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 setting
- 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