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Submitted by Colin Felton.
There is no better place to start a short essay on British Humour than in Cambridge 1883. In June of this year, in the Cambridge town theatre, the undergraduate Club performed their inaugural show. This club of 30 members soon become known as ‘Footlights’ and it was clear that this talented bunch of comedy actors would be entertaining audiences in Cambridge for years to come.
Despite some down time during the two world wars, Footlights performed many charitable ‘burlesques’ and satires to adoring audiences in Cambridge and London but it was not until the BBC broadcast ‘A Flash in the Cam’ in 1951 did the exclusive club gain national notoriety. Footlights went on to produce such comedy greats as Jonathan Miller, John Cleese, Peter Cook, Eric Idle and Stephen Fry. Others of note were Griff Rhys Jones, Bill Oddie, Tim-Brooke-Taylor, Clive Anderson, Emma Thompson and believe it or not, Tony Slattery.
Comedy has always looked for new direction and there have been a number of ground- breaking comedies or comedians down the years. Monty Python were probably the most notable of the modern era although such greats as Charlie Chaplin and Will Hay must never be forgotten for setting trends. Other ground breaking comedies that deserve mention are Spitting Image, The Young Ones, The Day Today and most recently, The Office, which has made a surprisingly successful pilgrimage across the Atlantic – generally the final resting place of many British greats that fail to raise American titters. They just don’t understand iony [sic].
The American ‘The Office’ recently brought back the now touchy subject of race. When we look back at Till Death Us Do Part and listen to the bigoted banter of Jack Smethurst in Love Thy Neighbour, there is a feeling that these shows wouldn’t even make the cutting room floor today. The clock of political correctness was ticking for Johnny Speight back in 1972 when Thames Television decided to air the controversial Love Thy Neighbour.
I cannot finish this brief history of British Comedy without mentioning the Carry On films. These smut laden films actually contained a plot and were acted out by consummate professionals. They were our very own Rat or Brat Pack – they were the Smut Pack and they were good at their job.
Great comedies like the Carry Ons never age. This is why I can watch Steptoe & Son, Only Fools & Horses, Fawlty Towers, Rising Damp and more recently Blackadder, time and time again. Below are two links to the BBC comedy website. The first is a link to over 15,000 pages of TV comedy since 1936. The second is a link to the result of the top ten best comedy programmes of all time as voted for by the British public. From here, you can view the top 100.
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