# Let's talk about the funniest British comedy of the last decade **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 24, 2013, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413 "2013-07-24T20:30:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/61 "2013-12-11T12:21:46Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > I am surprised that “The High Life” hasn’t done so but I suspect that Benedict Cumberbatch would now blow any potential budget for it. I assume you mean “Cabin Pressure”. “The High Life” was a (IMHO, really really BAD) TV sitcom also set on an airline, starring Alan Cumming. And I don’t know if Cabin Pressure would make a good TV show. So much of its humor is in the dialogue, plus every episode would be set in the cockpit of a small plane. Doesn’t make for gripping visuals. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/62 "2013-12-11T23:16:38Z")
> [@Mrs.Cake](#): > > Just popping in to say that thanks to this thread I now own all four seasons of _Cabin Pressure_, a show I had never even heard of before. Thanks again, Dopers! Do let us know how you like it. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/63 "2013-12-12T08:46:38Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > I assume you mean “Cabin Pressure”. “The High Life” was a (IMHO, really really BAD) TV sitcom also set on an airline, starring Alan Cumming. > > And I don’t know if Cabin Pressure would make a good TV show. So much of its humor is in the dialogue, plus every episode would be set in the cockpit of a small plane. Doesn’t make for gripping visuals. oooops, yes, I did mean “cabin pressure”. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/64 "2013-12-12T09:11:53Z")
No love for _Black Books_? Definitely one of my favourites. The _IT Crowd_ is hilarious stuff too. I’m also fond of _The Mighty Boosh_ but it’s just too weird for most people I know. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/65 "2013-12-12T16:01:38Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > No love for _Black Books_? Definitely one of my favourites. The _IT Crowd_ is hilarious stuff too. > > I’m also fond of _The Mighty Boosh_ but it’s just too weird for most people I know. Not so much “black books” but definitely the other two. I watched “the works outing” (the IT crowd) last night again…for the nth time and it is still wonderful, as is “the legend of old Gregg” and “the nightmare of milky joe”( the mighty Boosh) ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2013, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/66 "2013-12-13T12:11:21Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > No love for _Black Books_? Definitely one of my favourites. The _IT Crowd_ is hilarious stuff too. > > I’m also fond of _The Mighty Boosh_ but it’s just too weird for most people I know. Good call. I’d thought it finished longer ago, but wiki says it ran till 2004, so it just sneaks in. It is brilliant surreal humour (but not too surreal; it’s more accessible, than The Mighty Boosh), and every episode is golden right from the start, so I’d definitely recommend it. For dark humour I’d also recommend Nighty Night. The main character is a perfect portrayal of a sociopath. A lot of the people in that show also turn up in Alan Partridge, which is very funny but possibly too British to travel well. The recent movie was way better than movie versions of TV shows usually are. ---
**Author:** ![BrokenBriton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@BrokenBriton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrokenBriton)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2013, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/67 "2013-12-13T14:13:06Z")
If you like the somewhat outrageous, the Kathy Burke vehicle _Gimme, Gimme, Gimme_ should hit the spot - plenty of legit episodes on Youtube if you don’t live in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2013, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/68 "2013-12-14T02:50:00Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Not so much “black books” but definitely the other two. I watched “the works outing” (the IT crowd) last night again…for the nth time and it is still wonderful, as is “the legend of old Gregg” and “the nightmare of milky joe”( the mighty Boosh) An easy way to spot a Boosh fan at a social gathering with alcohol is to ask, in your best Old Gregg voice, if they want some Baileys. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2013, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/69 "2013-12-14T03:56:33Z")
I love “Allo Allo.” Too old? ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2013, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/70 "2013-12-14T08:45:21Z")
> [@DummyGladHands](#): > > I love “Allo Allo.” Too old? For the purposes of this thread, yes - it finished its run in 1992. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2013, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/71 "2013-12-14T10:02:56Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > An easy way to spot a Boosh fan at a social gathering with alcohol is to ask, in your best Old Gregg voice, if they want some Baileys. 🙂 My seduction technique for my wife is to ask if she’s ever drunk Baileys from a shoe, then ask if she wants to see my downstairs mix-up. Never fails…If by “fails” I mean “succeeds” ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2013, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/72 "2013-12-16T12:15:04Z")
I’ll certainly have to check out _Cabin Pressure_. Until I do, for me, the correct answer is (the unbelievably unmentioned) _The Thick of It_. Nothing smarter or sharper on the air, and few performances can match Peter Capaldi’s brilliance as Malcolm Tucker, the foul-mouthed evil genius Director of Communications to the PM (think Alistair Campbell if you know who he is), who now and then shows hints – just hints, mind you – of a human side. And the rest of the cast is amazing too. The series is by Armando Iannucci, whom we can also thank for _I’m Alan Partridge_ among many others. It’s _Yes Minister_ for this miserable political generation. Close runner-up is indeed _Peep Show_. ---
**Author:** ![Boulter\_s\_Canary](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Boulter\_s\_Canary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boulter_s_Canary)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2013, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/73 "2013-12-17T23:28:52Z")
If we’re talking radio, then it has to be [Old Harry’s Game.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Harry%27s_Game) ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2013, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/74 "2013-12-18T01:18:48Z")
Cabin Pressure is absolutely brilliant. Agree with everyone here. John Finnemore has written some great stuff. Try _John Finnemore’s Souvenir Programme_ for some more standard sketch comedy. He also is a regular contributor to many of the satirical news programs on the radio (he sometimes appears on _The Now Show_). You can also find on Youtube a voice-over of Arthur explaining the rules of Yellow Car (you are _always_ playing Yellow Car). [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/nq8KrAx26mM/hqdefault.jpg "How to play 'Yellow Car'") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq8KrAx26mM) And agree with Boulter about Old Harry’s Game. ---
**Author:** ![Mrs.Cake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2acd7d/32.png) [@Mrs.Cake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrs.Cake)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/75 "2013-12-18T18:51:47Z")
Loving _Cabin Pressure_. Trying not to binge on it, so we are now in the second series. I have to wait to listen to it when my husband is home - he’s a pilot so there is an extra level of appreciation there. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/76 "2014-02-24T00:41:48Z")
they taped the final today. zurich will be heard around christmas 2014. can’t believe we must wait so long to find out what happens. the lucky 200 at the taping said it was “BRILLIANT!!!” ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/77 "2014-02-24T01:02:02Z")
> [@rocking\_chair](#): > > they taped the final today. zurich will be heard around christmas 2014. can’t believe we must wait so long to find out what happens. the lucky 200 at the taping said it was “BRILLIANT!!!” What about the 100 otters? ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/78 "2014-02-24T01:16:08Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > I’m also fond of _The Mighty Boosh_ but it’s just too weird for most people I know. Love, love, love _The Mighty Boosh_ and _Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace._ (Some overlapping personnel in those.) Also: Look Around You (second series was in 2005, so it counts) Miranda Peep Show The Catherine Tate Show That Mitchell and Webb Look I think those all have at least some episodes that meet the “last decade” requirement. BBC America used to show comedies on Friday nights. Apparently the ratings fell short of expectations, and so now they show endless repeats of the last season of STNG or similarly aged fare. ☹ Adult Swim used to show Boosh and Look Around You, but I don’t know if they ever do anymore. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/79 "2014-02-24T16:25:39Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > What about the 100 otters? they may have shifted during the flight… ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413/80 "2014-11-18T02:22:14Z")
John Finnemore fans who haven’t been catching it already might want to check out Season 4 of Souvenir Programme - episode 1 expires from the BBC iPlayer in a few days… > **[BBC Radio 4 - John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme](https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01mk97n)** > > Sketch show from the writer of Radio 4's Cabin Pressure, John Finnemore It looks like the final “Zurich” episode of Cabin Pressure is set to air in two parts on December 23-24, can’t wait! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-the-funniest-british-comedy-of-the-last-decade/664413.md?page=5)