Waking up at the Crack of Dawn [Archive]

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Louis VI the Fat

03-02-2009, 15:16

Everybody rules at something. Germans make great cars. France has the best food. Italy's got art and architecture. The Americans have got, uh...let me see now...erm...well there must be something, let me get back on that later.

Britannia rules humour. Or indeed the other way round. Not just in jokes and comedy shows, in everything, in her entire culture. It's everywhere, all the time. In fact, I've spend many an evening talking to Britons where I suspected them of just taking the piss the entire time. Love it!
Painfully deprived of the presence of pubs or any substantial amount of live Britons, I have to rely a good deal on British television to get my fix of British humour.

:beatnik2: --------> http://matousmileys.free.fr/tele2.gif --------> http://matousmileys.free.fr/rofl.gif

Any fans out there of British comedy? Perhaps of my perennial favourite Blackadder? Any recommendations for other series, programs, books?

I've thrown in a poll simply for the sake of it.

I of the Storm

03-02-2009, 15:31

There is no Monty Python at all in the poll. Why is that?:inquisitive:

Anyway, I really enjoy british humour, despite being german. :boxedin:

I can recommend "Bits of Fry and Laurie" (go to youtube for some sort of 'best of') and "Yes, Minister"/"Yes, Prime Minister", and another one with Laurie I keep forgetting the name... Edit: it's Jeeves and Wooster. Youtube also.

anyway, here's a little gem to soothe any withdrawal symptoms

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwbB6B0cQs4

pevergreen

03-02-2009, 16:09

Monty Python.

I remember being...shocked to hear that my GF of the time had not seen the holy grail. I made her watch it. She didn't really enjoy it. Its a bit sad to finally admit it, but she is...quite stupid. :sweatdrop:

Anyway, MP or bust.

Lemur

03-02-2009, 16:28

Others have already mentioned the criminal lack of Monty Python, but I'd like to point out that you're omitting my personal favorite, Spaced. Any series that can create great comedy out of fanboy hatred of Jar-Jar Binks (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8Ki_up2BdY) is special in my book.

Quite right, however, that Americans have no concept of comedy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpTJywtAqLc).

caravel

03-02-2009, 17:11

You've missed "Only Fools and Horses".

seireikhaan

03-02-2009, 17:14

Monty Python.

The fruit-based self-defence class is my favorite.

EDIT: Here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RKTSwAVaoU) we go.

Hooahguy

03-02-2009, 17:17

well im not british but i love The Office. at least the american version.

rajpoot

03-02-2009, 17:18

The Blackadder, Jeeves and Wooster, Thin Blue Line........when I was younger, Mr Bean too.

Gregoshi

03-02-2009, 17:22

And Benny Hill. :2thumbsup:

tibilicus

03-02-2009, 19:20

Peep show.

You might not get it but if you do you'll love it. Trust me.

Fragony

03-02-2009, 19:29

Alllllllllbatros

nough said.

And how could you forget about Harry Potter, no not the movies but the books are a riot.

Strike For The South

03-02-2009, 20:02

The Office Dry Humor at its best. The American version doesn't quite match it.

And this scene (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE6P-lwS0lQ)

Mediolanicus

03-02-2009, 22:15

Blackadder
Monty Python
Are you Being Served?
Ruddy Hell, it's Paul and Harry!
A Bit of Fry and Laury.

Hooahguy

03-02-2009, 22:20

The Office Dry Humor at its best. The American version doesn't quite match it.

And this scene (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE6P-lwS0lQ)
meh. i prefer the american version....

Evil_Maniac From Mars

03-02-2009, 22:24

The final one - because my favourite is Yes, [Prime] Minister and I am German.

naut

03-03-2009, 00:04

QI, interesting and funny.

I also like the Mighty Boosh (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz2szNKnsXo), it's odd.

Veho Nex

03-03-2009, 00:28

woad&fangs

03-03-2009, 00:29

Monty Python.

The fruit-based self-defence class is my favorite.

EDIT: Here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RKTSwAVaoU) we go.

My favorite MP skit as well:balloon3:

Centurio Nixalsverdrus

03-03-2009, 01:05

I am German and I do like British Humour. OP, are you a Frenchie? Why do you think your food would be the best in the world? You eat little children with rubber boots on, everyone knows this. ;)

Btw my favourite is Blackadder.

Oh, "Coupling" definitely the best sitcom ever. Anyone has seen the scene in which Jeff is so afraid of the beautiful brunette in the train that he invents having only one leg? And upon finding out that she likes one-legged men tries to amputate one of his?

Sasaki Kojiro

03-03-2009, 01:11

Monty Python.

The fruit-based self-defence class is my favorite.

EDIT: Here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RKTSwAVaoU) we go.

Love the end joke, but americans* do self defense parodies better...here's jim carrey:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_vvI26NnwE

*north americans :tongue3:

Hosakawa Tito

03-03-2009, 01:21

The Goodies. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Goodies_(TV_series)) I used to watch this one on a Canadian station after school. They were like Monty Python-low budget.

Meneldil

03-03-2009, 01:22

Louis is a shame to la République for not mentioning Monty Python.

I've been watching Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead lately, and I'm still laughing from it. Even though it's not as funny as classic british humour, it was still vastly better than so-called french/american/whatev comedies.

Somebody Else

03-03-2009, 01:39

Black Books is always worth a giggle.

Monty Python, has to be added again. Only something truly great could - simply through recollection of it at an (in)appropriate moment - cause me to giggle through most of the Passion of the Christ.

Or maybe I'm just twisted.

King Jan III Sobieski

03-03-2009, 04:25

I don't watch any of these :-)

I do like Monty Python, however!

CountArach

03-03-2009, 07:34

Fawlty Towers was, and will always be, the pinnacle of British Comedy.

edyzmedieval

03-03-2009, 09:05

Me likey BlackAdder. And SouthPark.

Sigurd

03-03-2009, 09:40

I watch Jack Dee, Live at the Apollo every week.
It is British stand up at its best. Great fun. :2thumbsup:

Banquo's Ghost

03-03-2009, 14:28

I have to add The Fast Show (and the most sublime character in it, Rowley Birkin QC (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPiGJBHVadA)).

And astonishingly, no-one has mentioned Father Ted (http://www.dailymotion.com/related/x1kpep/video/xv78q_father-ted-funniest-bits_fun).

If one is a true aficionado of British humour, you really need to get hold of the radio recordings from "I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue". Utterly brilliant improvisation and the highest pinnacle of the double entendre and venomous pun. Some snippets here (http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/clue/clips/). If you haven't heard this Louis, make every effort - you will adore every second.

:bow:

naut

03-03-2009, 15:24

And astonishingly, no-one has mentioned Father Ted (http://www.dailymotion.com/related/x1kpep/video/xv78q_father-ted-funniest-bits_fun).
How did I forget. Maybe it's because there are no Maoris on Craggy Island.

Rhyfelwyr

03-03-2009, 16:27

You've missed "Only Fools and Horses".

Beats the listed shows anyday. Do you smell onions?

Ibrahim

03-03-2009, 16:33

I voted GAH!!

I don't see monty python.:shame:

InsaneApache

03-03-2009, 16:46

Who said Benny Hill? Wash your mouth out with soap that man! :whip:

Gregoshi

03-03-2009, 16:53

Who said Benny Hill? Wash your mouth out with soap that man! :whip:
What do you expect from a crude colonial? :embarassed:

LittleGrizzly

03-03-2009, 18:27

Whoever said coupling... that man has taste!

Amazing show!!

FatherTed as well.... full of laughs.. another great show...

Caius

03-05-2009, 02:33

I need to see this Gah! proggramme, must be impressin'.

Boyar Son

03-05-2009, 06:29

aahhh **** brits suck at humor i seen that knight thing where he get limbs chopped of. WTF? thank God i dont live in europe dude eating cheese 2/47 must make ur lives crap huh? anyway u want real comedy look at MAD magazine

Strike For The South

03-05-2009, 06:31

Sasaki Kojiro

03-05-2009, 06:37

Boyar Son

03-05-2009, 06:42

Dear God no.

sfts cmon if anything whatever louie says u would agree on like Europe being #1 that's against everything America stands for and ur American aren't u or Texan. & texans dont like french make fun of a euro once in a while

to much BBC is bad for ur health

Strike For The South

03-05-2009, 06:50

sfts cmon if anything whatever louie says u would agree on like Europe being #1 that's against everything America stands for and ur American aren't u or Texan. & texans dont like french make fun of a euro once in a while

to much BBC is bad for ur health

Texans love the French and vice versa. The schoolyard banter is mere pillow talk. The Frexas alliance rules all.

In fact my dream is to marry a French/Cajun/Italian/Jewish/Southern Belle. In America I just may find her.

Europe is a wonderful place and when I get some money I will go there and indulge in all the culture I envy so much.

There I said it.

I of the Storm

03-05-2009, 09:30

Meanwhile, here's another small one for you to enjoy

The Amazing Jesus (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJGRLhGDUh0)

You're welcome

Louis VI the Fat

03-05-2009, 13:11

Lots of great links and recommendations. I'm checking them all out on YouTube to see which ones deserve a follow up on Amazon. Thanks to you all!

Louis is a shame to la République for not mentioning Monty Python.Python? Meh. The only British snakes I like are those creepy crawlers Blackadder and Tony Blair.

I liked 'Life of Brian'. But most of the other Monty Python stuff is too old and, more importantly, too geeky for my liking.

OP, are you a Frenchie? Why do you think your food would be the best in the world?Centurio, have you no idea what irony is? It's when something at first sight looks like it is something else but it actually isn't and instead it is something made out of iron. :book:

brits suck at humor Everything goes over your head, doesn't it, Boyar? You should go to Jamaica and become a limbo dancer.

Texans love the French and vice versa. The schoolyard banter is mere pillow talk. The Frexas alliance rules all.
I hate you Texans with your admiration for France! With your oversized hats and your shiny toilet paper with pink flowers and your ridiculous preconceptions that Frenchmen are great lovers! Get real for God's sake! I'm French and I'm hung like a baby carrot and a couple of petits pois.

Aaah...to be a vipère noire afficionado means one is never lost for a great quote. :2thumbsup:

I of the Storm

03-05-2009, 13:51

Aaah...to be a vipère noire afficionado means one is never lost for a great quote. :2thumbsup:

QFT!

InsaneApache

03-05-2009, 14:31

vipère noire afficionado

Did you mean Whitesnake? I never had you down as a tight tights and back blown hairdo type of guy. :laugh4:

As a gesture of cross channel entente, my brother had a thing about Jaques Tati when I was a teenager. About as funny as having your nuts scrapped across a cheesegrater.

Which blackadder do you prefer? The first series was dire, absolute rubbish. The second series is my favourite, closely followed by the fourth. Queenie was an inspiration to my wife, also a redhead. :yes:

InsaneApache

03-05-2009, 14:38

On another note may I present some of the worst comedy and I use that word lightly, ever presented to UK TV screens.

Bless this house.

Father dear father.

Robins nest.

Love thy neighbour.

Mind your language.

Benny Hill. (sorry Greg)

On the other hand some gems, largely unknown...

Gimme, gimme, gimme.

Thin blue line.

Game on.

Brass eye.

The day today.

Alan Partridge.

Mrs. Merton.

The first series of Men behaving badly.

Louis VI the Fat

03-05-2009, 16:39

Which blackadder do you prefer? The first series was dire, absolute rubbish. The second series is my favourite, closely followed by the fourth. Queenie was an inspiration to my wife, also a redhead. :yes:'La vipère noire' is Blackadder, what the series was called on French television. Needles to say, the series tanked. The humour relies on a non-stop verbal barrage, it just doesn't translate well. My father still thinks I'm mad for liking it. He doesn't get it, he thinks it's about Englishmen donning on weird costumes and pulling funny faces in historical settings with cheap decors.

I myself never did get into it until I finally got a version with English subtitles. The first time I watch, everything sounds like 'Get out, you'll a bit ness wine!' ~:confused:
With subtitles, the aural fog is lifted and the phrase is now revealed to be 'Get out! You libidinous swine!'
Then I watch it for the third time with a dictionary on my lap. And the fourth time, at last, I get to laugh. It is a lot of hard work. :sweatdrop:

The first series has its moments, but as a whole it simply doesn't work. Rowan Atkinson co-wrote it, and he turned his character into a sort of Mr. Bean. Rubbish. For the second series, they brought in Ben Elton as writer. He polished up the concept and the characters. Now it worked! Just a few characters, set in a small, nearly claustrophobic setting. Edmund Blackadder is stuck in some situation that he can't get out of, and is aided by friends that are even more useless than the people that oppose him.

I can't choose between series two, three or four. I always like the one that I last watched the best. Each of the three is brilliant, each in its own right. If I had to choose, the fourth (WWI) is my favourite. The pigeon and courtroom episode is a complete riot. The Lord Flasheart episode is my favourite of all episodes.
('Ask me why I'm not wearing underpants!'
'Why not, Lord Flasheart?'
'Because the pants that will take the job on haven't been invented yet!')

And they managed a great ending to the entire series. It is so easy to get it wrong if you mix comedy with seriousness, but they got it right perfectly. :2thumbsup:

Yoyoma1910

03-05-2009, 17:03

The Americans have got, uh...let me see now...erm...well there must be something, let me get back on that later.

Sideburns.

Ours are the best.

Sarmatian

03-05-2009, 19:03

The Americans have got, uh...let me see now...erm...well there must be something, let me get back on that later.

Americans have Texas :laugh4:

In no particular order - Only Fools and Horses, Blackadder, Monty Python and Coupling... Probably Blackadder is my favourite.

(Blackadder on Germans): However, their Teutonic reputation for brutality is well deserved. Their operas last three or four days and they have no word for "fluffy".

While we're on the subject of Blackadder, I heard there may be a fifth season. Any truth to that or just a rumour?

I of the Storm

03-05-2009, 20:00

Never heard of that. I'd be glad though!

Omanes Alexandrapolites

03-05-2009, 20:20

My personal favourites include the Vicar of Dibley, Live at the Apollo (they killed Jack Dee off after the 2nd Series replacing him with guest hosts - much more varied) and Mock the Week (sample (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHqn3uj-x0I&fmt=18), but be warned, although this is clean, others are not).

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQRSk355vXE)Best comedians include Alan Carr, Michael MacIntyre and Frankie Boyle (the scot on Mock the Week - none of them are really clean enough to post here). Jo Brand is fantastic too - she's also showed her fantastic dancing ability (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABTYH5RIjWU&fmt=18) off (compare with the real thing (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9tZDWznvJs&fmt=18) first) lately.

Nice to know foreigners see us Brits as good at something too ~:)

Aussies are fantastic too (an Aussie on Mock the Week (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32pq2QycIEA&fmt=18)) - must have inherited it from us lot (or the other way around).

~:)

LittleGrizzly

03-05-2009, 21:47

Mock the week is quite simply the funniest thing on televsion atm*

*that is currently still running... blackadder father ted ect. don't fall into this category...

Edit: infact you have just convinced me to go watch some right now...

Edit 2: i think people can watch full episodes of mock the week on www.bbc.co.uk on thier 'iplayer' im not so sure about people outside the UK though...

Centurio Nixalsverdrus

03-05-2009, 22:24

Centurio, have you no idea what irony is? It's when something at first sight looks like it is something else but it actually isn't and instead it is something made out of iron. :book:
Sorry I didn't recognize the irony because you also stated that "Germans build the best cars", and that has absolutely nothing to do with irony, but is instead a fact like the sun rising and setting every day, or gravity or whatever you want...

Boyar Son

03-06-2009, 02:51

Everything goes over your head, doesn't it, Boyar? You should go to Jamaica and become a limbo dancer.

thats exactly what i mean, this should've been left alone next to the airline food jokes, disco, and brit humor.

Strike For The South

03-06-2009, 03:08

thats exactly what i mean, this should've been left alone next to the airline food jokes, disco, and brit humor.

God, you're such an outlaw. You're like totally awesome can we hang brah? Like Seriously?

https://img22.imageshack.us/img22/7920/fromtheinternetthumb300.th.jpg (https://img22.imageshack.us/my.php?image=fromtheinternetthumb300.jpg)

I of the Storm

03-06-2009, 09:54

Another one just came to my mind:

Dad's army (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vx4Z3a118D8)

The Fuzz

03-06-2009, 15:33

I'm an American but I grew up watching Keeping Up Appearances and Fawlty Towers on the public channels.

Pannonian

03-06-2009, 19:11

Red Dwarf and One Foot in the Grave haven't been mentioned yet. Some bits of Harry Enfield, such as the Self-Righteous Brothers (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks7AwE3Xpfk) and Mr Chomondely-Warner (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08BqaSuEE_w). Also, Newman and Baddiel's History Today (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4oHbvpRwLE).

lars573

03-08-2009, 17:23

Americans have Texas :laugh4:

In no particular order - Only Fools and Horses, Blackadder, Monty Python and Coupling... Probably Blackadder is my favourite.

(Blackadder on Germans): However, their Teutonic reputation for brutality is well deserved. Their operas last three or four days and they have no word for "fluffy".

While we're on the subject of Blackadder, I heard there may be a fifth season. Any truth to that or just a rumour?
A few years ago there was a special (appearantly there are others but I've never seen them) called Blackadder goes back and forth. Set with modern versions of all the Blackadder characters. Where Baldrick invents a time machine.....

Prince Cobra

03-08-2009, 19:19

Blackadder, of course! I've watched these series when I was about ten... It's funny because it's back on the TV and every Saturday I sit, watch and laugh ... :beam:

P.S. I would say the First and Second are my favourite and the Third also has its moments. Well, the last, I did not much like it.

Centurio Nixalsverdrus

03-08-2009, 20:05

Frasier is really the most hilarious sitcom ever.

Pannonian

03-08-2009, 20:50

Another Harry Enfield sketch.

Women - Keep Your Virtue (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZ0jRuASVEQ&feature=related)

Evil_Maniac From Mars

03-09-2009, 03:40

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCQ4oBcuTBY

Banquo's Ghost

03-09-2009, 08:41

Frasier is really the most hilarious sitcom ever.

Yes it is, but 'tis hardly a prime example of British humour.

(Though one could argue a lineage to farce).

Adrian II

03-09-2009, 13:31

Another Harry Enfield sketch.

Women - Keep Your Virtue (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZ0jRuASVEQ&feature=related):beam:

Enfield is my favourite and this series tops everything else he ever made (and he made a lot). I literally fell of the couch laughing when I saw my first installment of Mr Cholmondley-Warner.

Thermal

03-15-2009, 16:42

GAH! faulty outer that, but seriously, you missed tons of good ones :laugh4: