Class sketch

Last updated

The Class sketch is a comedy sketch first broadcast in an episode of David Frost's satirical comedy programme The Frost Report on 7 April 1966. [1] [2] It has been described as a "genuinely timeless sketch, ingeniously satirising the British class system" [3] and in 2005 was voted number 40 in Channel Four's "Britain's 50 Greatest Comedy Sketches". [4] [5] It was written by Marty Feldman and John Law, [6] and features John Cleese, Ronnie Barker, and Ronnie Corbett.

Contents

Synopsis

Cleese, Barker, and Corbett in the sketch as broadcast in April 1966 FrostReportClassSketch.jpg
Cleese, Barker, and Corbett in the sketch as broadcast in April 1966

Cleese, tall and patrician in appearance and demeanour, represents the upper class; Barker, of average height, the middle class, and Corbett, short in stature, the working class. Their dress also shows class distinction: Cleese in a slim-cut suit and bowler hat, Barker in loose-cut suit and homburg hat, and Corbett in a workman's jacket, scarf, and flat cap. Each in turn describes their social advantages and disadvantages, and contrasts them with their neighbours, an effect emphasised by the actors' relative heights as they look downwards or upwards to each other:

Barker: "I look up to him [Cleese] because he is upper class, but I look down on him [Corbett] because he is lower class." Corbett: "I know my place." [6]

It is this situation that gives Corbett the pay-off line; as the others describe their advantages in the form of "I get ... (e.g. a sense of superiority)", his character finally looks up at the others and says "I get a pain in the back of my neck." [7]

Reception and influence

The British Film Institute commented, "Its twinning of height and social position, combined with a minimal script, created a classic TV moment." [3] The sketch's influence has persisted to the present day, having been referred to in 21st-century discussions of politics, [8] sociology, [9] and even football. [10]

Spinoffs

Ronnie Barker wrote scripts for three further "Three Classes" sketches featuring the same characters, comparing their family life, their leisure activities, and their work. [11]

A spinoff sketch was broadcast on the BBC Millennium programme, [12] satirising three eras of English history. Stephen Fry represents Modern Man, Barker a miller from the Renaissance, and Corbett a weaver serf from the Middle Ages. The basic premise of the sketch is no different from the original. The sketch was incorporated into The Nearly Complete and Utter History of Everything .

Cleese revisited the concept as well with two new partners in 2017 [13] (as a Wealthy Man, a Newspaper Editor and an Average Joe) for a political PSA.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Cleese</span> English comedian and actor (born 1939)

John Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, and presenter. Emerging from the Cambridge Footlights in the 1960s, he first achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report. In the late 1960s, he cofounded Monty Python, the comedy troupe responsible for the sketch show Monty Python's Flying Circus. Along with his Python costars Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Graham Chapman, Cleese starred in Monty Python films, which include Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Life of Brian (1979), and The Meaning of Life (1983).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monty Python</span> British surreal comedy group

Monty Python were a British comedy troupe formed in 1969 consisting of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. The group came to prominence for the sketch comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus, which aired on the BBC from 1969 to 1974. Their work then developed into a larger collection that included live shows, films, albums, books, and musicals; their influence on comedy has been compared to the Beatles' influence on music. Their sketch show has been called "an important moment in the evolution of television comedy".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Palin</span> English actor, comedian, writer and television presenter (born 1943)

Sir Michael Edward Palin, is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. He received the BAFTA Fellowship in 2013 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marty Feldman</span> British actor and comedian (1934–1982)

Martin Alan Feldman was a British actor, comedian and comedy writer. He was known for his prominent, misaligned eyes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronnie Barker</span> English actor, comedian and writer (1929–2005)

Ronald William George Barker was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as Porridge, The Two Ronnies, and Open All Hours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Cryer</span> British writer, comedian and actor (1935–2022)

Barry Charles Cryer was an English writer, comedian, and actor. As well as performing on stage, radio and television, Cryer wrote for many performers including Dave Allen, Stanley Baxter, Jack Benny, Rory Bremner, George Burns, Jasper Carrott, Tommy Cooper, Ronnie Corbett, Les Dawson, Dick Emery, Kenny Everett, Bruce Forsyth, David Frost, Bob Hope, Frankie Howerd, Richard Pryor, Spike Milligan, Mike Yarwood, The Two Ronnies and Morecambe and Wise.

<i>That Was the Week That Was</i> British satirical television programme (1962–63)

That Was the Week That Was, informally TWTWTW or TW3, was a satirical television comedy programme that aired on BBC Television in 1962 and 1963. It was devised, produced, and directed by Ned Sherrin and Jack Duncan, and presented by David Frost.

<i>At Last the 1948 Show</i> Satirical television show made by Paradine Productions and broadcast on ITV

At Last the 1948 Show is a satirical television show made by David Frost's company, Paradine Productions, in association with Rediffusion London. Transmitted on Britain's ITV network in 1967, it brought Cambridge Footlights humour to a broader audience.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronnie Corbett</span> Scottish comedian and writer (1930–2016)

Ronald Balfour Corbett was a Scottish actor, broadcaster, comedian and writer. He had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the BBC television comedy sketch show The Two Ronnies. He achieved prominence in David Frost's 1960s satirical comedy programme The Frost Report and subsequently starred in sitcoms such as No – That's Me Over Here!, Now Look Here, and Sorry!

<i>The Two Ronnies</i> British television comedy sketch show (1971–1987)

The Two Ronnies is a British television comedy sketch show starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was created by Bill Cotton and aired on BBC1 from 10 April 1971 to 25 December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo sections, serial stories and musical finales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eddie Braben</span> English comedy writer and performer

Edwin Charles Braben was an English comedy writer and performer best known for providing material for Morecambe and Wise. He also worked for David Frost, Ronnie Corbett and Ken Dodd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nudge Nudge</span> Comedy sketch from Monty Pythons Flying Circus

"Candid Photography", better known as "Nudge Nudge", is a sketch from the third Monty Python's Flying Circus episode, "How to Recognise Different Types of Trees From Quite a Long Way Away" featuring Eric Idle and Terry Jones as two strangers who meet in a pub.

<i>The Frost Report</i> 1960s British television series

The Frost Report is a satirical television show hosted by David Frost. It introduced John Cleese, Ronnie Barker, and Ronnie Corbett to television, and launched the careers of other writers and performers. It premiered on BBC1 on 10 March 1966 and ended on 12 December 1967, with a total of 26 regular episodes over the course of 2 series and 2 specials as well.

<i>Monty Pythons Contractual Obligation Album</i> 1980 studio album by Monty Python

Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album is the final studio album by Monty Python, released in 1980. As the title suggests, the album was put together to complete a contract with Charisma Records. Besides newly written songs and sketches, the sessions saw re-recordings of material that dated back to the 1960s pre-Python shows I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again, The Frost Report, At Last The 1948 Show and How To Irritate People. One track, "Bells", dates from the sessions for Monty Python's Previous Record, while further material was adapted from Eric Idle's post-Python series Rutland Weekend Television. The group also reworked material written but discarded from early drafts of Life Of Brian, as well as the initial scripts for what would eventually become The Meaning Of Life.

<i>The Two Ronnies Sketchbook</i> British TV series or programme

The Two Ronnies Sketchbook is a collection of sketches from the BBC comedy series The Two Ronnies, with newly filmed introductions by the stars, Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was first broadcast 34 years after the first episode of The Two Ronnies was aired and 18 years after the final episode aired.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Four Candles</span> Comedy sketch

Four Candles is a sketch from the BBC comedy show The Two Ronnies, written by Ronnie Barker under the pseudonym of Gerald Wiley and first broadcast on 18 September 1976. Comic effect is largely generated through word play and homophones as an ironmonger or hardware shopkeeper, played by Ronnie Corbett, becomes increasingly frustrated by a customer, played by Barker, because he misunderstands what the customer is requesting.

<i>The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer</i> 1970 British film by Kevin Billington

The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer is a 1970 British satirical film directed by Kevin Billington, and starring Peter Cook, Vanessa Howard and John Cleese. It was co-written by Cook, Cleese, Graham Chapman and Billington. The film was devised and produced by David Frost under the pseudonym "David Paradine".

Christmas Night with the Stars is a television show broadcast each Christmas night by the BBC from 1958 to 1972. The show was hosted each year by a leading star of BBC TV and featured specially-made short seasonal editions of the previous year's most successful BBC sitcoms and light entertainment programmes. Most of the variety segments no longer exist in accordance with the BBC's practice of discarding programmes at the time.

<i>Monty Pythons Flying Circus</i> British sketch comedy television series (1969–1974)

Monty Python's Flying Circus is a British surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam, who became known collectively as "Monty Python", or the "Pythons". The first episode was recorded at the BBC on 7 September 1969 and premiered on 5 October on BBC1, with 45 episodes airing over four series from 1969 to 1974, plus two episodes for German TV. A feature film adaptation of several sketches, And Now for Something Completely Different, was released in 1971.

The One... is a comedy sketch television series starring Ronnie Corbett, of The Two Ronnies, Lenny Henry of The Lenny Henry Show, Jasper Carrott, comedian and former presenter of ITV game show Golden Balls and Welsh comedian and actor Griff Rhys Jones, also presenter of ITV clip series It'll Be Alright on the Night. It was devised by Matt Lucas, David Walliams and Geoff Posner for Little Britain Productions. Walliams departed the project by the time of the full series.

References

  1. ↑ Class sketch at IMDb OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  2. ↑ "John Cleese, Ronnie Barker, and Ronnie Corbett, I Know My Place". uknowotimean.com. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
  3. 1 2 "BFI Screenonline: Frost Report, The (1966–67)". British Film Institute . Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  4. ↑ "BBC4 to celebrate The Frost Report". comedy.co.uk. 18 September 2007. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  5. ↑ "Channel4 – 50 Greatest Comedy Sketches". Channel 4. Archived from the original on 27 March 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  6. 1 2 "THE FROST REPORT – A TELEVISION HEAVEN REVIEW". televisionheaven.co.uk. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "BBC – Comedy – The Frost Report". BBC. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  8. ↑ "There's no way up – Telegraph". The Daily Telegraph . London. 20 May 2007. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  9. ↑ Braham, Peter; Linda Janes (2002). Social differences and divisions. Blackwell. p. 62. ISBN   978-0-631-23310-7 . Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  10. ↑ Marina Hyde (30 July 2009). "Sir Alex's nod to Nancy Mitford". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  11. ↑ Barker, Ronnie (2001). All I Ever Wrote. Sidgwick & Jackson. p. 42. ISBN   9780283073342.
  12. ↑ ratpackmanreturns (15 December 2007). "The Two Ronnies - 2000 Today" – via YouTube.
  13. ↑ Hacked_Off (28 November 2017). "John Cleese and friends join Hacked Off to explain Section 40". Archived from the original on 15 December 2021 – via YouTube.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.