Meet the Magoons is a six-part comedy television series in the United Kingdom aired on Channel 4 in 2005, directed by and starring Hardeep Singh Kohli. The main characters are a Punjabi family who live in Glasgow, and own an Indian restaurant called "The Spice". It received mixed reviews. A. A. Gill hoped it "might well evolve into something classic" and Nancy Banks-Smith of The Guardian called it "modern to the point of surreal". A second series was not commissioned.
It's the annual Indian restaurant five-a-side football tournament and the Magoons are representing The Spice. Alan the Chef – unpredictable at the best of times – has declared he won’t play on a Sunday, so Nitin’s gay friend Imran is roped in, much to Paul’s dismay. Despite the bickering and a mix-up with the team’s outfits, the boys show some unexpected skill - but the road to victory is never smooth... neither is the prayer ceremony to bless the new restaurant oven.
There is confusion in The Spice over the number of diners expected that evening - is it 7 people at 8 o'clock or 8 at 7 o'clock? Unsurprisingly, Nitin isn’t exactly in control of the situation. As well as forgetting the stag party booking for 37 at 7.30pm, Nitin has unwisely allowed the old restaurant tables to be taken away before the new ones arrive. And to top it off, this is no ordinary stag party.
The Magoons are sent by Nitin's Dad to collect samosas from a new supplier, Dolly Pathan. She's won Dad over with her sweet potato and honey samosas and has encouraged him to sharpen up his corporate marketing tactics and invest in samosas embossed with the name and logo of The Spice. But in typical Magoon fashion, things are never as easy as they seem, and before long the boys attract the attention of an army of policewomen. Can a mutual love of trivia get the Magoons out of a sticky situation?
Nitin devises a series of themed evenings for The Spice called "Around The World In Eaty Ways" - Chinese, Russian and French nights, where the likes of Borscht Bhuna will be served. Chef Alan goes on strike he refuses to be part of any ‘novelty catering’ - and Nitin turns to his old mate Giles Chan to help him out for the Chinese evening. But will the customers embrace the themed-food or will the Magoons be thrown into another disaster? Is Indian food really more than coriander and a random selection of curry pastes?
Nitin's latest hair-brained scheme to drum up customers for The Spice is to hold a "Kurry Karaoke" night where the choice of dish is linked to a specific karaoke song - a King Prawn Dopiaza buys you Frank Sinatra's My Way and a side order of pilau rice will get you a humble Carpenters song. But is sourcing the equipment from a dodgy has-been called Dallas going to be the best way to get the party started? Meanwhile, Paul has to prove his pulling-power when the boys challenge him to secure a date for the evening.
The Magoons have been invited to a relative's engagement party, where Nitin's Dad has high hopes of setting Nitin up with Priya, a young girl from Suffolk. On their way to the function the Magoons are instructed to pick up the entertainer – Selina the Snake Woman who Nitin’s Dad has hired to entertain the guests. Things take a bizarre turn when Selina turns out to have dated Nitin for six weeks, and claims to have once been engaged to Paul. With the distinct whiff of a bunny boiler about her, Selina tries to win back the terrified Paul. Meanwhile Nitin can’t believe Paul could be more desirable than him and in turn pursues Selina... landing him in a very slippery situation.
