British Comedy, in film, radio and television, is known for its consistently quirky characters, plots and settings, and has produced some of the most famous and memorable comic actors and characters in the last fifty years. Film refers to the celluloid media on which movies are printed. ... The examples and perspective in this article do not represent a worldwide view. ...

Film comedy

British comedy films are legendary, but among the most notable are the Ealing comedies, the 1950s satires of the Boulting Brothers, and innumerable popular comedy series including the St Trinian's films, the "Doctor" series, and the long-running Carry On films. Some of the best known British film comedy stars include Will Hay, George Formby, Norman Wisdom, Peter Sellers and the Monty Python team. Other actors associated with British comedy films include Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas, Margaret Rutherford, Irene Handl and Leslie Phillips. Ealing Studios, a TV and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London, claims to be the oldest film studio in the world. ... The 1950s were the decade that spanned the years 1950 through 1959, although some sources say from 1951 through 1960. ... John and Roy Boulting were English film-makers, who became known for their popular series of satirical comedies in the 1950s and 1960s. ... St Trinians is a fictional girls school created by Ronald Searle, a British cartoonist. ... The Carry On films were a long-running series of British popular low-budget comedy films, directed by Gerald Thomas and produced by Peter Rogers. ... William Thompson Hay (December 6, 1888 – April 18, 1949) was a British comedian, actor and amateur astronomer. ... George Formby George Formby (May 26, 1904 - March 6, 1961) was a British singer and comedian who became a major star of both cinema and music hall. ... Sir Norman Wisdom (born on 4 February 1915 is an English comedian, singer and actor). ... Peter Sellers on The Muppet Show This is about the British actor; for the American director, see Peter Sellars. ... The Monty Python troupe in 1969. ... Ian Carmichael as Lord Peter Wimsey Ian Carmichael OBE (born 18 June 1920) is a British film, stage and television actor. ... Terry-Thomas (left) and Clive Morton in a scene from Lucky Jim (1957) Terry-Thomas (Thomas Terence Hoare-Stephens) (14 July 1911 - 8 January 1990) was a distinctive British comic actor of the 1950s and 1960s. ... Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple Dame Margaret Rutherford, DBE (May 11, 1892 – May 22, 1972) was a British character actress who first came to prominence following World War II in the film adaptations of Noel Cowards Blithe Spirit, and Oscar Wildes The Importance of Being Earnest. ... Irene Handl (December 27, 1901 – November 29, 1987) was an English film actress. ... Leslie Phillips OBE (born April 20, 1924) is a British comedy actor, born in Tottenham, London. ...

Recent successful films include the working class comedies Brassed Off (1996) and The Full Monty (1997), and the more middle class Richard Curtis-scripted films Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Notting Hill (1999) and Love Actually (2003). The term working class is used to denote a social class. ... Brassed Off (1996) is a British film written and directed by Mark Herman. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Full Monty is a 1997 comedy film, a story of six unemployed British steel workers who decide to form a male striptease act. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The middle class (or middle classes) comprises a social group once defined by exception as an intermediate social class between the nobility and the peasantry. ... Richard Curtis in London, 1999 Richard Curtis (born November 8, 1956), a New Zealand-born British comedy scriptwriter, is best known for the TV series Blackadder and The Vicar of Dibley and the movies Four Weddings and a Funeral and Notting Hill. ... Four Weddings and a Funeral is a 1994 British romantic comedy film directed by Mike Newell. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal. // Events January Bill Clinton January 1 : North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect. ... Notting Hill is a district of London located to the west of the centre and close to the north-western corner of Hyde Park. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Love Actually is a romantic comedy film first released in cinemas in October and November 2003. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See Cinema of the United Kingdom. Michael Caine in Get Carter (1971) The United Kingdom has been influential in the technological, commercial, and artistic development of cinema. ...

Radio

Radio comedy in Britain has been almost exclusively the preserve of the BBC, and a number of British radio comedies achieved considerable renown in the second half of the twentieth century. Radio comedy, or comedic radio programming, is a radio broadcast that may involve sitcom elements, sketches, and many other forms of comedy found on other mediums. ...

In the 1940s and 1950s variety dominated the schedules, and popular series included ITMA and Much Binding in the Marsh. In the mid 1950s, however, two notable series emerged which would help to shape the future of radio and television comedy in Britain. The Goons (Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan and Harry Secombe) starred in their own anarchic series The Goon Show which ran throughout the 1950s. At the same time, the BBC was also running Hancock's Half Hour starring Tony Hancock, the first of a new generation of comedies based around believable characters and situations. Hancock's Half Hour later transferred to T.V. and was phenomenally successful throughout the '50s, running concurrently on radio and television until 1960. // Events and trends World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrination, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons such as the atomic bomb. ... The 1950s were the decade that spanned the years 1950 through 1959, although some sources say from 1951 through 1960. ... Variety (linguistics) is a concept that includes for instance dialects, standard language and jargon. ... Its That Man Again or more commonly ITMA was a 1940s BBC radio comedy programme. ... Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh was the title of a comical BBC radio show broadcast from 1944 to 1954, starring Kenneth Horne and Richard Murdoch as senior staff in a fictional RAF station battling red tape and wartime inconvenience. ... The 1950s were the decade that spanned the years 1950 through 1959, although some sources say from 1951 through 1960. ... The Goons are a small internet community. ... Peter Sellers on The Muppet Show This is about the British actor; for the American director, see Peter Sellars. ... Terence Alan Milligan, KBE (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was a writer, artist, musician, humanitarian and comedian. ... Sir Harry Donald Secombe CBE (8 September 1921–11 April 2001) was a Welsh entertainer, a noted fine tenor singing voice and a talent for comedy. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC, sometimes also known as the Beeb or Auntie) is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world, founded in 1922. ... Hancocks Half Hour was a famous BBC radio comedy series of the 1950s starring Tony Hancock. ... Biography published in 1978 (1983 paperback reprint shown) Anthony John Hancock, best known as Tony Hancock (May 12, 1924 – June 24, 1968) was a major figure in British television and radio comedy in the 1950s and 1960s. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ...

Another notable radio show was the double entendre-laden Round the Horne (1965-1968), a sequel to the earlier series Beyond Our Ken, which ran from 1959 to 1964. A double entendre is a figure of speech similar to the pun, in which a spoken phrase can be understood in either of two ways. ... Round the Horne was one of the most influential BBC Radio comedy programmes, comparable to The Goon Show in its influence on other comedy programmes. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Beyond Our Ken (1958-1963) was a radio programme, the predecessor to Round the Horne (1964-1969). ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ...

Later radio shows made use of the panel game format, including the long-running Just a Minute (from 1967 to date) and I'm Sorry, I Haven't a Clue (from 1972). This in turn has influenced TV series like Have I Got News for You (from 1990) and They Think It's All Over (from 1995). Just a Minute is a BBC Radio 4 radio comedy panel game and was first broadcast on the BBC on December 22, 1967. ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... Im Sorry I Havent A Clue, often abbreviated to the initialism ISIHAC, is a radio comedy programme which has been broadcast several times annually on BBC Radio 4 from April 11, 1972 to the present. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1972 calendar). ... Have I Got News for You (sometimes abbreviated to HIGNFY) is a long-running UK television topical panel game. ... This article is about the year. ... They Think Its All Over (1995-) is the name of a British satirical game show with a sporting theme shown on BBC 1. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

BBC Radio has continued to be a breeding ground for new talent and many programmes have transferred successfully to television in recent years, including Whose Line is it Anyway?, Goodness Gracious Me, Knowing Me, Knowing You and Little Britain. Whose Line Is It Anyway? (sometimes abbreviated to Whose Line?), is an improvisational comedy show. ... Goodness Gracious Me was a BBC English language sketch show originally on BBC Radio 4 and later on BBC TWO, based on four Indian-British actors: Sanjeev Bhaskar, Kulvinder Ghir, Meera Syal and Nina Wadia. ... For the Alan Partridge talk show, see Knowing Me, Knowing You. ... Little Britain is a character-based BBC radio and television sketch show written by and starring Matt Lucas and David Walliams. ...

Television

Although many popular shows of recent years began life on BBC radio, there have been many successful and influential series which were designed purely for T.V.

Following the success of Hancock's Half Hour, the sitcom became firmly entrenched in the television schedules. Some of the most successful examples include Steptoe and Son, Dad's Army, The Likely Lads, Porridge, Fawlty Towers, The Good Life, Yes Minister, Only Fools and Horses, Blackadder and The Office. A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherds Bush, London. ... Dads Army was a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War, written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. ... The Likely Lads was a hit British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. ... Porridge is a British BBC television sitcom (1974–1977), written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais and starring Ronnie Barker. ... Fawlty Towers was a British sitcom made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975. ... The Good Life on the cover of Radio Times magazine. ... Yes, (prime) minister: Sir Humphrey Appleby, James Jim Hacker, Bernard Woolley Yes, Minister and its sequel Yes, Prime Minister are British sitcoms about the struggle between (Dr) James Jim Hacker (played by Paul Eddington), the government minister of the (fictional) Department of Administrative Affairs (and later as Prime Minister) and... Only Fools and Horses is a hugely popular British sitcom, created and written by John Sullivan, and made and broadcast by the BBC. Seven series were broadcast between 1981 and 1991, with sporadic Christmas specials until 2003. ... Blackadder is the generic name that encompasses four series of an acclaimed BBC historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments. ... The main cast of the American version of The Office. ...

The BBC has generally been dominant in television comedy, but the commercial stations have also had some successes. ITV's most successful sitcoms were generally produced in the 1970s, including Rising Damp, On the Buses, George and Mildred and the now terminally unfashionable Love Thy Neighbour. ITVs Logo 2006—present Independent Television (ITV) is the name given to the original network of British commercial television broadcasters, set up to provide competition to the BBC. In England and Wales, the channel has been rebranded to ITV1 by ITV plc, the owners of the broadcasting licences for... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... Rising Damp was a UK television sitcom produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV, first broadcast from 1974 to 1978. ... Movie poster for On The Buses 1971 theatrical release On The Buses souvenir edition of TV Times magazine. ... George and Mildred was a British sitcom of the 1970s produced by Thames Television. ... Love Thy Neighbour was a British sitcom of the early 1970s, made by Thames Television for ITV. It starred Jack Smethurst, Rudolph Walker, Nina Baden-Semper and Kate Williams. ...

Commercial station Channel 4 has been more successful than ITV with situation comedies in recent years. Some of the better-known examples are Chelmsford 123, Chance in a Million, Drop the Dead Donkey, Spaced, Father Ted and Black Books. Channel 4 is a public service television broadcaster in the United Kingdom (see British television). ... Chelmsford 123 was a situation comedy produced for British Channel 4 television by Hat Trick Productions. ... Chance in a Million was a British sitcom broadcast in 1984 and 1986 with Simon Callow as the hapless Tom Chance, and Brenda Blethyn as his long-suffering girlfriend Alison Little. ... Drop the Dead Donkey was a situation comedy that ran on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 1990 to 1998. ... Spaced is a British television situation comedy written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, directed by Edgar Wright, and broadcast on Channel 4. ... Father Ted is a 1990s television situation comedy set around the lives of three priests on the fictional extremely remote Craggy Island off the west coast of Ireland. ... Black Books is a British sitcom, broadcast on Channel 4 and written by Dylan Moran, Graham Linehan, Arthur Mathews, Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley. ...

Other formats have also been popular, with sketch shows, stand-up comedy, impressionists and even puppet shows finding success. Although impressionists experienced a lull in popularity in the 1990s, the recent success of Dead Ringers (another BBC radio cross-over) has been notable. An impressionist is a performer whose act consists of giving the impression of being someone else by imitating the other persons voice and mannerisms. ... Seinfeld was a pop cultural phenomenon during the 90s and became one of the most popular TV programs ever. ... Dead Ringers is a UK radio and television comedy impressions show broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and BBC2. ...

The most notable satirical comedies are the ground-breaking 1960s series That Was the Week That Was, ITV's controversial puppet show Spitting Image and the news quiz Have I Got News for You. Satire is a literary technique of writing or art which principally ridicules its subject (individuals, organizations, states) often as an intended means of provoking or preventing change. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... That Was The Week That Was, also known as TW3, was a satirical television comedy programme that aired on BBC Television in 1962 and 1963. ... ITVs Logo 2006—present Independent Television (ITV) is the name given to the original network of British commercial television broadcasters, set up to provide competition to the BBC. In England and Wales, the channel has been rebranded to ITV1 by ITV plc, the owners of the broadcasting licences for... Spitting Image was a satirical puppet show that ran on Britains ITV television network from 1984 to 1996. ... Have I Got News for You (sometimes abbreviated to HIGNFY) is a long-running UK television topical panel game. ...

One of the most influential sketch shows was Monty Python's Flying Circus, a comedy from the late 1960s and early seventies that introduced us to such luminaries as John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam. The Pythons went on to produce several feature films and had a profound influence on British comedy. They themselves had been influenced by The Goons and Spike Milligan's Q series. Python found surprising popularity in the United States in the 1970s, as did the less cerebral humour of Benny Hill and his ITV sketch series The Benny Hill Show. It has been suggested that Monty Pythons Flying Circus (stage version) be merged into this article or section. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... John Cleese as Q in Die Another Day. ... Eric Idle (born March 29, 1943) is an English comedian, actor and film director, as well as an author and guitarist/songwriter. ... Michael Palin (1999) Michael Edward Palin, CBE (born May 5, 1943 in Broomhill, Sheffield, Yorkshire, England) is an English comedian, actor and television presenter best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python, as well as for his travel documentaries. ... Terry Gilliam at Cannes 2001. ... The Goons are a small internet community. ... Terence Alan Milligan, KBE (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was a writer, artist, musician, humanitarian and comedian. ... Milligan in costume for his Q series. ... Alfred Hawthorn Hill (January 21, 1924 – April 18, 1992), usually known as Benny Hill, was a prolific comic British actor / singer, best known for his television programme, The Benny Hill Show. ... Born Alfred Hawthorn Hill (January 21, 1924/1925 - April 20, 1992), Benny Hill was a prolific comic British actor. ...

Other notable sketch-based series include Morecambe and Wise, The Two Ronnies, French and Saunders, Little Britain and The Fast Show. Morecambe and Wise Morecambe and Wise were a famous British comic double act comprising Eric Morecambe OBE and Ernie Wise OBE. The act lasted four decades until Morecambes retirement, shortly before his death in 1984. ... Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett The Two Ronnies was a British sketch show that aired on BBC One from 1971 to 1987. ... French & Saunders is a British sketch comedy television show starring and written by comedy team Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, and is also the name by which they are known on the rare occasions when they appear elsewhere as a double act. ... Little Britain is a character-based BBC radio and television sketch show written by and starring Matt Lucas and David Walliams. ... The Fast Show was a BBC comedy sketch show programme which ran for four series from 1994 to 2000, starring Paul Whitehouse, Charlie Higson, Simon Day, Mark Williams, John Thomson, Arabella Weir and Caroline Aherne (1994-1997). ...

Vic Reeves Big Night Out influenced the style of a whole new generation of comics in the 1990s until the present day. [1] Vic Reeves Big Night Out was a cult British comedy stage show and later TV series which ran on Channel 4 for two series in 1990 and 1991, as well as a New Year special. ...

See also

• List of British comedians
• List of Comedies
• British Comedy Awards
• British humour
• British sitcom
• UK topics

This is a list of comedians of British birth or famous mainly in Britain. ... A list of comedies by medium and country of origin. ... The British Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year. ... British humour has a reputation for being puzzling to non-British speakers of English - but certain nations (such as Australia) find it readily understandable whereas the average American viewer may find the comedic elements less comprehensible. ... A British sitcom is a situation comedy (sitcom) produced in the United Kingdom. ... This is a list of topics related to the United Kingdom. ...

External links

• BBC Guide to Comedy
• British TV Comedy
• British Comedy
• The British Sitcom Guide
• British Comedy Database
• The British Sense of Humour
  • Online exhibit hosted by screenonline (part of the British Film Institute).
• Kettering Magazine – the magazine of elderly British comedy
• The Comedy Zone
• Madcap British political satire
• Chortle – British comedy website
• GreenCine primer on British Comedy
• Info and articles on great British comedy shows