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Blackadder is a series of four period British sitcoms, plus several one-off instalments, which originally aired on BBC1 from 1983 to 1989. All television episodes starred Rowan Atkinson as the antihero Edmund Blackadder and Tony Robinson as Blackadder's dogsbody, Baldrick. Each series was set in a different historical period, with the two protagonists accompanied by different characters, though several reappear in one series or another, e.g., Melchett, Lord Percy Percy / Captain Darling and George.
A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television.
Richard Whalley Anthony Curtis is a British screenwriter, producer, director and author. One of Britain's most successful comedy screenwriters, he is known primarily for romantic comedy films, among them Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Notting Hill (1999), Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), Love Actually (2003), Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004), About Time (2013), and Yesterday (2019). He is also known for the drama War Horse (2011) and for having co-written the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean, and The Vicar of Dibley. His early career saw him write material for the BBC's Not the Nine O'Clock News and ITV's Spitting Image.
Richard David Briers was an English actor whose five-decade career encompassed film, radio, stage and television.
The Good Life is a British sitcom, produced by BBC television. It ran from 4 April 1975 to 10 June 1978 on BBC 1 and was written by Bob Larbey and John Esmonde. Opening with the midlife crisis of Tom Good, a 40-year-old plastics designer, it relates the joys and setbacks he and his wife Barbara experience when they attempt to escape a modern "rat race" lifestyle by "becoming totally self-sufficient" in their suburban house in Surbiton. In 2004, it came 9th in Britain's Best Sitcom. The lead roles are taken by Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal.
To the Manor Born is a BBC television sitcom that first aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981. A special one-off episode was produced in 2007. Starring Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles, the first 20 episodes and the 2007 special were written by Peter Spence, the creator, while the final episode in 1981 was written by script associate Christopher Bond. The title is a play on the phrase "to the manner born," from Shakespeare's Hamlet
Esmonde and Larbey were a British television screenwriting duo, consisting of John Gilbert Esmonde and Robert Edward Larbey, who created popular sitcoms starting from the mid-1960s until the mid-1990s such as Please Sir!, The Good Life, Get Some In!, Ever Decreasing Circles, and Brush Strokes.
Rising Damp is a British sitcom, written by Eric Chappell and produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV, which was originally broadcast from 2 September 1974 until 9 May 1978. Chappell adapted the story from his 1973 stage play The Banana Box. The programme ran for four series and a spin-off feature film of the same name was released in 1980. The series won the 1978 BAFTA for Best Situation Comedy. Rising Damp was the highest-ranking ITV sitcom in the BBC's 100 Best Sitcoms poll of 2004, coming in 27th overall.
The Darling Buds of May is a British comedy drama television series, produced by Yorkshire Television for the ITV network, first broadcast between 7 April 1991 and 4 April 1993. The first six episodes of Series 1 and the first two of Series 2 are adaptations of the 1958 novel of the same name, and three of its four sequels, by H. E. Bates. The remaining episodes are original storylines based on the same format.
The National Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom, celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year.
Ever Decreasing Circles is a British sitcom which ran on BBC1 between 1984 and 1989, consisting of four series and one feature-length special. It was written by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey, and it reunited them with Richard Briers, who had starred in their previous popular sitcom The Good Life.
Fresh Fields is a British sitcom starring Julia McKenzie and Anton Rodgers. A ratings success at the time, it was written by John Chapman and produced by Thames Television for ITV, running for four series between 7 March 1984 and 23 October 1986. The series has had reruns in recent years on Drama and currently, Fresh Fields is airing on That's TV in the UK
Harold Edward Snoad was a British television producer, writer and director. He was best known for the television sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, starring Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift. He was also well known for having directed and produced Ever Decreasing Circles starring Richard Briers and Peter Egan, as well as Don't Wait Up starring Tony Britton and Nigel Havers.
Brian Trevor John Murphy is an English actor and comedian. He is best known as the henpecked husband George Roper in the popular sitcom Man About the House and its spin-off series George and Mildred. He also played Alvin Smedley in Last of the Summer Wine. Other notable roles include Stan the shopkeeper in the 1990s children's series Wizadora, and Maurice in the comedy drama series The Booze Cruise.
Please Sir! is a British television sitcom created by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey and featuring actors John Alderton, Deryck Guyler, Penny Spencer, Joan Sanderson, Noel Howlett, Erik Chitty and Richard Davies. Produced by London Weekend Television for ITV, the series ran for 55 episodes between 1968 and 1972.
Adrian Philip Scarborough is an English actor. He has appeared in films including The Madness of King George (1994), Gosford Park (2001), Vera Drake (2004), The History Boys (2006), The King's Speech (2010), Les Misérables (2012) and 1917 (2019). He is also known for his roles in television such as Cranford (2007–2009), Gavin & Stacey (2007–2024), Upstairs Downstairs (2010–2012), The Paradise (2013), Crashing (2016), A Very English Scandal (2018), Killing Eve (2019), and The Chelsea Detective (2022).
Bottle Boys is a British sitcom which ran for two series on ITV between 1 September 1984 and 24 August 1985. Starring Robin Askwith as football-mad milkman Dave Deacon, the series mined broad comedy from randy Dave's amorous adventures.
Rev. is a British television sitcom produced by Big Talk Productions. Written by actor Tom Hollander and James Wood, the show premiered on BBC Two on 28 June 2010 and ended on 28 April 2014. The show's working titles were The City Vicar and Handle with Prayer. The series revolves around a Church of England priest, played by Hollander, who becomes the vicar of an inner-city London church after leaving a small rural Suffolk parish.
Timothy Richard Downie is an English actor and writer. He is known for the television series Toast of London, Outlander and Upstart Crow, the films Paddington and The King's Speech, and the video game Baldur's Gate 3. Downie was born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. Before starting his professional career, he trained at the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts.
My Good Friend is a British television sitcom produced by Hartswood Films in association with Anglia Television for ITV, and it ran for two years between 4 April 1995 and 8 October 1996. It starred George Cole and Richard Pearson as widowed pensioner Peter Banks (Cole) and retired librarian Harry King (Pearson). The show ran for two series, each of seven episodes.
References
- Mark Lewisohn, "Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy", BBC Worldwide Ltd, 2003
- All in Good Faith at British TV Comedy
