But actually that means you're automatically not funny as well. Nigel Planer. There were some 54 wigs and 15 beards (not including the George Michael stubble) used in the filming of the five episodes. 13 years ago, there was a poll to find Britain's Best Sitcom. Meera Syal, From Caesar to Schumer, 70 years of the Land Shark, the Chicken Lady, and a bunch of Muppets, Photo Illustration images: Shutterstock (5). Deborah Norton, Stars: She also writes for School of Comedy, an adult sketch show performed by adolescents, which has just been commissioned for a full series. Jamie Lynn Spears Updated the, Eddie Van Halen Once Asked Ozzy Osbourne to Join the Band, “I think he was a bit drunk. 25 min The Perrier-nominated stand-up Sarah Kendall has added a pair of Ray-Ban Wayfarers to her ensemble and is fiddling with her stick-on beard. Kevin Eldon, Kev Wells), Urban Myths: The Mysterious Case Of Agatha Christie, Urban Myths: The Sex Pistols Vs Bill Grundy, Urban Myths: When Cary Grant Introduced Timothy Leary To LSD, The Victoria Wood Special - Wetty Hainthropp Investigates, Wallace And Gromit's Cracking Contraptions, What A F***in' Year On TV With Mel B & Mel B, What A Performance! Derren Litten, 720 min Hallmark Channel is behind this, of course. It’s a sincere portrayal of black female life that’s still sadly underrepresented in British TV comedy. Also, there’s a character named Super Hans, whom we’re presenting without comment in the hopes that you’ll Google him. Breaking down what went into distinguishing the series’ many matches from one another and from all other onscreen portrayals of the game. Melanie Hudson. Noted for a high sense of parody of previous movies, literature, and generally everyone in sight. Before James Corden moved Stateside to shepherd The Late Late Show into its newest iteration, he co-wrote and starred in what’s arguably the most popular rom-com to ever emerge from the U.K’s television screens: Gavin & Stacey. Drop some acid and allow the bizarre, Technicolor world of The Mighty Boosh to melt the retinas off your eyeballs. Now a household name, Syal came to fame with Goodness Gracious Me, the British Asian sketch show she created along with Sanjeev Bhaskar, Kulvinder Ghir and Nina Wadia. Sally Phillips, "The outfits, the make-up, doing silly voices....", As well as the two-minute quickfire sketches, each episode is centred around several visits to the four girls apparently hanging out at home in their flat, Young Ones or Goodies-style. Just as Terry Gilliam’s animation was integral for Monty Python, so is Barratt’s “crimp” music for Boosh. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Melanie Kilburn, Look, we get it. 30 min Comedy. The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Log in or link your magazine subscription, Photo-Illustration: Maya Robinson/Vulture, A Definitive Guide to British Comedy TV Since, David Fincher Confirms the ‘Very Expensive’, The Rudy Giuliani Moment Going Viral Is Good for, Shonda Rhimes Left ABC for Netflix After a Disneyland Ticket Snub, Are You Ready? Jennifer Saunders, Matthew Ashforde, TV-MA Start your Independent Premium subscription today. | Eric Idle, TV-G Sanjeev Bhaskar, Now focusing on theatre directing, she returns to acting every now and then to steal scenes in the likes of Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011). Ullman would go on to win multiple Emmys and star in films directed by the likes of Woody Allen and Robert Altman before returning to England and her sketch comedy roots with the BBC’s Tracey Ullman’s Show. Stars: A British sketch comedy that explores the integration of Indian and British cultures through a series of satires,musicals and skits. "Wow, imagine that. Votes: 21,558 "It's like playing every day," admits O'Shaughnessy. It's a comedy double whammy of seeing quadruple and having your expectations of a well-known face subverted. A T.V sketch show set in the future looking back over the beginning of the 21st century, between 2005 and 2030. Robin Driscoll, Create a commenting name to join the debate. Wentworth, B.A. Greatest hits: Nighty Night (2004-05), Hunderby (2012-15). Female-led sketch show featuring a collection of perverse comedy characters Chrissytittybangbang 2007 Festive edition of the sketch show, including highlights from the current series. try again, the name must be unique, Please "Male writers don't acknowledge that women can be silly," observes O'Shaughnessy. Henry McGee, Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate? Stars: Chris Karan, The actor-writer-director has two very different new projects in very different media. The comedian chatted with us on Instagram in front of her glorious wall of hats. Subscribe now for exclusive offers and the best of cinema. "Sometimes that's fear as well," adds Lowe. | Yet it was the tragicomic sitcom Butterflies that elevated Lane to greatness with her compassionate portrayal of Ria, played by Wendy Craig, as a bored housewife who considers having an affair with a charming stranger. Patsy Kensit, We're not interested in writing comedy from the perspective of being women, we just want to have the freedom to write whatever we want to write. Comedy. Griff Rhys Jones, This BBC comedy skit show is the brainchild of longtime comedy duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. Beginning its life on Radio 4, it was and still is wholly unique in its representation of British Asian culture, and in the way it perfectly punctured the prejudices of the time with a satirical pop. A comedy sketch show featuring David Mitchell and Robert Webb. Also appearing in Charlie Brooker’s techno-satire Black Mirror and with a recent starring role in Black Earth Rising, Coel is definitely a rising star. Comedy. And a side of Marlboros! The original surreal sketch comedy showcase for the Monty Python troupe. The fake-news snowflakes might go nuts if this type of thing aired in 2018, but who are we to judge. (Remember the “I’m old Gregg” sound bite from a few years ago? "We've got ongoing narratives for the characters," says Lowe. Corbet Woodall, 45 min On the way to the shoot in a park, where they'll attract more than a few bemused glances from the dog walkers and pensioners, Clare Thomson and Barunka O'Shaughnessy are taking photographs of themselves and roaring with laughter at the results. Kendall's career was also launched at Edinburgh when, in 2004, the Sydney-born stand-up was the first woman to be nominated for the Perrier for a decade. Tim Brooke-Taylor, Burke’s chameleonic career has also seen her win best actress at Cannes for her performance in Gary Oldman’s heartbreaking drama Nil by Mouth (1997) and a British Comedy Award for her role as the ballsy, brash Linda in Gimme Gimme Gimme. Sally Bretton, Cleo Rocos, Are you sure you want to submit this vote? Comedy, Drama. The British are coming, and they want to invade your television. Stars: Like The Office, the workplace shenanigans of The IT Crowd didn’t have to rely on dramatic or surrealist detours to make its mark when all it needed was a good heart. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. Hannah Gatward Updated: 4 December 2018, Greatest hits: Harry Enfield and Chums (1994-99), Gimme Gimme Gimme (1999-2001), Comedy Genius is a season of side-splitting film and TV, at BFI Southbank, on BFI Player and at venues across the UK, from October 2018 – January 2019. Controversal spoof of current affairs television, and the role of celebrity in the UK. If you like Mitchell and Webb but wish they would, hmm, put more energy into acerbically critiquing and dissecting the societal norms of British culture, allow us to recommend two other chaps in their place: Matt Lucas and David Walliams. David Reed, National Treasure Tiffany ‘New York’ Pollard Returns to VH1 for Reunion Special. Greatest hits: Absolutely Fabulous (1992-2012), French & Saunders (1987-), Jam & Jerusalem (2006-09). 42 (2001-06). Stars: We can’t blame her at times.) Stars: A Tiger Aspect production (like The Catherine Tate Show, The Vicar of Dibley and Harry and Paul), it features much of the same team who were behind cult success The Mighty Boosh. Hugh Laurie, From the creation of her first series, Crashing, to the recent Emmy-nominated American spy drama Killing Eve, as well as a starring role in Solo: A Star Wars Story, Waller-Bridge’s career has gone from strength to strength. Writer, actor and producer, Horgan first came to prominence with her brilliant BBC Three sitcom Pulling, but it was Catastrophe that really showed her unbelievable talent for tragicomedy.