Подкасти на тему British Sitcom History

This week we start our look at Victoria Wood's dinnerladies. In many ways it is classic sitcom in its purest form but does it also break the rules occasionally?British Sitcom History Podcast

In part 2 of our look at The Army Game, we focus more on the second generation cast and the spin off success of Bootsie and Snudge. Is this a rare example of a show getting better after a big cast change?British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we look at ITV's first sitcom, The Army Game. Starting in 1957, the show was a huge hit and made stars of Charles Hawtrey, William Hartnell, Bernard Bresslaw and many others. But how does it hold up in 2023?British Sitcom History Podcast

This week it's part 2 of our look at Porridge in which we go a bit deeper on Brian Wilde and his wife's gammon steak hawaii. We also continue our look at the episode Just Desserts and then throw cheap shots at Kevin Bishop.British Sitcom History Podcast

We're back and we're starting the new series with an absolute classic. Clement and La Frenais' Porridge was a vehicle designed for Ronnie Barker but is just as well remembered for its stellar supporting cast. Part one takes a look at the careers of Barker and Fulton Mackay and we start to comb through one of the episodes.…

It's Christmas time again and that means all the most reputable people in society are going down the pub. We go back to the pub by the gas works to see how the Pub Landlord is handling Christmas with his mother.British Sitcom History Podcast

Once again we delve into the world of film spin offs as we take a look at the pretty solid Till Death Us Do Part film and the absolutely woeful The Alf Garnett Saga.As usual, we are joined by film expert Sol Harris from Diminishing Returns Podcast. Having not seen much of the original series, he's coming into the films from an unbiased position, bu…

Gareth continues his look at what The Young Ones did after The Young Ones with Roll Over Beethoven. A Liza Goddard vehicle that in retrospect feels like Nigel Planer should have been the bigger name, Roll Over Beethoven ran for two (rushed) series in 1985. Written by the esteemed Marks and Gran, it has no laugh track and not that many laughs and it…

It's Part 2 of our look at Extras and we continue to journey through the Patrick Stewart episode and look at all the things that changed in series 2. Was it for the better? No. But we'll go into a bit more detail than that.British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we're looking at Extras, the Gervais/Merchant follow up to global sensation The Office. So what do you do after you've changed the world of comedy? And how badly has it aged in just fifteen years?British Sitcom History Podcast

When the Whistle Blows was a big hit with audiences but hated by the critics. It's ultimate downfall, however, was a personal one. In this episode of Forgotten Sitcoms we take a look at the show and the man behind it, Andy Millman.British Sitcom History Podcast

It's Part 2 of our look at political satire The New Statesman and Alan B'Stard's plan to drain Hackney Marshes of its rich oil deposits.We also take a closer look at some of the other cast members and the legacy that B'stard has left across the world of British politics.British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we take a look at the Rik Mayall vehicle The New Statesman, written by sitcom stalwarts Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran.After only two series of their biting political satire, Thatcher was toppled. Coincidence? You decide.British Sitcom History Podcast

For part 2 of our look at To the Manor Born, we continue on with our dissection of an episode of the classic sitcom and take a journey through the career of Peter Bowles. And then we throw in a little bit of politics. Everything comes back to Thatcher, don't you know.British Sitcom History Podcast

To the Manor Born starred Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles and was the smash hit of the late seventies and has stayed in the national consciousness as the classic "will they, won't they" story.But given that it exists in a strange rural upper class bubble and it was already out of date forty years ago, will it stand up to the rigours of a 2022 exami…

It's Part 2 of our look at just one slice of the epic Red Dwarf. Here we continue to break apart episode 3, Balance of Power, and we look at the early work of Danny John-Jules and Chris Barrie.This is a really personal one for us but will the series live up to our fond memories?British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we tackle the enormous Red Dwarf. In fact, it's so big that we've had to break it up a bit. So here we deal with just the first two series. The awkward growing years when it was still figuring out what it was. We take a deep dive on a specific episode and have a look at the brief pre-Dwarf careers of the main cast.…

It's part 2 of our look at the not exactly fondly remembered oddity Sean's Show, which graced our screens courtesy of Channel 4 back in the early nineties. This week we discuss some of the guest appearances and have a chat about other stand ups who made the transition to the world of sitcom.British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we take on our most obscure choice yet. Sean's Show was an early nineties sitcom that lasted two series and tried to capture the comic talents of Sean Hughes. Is it as good as we remember it or is it a load of post-modernist nonsense?British Sitcom History Podcast

It's Part 2 of our look at Till Death Us Do Part and we try to get to grips with Alf Garnett and his somewhat outdated views. How did the character develop as he went from 1965 to 1998?British Sitcom History Podcast

To start out the new series we've gone back to a classic, Till Death Us Do Part. But the show is not without its controversies. How well does it hold up after fifty years of societal change?British Sitcom History Podcast

For this bonus episode we're teaming up with SADDO Podcast to talk about the first American attempt to remake Fawlty Towers, Snavely, starring Betty White and Harvey Korman.British Sitcom History Podcast

It's Christmas so we're going back to where we started a year ago and visit Steptoe and Son as they plan a holiday. This was the last episode ever of Steptoe and it's a great send off after ten years.British Sitcom History Podcast

In his pre-Only Fools and Horses days, David Jason had several attempts at starring roles over at ITV. Lucky Feller was a one series wonder made in 1976 but does it stand up to scrutiny 45 years later?British Sitcom History Podcast

To cap off series 2 we've put together a quiz to test your general sitcom knowledge as well as how much you can remember from the shows we've talked about. Play along with Gareth and see if you can beat him.British Sitcom History Podcast

The spiritual middle child between The Young Ones and Bottom, Filthy Rich & Catflap managed one lonely series in 1987. With Ben Elton writing and the funny three from The Young ones all involved, what could possibly go wrong?Gareth steps up to the mic to give his analysis of the show and his controversial opinions of Rik Mayall.…

It's Halloween and that means it's time for a spooky special. Unfortunately, British sitcoms haven't particularly embraced this particular holiday so it's slim pickings. But a good excuse to look at Bottom.British Sitcom History Podcast

Starring Prunella Scales and Joan Sanderson, After Henry was a big hit for ITV back in the eighties but it's pretty much forgotten now. Perfect fodder for a new episode of Forgotten Sitcoms.British Sitcom History Podcast

After our recent look at The Inbetweeners, we decided to team up with our friends at Diminishing Returns Podcast to review the film spin-offs.They were some of the most successful British comedies of all time but how do they measure up to the series?British Sitcom History Podcast

It's Part 2 of our look at The Inbetweeners and this week we conclude our review of the episode "The Field Trip" and see what the actors have been doing since the show ended.British Sitcom History Podcast

To round out series 2, we're taking on a modern classic. The Inbetweeners seemed to speak to every 6th former in the country and spawned new catchphrases with every episode. But does it still hold up after ten years?British Sitcom History Podcast

In part 2 of our look at Sorry! we continue our analysis of an episode and take a look at the other actors as well as a sitcom spotlight on Ronnie Hazlehurst.British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we take on eighties Ronnie Corbett vehicle Sorry! We do a big old biography section on Corbett himself and try to work out if Phyllis Lumsden is the most horrific villain in sitcom history.British Sitcom History Podcast

It's part 2 of our look at classic sixties sitcom The Rag Trade and this week we delve into the career of Reg Varney and evaluate the LWT remake from the seventies.British Sitcom History Podcast

We're going all the way back to the early sixties this week to look at the original incarnation of The Rag Trade starring Miriam Karlin and Sheila Hancock with Reg Varney.British Sitcom History Podcast

It's Part 2 of our look at the first three series of Only Fools and Horses and this time we'll be looking at the early years of Nicholas Lyndhurst and continuing our dissection of The Long Legs of the Law.British Sitcom History Podcast

Here it is, the big one. Too big actually so we've had to break it up for parts. Here we tackle Only Fools and Horses - The Grandad Years, encompassing the first three series of John Sullivan's British institution.British Sitcom History Podcast

In part 2 of our look at The Thin Blue Line, we continue our analysis of the show itself but also put Ben Elton on trial. Has he sold out or is working with Andrew Lloyd Webber not so bad?British Sitcom History Podcast

This week we take a look at the Rowan Atkinson sitcom The Thin Blue Line. Made in the mid-nineties, the show is certainly fixed in its time and place but is writer Ben Elton also harking back to a different era?British Sitcom History Podcast

It's part 2 of our look at classic seventies sitcom Fawlty Towers. Here we look at the careers of Andrew Sachs and Prunella Scales as well as finding out what became of Basil the Rat.British Sitcom History Podcast

It's series 2 and we're opening with a true classic. Can farce work on TV? Is it as good as you remember it? Come with us as we check in for a couple of weeks at Fawlty Towers.British Sitcom History Podcast

As a little aperitif to series 2 of the British Sitcom History Podcast, here are some selected cuts from series 1.British Sitcom History Podcast

We've got a two for one special today as we look at the office politics of mid seventies Eric Chappell show The Squirrels. And as a cheeky bonus we also look at the remake from the early nineties, Fiddlers Three.British Sitcom History Podcast

From the creator of Reginald Perrin, Dogfood Dan and Carmarthen Cowboy was a failed sitcom that got one series back in 1988. It follows two lorry drivers who are unknowingly having an affair with the other's wife. Hilarity ensues. Or does it?British Sitcom History Podcast

The Wackers didn't even complete it's first series back in 1975 before it got cancelled due to poor audience reaction. But why didn't it land with the viewers and how similar is it to Bread?British Sitcom History Podcast

A little bonus for you between series; here is our tie-in episode with film review podcast Diminishing Returns. We talked about the film spin-off of Steptoe and Son and a bit about sitcom films in general.Find more from Diminishing Returns at dimreturns.comBritish Sitcom History Podcast

Sitcoms come and go but not many of them stand the test of time. We try and celebrate (or denigrate) those that have been forgotten over the years.Get Well Soon managed one lacklustre series in 1997 but it has an interesting backstory as it is based on the real life experiences of sitcom legends Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.…

In this round up of all the shows we looked at in Series One, Allen challenges Gareth with a music quiz and tests his memory on everything we've learned over the last twelve episodes.British Sitcom History Podcast

It's part 2 of our look at Time Gentlemen Please in which we discuss the life and career of Richard Herring and find out what happened to the Pub Landlord after the show.British Sitcom History Podcast

In this episode we're looking at the somewhat ill-fated attempt to convert Al Murray's Pub Landlord character into the medium of sitcom. We're big fans of Murray and fellow writer Richard Herring so this one is a bit of a nostalgia fest for the heyday of the nineties. But how does the show hold up twenty years later?…