I am an American completely in love with British comedy but I have a questions.

It seems that so many of the most famous comedy performers, and writers all seem to come out of Cambridge and other public schools. From John Cleese to Richard Ayoade, it seems that making connections at these school (if you're talented) puts you in a very good position for success. This in itself is not surprising, most of the business world works the same way.

What I am curious about is whether there is a perception that having a public school education confers on one a sort of superior comic intelligence, or is it more of an all boys club. You went to school with the guy who now works for the BBC...sort of thing.

I know that there are successful comedians in Britain who did not go to these schools but it seems that the vast majority did and do.

In America there are writers and comedians who have the same sort of educational background as the public school crowd, but for the vast majority of folks the most important thing being making industry contacts, getting an agent etc..

It does seem to be a bit of a comedy class elite situation in Britain (though it seems to be changing) and I'd appreciate any insight.

Cheers!

A quick thought is that Galton and Simpson, Johnny Speight, Roy Clarke and John Sullivan, who between them have given us some of the greatest comedies, all seem to come from a working class background.

Rich students don't need to work to pay bills etc as mummy and daddy do it all for them

I guess this means they have plenty of spare time

Spare time to arse around writing comedy for example

Plus they will know people with influence that can get them a leg up the ladder

Bastards !

Something like Footlights has the connections and presence to show off comedians to useful people, so yeah- knowing the right people at an early stage/age is massively helpful

LOFTHOUSE! No need for a rebellion.

I just wonder if it's something your country men and women are aware of or am I just being an over sensitive.

As Americans we like to pretend that class doesn't matter, which is complete nonsense of course.

I would say most people are aware of it, yes

Being born with a silver spoon up your bumhole puts you at the front of the queue for everything

Why do you think David Cameron is the prime minister of this country? Because he's a good politician ??

Pfffft

Quote: raul415 @ December 10 2011, 4:35 PM GMT

I am an American completely in love with British comedy but I have a questions.

It seems that so many of the most famous comedy performers, and writers all seem to come out of Cambridge and other public schools. From John Cleese to Richard Ayoade, it seems that making connections at these school (if you're talented) puts you in a very good position for success. This in itself is not surprising, most of the business world works the same way.

What I am curious about is whether there is a perception that having a public school education confers on one a sort of superior comic intelligence, or is it more of an all boys club. You went to school with the guy who now works for the BBC...sort of thing.

I know that there are successful comedians in Britain who did not go to these schools but it seems that the vast majority did and do.

In America there are writers and comedians who have the same sort of educational background as the public school crowd, but for the vast majority of folks the most important thing being making industry contacts, getting an agent etc..

It does seem to be a bit of a comedy class elite situation in Britain (though it seems to be changing) and I'd appreciate any insight.

Cheers!

View original

It's certainly true that many of the best-known British comedies in America are from the better educated end of the scale, but I don't recognise any such "perception" as existing, no. There is, and always has been, a large mix of backgrounds amongst both writers and performers, as highlighted by Oldrocker.

It would be quite fair to suppose that the higher end of the education scale tends to also imbibe its pupils with extra confidence and determination, which certainly help with both making and using connections.

Of course, there's also the matter of what the public perceive as opposed to what actually goes on - but that's a different matter.

Quote: raul415 @ December 10 2011, 7:47 PM GMT

I just wonder if it's something your country men and women are aware of or am I just being an over sensitive.

View original

People tend to be reasonably aware of it because it's often reflected in a performer's accent. For unseen writers, it's far less obvious. Whether it bothers the general population, or whether they interpret any difference in quite the way you have done, are different questions again.

With performers such as Jack Whitehall, Sarah Millican, Frankie Boyle, Michael McIntyre and Micky Flanagan, I think we've got a pretty good contemporary mix.

Quote: raul415 @ December 10 2011, 7:47 PM GMT

LOFTHOUSE! No need for a rebellion.

I just wonder if it's something your country men and women are aware of or am I just being an over sensitive.

As Americans we like to pretend that class doesn't matter, which is complete nonsense of course.

View original

I didn't know Americans had any class.

There's always one.

Quote: raul415 @ December 11 2011, 1:51 AM GMT

Class rhythms with ass.

View original

Oh no it doesn't!

Peter Kay's not done so bad for a Bowton lad from up Daubhill.

Don't believe what he put in his book.

I know for a fact he was brought up in Hampstead by the Earl of Chiswick.

Sometimes having a strong working-class accent can actually make people sound funnier. The biggest example of this is/was probably Reeves and Mortimer. They'd often get laughs, simply because their respective Newcastle and Middlesborough accents sounded funny when saying certain things. Peter Kay also gets laughs because his Bolton accent seems to accentuate his jokes. Then there's the Irish stand-ups. Oh, and I'm sure Sarah Millican would be less successful if she didn't have her Geordie accent.

What on earth is a 'working class accent'?