Following in the footsteps of ‘Britain’s Nicest Man’, a.k.a. Michael Palin, Eric Idle becomes the next original Monty Python member to donate his archives which includes 50-plus years of notes, scripts, librettos, letters, scores and to-do lists as part of the Huntington Library in San Marino archive collection.
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Unfortunately, these posts are getting way too frequent and are hitting too close to home as they involve friends that we’ve made over the years. This time, with great sadness, we report that our friend Nicky Henson, passed away Monday at the age of 74. One of the absolute nicest individuals on the planet, Nicky used to tell us that even after all the theater, stage and film work he has been a part of in over 50 years of professional acting, he expected to see on his tombstone “Here lies Nicky Henson – he was in one episode of Fawlty Towers”.
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While I’m not really sure who “they” are, they say that comedy makes for strange bedfellows. Never has this been more evident than with the long-standing habit/tradition in Germany on New Year’s Eve involving an 11-minute British comedy sketch, Dinner for One, which is also known in Germany as Der 90 Geburtstag (The 90th birthday). It seems that watching […]
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Goodness Gracious Me, the British sitcom with a central theme focusing on British Asian culture, ran for 3 series and 23 episodes from 1998-2001. Starring the foursome of Sanjeev Bhaskar (Kumars at No. 42, Unforgotten), Kulvinder Ghir, Meera Syal (Kumars at No. 42) and Nina Wadia (Eastenders, Still Open All Hours), Goodness Gracious Me sketches poked fun at the British by reversing […]
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Ben Stiller has signed up to direct and executive produce an American re-make of Channel 4 comedy Home, with Black-ish executive producer Stacy Traub overseeing the script re-write. Home follows the plight of a Syrian refugee who enters Britain illegally to claim asylum, in the car boot of a family coming home from holiday. Written by and starring W1A star […]
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Last of the Summer Wine, the long-running British situation comedy written by Roy Clarke (Open All Hours, Keeping Up Appearances, Still Open All Hours, Young Hyacinth) that lasted for 31 years (1973-2010) has lost one of its most lovable characters. Jean Fergusson, the mini-skirt wearing, peroxide blonde Marina, died late last week at the age of 74. […]
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A catchphrase is officially defined as a short phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance and one that has gained usage over time beyond its initial scope. Catchphrases can pop up in any number of outlets, British comedy might just be the leader when it comes to establishing a catchphrase that has a long-tail […]
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Like The Day the Earth Stood Still, this never gets old. Since 2010, Halloween has been about two bits of small screen greatness that should be considered ‘must see TV’. The annual Simpsons Halloween Special and the 2010 ‘newcomer’ on the block which came from the brilliant mind palaces of Reece Shearsmith (League of Gentlemen, The Widower, Chasing Shadows) and Steve […]
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Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. 12 series, 73 episodes and 31 years after the series premiered in 1988, Red Dwarf will head back into the studio, this time for a 2-hour feature film with Craig Charles, Chris Barrie, Danny John-Jules and Robert Llewellyn confirmed to be back as Lister, Rimmer, The Cat and Kryten (a.k.a. Service Mechanoid 2X4B-523P).
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Lord Grantham himself, Hugh Bonneville, will join an all-star cast as filming begins today on the 3-part comedy series, Sandylands, for UKTV Gold. Set in a seaside town, the comedy already sports a who’s who cast including Sanjeev Bhaskar (Kumars at No 42, The Indian Doctor, Unforgotten), David Walliams (Little Britain), Sophie Thompson (Four Weddings and a […]
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