Quote: Peter Gash @ May 1 2009, 11:13 AM BST

Mutiny On The Buses was made in 1972.

The Sting was made in 1973.

The same era.

I know which one is wittier and more intelligent in every aspect of its construction without using swearing and/or nudity.

(It's not Mutiny On The Buses.)

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I guess you must have been watching the expurgated edition of The Sting. Less than six minutes into the movie Bob Redford says "shit" and shortly after that his stripper girlfriend is onstage.

Nevertheless, it's important to note that A Clockwork Orange was made in 1971.
The Blues Brothers was made in 1980. Yet neither of them have ewoks or a cameo by Groucho Marx. I know which one has Sid Vicious singing My Way and without choreography by Oscar Wilde. (It's not Soccer Dog 2 - European Cup). etc.

Quote: Aaron @ May 1 2009, 2:11 PM BST

I can't claim to have heard of The Sting, but it doesn't sound like it has even a remotely similar target audience - thus hardly a fair comparison.

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The Sting was an instant classic. A great film. Cannot recommend it too highly.

Quote: Peter Gash @ May 1 2009, 2:30 PM BST

The Sting is one of the most famous movies ever made.

Mutiny On The Buses was made specifically and deliberately as a movie for a cinema release.

Both are therefore movies. Both are comedies. Both were released in the early 70s seeking cinema-going audiences.

I think they both wanted exactly the same target audience.

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Comparing the information on each of them on IMDb, your analysis is laughable at best.

Quote: Maurice Minor @ May 1 2009, 2:46 PM BST

Well that's a wider malaise within the British industry - why did they continue to aim for OTB type output? Again, I'd say the Carry Ons were to blame. They showed you could make a film for £250k and get the No.1 spot at the box office for a week or two.

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I'd say it's because they knew they were onto a sure-fire hit, tapping the audience of an already hugely successful TV series!

Quote: Kenneth @ May 1 2009, 4:27 PM BST

The Sting was an instant classic. A great film. Cannot recommend it too highly.

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If it's ever on TV, I may remember to watch it.

Comparing The Sting and Mutiny On The Buses - I'm wondering whether Peter is actually a Government minister?

Quote: Aaron @ May 1 2009, 8:15 PM BST

I'd say it's because they knew they were onto a sure-fire hit, tapping the audience of an already hugely successful TV series!

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Call me a naive romantic, but I'm sure they *really* felt they had an important story to tell the world, and that a tale involving the frustrations encountered in the everyday lives of two working class bus company... oh, maybe not.

Anybody read this novel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Garden_of_Unearthly_Delights

On The Buses is the number 1 show. A classic! I get annoyed when someone hates it. This is better than The Office and Fawlty Towers.

Hate this show.

Quote: Nil Putters @ 22nd January 2014, 8:58 PM GMT

Hate this show.

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Someone is getting annoyed now.

Does anybody know the episode where blakey ends up in hospital and he does this sign things but it causes trouble? It was colour and had Arthur and had Doris Hare plays mum. Blakey wants revenge for what Stan and Jack did. Stan reversed his bus back and hit Blakey's office. What was the episode called? Thanks

Comedy is all about personal taste. Sure some will hate On The Buses but for those that do there will be five that love it. It still has cult following around the globe and has a new generation of fans. If it is so unappealing then why is it still repeated regularly more than 40 years after the last episode was first aired? And no it isn't because it fills schedules as the ITV have a whole plethora of sitcoms to screen from that era - simply it is because it still has appeal and draws in very good viewing figures. That speaks volumes for the quality of On The Buses.

I've been watching the complete box set from episode 1, and I'm onto the first colour entries, circa Series 3.

I actually quite like On the Buses: the characters bawl their lines, and Stan is always on about his steak and kidney puddin', but the cast is strong and the farcical events amuses me at least and I intend watching every episode.

Great period charm, to boot: 1969 'dolly birds' and old-style motors, etc.

This show was extremely popular first time around, I remember, and at least we can still see some 1970 episodes in colour and in reasonable quality [unlike, say, Steptoe from the same year, the colour originals of which were carelessly wiped, leaving us with sub-par b/w telerecordings.]

The first two b/w series of BUSES see the cast finding their feet; however by series 3, the overall characterization, comic timing and farcical situations are well-tuned and amusing------we get a good look at working-class life in 1970 as way of bonus.

Episodes like The Cistern and The Inspectors' Niece are bawdily well-executed.

For me at least, it's still very watchable, and I get good vibes from this show.

Quote: neil steptoe @ 30th April 2009, 12:00 AM BST

Great in its day but very dated now, in my opinion anyway.

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Exactly that point. I have seen a few episodes recently and have to say it is dire and is on of the most dated comedies out there

Have to agree with a previous poster, commenting about Carry on Camping, Sid and Bernard who were what about 40s chasing some young 18/20 year olds whilst there with their girlfriends. In fact the girlfriends' mothers were nearer their age. OTB is very similar with middle aged men Stan and Jack chasing after 18/20 year old. Sorry, not even slightly believable.

Quote: smc4761 @ 16th September 2014, 7:02 PM BST

Exactly that point. I have seen a few episodes recently and have to say it is dire and is on of the most dated comedies out there

Have to agree with a previous poster, commenting about Carry on Camping, Sid and Bernard who were what about 40s chasing some young 18/20 year olds whilst there with their girlfriends. In fact the girlfriends' mothers were nearer their age. OTB is very similar with middle aged men Stan and Jack chasing after 18/20 year old. Sorry, not even slightly believable.

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It's well known that dolly birds have a thing about middle-aged bus conductors with big toothy grins.

Quote: ComedyGeek @ 22nd January 2014, 8:55 PM GMT

On The Buses is the number 1 show. A classic! I get annoyed when someone hates it. This is better than The Office and Fawlty Towers.

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Hate this and love The Office and Farty Trowels.

Quote: ComedyGeek @ 27th February 2014, 7:51 PM GMT

Does anybody know the episode where blakey ends up in hospital and he does this sign things but it causes trouble? It was colour and had Arthur and had Doris Hare plays mum. Blakey wants revenge for what Stan and Jack did. Stan reversed his bus back and hit Blakey's office. What was the episode called? Thanks

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Laugh? I had difficulty.

The opening episode to Series 3 features a first-aid theme, and we see Blakey [with an injured leg] getting his thigh massaged by an attractive young female clippie.

The dialogue goes something like:

BLAKEY: 'Ooooh, it's swelling, darlin'---it's swelling up!'

ATTRACTIVE GIRL: 'Ooh, I can see that, you naughty old Mr Blake!'

Although the 'highbrow' set may scoff at and dismiss this level of comedy suggestiveness, the studio audience clearly lap this scenario up, with genuine laughter guffawing heartily on the soundtrack.

Anyone who thinks this 'lowbrow' approach to comedy is lacking in taste need only imagine how someone like Keith Lemon would approach such a scene if presented today: we'd probably get close-ups of a prosphetic appendage to represent the 'swelling up'------and in [say] 5 years time, we would be assaulted by scenes of an actual 'appendage' being massaged by the female clippie.