner when you are in sweats and haven’t showered in three days? Think of the witty come-back hours after reliving every excruciating detail? Impossible to avoid awkward situations can crop up anytime, anywhere, but this little handbook could help you not only manage the awkward moment, but possibly even to dodge the awkward moment before it even happens.
Fawlty Towers
Volume One (2001)
Fawlty Towers, the home and hotel of Basil and Sybil Fawlty, would perhaps run more smoothly if it weren’t for the awkwardness and antics of the staff. The prickly and snobbish Basil, the “little nest of vipers" Sybil, the hapless Manuel and the put-upon Polly all contribute to the dubious success of the business.