Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written and performed by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas. The show's title is an amalgamation of the terms 'Little England' and 'Great Britain', and is also the name of a Victorian neighbourhood and a modern street in London. [1]
Series | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
Pilot | 3 August 2000 | |||
1 | 4 | 6 March 2001 | 27 March 2001 | |
2 | 4 | 12 February 2002 | 5 March 2002 | |
Comic Relief Special | 31 October 2019 |
Series | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
1 | 6 | 28 September 2008 | 2 November 2008 |
Series | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
Comic Relief Special | 11 March 2005 | |||
Comic Relief Special | 11 March 2007 | |||
Comic Relief Special | 11 March 2009 | |||
Comic Relief Special | 13 March 2015 | |||
Comic Relief Special | 18 March 2016 | |||
The Big Night In Special | 23 April 2020 |
No. overall | Title | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Pilot" | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 3 August 2000 | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
2 | Episode 1 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 6 March 2001 | |
| ||||
3 | Episode 2 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 13 March 2001 | |
| ||||
4 | Episode 3 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 20 March 2001 | |
| ||||
5 | Episode 4 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 27 March 2001 | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
6 | Episode 1 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 12 February 2002 | |
| ||||
7 | Episode 2 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 19 February 2002 | |
| ||||
8 | Episode 3 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 26 February 2002 | |
| ||||
9 | Episode 4 | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 5 March 2002 | |
|
No. overall | Title | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
44 | "Little Brexit" | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 31 October 2019 | |
|
No. overall | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
10 | "Pilot" | Graham Linehan | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 9 February 2003 | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
11 | Bath of Beans | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 16 September 2003 | |
| |||||
12 | Tallest Man | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 23 September 2003 | |
| |||||
13 | Hard-Boiled Egg Eating | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 30 September 2003 | |
| |||||
14 | Most Cigarettes in a Mouth | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 7 October 2003 | |
| |||||
15 | Biggest House of Cards | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 14 October 2003 | |
| |||||
16 | Smallest Ant | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 21 October 2003 | |
| |||||
17 | Largest Mince Pie | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 28 October 2003 | |
| |||||
18 | Most People in a Mini | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 4 November 2003 | |
| |||||
– | Deleted Scenes | Steve Bendelack | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | DVD only | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
19 | Episode 1 | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 19 October 2004 | |
| |||||
20 | Episode 2 | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 26 October 2004 | |
| |||||
21 | Episode 3 | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 2 November 2004 | |
| |||||
22 | Episode 4 | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 9 November 2004 | |
| |||||
23 | Episode 5 | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 16 November 2004 | |
| |||||
24 | Episode 6 | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 23 November 2004 | |
| |||||
– | Deleted Scenes | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | DVD only | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [2] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
26 | Episode 1 | Declan Lowney | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 17 November 2005 | 10.17 | |
| ||||||
27 | Episode 2 | Declan Lowney | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 24 November 2005 | 8.29 | |
| ||||||
28 | Episode 3 | Declan Lowney | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 1 December 2005 | 7.10 | |
| ||||||
29 | Episode 4 | Declan Lowney | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 8 December 2005 | 6.96 | |
| ||||||
30 | Episode 5 | Declan Lowney | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 15 December 2005 | 6.93 | |
| ||||||
31 | Episode 6 | Declan Lowney | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 24 December 2005 | 8.45 | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [2] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
32 | Episode 1 | Matt Lipsey & Geoff Posner | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 25 December 2006 | 8.87 | |
| ||||||
33 | Episode 2 | Matt Lipsey & Geoff Posner | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 30 December 2006 | 7.18 | |
|
No. overall | Episode | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [2] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
35 | Episode 1 | Michael Patrick Jann & David Schwimmer | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 28 September 2008(US) 3 October 2008(UK) | 5.05 | |
| ||||||
36 | Episode 2 | Michael Patrick Jann & David Schwimmer | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 5 October 2008(US) 10 October 2008(UK) | 4.60 | |
| ||||||
37 | Episode 3 | Michael Patrick Jann & David Schwimmer | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 12 October 2008(US) 17 October 2008(UK) | 4.64 | |
| ||||||
38 | Episode 4 | Michael Patrick Jann & David Schwimmer | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 19 October 2008(US) 24 October 2008(UK) | N/A | |
| ||||||
39 | Episode 5 | Michael Patrick Jann & David Schwimmer | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 26 October 2008(US) 31 October 2008(UK) | N/A | |
| ||||||
40 | Episode 6 | Michael Patrick Jann & David Schwimmer | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 2 November 2008(US) 7 November 2008(UK) | N/A | |
|
No. overall | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
25 | "Comic Relief Special I" | Unknown | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 11 March 2005 | |
|
No. overall | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
34 | "Comic Relief Special II" | Matt Lipsey | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 11 March 2007 | |
|
No. overall | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
41 | "Comic Relief 2009 Special" | Unknown | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 11 March 2009 [3] [4] | |
|
No. overall | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
42 | "Comic Relief, 2015, Little Britain Sketch" | Unknown | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 13 March 2015 [5] | |
|
No. overall | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
43 | "Sport Relief - 2016: Little Britain’s Emily Howard" | Unknown | Matt Lucas & David Walliams | 18 March 2016 [6] | |
|
Paul Julian Whitehouse is a Welsh actor, comedian, presenter and writer. He was one of the main stars of the BBC sketch comedy series The Fast Show, and has starred with Harry Enfield in the shows Harry & Paul and Harry Enfield & Chums. He has appeared with Bob Mortimer in the BBC series Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing, and has also acted in films including Corpse Bride (2005), Alice in Wonderland (2010), and The Death of Stalin (2017).
Victoria Wood was an English comedian, actress, lyricist, singer, composer, pianist, screenwriter, producer and director. Wood wrote and starred in dozens of sketches, plays, musicals, films and sitcoms over several decades and her live comedy act was interspersed with her own compositions which she performed at the piano. Much of her humour was grounded in everyday life and included references to activities, attitudes and products that are considered to exemplify Britain. She was noted for her skills in observational comedy and in satirising aspects of social class.
Jennifer Jane Saunders is an English actress, comedian, singer, and screenwriter. Saunders originally found attention in the 1980s, when she became a member of The Comic Strip after graduating from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama with her best friend and comedy partner, Dawn French. With French, she co-wrote and starred in their eponymous sketch show, French and Saunders, for which they jointly received a BAFTA Fellowship in 2009. Saunders later received acclaim in the 1990s for writing and playing her character Edina Monsoon in her sitcom Absolutely Fabulous.
Comic Relief is a British charity, founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Sir Lenny Henry in response to the 1983-1985 famine in Ethiopia. The concept of Comic Relief was to get British comedians to make the public laugh, while raising money to help people around the world and in the United Kingdom. A new CEO, Samir Patel, was announced in January 2021.
Sir Lenworth George Henry is an English comedian, actor and writer. He gained success as a stand-up comedian and impressionist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in The Lenny Henry Show in 1984. He was the most prominent black British comedian of the time and much of his material served to celebrate and parody his African-Caribbean roots.
Matthew Keith Hall, known professionally as Harry Hill, is an English comedian, presenter and writer. He pursued a career in stand-up following years working as a medical doctor, developing an offbeat, energetic performance style that fused elements of surrealism, observational comedy, slapstick, satire and music. When performing, he usually wears browline glasses and a dress shirt with a distinctive oversized collar and cuffs.
Griffith Rhys Jones is a Welsh actor, comedian, writer and television presenter. He starred in a number of television series with his comedy partner, Mel Smith. He and Smith came to national attention in the 1980s for their work in the BBC television comedy sketch shows Not the Nine O'Clock News and Alas Smith and Jones.
Dawn Roma French is a British actress, comedian, and writer. She is known for writing and starring on the BBC sketch comedy series French and Saunders (1987–2007) with her best friend and comedy partner Jennifer Saunders, and playing the lead role of Geraldine Granger in the BBC sitcom The Vicar of Dibley (1994–2020). French has been nominated for seven BAFTA TV Awards and won a BAFTA Fellowship with Saunders in 2009.
Josephine Grace Brand is an English actress, comedian, presenter and writer. Starting her entertainment career with a move from psychiatric nursing to the alternative comedy stand-up scene and early performances on Saturday Live, she went on to appear on The Brain Drain, Channel 4's Jo Brand Through the Cakehole, Getting On and various television appearances including as a regular guest on QI, Have I Got News for You and Would I Lie to You?. She also makes regular appearances on BBC Radio 4 in programmes such as The News Quiz and Just a Minute. Since 2014 she has been the presenter of The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice. In 2003, Brand was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy.
Andrew Neil Hamilton is a British comedian, game show panellist, television director, comedy screenwriter, radio dramatist, novelist and actor.
Little Britain is a British sketch comedy series that began as a radio show in 2000 and ran as a television series between 2003 and 2006. It was written and performed by David Walliams and Matt Lucas. Financed by the BBC, the radio series was first broadcast on BBC Radio 4, with the initial two television series premiering on BBC Three and the third and final series on BBC One.
David Edward Williams, known professionally as David Walliams, is an English comedian, actor, writer, and television personality. He is best known for his work with Matt Lucas on the BBC sketch comedy series Little Britain (2003–2006) and Come Fly With Me (2010–2011). From 2012 to 2022, Walliams was a judge on the television talent show competition Britain's Got Talent on ITV. He is also a writer of children's books, having sold more than 37 million copies worldwide.
Catherine Tate is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won numerous awards for her work on the BBC sketch comedy series The Catherine Tate Show (2004–2007), as well as being nominated for an International Emmy Award and seven BAFTAs. Tate played Donna Noble in the 2006 Christmas special of the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who, and reprised her role for the fourth series in 2008, and the 60th anniversary episodes in 2023.
Harry Hill's TV Burp is a British television comedy series produced by Avalon Television, and written and hosted by comedian Harry Hill. The show ran for 11 series between 2001 and 2012 on ITV1. Each episode sees the host take a humorous look back at the previous week of programming on British television from a range of shows aired on terrestrial and digital channels.
Saturday Live is a British television comedy and music show, made by LWT and initially broadcast on Channel 4 from 1985 to 1988, with a brief revival on ITV in 1996. A few one-off editions have also been screened sporadically, including a contribution to the BBC's 1993 Comic Relief telethon. It was based on the American sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live but otherwise had no direct connection to the show.
Sport Relief was a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, established in 2002.
Red Nose Day 2007 was a fund raising event in England organized by Comic Relief, broadcast live on BBC One and BBC Two from the evening of 16 March 2007 to early the following morning. It was part of "The Big One" campaign. Presenters introduced the show in two-halves, one titled 'The funny' and the other titled 'The money'.
Red Nose Day 2011 was a fundraising event organised by Comic Relief. There was a live telethon broadcast on BBC One and BBC Two from the evening of 18 March 2011 to early the following morning as well as a number of run-up events. The theme for the Red Nose Day 2011 invited fund-raisers to "Do Something Funny For Money".