The British Zombies are coming!

[Captain Red]

British comedy >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> American comedy.

Seriously, any American complaining about British comedy has simply boycotted there right to have an opinion on anything every again.

...not that the US hasn't made some gems now and then.

[Relica Religia]

Monty Python, Mr. Bean, Blackadder, Fawlty Towers, and British comedy in general are easily the most entertaining forms of comedy, ever.

[LorD BaZTArD]

British comedy > American > Aussie humour.

I'm sorry if you think otherwise, but when you compare the track record of american sitcoms against british ones, well the brits get it right far more often. Honestly, the best American comedy I can think of? Seinfeld, especially when you compare it to the current batch of "funny" like Everybody Loves Raymond. Good god make the bad shit stop. Aussie humour hasn't gotten much better either. Comedy inc drives me up the wall...the new series describes itself as "back in business" it should be "out of business" with such cheap gags it's just not funny.

I think British Sitcoms just take more risks, they dare to go to places where others shy away from.

[Captain Red]

We do well when we don't try to follow a well-travelled formula, i.e. sketch shows or sit-coms. If you look at what we do well you have Roy & HG, and CNNNN witch are like nothing else out there really.

oh, and Kath and Kim are insanely overrated.

[LorD BaZTArD]

Yeah, Roy & HG are just good. CNNN is something I often forget about, but it's funny as well. Is it actually on TV anymore...or do I have to search via other methods?

I so agree about Kath and Kim....I can't fucking stand that...so damned stupid.

[Janderson]

British Comedy is the best kind. Monty Python, Black Adder, Red Dwarf, Fawlty Towers, Only Fools and Horses, Mr Bean and League of Gentelmen all own. The Movies we produce are ussually well recieved.

But I'm not a completely biased bastard. Americans are the kings(or presidents) of farce and spoofs, and Fraiser and Drew Carry have often entertained well.

[Captain Red]

LorD BaZTArD said:
CNNN is something I often forget about, but it's funny as well. Is it actually on TV anymore...or do I have to search via other methods?

alas, it's gone. But with a federal election on the way this year, I expect to see something from the chaser lads.

Janderson said:
Americans are the kings(or presidents) of farce and spoofs, and Fraiser and Drew Carry have often entertained well.

spoofs maybe... but fall down when it comes to satire and they genially stink at iranoy. I mean, I hear a lot of people praising stuff like the Chappel show, but I didn't find it that clever. But hey, I quote the Simpsons/Futarama every fucking day, so they must do something right...

[Sephiroth]

destx said:

I bet you loved sienfeld.

i HATE that show. i could never understand it. it was usally about some stupid little detail that only a OCD(obsessive complusive disorder) person would worry about. yea the show had a few moments i liked, but in general i didnt like it.
literaly i felt as if i was watching a show involving OCD patiens in a room.

i grew up watching british humor. so i have my likes and dislikes. my dad absoulty loves it.

personaly i just dont like much TV in general, sound like my fucking grand father now.

[Janderson]

destx said:

I bet you loved sienfeld.

A few were well done, namely the one with the frogger showdown at the end.

[deathbringer]

A lot of american comedies are derivatives of british one anyway, like "Cosby" is just "One foot in the grave" with the old people removed, i watched some show about it ages ago, there was also some american version of "Steptoe and son" which was virtually the same (including the sets!), just with more ebonics..then there was the dodgy versions of "Are you being served?" and "Dad's army" (yeah, like america was even threatened with invasion from the nazis in world war 2)

[Black Hand]

Probably because the Americans inserted themselves straight up the german ass. <.<

I doubt that American TV shows derive from British TV shows. Why you ask? Because British shows hardly ever air here and when they do its never in "prime time" or any other time were the show could possibly gain any large fanbase.

[Little Faith]

Ah, the nice people across the pond can get it right now and then.

Anyone remember the Red Green Show. "Every handyman's secret weapon.. Duct Tape!"

[Sharessa]

And of course the greatest show ever, Mystery Science Theatre 3000, was American.

[deathbringer]

doubt that American TV shows derive from British TV shows. Why you ask? Because British shows hardly ever air here

BECAUSE the american versions are the british ones re-made for american audiences, so of course the british ones never come on there

Hm, yes, MST3K is the best comedy show ever, The Young Ones is a close second (well more like first and a half) though heh, that university challenge episode is a classic

[NiGHTMARE]

The funniest still-in-production american show for me Dead Like Me. I love that program :).

Buffy and Angel both had some extremely funny moments too, but then Joss Whedon always said he tried to emulate British humour :).

[HackNeyed]

Oh where to start!

Ok, 1st off i adored Shaun of the dead, it was totally an awesome movie for an American boy raised on Night of the living dead and Monty Python such as myself :D

2nd, yeah Monty Python are hit or miss but when its good i love it and when its bad, i wait 5 minutes and its awesome again... holy grail was the single best thing they ever did. Mr Bean is classic, i enjoy his work a lot. I don't have much more experience with the British culture but i love your women's accents.

3rd Seinfeld is hit or miss as well, i was big into it. Drew Carry, same story... now The Simpson's are classic but Futurama totally eclipse them. But with all the pop references i guess you have to live in the US, my ex g/f was French and never got anything in Futurama, but hey she made me sit thru all her 9 seasons of “Friends” tapes again and again... oh well.

For me though the king of all has been The Family Guy, it's like a jackhammer to my funny bone, I've seen every episode at least 4 times and others more and it still gets me every time :D

on a side note, with my much love for Great Britain, apparently im very funny and charming in countries other then the US, i was popular in France and have had 2 girls and maybe 1 guy from Australia fall in love with me... i was sooo born on the wrong continent *crys!!*

[deathbringer]

I always got msost of the jokes in futurama, but then britian is virtually the same as america these days, we just use different words for things and enjoy watching people fuck up (i bet americans wouldnt get the end of "Booze cruise", they would be going "Oh my god, thier friend's business has fucked up and his daughters wedding is ruined, and theyre laughing about it???")

[DooMer87]

Hey, are you people NUTS? What about DENNIS MILLER?????
American comedy is WAY funnier than British, and what I see why BBC america is basically just what (insert their name here) said, "Home and Garden TV with funny accents." I can never agree more. And by the way, i'm a bit Irish and i don't find UK comedy to even give me a smile...

quote from Dennis Miller, "Those Assholes don't know what they're doing."

[Sharessa]

Dennis Miller is hardly funny.

[Jonathan]

I remember Endura once said on IRC that British humour is about laughing at people, while American humor is about laughing with them. While I don't think that's always true, I do agree there's an element of truth in it. However, when it comes to the actual appreciation of humour, I don't think there's really much difference between the two countries. Or, for that matter, between any countries. The real difference lies in language more than anything else, and if we all spoke English or German or French or whatever, I think we'd probably appreciate each others' sense of humour a lot more.

Anyway, I found Shaun Of The Dead to be an funny and excellently crafted film. It won't appeal to all Americans for sure, but then it didn't appeal to all British people either, that's the nature of comedy. I guess my point, if any, is that you shouldn't lump everything into categories like "British Humour", "American Humor" and what not, funny is funny wherever.

[patte]

I like British comedy a lot better than American. Seinfeld was great though, as were a few other American shows. But there's no show like The Fast Show. Bono estente.

[Demon Hunter]

why is this not in post hell?

A. read the faq

[Sharessa]

Because you're not a mod, ass.

Anyway, I recently learned that there were only 12 Fawlty Towers episodes ever made. Oddly emough, 6 of them first aired in 1974 and the other 6 first aired in 1979. So I guess I've seen about half of them.

[SYS]

Relica Religia said:

Monty Python, Mr. Bean, Blackadder, Fawlty Towers, and British comedy in general are easily the most entertaining forms of comedy, ever.

Fuckin rights! "In this picture there are 47 people. None of them, can be seen."

[Janderson]

How come Only Fools and Horses is hardly mentioned?

[fodders]

Best British comedy at moment is "Two pints of lager and a packet of crisps"

[Terra-jin]

Of course, nothing beats Dutch cabaret :P

[Captain Red]

HackNeyed said:
now The Simpson's are classic but Futurama totally eclipse them. But with all the pop references i guess you have to live in the US, my ex g/f was French and never got anything in Futurama, but hey she made me sit thru all her 9 seasons of “Friends” tapes again and again... oh well.

I live in Australia, and I'd say I got most of Futurama. While it might have pop references, it's more nerdy stuff then anything else (i.e. sic-fi, computer terms, Science Theories even video games & D&D). But you really don’t need to be a big nerd to get a laugh out of half of it. I don't really think being French is much of an excuse for not getting it.

P.S. Futurama > Family guy.