Why has comedy changed and has it changed for the better? Robert D questions our comedy tastes and compares 'the good old days' with the productions of the naughties...

Comedy has often pushed the boundaries, offended certain people and caused our guts to explode every now and then; but in recent years comedy has changed. Family friendly shows are becoming a thing of the past, whilst rude and disgusting humour is on the up. Sitcoms and radio shows used to be suitable for each and every member of the family, but now you find yourself leaping around the room attempting to cover the nearest child's ears. However, what we forget is that our environment has changed. We needn't try to protect the innocent seven year old's ears as he/she already knows words far worse than we do. This new era has brought with it new comedy - situations where we deem it reasonable for middle age men to be comparing their vital statistics on our television screens at half-past-nine. Fair enough, the schedulers have put these shows on post-watershed but aren't we forgetting something - the younger generation stay up much later these days.

Comedies in the 1960's featured clever witted humour, innuendo and slapstick - the perfect ingredients for the deepest belly laugh. Shows like Steptoe and Son, On the Buses and The Rag Trade were risque for their day, but pale in comparison to our modern day series. Programmes that many now view as containing open racism, such as Till Death Us Do Part and Curry & Chips, would almost certainly never be commissioned for 21st Century television screens, yet blunt sex-related jokes now grace our screens every single day without much comment. Do we really appreciate the ruder comedies or have we simply 'got used to them'?

The 1970's saw the continuation of the perfect recipe for comedy. The introduction of Are You Being Served? proved that a comedy show didn't have to include racism or violence, it simply needed to be warm, comforting and well... funny. Instead, the series thrived on its strong characters and surreal plots - something that has continued to this day, in a way. The 1970's also saw the start of the longest-running British sitcom, Last of the Summer Wine - a series that is still going thirty-five years later. So, what does this prove? Are the people who enjoyed the subtle humour of the Holmfirth Valley still enjoying it today, or has it managed to reach our younger generations?

Later years saw the debut of sitcoms such as Only Fools and Horses, One Foot in the Grave and Men Behaving Badly. Three very different sitcoms, all featuring characters and actors that would go on to become some of the most famous faces on British television - David Jason, Richard Wilson, Martin Clunes and Neil Morrissey. Only Fools and Horses showed viewers that comedy and drama mixed perfectly, One Foot in the Grave also mixed comedy and drama successfully, creating a dark yet amusing atmosphere; whilst Men Behaving Badly officially introduced viewers to the blatantly rude side of comedy - something that would become the stable diet of sitcoms and sketch shows as we crossed over into the 21st Century.

As the 21st century approached, rumours of computers switching off for good and the world coming to an end were rife. But back in the land of comedy, the sitcom world had changed its target audience as My Family, Harry Hill's TV Burp and My Hero were released to the public. The ratings for all three shows were very high, but the comedy world wasn't happy with producing just family shows, thus rude humour was about to come back. Little Britain hit television screens in 2003, and was an immediate hit with viewers. Whilst both the family and the adult shows continue to do well, it is apparent that the country is split - those who like risqué, edgy and sometimes damn right disgusting humour; and those who like to play it safe; and the few that like everything. But which it better? There's only one way to find out...