The two British comedies that I really like are old, and I’m sure that everyone here has already seen them, but Blackadder and Absolutely Fabulous never fail to crack me up.
The rest of British comedy (except for a handful of movies) is very hit or miss for me, and seems to miss at least as often as it hits.
As does American comedy and, I assume, the comedy of every other country.
Not all tastes, particularly in comedy, are internationally transferable. Nor is that always predictable: I’d have said Allo!Allo! (a pantomime/farce-style skit on a drama about a resistance network smuggling down airmen out of occupied Belgium and France) would be far too sensitive - and too full of untranslatable double entendre - to sell outside the UK, but it was sold to many other countries including France and Germany.
It was shown in Russia, too. The only part of the overdubbed dialogue I remember was “the Madonna with big bosom.”
Most of the time I listened to the English underneath. My favorite gags were
(a) The British spy with the awful French masquerading as a French policeman: “What’s that? Your pissy is up a tree?” and “Please, could I have a spune for my kiffee?” (To which the hot waitress responded “Here. I brought you some pee.”)
and
(b) How the French communicated with the downed British airmen, who spoke in a “Tally-ho, be a good chap, then, old boy, eh what?” fashion.
It’s a huge hit in Belgium and Holland, (largely) English speaking countries with a much more focused hatred of the occupation too. I know a dutch person who still wouldn’t drink in a German style bar in Antwerp, despite it being ran by Dutch people. Still loved Allo Allo.
I’m never quite sure how it worked in Germany and France though, who 100% dub their English language programmes. Talent in the voiceovers perhaps.
Or when Madame Edith took the “liddle tank” and crashed into the vespasienne with Crabtree still in it: “No piss for the wicked!”
But I can’t imagine how the dubbers coped with the RAF’s “farters and bummers”.
I never liked Allo Allo. I didn’t think the subject matter was funny, though I seem to be in a minority.
I cannot watch the British comedies. Not because they aren’t funny. They are.
It’s the laugh track. It is overbearing. They are using whenever ANYTHING happens, supposedly funny or not. Takes me right out of it.
We are now 17 seasons into Midsomer Murders. Even with the cast changes we love it. But, damn, Brits in Midsomer are easy to sneak up on and cannot, under any circumstances, defend themselves.
Which comedies are you thinking of? They’re not actually that common. Old sitcoms had them same as old US sitcoms did. New ones don’t. TBF, most of the new ones are either shit or would be better called dramedies.
But then, I loathe Midsomer Murders, and I like detective shows, and not just highbrow ones. It’s aimed at the over-60s here (I watched some with my ex-MIL). A lot of it seems to be set about forty years ago but with today’s dates. There was one where a plot point was that the (white British) parents were shocked about a girl living with her BF before marriage. She’d had to hide it from them. In 2013 or so. Rrright.
(Apologies - glad someone’s enjoying it!)
Once I started to watch Midsomer Murders on PBS, I read the Wikipedia article, which mentions that about ten years ago, the show’s producer said the reason there were no non-white characters was because the show was “the last bastion of Englishness and I want to keep it that way.” That kind of turned me off the show a bit, though he resigned shortly thereafter and the show has had non-white characters since.
And I’ve been watching Not Going Out on one of the streaming services and it seems to have a laugh track, or a live audience on nitrous oxide.
I’m not aware of laugh tracks being used on any modern UK comedy show. which ones are you thinking of?
You weren’t. It was similar to Hidehi, certain age groups liked it and the rest preferred the Young Ones etc.
This is a distinct type of UK programme, set in a village in the 50s, selling the wonderful bliss of living in England (not Scotland or Wales) when everyone is well off, and there’s nothing to worry about but coffee mornings (and murder if it’s that type of programme, or the boss coming to dinner, if it’s that type, ie: Terry and June),
For most people (certainly not for me or anyone I know), this place never existed. But the fantasy as served Brexiteers in the country well, and the country wants to live in gentle sitcoms of the 70s.
I do notice some audience laughter is/was a bit over the top, in particular one woman with the most annoying shriek of a laugh who seemed to turn up at several different programmes.
Mostly older ones. I get them from Britbox and Acorn
Are you being served?
the League of Gentlemen
Coupling
AYBS probably did have quite an intrusive laughter track. It’s pretty minimal in Coupling, though (and it was a live studio audience), and I barely even remember it in League of Gentlemen - that was a studio audience, too, and there was nothing in season three). It’s nowhere near Big Bang Theory levels of annoying.
What do you think of them? They’re two of my favourites in completely different ways.
Not Going Out is surprisingly awful. Everyone involved in it is good in other things, but put them together in this and they’ve churned out season after season of lazy old-fashioned trash. The first season had some good bits, but it’s got worse and worse. I don’t doubt that the laugh track or studio audience in that is intrusive.
I liked both. Even went to an Allo Allo themed restaurant last year. Not sure if I’m the age group you’re thinking of.
Spaced is #1 
And, it is available to watch (with ads 
) on Amazon Prime; Just introduced my 17-year-old to it yesterday, in fact; he binged the first series and plans to do the second tonight.
Basically boomers and older liked that sort of stuff, and younger ones (gen-x etc) were more alternative comedy fans. It’s a divide in British comedy.
I’ve no idea where and why there would be an Allo Allo themed restaurant though.
I have absolute no memory of this having a laugh track, and I’m quite shocked to find out it might have. Perhaps added later for overseas releases?