British Comedy Highlights - by Actors Quiz

Answer: Monty Python's Flying Circus

Many consider this programme the pinnacle of British comedy. Others may loathe it, but still recognise some of the notorious sketches.

One day in the late 1960s a group of comedians met and decided to make "something completely different". The group consisted of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. Jones and Palin had met in Oxford, Gilliam was an American, and the other three had met in Cambridge.
From 1969 to 1974 "Monty Python's Flying Circus" ran for 45 episodes, and the same crew also released several movies: "And Now For Something Completely Different" (1971), "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" (1975), "Monty Python's Life of Brian" (1979) and "Monty Python and the Meaning of Life" (1983).

Even people who never saw anything by Monty Python, will probably have heard of the "Dead Parrot" sketch - Cleese complaining to Palin about a parrot Palin sold him but was actually dead.

Answer: Yes Minister

"Yes Minister" (1980-1984, 22 episodes) and the sequel "Yes Prime Minister" (1986-1987, 16 episodes) starred Paul Eddington as the ambitious young minister (later PM) James Hacker, Nigel Hawthorne as his permanent secretary (the day-to-day leader of the Ministry) Sir Humphrey Appleby, and Derek Fowlds as Hacker's private secretary Bernard Woolley.
Minister Hacker wanted to install several changes to the ministry's policy, all aimed at more efficiency. Sir Appleby opposed him on most occasions, and Woolley would try to give them both their due.
One marvelous quote by Sir Humphrey Appleby was this one from the first series:
"Bernard, I have served 11 Governments in the last 30 years, if I believed in all their policies, I would have been passionately committed to keeping out of the Common Market and passionately committed to going into it, I would've been utterly convinced of the rightness of Nationalising Steel, and of denationalising it, and renationalising it. On Capital Punishment I would have been a fervent retentionist and an ardent Abolitionist, I would have been a Keynesian and a Friedmanite, a Grammar School Destroyer and Preserver, a Nationalisation Freak and a Privatisation Maniac, but above all, I would have been a stark, staring, raving Schizophrenic!"
In 2013 a reboot was made, but all parts were filled by other actors.

Answer: 'Allo 'Allo

"'Allo 'Allo" ran for 85 episodes between 1982 and 1992. The action was set in occupied France during World War II, as the local pub owner René Artois (role by Gordon Kaye) was recruited into the resistance by Michelle Dubois (played by Kirsten Cooke). Henceforth, René's café would be used as a safehouse to hide English pilots.
As if René's life was not complicated enough: both his waitresses wanted to have some hanky-panky with him, which angered his wife Edith. And the German Colonel von Strohm forced René to hide a valuable painting as a retirement plan.
Guy Siner played the gay German Lieutenant Gruber, who at the order of Colonel von Strohm (Richard Marner) executed René. As the Colonel substituted the real bullets with blanks, René lived on as "his own dead twin brother", and Gruber fell for him.
Vicki Michelle played the sexy Yvette Carte-Blanche, one of the two waitresses of the café. Edith often found Yvette in René's arms, only to provoke René's catchphrase "You stupid woman" and a far-fetched excuse.
Although at first the plot seemed to revolve around the hairbrained schemes to help the airmen (played by John D. Collins and Nicholas Frankau) get back to England, most episodes were about making money with the painting "The Fallen Madonna with the Big Boobies" by von Klomp - a painting that was forged dozens of times, hidden in knackwursts, stuffed in trousers, at one time had a circle removed...

Answer: Are You Being Served?

In 1972, the comedy series "Are You Being Served?" began, with 69 episodes until 1985. The plot was set at a very conservative London department store, where Mrs. Slocombe (played by Mollie Sugden) and a junior assistant Miss Brahms (Wendy Richard) sold the ladies' clothing, and Mr. Humphries (John Inman) and his assistant were responsible for the gentlemen's outfit sales.
Mrs. Slocombe was almost at every sentence making reference to her "pussy", a male or female cat (different episodes said differently) named Tiddles. For instance: "What about this fog! My pussy's been gasping all night."
Some of my colleagues think I'm a bit behaving like Mrs. Slocombe - I wonder why I haven't mentioned my two pussies in this answer.
Mr. Humphries on the other hand was the gay collaborator who didn't confess his true sexuality. When he was measuring clients for tailor-made suits, this contributed to the humour.
Other characters were Captain Peacock ( Frank Thornton), the snobby floor manager, and Young Mr. Grace (played by Harold Bennett) - the owner who looked as if he was well past the age of 110.

Answer: Dad's Army

"Dad's Army" ran for 80 episodes between 1968 and 1977.
The plot was that some elder men (way past 40) formed during World War II a platoon of the Home Guard, an auxiliary force of volunteers to defend the British coast in case of a German invasion.
Arthur Lowe played Captain Mainwaring, the local bank manager who would now command the platoon. He was a veteran of the Great War, but didn't see any combat before. Captain Mainwaring is portrayed as a courageous and snobby leader, lacking combat experience and thus frequently barking up the wrong tree.
John Le Mesurier played Sergeant Wilson, the upper-class bank clerk with some combat experience always doubting (and many times correct to do so) Captain Mainwaring's decisions. His catchphrase was "Is that wise, Sir?"
Clive Dunn played Lance Corporal Jack Jones, in the civilian life known as the local butcher of over 70 years old. Jones would always come up with some story of his service in the Sudan in 1884 - mostly not to the point.
The TV series has led to spin-offs in two movies and a musical stage show.

Answer: Keeping Up Appearances

"The Bouquet Residence, the Lady of the House speaking." That's how Patricia Routledge in her role of Hyacinth Bucket always would answer the telephone - frequently to hear some foreigner ordering a Chinese takeaway meal.
This is one of the recurring gags in "Keeping Up Appearances", in which Hyacinth always pretended to be part of the upper class - although her husband Richard (role by Clive Swift) was just a clerk in the financial department of the local community council, and taking retirement in season 3.
Hyacinth had three sisters: the unemployed Daisy (Judy Cornwell) married to an equally unemployed Onslow (Geoffrey Hughes), the nymphomaniac Rose (role at first by Shirley Stelfox, later by Mary Millar) and the rarely seen Violet. Hyacinth only admired Violet - "the one with a Mercedes, a sauna and room for a pony", but not Violet's husband - a cross-dressing bookmaker.
My personal favourite is Onslow, a couch potato who always took life as a gift to celebrate - as long as he could enjoy some beers. Onslow considered running out of beer a major disaster.
"Keeping Up Appearances" ran from 1990 to 1995 for 5 years and 44 episodes.

Answer: Absolutely Fabulous

On reading the plot summary, one might think it's all about sex, drugs and rock 'n roll. But while drink and drugs prevail, "Absolutely Fabulous" is more prudent about the other two ingredients of the proverb.
Jennifer Saunders starred as Edina Monsoon, owner of a PR agency, who struggled with a drinks and drugs problem. Edina frequently drunk so much she didn't knew whether she was on her head or on her feet, and her drugs addiction was a vain attempt to lose weight.
Edina's best friend Patsy Stone (played by Joanna Lumley) was chief editor of a fashion magazine, and her addictions were even worse than Edina's.
Edina's daughter Saffron (Julia Sawalha) and Edina's mother (June Whitfield) tried to help Edina and Patsy recover from the drunk drugged disasters, but of course Edina did not appreciate her mother meddling.
"Absolutely Fabulous" ran for five and a half seasons (the reboot in 2011 had only 3 episodes) and a total of 39 episodes (including the specials). It was followed by a 2016 TV movie.

Answer: Only Fools and Horses

"Only Fools and Horses" ran for seven seasons and sixteen special episodes between 1981 and 2003.
It starred David Jason as Derek "Del Boy" Trotter and Nicholas Lyndhurst as his much younger half-brother Rodney.
Del Boy sold any goods on the market, most of the times goods of unclear origin, and hoped to make a fortune. While Del Boy had the typical charisma a market trader needs, Rodney appeared smarter but less appealing.
Near the end of the series both found everlasting love: Del Boy married Raquel, a former actress and part-time stripper (role by Tessa Peake-Jones) and Rodney married Cassandra (played by Gwyneth Strong).

Answer: Fawlty Towers

"Fawlty Towers" ran for only two seasons (from 1975 to 1979) and 12 episodes, but it left a great impact on British comedy - thanks to the main star, John Cleese. Cleese played Basil Fawlty, a grumpy and clumsy hotel owner. Basil's wife Sybil (Prunella Scales) used to command Basil around, and sometimes tried to calm down the agitated guests. Connie Booth starred as the part-time maid Polly, who saved the day on multiple occasions. And then there was Manuel, the Spanish waiter form Barcelona - played by Andrew Sachs. Manuel made the famed comment "Me from Barcelona - me know nothing" in each and every episode, however sometimes he did turn up the smartest. For instance, in one scene where Basil complained Manuel had put too much butter on the toasts, Manuel reacted as always. Basil then tried his best "Spanish": "Ayo mucho burro aqui" - to which Manuel replies "burro is hee-haa".

Answer: Blackadder

There have been made four different series with Rowan Atkinson as Edmund Blackadder and Tony Robinson as his manservant Baldrick.
"The Black Adder" (1982-1983) is set in medieval England. After the Battle of Bosworth, the new king according to this series is the fictional Richard IV, son to Richard III. Edmund as the new King's son became Duke of Edinburgh and then tried to revolt against King Richard IV.
"Blackadder II" (1986) introduced Lord Blackadder, grandson of the previous Blackadder, to the court of Queen Elizabeth. She always made fun of him, and she frequently ordered "Off with their heads" (from "Alice in Wonderland") when anyone annoyed her.
In "Black Adder the Third" (1987), another Edmund Blackadder has been appointed as the principal servant of the Prince Regent, son of King George III. When the Duke of Wellington challenged the Prince Regent for a duel, Blackadder Esquire convinced the Prince Regent to swap their identities, so the Esquire would fight the duel.
The last TV series was "Blackadder Goes Forth" (1989) and was set during the Great War. Captain Blackadder and Private Baldrick tried to survive trench war. When the great final offensive by Marshall Haig was announced, Blackadder tried every reasonable and unreasonable excuse to get out of it.
A special episode "Blackadder Back and Forth" (1999) introduced a fifth character named Edmund Lord Blackadder V: an eccentric inventor of a time machine, which he tested on the brink of the new millennium - resulting in him and Baldrick ending up in very different eras, even with the dinosaurs.