British television comedies have a unique charm that blends sharp wit, quirky characters, and a knack for turning everyday situations into hilariously relatable chaos. From dry humor and biting satire to absurd scenarios and heartfelt moments, the UK has produced some of the most iconic and binge-worthy comedy shows in television history.
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British Comedies
I first discovered British television comedies several decades ago on PBS. Our whole family, including our kids, really enjoyed these quirky shows. I’ve been a fan ever since!
Here are six of my favorites:
Keeping Up Appearances
This was one of the first British comedies I was introduced to all those years ago and remains a favorite. Several memorable lines from the show have become part of our family’s lexicon.
When it comes to snobbery, Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced “bouquet”) is in a class of her own. Desperate to impress the neighbors and elbow her way into the local aristocracy, every moment of Hyacinth’s day is spent going to manic lengths in her quest for perfection. There is one very slight trouble to Hyacinth’s pretensions, however. The rest of her family is completely average and can always be trusted to undermine her efforts.
Waiting For God
This one appeals to my cynical side (yes, I do have one!).
At the Bayview Retirement Village the elderly are expected to grow old gracefully, enjoying their final years in peace, quiet and comfort… but not if Tom (Graham Crowden) and Diana (Stephanie Cole) have anything to do with it! Meet two elderly eccentrics who refuse to put up with the appalling food and condescending staff, in the hilariously cynical BAFTA-nominated comedy that won Stephanie Cole a British Comedy Award in1992.
Good Neighbors
A dear British friend introduced me to this one and as a wannabe homesteader it was right up my alley.
On Tom Good’s fortieth birthday, he decides to escape the rat race for a life of self-sufficiency with his wife, Barbara. Soon they’re plowing a field in their suburban yard and tending a goat and pigs, much to the dismay of their upwardly mobile neighbors and friends the Leadbetters. This series, known as The Good Life in the UK, enjoyed such popularity the queen requested a viewing, and as recently as this year it was listed as one of the top ten British sitcoms of all time.
Originally telecast in the 1970s, Good Neighbors is the wonderful 1970s Britcom about an upper-middle-class couple who relinquish consumerism and turn their cozy suburban London home into a self-sufficient farm. Tom (Richard Briers) and Barbara (Felicity Kendal) Good trade in one version of the good life for an impoverished other–an old tractor instead of a car, a goat instead of a purebred pup–to the continuing consternation of their best friends and executive-salaried neighbors, Jerry (Paul Eddington) and Margot (Penelope Keith) Ledbetter. Among the episodes contained in the first three series are “Pig’s Lib,” in which Margot covertly seeks help from the local residents’ association to stop Tom’s plans for keeping pigs; “Just My Bill,” in which Tom and Barbara face the rare problem of a harvest surplus that has to go somewhere; “Mutiny,” in which poor Jerry is caught in a crossfire of obligations to both his boss and bossy Margot; “Going to Pot,” in which the Goods come close to abandoning their self-sufficiency ethic when Tom proves a profitable craftsman at the potter’s wheel; “The Happy Event,” in which the birth of new livestock is wonderful news for the Goods but a sore point with the Ledbetters; and “The Last Posh Frock,” featuring Barbara at the end of her rope when her last nice dress gets torn. As always, the series’ concept ultimately takes a back seat to the lovely chemistry among four outstanding actors, and story lines that wisely emphasize relationships. Fans of British television would do well to look into Good Neighbors. –Tom Keogh
To the Manor Born
I discovered this one just a few years ago. It stars Penelope Keith, one of the actresses in Good Neighbors. She is equally fabulous in this series.
As beneficiary of Grantleigh Manor, the snobbish Lady fforbes-Hamilton becomes a happy widower upon the death of her husband. But in the face of her late husband’s creditors, bank, and the government, she can no longer afford to maintain the family’s hold on the estate. Reluctantly, she sees it auctioned to Richard De Vere (formerly Bedrich Polouvicka), a millionaire bachelor of Czechoslovakian extraction who runs a multinational grocery business. With his mother he wastes no time in moving into the Manor. Audrey is annoyed at her new position on the estate, and she is forced to move, with butler, to the Manor lodge. DeVere represents everything Audrey regards as bad taste. Their differences of background, breeding and behavior are at once infuriating and endearing.
To the Manor Born is another BBC sitcom from the genre’s golden age, one that came to dominate the ratings during its initial three-season run from 1979-80. Providing Penelope Keith with her first major role after The Good Life, the show focuses on a way of life that now appears hard to comprehend, with storylines concerning hunt balls, village committees, and eccentric brigadiers only adding to the dated feel. What provided the program’s key interest, however, was not the terribly quaint Little England setting but the burgeoning relationship between Keith’s Audrey fforbes-Hamilton and Richard De Vere (Peter Bowles), the new owner of Audrey’s old home, Grantleigh Manor. It’s all very, very English (the show is set in a village called Cricket St. Thomas) and the continuing use of farce almost creates a sense of parody. But look beyond the infuriating stereotypes and there is some sharp writing going on, predating the city vs countryside debate by nearly two decades. Penelope Keith is, as ever, fantastic value and while new viewers may simply not get the joke, those looking for a spot of nostalgia could do far worse. The 2008 Silver Anniversary Collection includes the complete original series as well as the 2007 Silver Anniversary Special, which fast-forwards 25 years to Audrey and Richard’s plans for their silver-anniversary celebration. –Phil Udell
As Time Goes By
This series stars Judi Dench…need I say more?
Jean and Lionel are reunited 38 years later when Lionel returns to England to write his memoirs, and Jean’s agency supplies him with a secretary. Neither of them is romantically involved but they are older, wiser and not as eager to jump into a relationship.
One Foot in the Grave
Okay, I have to admit that this one might not be everyone’s cup of tea (or should I say, “cuppa” tea?). David isn’t as impressed with this one. He found it a little depressing. I, however, loved it.
Think of One Foot in the Grave as a British version of Curb Your Enthusiasm: Cranky, misanthropic Victor Mildrew (the wonderfully bilious Richard Wilson) perceives himself as the only sane man in a world out to drive him mad–a world in which yoga instructors abruptly keel over, a dead cat appears in his freezer, a man in a bee costume uses his loo, and an escaped snake crawls into his luggage. Of course, Victor can dish it out too; he gives a political candidate a severe tongue-lashing and has a vacuum cleaner duel with an old man who’s even more cantankerous than Victor. Only his long-suffering wife Margaret (sweet-tempered Annette Crosbie, Calendar Girls, An Unsuitable Job for a Woman) provides Victor with any serenity–even as he destroys hers! Wilson had a long career before One Foot in the Grave (including the series Tutti Frutti, costarring with Emma Thompson and Robbie Coltrane), but this show became a phenomenon, giving a voice of outrage to the disenfranchised (young and old alike) in Margaret Thatcher’s political era. But politics were always secondary to humor, and anyone with a taste for scathing invective and madcap plots will bask in Wilson’s indignity. Written by David Remnick, creator of Jonathan Creek. –Bret Fetzer
A bonus selection!
The Café
This is one I discovered more recently. It only has two seasons and was never commercially released for purchase. Here is a description of this sweet comedy:
Gentle sitcom based around a Weston-super-Mare cafe which acts as the social hub for the seaside town. Sitcom set in and around a café in Weston-Super-Mare run by the generational trilogy of Mary, Carol and Sarah. Acting as the social hub of the seafront town, the café sees all walks of life pass through. Sarah is in her late twenties and has recently returned home from London as she attempts to pursue a writing career. Many of her old school adversaries still live in the area and are frequent visitors to the café.
Richard, Sarah’s former childhood sweetheart is a care home assistant by day and a musician by night whose feathers are ruffled when fellow class-mate and former love rival, John, now a successful events manager in London, returns to Weston to visit his elderly mother. Chloe is Sarah’s oldest friend who works in the local hairdresser and always looks on the bright side of life. Her father, Stan is a frequent visitor to the café due in the most part to his fondness for Carol. Carol, however, has more pressing matters on her mind as Brenda Keily, a local successful entrepreneur, threatens to take her family business away. Also resident in Weston-Super-Mare are Ava, the polish receptionist at the hairdresser, and the Dobsons, regular customers at the café. Other regulars who drop by include ‘Big Issue Frank’ and Weston-Super-Mare’s very own living statue, Keiran.
At the end of the first series, Carol won her battle to keep the ailing ‘Cyril’s’ open thanks to the support of her regular customers. Sarah received a writing offer she couldn’t refuse but with her love rivals heading off in separate directions, viewers were left wondering – would Sarah fall for Richard or for John? (Best Buy Presents)
Transferred from television to DVD
Do you have any favorite British comedies? Please share in the comments!
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Good choices all! We’ve watched Keeping Up several times. It never gets old. We also loved Miranda, ‘Allo ‘Allo, Death in Paradise (comedy/drama), Vicar of Dibley and Pie in the Sky. We love British and Australian TV (Acorn has good shows, too). Carry On!
I’ll have to check those out. I think I’ve seen an episode or two of ‘Allo ‘Allo and Vicar of Dibley but it’s been a long time ago.
Keeping Up Appearances and As Time Goes By are huge favorites of ours. We also loved Vicar of Dibley – so funny. Last of the Summer Wine is a fun one as well. We are also addicted to the British panel shows. So funny and such quick wit!
Our whole family enjoys the British sense of humor.