The first series included a series of animated sketches written and drawn by Paul Hatcher and animated by Chris Shepherd, with composition and additional animation by Rhodri Cooper and Jeff Goldner of Animation Post. "The World Stare-out Championship Final" was originally a self-published comic that Hatcher created in 1996 which Graham Linehan spotted in a comic shop in London and then contacted Hatcher with a view to using it as animated sequences in a proposed sketch show commissioned by the BBC. The animation satirised televised sporting events coverage and its over-excited commentary, inspired by events such as the World Chess Championship, boxing and the football World Cup. The sketches are set during the World Stare-out Championship Finals, a staring match which is described as a global event broadcast all over the world.