# What Made Certain Cities/Towns Funny to British Monty Python Fans? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 16, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876 "2016-12-16T18:04:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/1 "2016-12-16T18:04:04Z")
Up front, knowing the answers will not make ANY Monty Python bit more funny. I just get curious occasionally. Sometimes, in old episodes of “Monty Python’s Flying Circus,” the troupe seemed to get laughs just by alluding to a British town or village, or to some London suburb. American viewers like myself, of course, had no idea what the joke was supposed to be. I suppose, by the same token, an Englishman who listened to Johnny Carson’s old monologues would be baffled by jokes alluding to “beautiful downtown Burbank” or the La Brea tar pits. But to use a few random examples… in the old “Nudge Nudge” sketch, the audience seemed to find it hilarious that stiff, staid Terry Jones’ wife was from Purley. Well… what’s funny about Purley (or, perhaps, what SEEMED funny about Purley in 1970? Anything particularly funny about Notlob (er, Bolton)? Or Luton? ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/2 "2016-12-16T19:16:20Z")
I think it’s a ‘you had to be there’ kind of thing. Would Joe Piscopo’s (remember him?) “I’m from Jersey! You from Jersey?” (remember that) be funny to Londoners? Would they laugh if condolences were offered to someone who said they lived in Detroit? Now that I think about it, the Detroit one can be explained to someone who doesn’t know how terrible it has become but the New Jersey one-- is there an explanation? ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/3 "2016-12-16T19:19:32Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Now that I think about it, the Detroit one can be explained to someone who doesn’t know how terrible it has become but the New Jersey one-- is there an explanation? After someone tried to explain Tunbridge Wells to me, I explained New Jersey in that the part of it most people see driving through is that dismal stretch at the northern end as you head toward New York City–“the Industrial district of Mordor.” ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/4 "2016-12-16T19:21:39Z")
On a side note, I’m sure Basil Fawlty’s Torquay was a locale not intended exactly to be regarded as metropolitan. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/5 "2016-12-16T19:35:04Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > …Terry Jones’ wife was from Purley. Well… what’s funny about Purley (or, perhaps, what SEEMED funny about Purley in 1970? Huh - I always thought (incorrectly, evidently) that it was Burnley. > [@astorian](#): > > Anything particularly funny about Notlob (er, Bolton)? That was just a dumb jest about palindromes. (which that one actually isn’t, given that “notlob” isn’t a word) And who can forget “down in Dingly Dell…” Wherever the hell that is. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/6 "2016-12-16T19:37:29Z")
> [@Miss\_Mapp](#): > > After someone tried to explain Tunbridge Wells to me, I explained New Jersey in that the part of it most people see driving through is that dismal stretch at the northern end as you head toward New York City–“the Industrial district of Mordor.” “One does not simply walk into Joisey.” ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/7 "2016-12-16T19:46:09Z")
> [@Eddie The Horrible](#): > > On a side note, I’m sure Basil Fawlty’s Torquay was a locale not intended exactly to be regarded as metropolitan. This! Most of the places they reference are pretty nondescript, and are home to the middle-class citizens the Pythons love to parody. I’ve been to Cornwall and seen lots of tiny, quiet towns just like Torquay. It’s telling that they’re not far from a place called “Land’s End.” _ **What’s on in Torquay** _ really must be one of the world’s shortest books! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![LightWithoutHeattttttttttttttt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bc8723/32.png) [@LightWithoutHeattttttttttttttt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LightWithoutHeattttttttttttttt)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/8 "2016-12-16T20:01:30Z")
Scarsdale? … SAY NO MORE! ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/9 "2016-12-16T20:07:07Z")
Isn’t a little like the U.S. comical use of Kokomo, Kankakee, and **Cucamonga**? Douglas Adams has a lovely book of town-name jokes, entitled “The Meaning of Liff.” ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/10 "2016-12-16T20:44:03Z")
_" And now: a letter, a hotel registration book, and a series of photographs, which could add up to divorce, premature retirement, and possible criminal proceedings for a company director in Bromsgrove. He’s a freemason, and a conservative M.P., so Mr S. that’s 3,000 pounds please to stop us from revealing: Your name, The name of the three other people involved, The youth organization to which they belonged, and the shop where you bought the equipment! "_ ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/11 "2016-12-16T20:47:46Z")
Wainscotting. _Ohh! They said our town on telly!_ ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/12 "2016-12-16T20:58:35Z")
[And then of course there’s Ken Dove, voted TWICE Most Interesting Man in Dorking](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n82c46HYnko) ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/13 "2016-12-16T21:22:20Z")
When I visited England, Swindon became a running joke amongst my group, because there were always signs pointing us to it, but we never seemed to need to drive through it, no matter where we went. And the signs for it were quite far away in some cases. Many years later, I’ve heard Alan Davies making a similar observation about Swindon on QI, so it turned out to be a more widespread than I expected. I could see the Pythons making the same kind of joke. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/14 "2016-12-16T21:27:25Z")
I have the same problem as the OP when I watch Graham Norton’s chat show. He often starts the show with photos of some celebrity and makes jokes about them. But some of the jokes fly over my American head. ---
**Author:** ![Evan\_Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b487fb/32.png) [@Evan\_Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evan_Drake)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/15 "2016-12-16T22:47:25Z")
Back in the 1930s Americans found a number of places in the States instantly amusing, not so much the weirdities of the wide west ( eg: names like Bee Sting or Frump ) but common familiar places, like Perth Amboy or Paramus. Of course in those cases there may be an elusive link. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/16 "2016-12-16T22:55:47Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Isn’t a little like the U.S. comical use of Kokomo, Kankakee, and **Cucamonga**? A little but you really don’t have to be American to find their names inherently funny. Their examples of the comedy rule stating words with pronounced letter “K” or hard “C” sounds are guaranteed laugh-getters. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/17 "2016-12-16T23:01:36Z")
Anaheim, Azusa, and Cuc-- amonga. One out of three. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/18 "2016-12-16T23:03:55Z")
On a related note about British towns, I’ve watched _Benny Hill_, and a couple of other Brit shows, and there’s some sniggering about Bristol. From context, I can’t tell if the name Bristol is slang for big breasted, or if Bristol is perhaps known for sleaze? Brits, is this Yank just imagining things, or is the word Bristol bawdy somehow? ---
**Author:** ![Evan\_Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b487fb/32.png) [@Evan\_Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evan_Drake)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/19 "2016-12-16T23:28:37Z")
No. ‘Bristols’ is just old-fashioned ( maybe 1960s - 70s ? ) slang for breasts, like tits. Not current slang. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2016, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876/20 "2016-12-16T23:31:11Z")
So is that Cockney rhyming slang? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-made-certain-cities-towns-funny-to-british-monty-python-fans/774876.md?page=2)