Brits that Americans find funny

Cafe Society
1

Inspired by Wee Bairn’s thread, in the opposite direction.

Personally I’m not a big fan of stand-up, so I can’t comment on that. (Aside from stating that Jasper Carrott and Jim Davidson are notoriously unfunny.) But there are a cadre of British comedians that I find hilarious (based on their work as writers, actors, and general comic timing):

Eddie Izzard
Stephen Fry
Hugh Laurie
Ade Edmondson
Paul Whitehouse
Harry Enfield (who is criminally underutilized in the US as the voice of the Travelocity Gnome and Burger King’s “Dr. Angus”)
Simon Day
Ricky Gervais
Sascha Baron Cohen
Armando Ianucci
Steve Coogan
Lenny Henry
(early) Ben Elton
Kenny Everett

Gosh, I need women… how about:

Jennifer Saunders
Tracey Ullman
Julia Davis

Those who I have never found even slightly amusing:

Leigh Francis (Bo Selecta)

2

You forgot John Cleese!

(I’m Canadian, am I allowed to play?)

3

I guess.

Make that “North Americans,” then.

If we’re going back that far, I’d throw in Tim Brooke-Taylor and Bill Oddie from The Goodies.

4

Rowan Atkinson
Bill Bailey
Tom Baker (not a comedian per se. England’s answer to William Shatner.)
Graham Chapman
Robbie Coltrane
Dawn French
Eric Idle
Terry Jones
Rick Mayall
Stephen Merchant (that “other” guy who did The Office)
Michael Palin
Nigel Planer
Simon Pegg
Jessica Stephenson

I concur on Bo Selecta. Ugh.

5

Billy Connolly!!!

For fucks sake people. Billy Connolly!!!

6

I like Hugh Grant but imagine I’ll be one of few people admitting to such. Also, Simon Callow.

7

Oh, yes, I’ve been enjoying his more antisocial roles lately.

8

Dave Allen (who I believe is Irish – but who’s show I miss terribly).

9

I sure do miss Peter Cook & Dudley Moore. They were funny separately, but they were even better as a team.

10

What, no Benny Hill?

d&r

11

Not just lately – before he did Four Weddings and a Funeral, he did An Awfully Big Adventure, in which he plays an absolutely vicious, chainsmoking local theatre director (and gay, too).

12

I came in here to mentin Benny Hill.

Tim Curry is great too.

13

Graham Norton.

14

I shall forever love Peter Sellers in and as Dr. Strangelove. I’m still awestruck that much of his performance was improvised.

15

That Sweeney Todd is frackin’ hilarious! :stuck_out_tongue:

16

Dylan Moran
Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding
David Mitchell and Robert Webb
Tamsin Grieg

17

Was Irish. He died March 10, 2005. I miss him and his shows, too.

18

I adore a Britcom actor named Anton Rodgers. Brilliant comedic actor, makes me laugh my socks off.

19

Really??? I used to see him in a show called Fresh Fields, and it’s true he was probably the best actor in the show, but beyond that I find him to be a bit ordinary.

20

Lots of good additions here. I absolutely love Dave Allen. He used to come on late Sundays, I think, and I didn’t get the jokes for the most part, but he made my parents laugh, which reminds me of good times… RIP.

kaylasdad99, good move… d&r-ing, that is.

I tried to get into Black Books… nothing.