A Life of Grime

{{Short description|BBC reality television series}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}} {{More citations needed|date=November 2024}} {{Infobox television | image = | caption = | genre = [[Reality television|Reality]] | creator = | developer = | writer = | director = | creative_director = | presenter = | starring = | judges = | voices = | narrator = [[John Peel]] (1999–2004) [[Arthur Smith (comedian)|Arthur Smith]] (2005-06) | theme_music_composer = | open_theme = "[[What a Wonderful World]]" | end_theme = | composer = | country = United Kingdom United States | language = English | num_series = | num_episodes = | list_episodes = | executive_producer = | producer = | editor = | location = Series 1 & 4 - [[London Borough of Haringey|Haringey]] Series 2 - [[Sheffield]] Series 3 - [[City of Salford|Salford]] Series 5 - [[Bristol]] Series 6 - [[New York City]] Series 7 - [[London Borough of Tower Hamlets|Tower Hamlets]] Series 8 - [[Edinburgh]] | cinematography = | camera = [[Single-camera setup|Single-camera]] | runtime = 25 minutes | company = | network = [[BBC One]] | first_aired = {{start date|1999|04|20}} | last_aired = {{end date|2006|07|20}} | related = ''[[Grimefighters]]'' }}

'''''A Life of Grime''''' (a play on the expression ''A Life of Crime'') is a [[BBC]] [[Reality television|reality series]] following the work of [[environmental health]] inspectors.<ref name="TI">{{cite news |last1=Hanks |first1=Robert |title=Television Review: A Life of Grime |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/television-review-a-life-of-grime-1091607.html |work=[[The Independent]] |date=4 May 1999}}</ref> Launched during an explosion of [[reality television]], the idea found something of a [[cult following]].

==Overview== With [[Louis Armstrong]]'s "[[What a Wonderful World]]" as the title music, the episodes were narrated by [[John Peel]] and later by [[Arthur Smith (comedian)|Arthur Smith]] in sardonic tones.{{Citation needed|date=November 2024}} Its appeal was based on disgust and the eccentric but often vivid and eloquent characters, most famously [[Edmund Trebus]], encountered either hoarding rubbish or keeping huge numbers of animals.<ref name="TI"/> The original series was set in [[London Borough of Haringey|Haringey]];<ref name="TI"/> subsequent series have been set in [[Bristol]], [[City of Salford|Salford]], [[Sheffield]], [[London Borough of Tower Hamlets|Tower Hamlets]], [[City of Westminster]], [[New York City|New York]] and [[Edinburgh]].

==U.S. version== An American version of the series titled ''A Life of Grime New York'', aired on the [[Discovery Times Channel]] that takes place in New York.

==Syndication== Both ''A Life of Grime'' and ''A Life of Grime New York'' have been aired on [[UKTV People]].

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * {{BBC programme}} * {{IMDb title|id=0197168|title=A Life of Grime}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Life of Grime, A}} [[Category:1999 British television series debuts]] [[Category:2006 British television series endings]] [[Category:1990s British reality television series]] [[Category:2000s British reality television series]] [[Category:BBC One original programming]] [[Category:English-language British television shows]]