Hi,
Any suggestions of sitcoms to watch?
I can get any. Here is a list of the ones I've already seen (though not complete):

Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, Alas Smith and Jones, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, The Young Ones, Smack The Pony, Kiss Me Kate, The Office, 'Allo 'Allo!, Dad's Army, Absolutely Fabulous, Little Britain, Are You Being Served?, The Fast Show, Hale and Pace, Benny Hill, The Peter Principle, Not The Nine O'clock News, Harry Enfield, The Thin Blue Line, The IT Crowd, Men Behaving Badly, One Foot in The Grave, Paul Merton series, Bottom, Monthy Python's Flying Circus.

OK, having mentioned all those great I saw, here is a list of the ones I didnt watch. What I would appreciate is your comments as which of these are worth buying/downloading based on the quality of its humour. Please NO teenage humour like the style of Red Dwarf, I absolutely dislike those. Well written text lines, timing and comedy talent is what I'm looking for.

So out of these which ones you would suggest and why. Mind you, I checked some video clips preview available on this site and was not convinced, maybe I missed the good parts, so please tell me which of these are REALLY talented comedy lines that are a "must":

Vicar of Dibley
Porridge
Open All Hours
The Good Life
To The Manor Born
The Royle Family
Outnumbered
The Thick Of It
Benidorm (really ??)
The Britta's Empire

or else of your choice.

thanks in advance for your inputs
luis

Big Top.

No seriously - Porridge

You must watch 'Outnumbered'. Simply one of the finest written and performed sitcoms of the decade, imo. Oh, and welcome to the BCG.

The Brittas Empire because Chris Barrie is a comedy genius.

Quote: James Cotter @ December 2 2009, 8:58 PM GMT

The Brittas Empire because Chris Barrie is a comedy genius.

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And it takes one to know one.

Seinfeld!

Quote: greensville @ December 2 2009, 9:00 PM GMT

Seinfeld!

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Is that a British comedy now then?

(Sorry, Greensville, just that the post which started this thread comes from a previous request for British sitcom recommendations, IIRC. )

Quote: Tim Walker @ December 2 2009, 9:00 PM GMT

And it takes one to know one.

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It certainly does.

Benidorm I think you might not 'get', and if you think that Red Dwarf is immature, probably won't like. Outnumbered is very good though.

The Thick Of It, similarly, I don't know if you'd get it. Peep Show, Black Books, The Vicar Of Dibley, Open All Hours, Porridge and To The Manor Born would be good next moves.

Thanks bigfella: I'll try Porridge

Tim: Thanks!
If you say so...I'll watch Outnumbered, I know it has been a Bafta nomenee but was reluctant.

James: Thank you also for Britta's Empire. I don't know Chris Barries so far.

and last but not least...Greensville, thou Seinfeld is out of context I must say is a great american sitcom. Probably THE ONLY american quality sitcom. Its so sad that the whole world is dominated by crap US sitcoms with no talent, marketed by the big studios sony, warner, hbo, etc.

And I forgot to mention "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" one of the best of all times.
"Have I got knews for You" although not a sitcom, is one of the funniest TV programs ever aired on TV.

cheers

Quote: luis kmentt @ December 2 2009, 9:23 PM GMT

James: Thank you also for Brittas Empire. I don't know Chris Barries so far.

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You can get the box-set of The Brittas Empire pretty cheap. It is well worth it. And Chris Barrie is a truly great comic actor. He was Rimmer in Red Dwarf, he was Hillary the butler in Lara Croft and various voices on Spitting Image.

'Outnumbered' is very funny but it's not as as well-written as it appears.

The very funny dialogue of the children isn't scripted: it's improvised and that's the future of sitcom, it seems. No writers - just talented comedy performers working to a general outline and making it up as they go along.

Joking Apart and Coupling are very well written, clever and funny. Both written by Stephen Moffatt, so maybe try them.

The Good Life and Ever Decreasing Circles are good.

From your list The Thick Of It and Outnumbered are two recent classics and will be remembered fondly for a long while, as will Peep Show.

Also try Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister and maybe The Inbetweeners.

Dan

Quote: Ming the Mirthless @ December 2 2009, 9:46 PM GMT

'Outnumbered' is very funny but it's not as as well-written as it appears.

The very funny dialogue of the children isn't scripted: it's improvised and that's the future of sitcom, it seems. No writers - just talented comedy performers working to a general outline and making it up as they go along.

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Ming, absolutely agree with you, Borat, Bruno thru Sascha Baron Cohen has proved the future is real humour, the prejudices, the arrogance and stupidity of people is funnier than any capable fictional writing. I saw a clip of Outnumbered and immediately realised those kids were speaking their minds, can't be rehearsed, but then thou might be funny listening to "kids" wisdom, my daughter style, they are not funny witty lines per se as in One Foot in the Grave.

luis

Quote: Aaron @ December 2 2009, 9:20 PM GMT

Benidorm I think you might not 'get', and if you think that Red Dwarf is immature, probably won't like. Outnumbered is very good though.

The Thick Of It, similarly, I don't know if you'd get it. Peep Show, Black Books, The Vicar Of Dibley, Open All Hours, Porridge and To The Manor Born would be good next moves.

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I might give Red Dwarf a second view, first glimpses of red-painted face crashing thru walls in a spaceship was not funny to me when I saw it back in the video cassete days. Some slapstick physical comedy can be very funny, like Bottom, but if it only depends on it then its weak...

The Thick of It was also in Bafta last year, I must watch one episode.

tks, luis

Quote: Ming the Mirthless @ December 2 2009, 9:46 PM GMT

'Outnumbered' is very funny but it's not as as well-written as it appears.

The very funny dialogue of the children isn't scripted: it's improvised and that's the future of sitcom, it seems. No writers - just talented comedy performers working to a general outline and making it up as they go along.

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I think that's doing a bit of a disservice to Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin, who also direct and produce the show. The children's "improvised" lines may not be written in stone, but they certainly need careful comedy direction and guidance in order to capture their raw talent. Kids may well indeed say the funniest things, but getting them to do it in the context of a plot and on cue is another matter.

On the other hand... yeah, f**k writers, who needs 'em!?

*goes off to the attic to hang self*

Quote: luis kmentt @ December 2 2009, 10:03 PM GMT

Ming, absolutely agree with you, Borat, Bruno thru Sascha Baron Cohen has proved the future is real humour, the prejudices, the arrogance and stupidity of people is funnier than any capable fictional writing.

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At least 4 writers on both Borat and Bruno. Still...