In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world, forcing lockdowns across almost every country on Earth as governments and health systems attempted to prevent the spread of disease. Entire industries were shuttered, and huge numbers of people were prevented from doing their usual jobs. Among the many industries heavily impacted was the world of professional sports, with a wide range of major sporting events — including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — being cancelled or postponed. Stadiums were empty, and fans, players and commentators alike were faced with a burning question: what do we do now?
If you were BBC sports commentator Andrew Cotter, the answer to that question turned out to be "film your adorable labradors Olive and Mabel doing adorable labrador stuff and commentate it like it was the World Cup Final".
The first video
, uploaded on YouTube on March 28 2020, depicted the two as competing rivals seeking triumph and glory in the Dog's Breakfast Championship Final, with Olive as the grizzled pro facing off against Mabel, the rising young star hungry (literally) for glory. It quickly became a sensation to a public seeking a combination of sports, humour and distraction from current events, gained over a million views, and was reported on in international media. More videos soon followed, depicting Olive and Mabel's ongoing competition for victory, glory, and being told they were a very good dog. Later videos have also moved from the "sports commentary" hook to take a more general slice-of-life approach to the dogs' lives.
Olive and Mabel released a book (well, Cotter kindly wrote it "on their behalf") at the end of 2020 about their experiences titled Olive, Mabel and Me.
Provides examples of:
- Big Friendly Dog: Both of them, especially Mabel.
- Canine Companion: Both dogs to Cotter.
- Dogs Are Dumb: Mabel, who gets conned by a 'dog prince' email scam. Olive is portrayed as a bit savvier.
- Dogs Love Being Praised: Despite all the sarcasm, Cotter does assure the pair he loves them on video, and the last words of the book are "good dog"
- Old Master: Olive, the black lab, is treated by the commentary as the old pro facing off against an eager young competitor trying to take her crown. Olive is four years older in reality.
- Older Hero vs. Younger Villain: The "hero" and "villain" parts are downplayed (they are, after all, both dogs), but the dynamic of the commentaries otherwise follows this dynamic by establishing Olive, the older dog, as facing off against Mabel, her younger rival. From what we see, Mabel does seem to be a bit bouncier and more mischievous in general.
- Real Life Writes the Plot: The series was started because Cotter, a professional sports commentator, had no sports to commentate upon due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently a bit bored and frustrated with nothing to do, he eventually ended up applying his professional skills to a video of his dogs eating breakfast.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Olive is the steadier and calmer of the two, while Mabel is much more hyper. Cotter confirms in the book that this is true to life.
- Serious Business: The premise of the series is two dogs matter-of-factly going about their daily business being commentated upon as if they're competing in a major sporting event.
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Throw It In!: At one point in the first video, a voice presumably belonging to Cotter's wife can be heard telling him to "get on with it!" To which Cotter, naturally, quips "And the crowd is going wild."
