Sex And The Sitcom. Copyright: Crocodile Media
Sex And The Sitcom

Sex And The Sitcom

  • TV documentary
  • BBC Four
  • 2011
  • 1 episode

Documentary examining how society's attitudes towards sex and sexuality since the 1950s have been reflected in sitcom. Features David Quantick, Dick Fiddy, Bruce Dessau, Anna Raeburn, Jon Plowman and more.

Key details

Genre
Documentary
Broadcast
2011
Channel
BBC Four
Episodes
1
Features
David Quantick, Dick Fiddy, Bruce Dessau, Anna Raeburn, Jon Plowman, David Nobbs, Jonathan Harvey, Brett Mills and more
Directors
Rachel Boyd
Producers
Rachel Boyd, John Moulson, Gilly Hall and Alan Tyler
Company

How has the sitcom responded to the sexual revolution?

From Hancock's Half Hour in the 1950s, through to 1970s sitcoms like Up Pompeii! and The Fall And Rise Of Reginald Perrin to contemporary comedies like Him & Her, this documentary explores sexual frustration as an enduring sitcom theme, the changing role of women and the British love of innuendo.

Why did Butterflies cause such a stir in the 80s? Did Men Behaving Badly really capture the sexual politics of the 90s? And how did the permissive society affect Terry & June?

It looks at the changing language of sitcom, contrasts British comedy with its more liberal American counterpart and asks whether the modern sitcom recognises any taboos.

Contributors include Leslie Phillips, Lesley Joseph, Wendy Craig, and writers David Nobbs, Simon Nye and Jonathan Harvey.

Additional details

Production
Studio
Picture
Colour

Broadcast details

First broadcast
Tuesday 29th March 2011 at 9pm on BBC Four
Episode length
1 hour
Most recent repeats
  • Thursday 10th December 2015 at 11:00pm on BBC4
  • Saturday 23rd June 2012 at 9:00pm on BBC2
  • Saturday 26th May 2012 at 11:10pm on BBC4

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