# Intro to British Comedy **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 12, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259 "2006-07-12T23:51:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HoldenCaulfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/22d042/32.png) [@HoldenCaulfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoldenCaulfield)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/1 "2006-07-12T23:51:54Z")
I’ve always been a Python fan. Several years ago a friend sat me down to watch Red Dwarf and it just wasn’t my cup of tea. Well, last week I started watching Black Adder and I love it. Now I’m interested in seeking out other British comedy, and I’m looking for suggestions (possibly based on the little information I’m providing here.) I watched the first episode of Fawlty Towers this week and it didn’t really grab me. Does it get better? I’m a recent convert to House also, so I’m interested in seeing other stuff with Hugh Laurie. What should I check out after Black Adder? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/2 "2006-07-13T00:05:24Z")
> [@HoldenCaulfield](#): > > I watched the first episode of Fawlty Towers this week and it didn’t really grab me. Does it get better? IMO, it couldn’t actually _be_ better, but you might grow into it, or find the plots of some of the other episodes more to your liking, but it doesn’t change much really; the comedy is all in the tragedy and awkwardness of circumstsances surrounding Basil; it may be that this just isn’t your thing. You might like [Coupling](http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/coupling/). > [@](#): > > I’m a recent convert to House also, so I’m interested in seeing other stuff with Hugh Laurie. What should I check out after Black Adder? Which series of Black Adder are you watching? The third one features Hugh quite prominently; if you like him in that, then it might be worth getting hold of some of his earlier sketch show work - _A bit of Fry and Laurie_, which is at long last available on DVD. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/3 "2006-07-13T00:06:05Z")
If you like Hugh Laurie, you might want to look at the [Jeeves and Wooster](http://imdb.com/title/tt0098833/) series. Delightful adaptations of the classic Wodehouse tales about a dimwitted twit (Hugh Laurie) and his wise, avuncular manservant. A series that I used to enjoy long, long ago was [The Goodies](http://imdb.com/title/tt0065296/). It was usually not as funny as Monty Python, but it had its moments. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/4 "2006-07-13T00:09:33Z")
> [@pinkfreud](#): > > A series that I used to enjoy long, long ago was [The Goodies](http://imdb.com/title/tt0065296/). It was usually not as funny as Monty Python, but it had its moments. Hell, _The Goodies_ actually caused a man to die of laughter, something Python can’t claim. 🙂 I was a big fan of the older series **No, Honestly** , and **My Hero** was pretty good, too. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/5 "2006-07-13T00:47:09Z")
**Holden,** check out [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=364476&highlight=britcom). Right now BBC America is showing **Peep Show** right now, which is f\*\*\*in’ hilarious. You sound like you like Ben Elton’s work, so **The Young Ones** and **Thin Blue Line** are shows you should check out. The former is out on DVD in the US, along with an epi of **Bottom** which was the “follow up” of sorts to **TYO**. If you like sketch stuff you have to watch **The Fast Show** which aired for a time on BBC America as **Brilliant! Da Ali G Show** aired on HBO for two seasons and was easily the funniest thing on TV. I also loved **Harry Enfield’s TV Programme** (the one that aired on Channel 4 - I thought it was better than the more popular BBC shows he did. Too much Paul Whitehouse and Kathy Burke for my tastes.) Comedic tastes are so varied, it’s almost impossible to make recommendations. When I was last in the UK my mates were encouraging me to watch **Bo Selecta!** based on the stuff I liked. To say it was the most dire cack I’ve ever seen would be understating things a bit. Complete shite! People also suggested that I watch **Black Books** and **The Mighty Boosh** - didn’t do anything for me either. Oh, but the **Goodies** - pure comedy genius! ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/6 "2006-07-13T00:50:55Z")
The best recent comedies are Spaced, Black Books, Peep Show, Green Wing, and The Office. No discussion or arugment is possible. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/7 "2006-07-13T01:02:23Z")
No mention of Are You Being Served? yet? Give it a try. If you don’t like it, you’ll find that it will ride up with wear. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/8 "2006-07-13T01:03:56Z")
My bad, I didn’t see that you were limiting the suggestions to Hugh Laurie shows. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/9 "2006-07-13T01:04:26Z")
Just about any British comedian will admit that virtually all modern film & TV comedy owes a great deal to Ealing studios. The company’s best films include: _Kind Hearts and Coronets, The Ladykillers, The Lavender Hill Mob, The Man in the White Suit_ and _Whisky Galore!_. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/10 "2006-07-13T01:36:21Z")
If you can find it, check out _A Bit Of Fry And Laurie_ (sketch show) with Stephen Fry. Interesting titbit : Laurie’s first TV appearence was as part of the Cambridge rowing crew in the annual Oxford Vs Cambridge boat race. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/11 "2006-07-13T02:02:57Z")
As **Mangetout** notes, **A Bit of Fry and Laurie** will be released in the U.S. on DVD either this month or August. I think it will be the first two seasons. The sketches are hilarious, and between the sketches they do “man in the street” snippet-type interviews - featuring both Stephen and Hugh as barrow men, housewives, constables, every imaginable English character you might bump into on the high street. Those snippets are often the funniest part of the show. There are a couple of recurring characters - Tony and “Control,” prim and proper MI5 operatives, the American oil executives who punctuate every sentence with “Damn!” and references to an unseen “Marjorie,” and Australian soap opera characters who seemed to be having sex with everyone. Most memorable were the absurdist sketches where Stephen Fry would play a public-school civil servant type in a shop, or as a barber, who would politely frustrate and irritate the everyman character played by Hugh Laurie. Impossible for me to describe but possibly the funniest dialogue you will ever hear uttered. ---
**Author:** ![Kinky\_Minx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/db5fbb/32.png) [@Kinky\_Minx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinky_Minx)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/12 "2006-07-13T04:29:14Z")
Well, and Little Britain can sometimes be funny as well. I like Dafydd as the only gay in his welsh village, and Andy “I Want a Whippie!” wheelchair guy. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/13 "2006-07-13T04:42:07Z")
**Blackadder** –especially \*II \* and _IV_. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/14 "2006-07-13T05:06:39Z")
I’m fond of absolutely fabulous, and of course, good neighbors ---
**Author:** ![Clockwork\_And\_Candy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b782af/32.png) [@Clockwork\_And\_Candy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clockwork_And_Candy)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/15 "2006-07-13T05:17:50Z")
[**French & Saunders**](http://imdb.com/title/tt0092355/), [**Vicar of Dibley**](http://imdb.com/title/tt0108981/), [**Father Ted**](http://imdb.com/title/tt0111958/) and (or course) [**Absolutely Fabulous**](http://imdb.com/title/tt0105929/). Go get them on DVD. _Now_. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/16 "2006-07-13T05:46:16Z")
Hugh Laurie also had a bit part in an episode of The Young Ones, along with Stephen Fry and Emma Thompson. Much harder to find is a radio show called Saturday Night Fry, which starred Stephen Fry. Hugh was in just about every episode, and Emma showed up a few times, too. If you can find it, it’s well worth listening to. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/17 "2006-07-13T06:18:25Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > Hugh Laurie also had a bit part in an episode of The Young Ones, along with Stephen Fry and Emma Thompson. Ah, the “Bambi” epi. Scumbag College goes to University Challenge and plays against Footlights College. I think Fry was “Lord Snot.” Classic for Vyv’s decapitation, Mel Smith’s appearance as a security guard, and SPG’s attack on the Footlights Team… “World’s stickiest bogey?” “Toxteth O’Grady, USA.” ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/18 "2006-07-13T06:25:35Z")
> [@Peter Morris](#): > > If you can find it, check out _A Bit Of Fry And Laurie_ (sketch show) with Stephen Fry. > > Interesting titbit : Laurie’s first TV appearence was as part of the Cambridge rowing crew in the annual Oxford Vs Cambridge boat race. And Steven Fry’s first TV appearance was representing his Cambridge college on the quiz show _University Challenge_. He always was a clever clogs. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/19 "2006-07-13T06:30:30Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > The best recent comedies are Spaced, Black Books, Peep Show, Green Wing, and The Office. No discussion or arugment is possible. You’re obviously not _local_. _League of Gentlemen._ Best thing in many many years. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2006, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259/20 "2006-07-13T08:23:29Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > You’re obviously not _local_. > _League of Gentlemen._ Best thing in many many years. I beg to differ. It started off decently enough, but went downhill fast. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intro-to-british-comedy/364259.md?page=2)