Role of clergy in British comedy about to change — Meet The Rev

From Keeping Up Appearances to Father Ted to The Vicar of Dibley, the clergy have had a rough go of it over the years with respect to their portrayal in British comedy. Gerard Gilbert writes in The Guardian that vicars and/or priests are categorized as either crazed or clowns whether it’s the comedic vicar in Dad’s […]

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Dawn French trades her collar for a night at the opera

Sunday night saw the return of Dawn French to London’s Royal Opera House stage in the role of La Duchesse de Crackentorp in “La Fille de la Regiment“. French, who originally played the part to rave reviews in 2007, doesn’t sing, speaks her lines in English (with French subtitles) yet still, according to early reviews, commands […]

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The UK really is funny territory, pt 2

A quick update to an October 2009 post from Tellyspotting as you make plans to travel to the UK this summer. This just in from the other side of the pond – think about Peckham if you’re a fan of Only Fools and Horses. As reported in The Guardian, the British are way ahead of […]

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Book of Minutiae – Chapter 1

From the Tellyspotting book of little known facts….. Next time you feel the need to amaze your friends with some British comedy trivia, here are some great starters that will have them, well, amazed. Guaranteed. Or, if you find yourself at a pub quiz and one of these questions pops up…you can thank me later. […]

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British comedy scattershooting….

We’ve Got Mail… Since lots of questions have come across the desk in the last several months asking for updates on favorite British comedies or dramas, what favorite Britcom actors and actresses are doing, etc, we’re going to try and to do this once a month on the first Friday of the month. If you […]

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BBC Showcase – a postscript

Well, screenings are over (again, we were the last people to leave the Brighton Centre before they kicked us out), but the wind, rain and cold have a new friend, snow, in the forecast. Lots of great finds, as always, during our five days in Brighton. I say this every year, but this has to […]

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Cupid returns to Dibley, targets the Vicar

From her first day in Dibley, Geraldine was almost rejected by the Parish Council, rejected Owen (thankfully) and David Horton (ultimately), been dumped by David’s brother Simon, linked with Rachel Hunter, always consulted, simultaneously, her pictures of Jesus and Mel Gibson in troubled times and had an affair with a chocolate fountain. Self-described as a […]

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Cupid targets Dibley for favorite British comedy couple

Created by Richard Curtis, the Vicar of Dibley has probably the best collection of an ensemble cast as there ever was in a British comedy. Starting with Geraldine and David Horton, right down the Parish Council with Owen, Jim, Frank and Letitia, the series is genius. Up next in our quest for favorite British comedy […]

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Dawn French talks Dibley

Another tip of the hat to Dawn French, just because we can. Dawn French is a comic genius. Originally introduced to KERA audiences in French & Saunders, a top-notch sketch show with longtime friend and comedy partner, Jennifer Saunders, then Murder Most Horrid which creatively spoofed thriller and murder mysteries and, finally, perhaps her most […]

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From the vault: AbFab B4 AbFab

In the early days of French and Saunders, the comedy duo created a sketch that would later become the sensational Absolutely Fabulous. This pre-Vicar role for Dawn French had her playing the daughter to Saunders’ mother character. Saunders later developed the idea for the BBC series back in 1992 and the rest is history. While the […]

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