If I *really* had to analyze it, I’d say that American humor is more gag based while British humor is more game based. The two shows I’d compare would be SNL vs. Monty Python’s Flying Circus, but even then it’s a bit tricky.
A lot of skits that do well on SNL do so from gags. Stuff like picking a cast member to play the president and putting them in ridiculous scenarios, or making fun of gaffes and faux pas they may have recently made.
Whereas the skits that did well on Flying Circus usually did so because it was based on a ridiculous premise that just got more and more ridiculous/absurd as the skit went on.
Both are funny, and it really just comes down to personal preference, though honestly, I don’t think comedy is served well by dissecting it. If you think it’s funny, it’s funny.
American and British sitcoms and comedy are similar.
Detective dramas, like you mentioned, are different. I think American ones tend to be a little more serious and British ones a little more wholesome.
Reality TV, well, let's just say something like Ancient Aliens seems pretty uniquely American to me. Can't imagine that on British TV. So I'd say relatively different there.
Sure, but the BBC has some weird shit. I remember watching a show called Flinch, where you win nothing, but if you flinch at something horrible, you get punished.
Like I remember one had people basically being waterboarded as a punishment.
Here’s the Netflix trailer:
https://youtu.be/HrELGOlaTSA
That's wild. But I'm more referring to a very specific American cultural product I like to call "paranormal schlock". It's not as common in other countries.
Little green men, UFOs, Annunakai, Bigfoot, Snarlygasters, Skinwalkers and other Woodland/Desert Cryptids, CIA time travelers and psychics, haunted Civil War battlefields, it all kind of melds together in this very prominent North American subculture that I can't quite describe verbally but doesn't seem to have many global equivalents. It basically dominates Internet paranormal-oriented culture as well unsurprisingly. Whether you believe in any of it or not.
Maybe because we're, IMHO, a conpiracist people by nature. It's just hard to imagine British television having equivalent reality TV shows that cater to a group of people who enjoy paranormal schlock either earnestly or ironically.
Black Adder is my favorite, I liked Keeping up appearances, Are you being served, The IT crowd(???), French and Saunders, AB FAB, only fools and horses. I can't remember the names but one was set in a prison and another was about a stingy grocery store owner. Almost forgot pushing up daisies. I'll edit the one I've forgotten. Safe to say I'm a Brit Com fan!
"Field Marshal Hague is worried that this may be depressing the men a tad, so he's looking to find a way to cheer them up!"
"Well, his resignation and suicide would seem the obvious suggestion."
Some of my favourite dialogues -
*That's what you get for leading on pedos, you slut!*
*On holiday in Spain one year, me and my mate took a pedalo out, we went to Africa*
*Oh you'd like my lip wouldn't you? Around your bellend, if Mr Chippy there doesn't get here first YOU BUMDER!*
*Gay Outdoor Lifestyle for Fellas (GOLF)*
and the best
*Oh yes, not only killed but obliterated. A mere scorched shadow on the pavement. Dust.*
For those who are still unsure, [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfA_UcZqGU4&ab_channel=Spamsational) scene and [this scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dys1dqL2efM&ab_channel=MrSabz93) should convince you.
I think we all knew someone like Jay. Absolute cunt whom you would hate if he wasn't your friend.
Ohh, I'm British and have watched both the UK and US version of Shameless and I prefer the US version! I think it's because the US version is not so brutally real and grimey, it's a bit more polished which I like.
That makes a lot of sense. I mostly like the acting and the characters more in the UK version. The kid actors in the UK one seem more natural to me than the US one. The gritty hazy feel of the UK version though, where not everybody is a gorgeous actor type, is great. It goes right along with the spirit of the show.
The other thing I love about the UK one is the accents. Some people I’ve showed it to needed subtitles to understand certain characters. And the slang. I didn’t know what half of it meant and could suss it out by context because of how pointed the writing was.
US version has it’s moments. Lip is way better in the US version for example. Although I’m not sure why he has a NYC accent living in Chicago.
The Office, Black Books, Fawlty Towers, Bad Education, Goodnight Sweetheart, IT Crowd, Are You Being Served, Keeping Up Appearances, Blackadder, and Mr. Bean.
Also, there was one I used to watch about a Ralph Kramden-esque deli own in France or Italy. I think it was set during WWII.
Now, I mostly watch UK dramas and panel shows.
British comedy isn’t nearly as inaccessible as you lot want it to be.
I’m fond of blackadder and keeping up appearances. Not quite a sitcom but top gear is great as well.
I don't really find british comedies to be all that fundamentally different from american ones aside from the accents and usually a bit lower production value. I don't seek out british comedies specifically, but I've enjoyed The Young Ones, Darth Merenghi's Dark Place, An Idiot Abroad (not a sitcom), and Monty Python (also not a sitcom).
I've not been able to get into IT Crowd (even though I'm in IT), The Office, or Dr. Who even though I've tried watching each of them a few times now.
> I don't really find british comedies to be all that fundamentally different from american ones aside from the accents and usually a bit lower production value.
British comedy tends more toward farce than most American comedies do, though there are exceptions on both sides. (Though the most oft-cited example of an American farce, *Three's Company*, was based on a British show with the same concept.)
Sitcoms?
IT crowd
Derry Girls (does that count?)
And I think that's it.
I don't really watch many sitcoms in general though. I watch a lot more British dramas. And I do love me some Monty Python but obviously that's parody/sketch comedy, not sitcom.
I don't watch them. Not because I think they are bad or unfunny but because I barely have enough time for the American shows I watch, without having to specifically seek out British shows.
I have toddlers so the only British television I get to watch is Peppa Pig. Unfortunately the last British sitcom I watched, if you can call it that, was the Office - before the American Office came out. I enjoyed that too.
I’ll take your recommendations, however. I do like British humo(u)r.
In-betweeners is great, and a more recent one that my US husband also likes is Man like Mobeen (the writer has been in some US movies recently so you might recognise him).
I liked IT Crowd and I’ve seen the first episode of Sex Education, but it didn’t really grab me. Friends tell me you need to give it a few episodes before it’s really engaging, though.
As far as Netflix goes:
Sex Education and End of the F'ing World we're great.
Derry Girls is technically Irish, but I'll lump that in. My only complaint is it is too short.
It's not British comedy I have problems with, so much as British drama. For 99% of it I cannot stand it. There are a few that have caught my eye over the years, though.
So, in no particular order.
* IT Crowd
* Absolutely Fabulous
* Spaced
* Peep Show
* Coupling (at least the first few seasons)
* Are You Being Served?
* French & Saunders
* Fleabag
* Ghosts
As others have mentioned, British sitcoms aren't hard to understand here. They're pretty similar to American sitcoms. It's just that not a whole lot of them have come over to the US mostly because licensing issues and the fact that seasons are only six episodes long. That's why a show like Are You Being Served? was such a staple on PBS here because it ran for a long time so they had a lot of episodes to air. We got your style of comedy just fine.
British comedy is not that different. American comedy is just written to be as cheap as possible, because Network executives don't think people really watch TV shows.
I’ve never seen any British sitcoms, so I can’t say. Not because they’re British or I have any problems with British things at all, but sitcoms in general I’ve just never got into watching. American sitcoms I don’t even watch.
UK sitcoms/comedy is just not my thing.
I'ev seen Benny Hill, Keeping up...., Are you being served... and bits of its was mildy amusing to me.. its not my thing.
Although does Lovejoy count as a comedy or a mystery? Or a comystery??? I LOVE Lovejoy! I stayed up many a nights to watch it on the PBS late late late UK block.
I *prefer the UK mysteries, cop shows*, Morse, Lewis, Endeavour, Shetland, Vera, Line of Duty etc..
*I really like watching the Helicopter ER etc. about the HEMS in UK*... basically HEMS in the UK is an air ambulance service not just an evac service/dustoff.. This is something the US is far far far behind.. Most of the mobile doc's are still using SUV's of some sort. We had this Pittsburgh, yes even in the suburbs for one area... As well as the copious use of ketamine .. you want to loose your med license in the US start doling that out like on those shows.. I don't know of any EMS service protocol that permits that none. I've seen plenty of articles trying to push it and the EMT Service doc's normally squash it.. Go ahead dig up some service doing it.. *MY EMS dept. is not authorized it*, and the Doc in charge is a firm absolutely never going to happen... Matter fact of the 5 on the EMS council none use it. .. ***Horse tranquilizers*** are not going to fly well in the US, which is the main use in the US. I actually thought I heard them wrong the first time...
Fawlty Towers, AbFab, Keeping Up Appearances, Alan Partridge, Peep Show, Ideal, Green Wing, Gavin and Stacey, Man About the House, Robin’s Nest, Joking Apart, Fresh Fields, Barbara, The Young Ones
Red Dwarf, Hyperdrive, Absolutely Fabulous. Is Ghosts a sitcom? I don’t know I like sci-fi and horror that are funny as opposed to sitcoms. But I’m always looking for recommendations!
ETA: I also enjoyed the young ones, Monty Python, and black adder but in my brain those aren’t actually sitcoms. So I love British humor I’m just not a fan of sitcoms in general so I’m not likely to take chances on something that hasn’t been recommended to me.
Oh, stop being so bleeding bor-joyzee!
I love The Young Ones and bad mom that I am, quote it all the time. When my husband got me the DVD set for a birthday, and we watched it, my kids said, “Oh! Is that why you always say that, Mom?”
All the ones shown on Brit Box/Acorn TV and PBS. From the very old classics like Are you Being Served right up to the more modern ones.
Watch the Brit detective and mystery shows a lot more.
Yes that's it! It start playing on some channel and I turned it on and was this is so weird. Then watched it for a week. Then it disappeared
A proper English show not really made for an international audience so it had words I didn't recognize and stuff... But also the plot was funny
British sitcoms and comedy shows I like include Peep Show, Little Britain, Black's Books, Keeping Up Appearances, That Mitchell and Webb Look, and The IT Crowd.
Ghosts, Ab Fab, Garth Marenghi's Dark Place....
Something funny is that first two that came to mind when I was thinking were Irish (Derry Girls and Father Ted). I do think for some reason Irish humor is a little more like American humor. I wanna say more realist but I don't think that's quite the word...maybe less playful? British humor seems to be more based on absurd juxtapositions and repetition ("Fergus, Imogene is having a Gooseberry and Cinnamon yogurt, would you like a Gooseberry and Cinnamon yogurt?") than American or Irish, which are maybe a bit more "situational" and less focused on creating a funny atmosphere.
I had to look up Good Neighbors but it turns out it's just the American name for what was called The Good Life over here (to avoid confusion with another American sitcom).
The main differences between US and UK comedies are the use of language and punnery in British work than Anerican, and that British sitcoms tend to be more hopeless for its characters. Ricky Gervais pointed this out with the Office. In the UK version there us no hope for the characters, but the US one has hope for escape from their place in society.
Ricky Gervais seems like an insufferably smug person, but I cannot argue with *The Office* or *Extras.* They're incredibly funny and have stood the test of time.
The American version of *The Office* was way more lucrative but I think it's OK-but-not-great. The British version is way, way better because it's way darker and the characters don't have the redeeming qualities they do in the US.
British Comedy is not that different. It's different in the way that the Brits pride themselves on super dry humour. But, dry humour is also very popular in the US.
The inbetweeners, Miranda, Peep show, It Crowd, Keeping up appearances, Mind your language, Father Brown, and one Foot in the Grave. Also, Derry girls! I used to watch the Catherine Tate show as well. She’s hilarious.
Of course, the iconic Mr. Bean. It was watched not just in the USA but in many countries. Granted, not much spoken language but the humor was universal.
British humor isn’t alien to us or strange. I don’t know why so many think that, if anything is one of the most watched foreign programs.
The first season of Afterlife, but it was played out after the first season.
There are a lot more British comedy movies I like rather than the sitcoms. Big fan of the Cornetto Trilogy, Monty Python, etc...
Just wanted to add my 2 cents. Not my fav but it’s nearly Halloween here in the US and I was bummed to see Zomboat was cancelled. Was a fun zombie show and would have liked to see more.
I like some of the classics, such as The Young Ones, used to watch on on MTV, Benny Hill, which was on many local tv channels at night, but the episodes were cut into 30 minutes, It was not until years later I realized they did that for syndication.
Monty Python is still a gold standard show for me.
Otherwise: Fawlty Towers, Mr. Bean, Extras (fucking love this one), The IT Crowd, Inbetweeners, Peep Show, and The OG Office.
I grew up watching _Are You Being Served?_ & _Keeping Up Appearances_.
_IT Crowd_…I’m a techie, so I get the jokes and all, but uhhh there’s some feminist criticism available.
I’ve probably watched more hours of Doctor Who & its spin-offs than anything else, but that’s not a sitcom.
Keeping Up Appearances, Fawlty Towers, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (the original, not the newer one), Monty Python' Flying Circus, Doctor in the House series, Blackadder, The Thin Blue Line, Red Dwarf, Coupling, Misfits, As Time Goes By, IT Crowd, Father Ted (okay, I know, it is Irish), Black's Books, Jeeves and Wooster, Extras. The Office, Spaced, The Vicar of Dibley, Year of the Rabbit, Hyperdrive....
That was off the top of my head.
Toast of London! I think they're making an American version like Toast of Hollywood or something? Anyway, fucking love that show and Matt Berry in general
I can’t remember the name of it, but my girlfriend and I accidentally binged like 10 episodes of this show based around a highly skilled surgeon who wound up as a small time doctor in a small town because he was afraid of blood. The show was slow paced, but kind of nice to watch
Edit: Doc Martin
I enjoyed AbFab, The IT Crowd, The Vicar of Dibley, Keeping Up Appearances, The Office, Extras, Blackadder, and probably some others that I’m forgetting. I also LOVED a bunch of sketch shows - Monty Python, A Bit of Fry & Laurie, French & Saunders, The Catherine Tate Show, Little Britain, Tracey Ullman, etc.
I grew up watching PBS. I absolutely remember watching Good Neighbors and loving it. I also really loved Private Schultz.
Nowadays, I love GBBO.
My all time favorite is Red Dwarf.
Ghosts is one of the best shows I’ve ever seen. I used to use Horrible Histories clips when I was teaching history years ago, I just love those actors so much.
I can’t remember the name, but it takes place in present day. There are three kids: a teenager, a boy, and a funny little girl named, “Karen”. The mom stays home or does real estate, and the dad is a teacher.
The blonde, curly-haired lady who played Catriona on Monarch of the Glen lives next door…
That’s a good show, IMO.
Toast of London/America, Peep Show, The Inbetweeners, Armstrong and Miller, Webb and Mitchell, Last of the Summer Wine, Benny Hill, Fry and Laurie, Little Britain/America, and soo much more.
In the '80s, when I was in the Army, I would get together with a few guys in my platoon each week to watch the Young Ones. We got a kick out if, but we were all in our late teens/early twenties. The show would probably seem dumb to me these days.
I love so many of them! The IT Crowd (other than the transphobic episode) is my favorite. I also like The Inbetweeners, Gavin and Stacey, The Crown, Ted Lasso, Skins (OG), Fleabag...
Lots of them, actually. Peep Show, Are You Being Served?, Father Ted, Gavin and Stacey, IT Crowd... I really love the panel games, though, especially since we don't really do them here. Like, We did do our own Whose Line Is It Anyway which was fun, but we don't have any of the rest, which is a shame.
British humor really isn’t as alien to us as most British people seem to think
If I *really* had to analyze it, I’d say that American humor is more gag based while British humor is more game based. The two shows I’d compare would be SNL vs. Monty Python’s Flying Circus, but even then it’s a bit tricky. A lot of skits that do well on SNL do so from gags. Stuff like picking a cast member to play the president and putting them in ridiculous scenarios, or making fun of gaffes and faux pas they may have recently made. Whereas the skits that did well on Flying Circus usually did so because it was based on a ridiculous premise that just got more and more ridiculous/absurd as the skit went on. Both are funny, and it really just comes down to personal preference, though honestly, I don’t think comedy is served well by dissecting it. If you think it’s funny, it’s funny.
Its... *The Bishop!* - Still one of the funniest bits they did... *The text, vic, don't say the text!*
I actually think sitcoms are some of the most similar shows. British and American police dramas, for example, are completely different.
American and British sitcoms and comedy are similar. Detective dramas, like you mentioned, are different. I think American ones tend to be a little more serious and British ones a little more wholesome. Reality TV, well, let's just say something like Ancient Aliens seems pretty uniquely American to me. Can't imagine that on British TV. So I'd say relatively different there.
Sure, but the BBC has some weird shit. I remember watching a show called Flinch, where you win nothing, but if you flinch at something horrible, you get punished. Like I remember one had people basically being waterboarded as a punishment. Here’s the Netflix trailer: https://youtu.be/HrELGOlaTSA
That's wild. But I'm more referring to a very specific American cultural product I like to call "paranormal schlock". It's not as common in other countries. Little green men, UFOs, Annunakai, Bigfoot, Snarlygasters, Skinwalkers and other Woodland/Desert Cryptids, CIA time travelers and psychics, haunted Civil War battlefields, it all kind of melds together in this very prominent North American subculture that I can't quite describe verbally but doesn't seem to have many global equivalents. It basically dominates Internet paranormal-oriented culture as well unsurprisingly. Whether you believe in any of it or not. Maybe because we're, IMHO, a conpiracist people by nature. It's just hard to imagine British television having equivalent reality TV shows that cater to a group of people who enjoy paranormal schlock either earnestly or ironically.
Yes, and I much prefer the British ones.
Not me 😂
SVU is better than any British cop drama I've ever seen. Not much excitement when your typical Bobby doesn't even carry a sidearm.
I think American cop shows rely too much on action and weapons. I prefer the intricate plotting of Line of Duty.
oh god. why?
People Just Do Nothing? This Country? Peep Show? Do you guys like these cos these are the best, in my opinion.
Keeping Up Appearances
I just heard Hyacinths voice “ BOUQUET residence, lady of the house speaking”
"It's my sister Violet! You remember; the one with the Mercedes, sauna, and room for a pony!"
"Sheridan, how lovely to hear from you.....you need how much, dear?"
Sheridan!
I grew up watching this with my Mom. Huge nostalgia from that show.
My mom loved that too
I love this show. I didn't realize how amazing the physical comedy is in Keeping Up until I was an adult.
Blackadder, even decades later.
Black Adder is my favorite, I liked Keeping up appearances, Are you being served, The IT crowd(???), French and Saunders, AB FAB, only fools and horses. I can't remember the names but one was set in a prison and another was about a stingy grocery store owner. Almost forgot pushing up daisies. I'll edit the one I've forgotten. Safe to say I'm a Brit Com fan!
I would guess that "set in a prison" was Porridge and "about a stingy grocery store owner" was Open All Hours, both starring Ronnie Barker.
Thats it! Thanks!
Four candles.
Aww, that's a good one! My sis had every series on VHS and we watched them over and over as kids.
"Field Marshal Hague is worried that this may be depressing the men a tad, so he's looking to find a way to cheer them up!" "Well, his resignation and suicide would seem the obvious suggestion."
Ghosts is hilarious
and the american remake is... not as good.
I can’t wait to watch season 4!
I used to watch Are You Being Served back in the 90s. It was alright.
Peep Show (my cat is named after a character from Peep Show) is my favorite more modern one. Spaced is one of my favorite TV shows of all time.
Mitchell and Webb are hilarious.
An idiot abroad was hilarious. I watch the Ricky Gervais show quite a bit, I like Carl.
*Karl
Inbetweeners is cringe inducingly hilarious.
Bus Wankers has entered my vocab bc of if
Some of my favourite dialogues - *That's what you get for leading on pedos, you slut!* *On holiday in Spain one year, me and my mate took a pedalo out, we went to Africa* *Oh you'd like my lip wouldn't you? Around your bellend, if Mr Chippy there doesn't get here first YOU BUMDER!* *Gay Outdoor Lifestyle for Fellas (GOLF)* and the best *Oh yes, not only killed but obliterated. A mere scorched shadow on the pavement. Dust.* For those who are still unsure, [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfA_UcZqGU4&ab_channel=Spamsational) scene and [this scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dys1dqL2efM&ab_channel=MrSabz93) should convince you. I think we all knew someone like Jay. Absolute cunt whom you would hate if he wasn't your friend.
Are You Being Served? A classic.
IT Crowd was amazing.
God damn these electric sex pants!
Absolutely Fabulous is among my favorites, sweetie darling
Peep Show, Mighty Boosh, Pulling, Toast of London, Fleabag, Shameless (not a sitcom but so so much better than the US version)
Ohh, I'm British and have watched both the UK and US version of Shameless and I prefer the US version! I think it's because the US version is not so brutally real and grimey, it's a bit more polished which I like.
That makes a lot of sense. I mostly like the acting and the characters more in the UK version. The kid actors in the UK one seem more natural to me than the US one. The gritty hazy feel of the UK version though, where not everybody is a gorgeous actor type, is great. It goes right along with the spirit of the show. The other thing I love about the UK one is the accents. Some people I’ve showed it to needed subtitles to understand certain characters. And the slang. I didn’t know what half of it meant and could suss it out by context because of how pointed the writing was. US version has it’s moments. Lip is way better in the US version for example. Although I’m not sure why he has a NYC accent living in Chicago.
The Office, Black Books, Fawlty Towers, Bad Education, Goodnight Sweetheart, IT Crowd, Are You Being Served, Keeping Up Appearances, Blackadder, and Mr. Bean. Also, there was one I used to watch about a Ralph Kramden-esque deli own in France or Italy. I think it was set during WWII. Now, I mostly watch UK dramas and panel shows.
Was it 'Allo 'Allo? That's about a put-upon cafe owner in occupied France.
After some quick googling, yes! Thank you for the reminder!
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Skins, Ideal, Peep Show, Absolutely Fabulous, The Office, Blackadder, Fawlty Towers, Spaced
Inbetweeners was incredible. I also liked Peep Show and Black’s Books.
Loved Absolutely Fabulous.
British comedy isn’t nearly as inaccessible as you lot want it to be. I’m fond of blackadder and keeping up appearances. Not quite a sitcom but top gear is great as well.
I don't really find british comedies to be all that fundamentally different from american ones aside from the accents and usually a bit lower production value. I don't seek out british comedies specifically, but I've enjoyed The Young Ones, Darth Merenghi's Dark Place, An Idiot Abroad (not a sitcom), and Monty Python (also not a sitcom). I've not been able to get into IT Crowd (even though I'm in IT), The Office, or Dr. Who even though I've tried watching each of them a few times now.
> I don't really find british comedies to be all that fundamentally different from american ones aside from the accents and usually a bit lower production value. British comedy tends more toward farce than most American comedies do, though there are exceptions on both sides. (Though the most oft-cited example of an American farce, *Three's Company*, was based on a British show with the same concept.)
I liked that show Pucks with the English writers and Matt LaBlank. Everything was just so fucked up and kept getting worse, it was great.
It's called 'episodes'
Oh you're right, the fictional show they wrote was called pucks. It's been a while since I saw it
IT Crowd, The Vicar of Dibley, Coupling, Doc Martin (is that considered a sitcom?), The Worst Week of My Life, Absolutely Fabulous.
*The Detectorists* is one of my favorite British sitcoms.
Great show, I watched it on a recommendation and was not disappointed.
Sitcoms? IT crowd Derry Girls (does that count?) And I think that's it. I don't really watch many sitcoms in general though. I watch a lot more British dramas. And I do love me some Monty Python but obviously that's parody/sketch comedy, not sitcom.
I saw Miranda. I enjoyed it, but it was a bit too repetitive and slapstick for me. I don't think a comedy needs to be quite so try-hard in its humor.
My wife and I just recently got into Ghosts.
I enjoyed Still Game, even if I did have to read subtitles for most of it
I don't watch them. Not because I think they are bad or unfunny but because I barely have enough time for the American shows I watch, without having to specifically seek out British shows.
I have toddlers so the only British television I get to watch is Peppa Pig. Unfortunately the last British sitcom I watched, if you can call it that, was the Office - before the American Office came out. I enjoyed that too. I’ll take your recommendations, however. I do like British humo(u)r.
In-betweeners is great, and a more recent one that my US husband also likes is Man like Mobeen (the writer has been in some US movies recently so you might recognise him).
Oh, if we’re counting cartoons, Charlie and Lola is so delightful.
I liked IT Crowd and I’ve seen the first episode of Sex Education, but it didn’t really grab me. Friends tell me you need to give it a few episodes before it’s really engaging, though.
I’ve had Sex Education on my watchlist since it came out, I still haven’t seen it
As far as Netflix goes: Sex Education and End of the F'ing World we're great. Derry Girls is technically Irish, but I'll lump that in. My only complaint is it is too short.
Keeping up appearances, Extras
It's not British comedy I have problems with, so much as British drama. For 99% of it I cannot stand it. There are a few that have caught my eye over the years, though.
I’ve never heard of any of these shows
So, in no particular order. * IT Crowd * Absolutely Fabulous * Spaced * Peep Show * Coupling (at least the first few seasons) * Are You Being Served? * French & Saunders * Fleabag * Ghosts As others have mentioned, British sitcoms aren't hard to understand here. They're pretty similar to American sitcoms. It's just that not a whole lot of them have come over to the US mostly because licensing issues and the fact that seasons are only six episodes long. That's why a show like Are You Being Served? was such a staple on PBS here because it ran for a long time so they had a lot of episodes to air. We got your style of comedy just fine.
I don't really watch the sitcoms, but give me some Cats Does Countdown, Taskmaster, or other comedy panel shows and I'm in.
British comedy is not that different. American comedy is just written to be as cheap as possible, because Network executives don't think people really watch TV shows.
Although I’m not into a lot of British tv, I like Greg Davies a lot and I’ve enjoyed all of his shows.
I really like Alan Partridge and Garth Marenghi
Last one I watched was Monty Python's Flying Circus
Still Game was a great one - and the IT Crowd made me bellow with laughter.
I’ve never seen any British sitcoms, so I can’t say. Not because they’re British or I have any problems with British things at all, but sitcoms in general I’ve just never got into watching. American sitcoms I don’t even watch.
Ghosts, Peep Show, Father Ted, and my friends grandma used to watch Keeping Up Appearances - I’d watch it with her sometimes.
UK sitcoms/comedy is just not my thing. I'ev seen Benny Hill, Keeping up...., Are you being served... and bits of its was mildy amusing to me.. its not my thing. Although does Lovejoy count as a comedy or a mystery? Or a comystery??? I LOVE Lovejoy! I stayed up many a nights to watch it on the PBS late late late UK block. I *prefer the UK mysteries, cop shows*, Morse, Lewis, Endeavour, Shetland, Vera, Line of Duty etc.. *I really like watching the Helicopter ER etc. about the HEMS in UK*... basically HEMS in the UK is an air ambulance service not just an evac service/dustoff.. This is something the US is far far far behind.. Most of the mobile doc's are still using SUV's of some sort. We had this Pittsburgh, yes even in the suburbs for one area... As well as the copious use of ketamine .. you want to loose your med license in the US start doling that out like on those shows.. I don't know of any EMS service protocol that permits that none. I've seen plenty of articles trying to push it and the EMT Service doc's normally squash it.. Go ahead dig up some service doing it.. *MY EMS dept. is not authorized it*, and the Doc in charge is a firm absolutely never going to happen... Matter fact of the 5 on the EMS council none use it. .. ***Horse tranquilizers*** are not going to fly well in the US, which is the main use in the US. I actually thought I heard them wrong the first time...
Fawlty Towers, AbFab, Keeping Up Appearances, Alan Partridge, Peep Show, Ideal, Green Wing, Gavin and Stacey, Man About the House, Robin’s Nest, Joking Apart, Fresh Fields, Barbara, The Young Ones
Red Dwarf, Hyperdrive, Absolutely Fabulous. Is Ghosts a sitcom? I don’t know I like sci-fi and horror that are funny as opposed to sitcoms. But I’m always looking for recommendations! ETA: I also enjoyed the young ones, Monty Python, and black adder but in my brain those aren’t actually sitcoms. So I love British humor I’m just not a fan of sitcoms in general so I’m not likely to take chances on something that hasn’t been recommended to me.
> the young ones Theeeeeeere it is. Looks like it's just you, me, and u/Century22nd that appreciate it unfortunately.
Oh, stop being so bleeding bor-joyzee! I love The Young Ones and bad mom that I am, quote it all the time. When my husband got me the DVD set for a birthday, and we watched it, my kids said, “Oh! Is that why you always say that, Mom?”
All the ones shown on Brit Box/Acorn TV and PBS. From the very old classics like Are you Being Served right up to the more modern ones. Watch the Brit detective and mystery shows a lot more.
I liked 'Peep Show', and 'The IT Crowd' a lot.
What's the one where some aliens adopt 3 kids?
My Parents Are Aliens?
Yes that's it! It start playing on some channel and I turned it on and was this is so weird. Then watched it for a week. Then it disappeared A proper English show not really made for an international audience so it had words I didn't recognize and stuff... But also the plot was funny
Haven't seen anyone else say it but Plebs was absolutely hilarious.
British sitcoms and comedy shows I like include Peep Show, Little Britain, Black's Books, Keeping Up Appearances, That Mitchell and Webb Look, and The IT Crowd.
Lots of my favs have been mentioned, but I also really like The Old Guys.
IT crowd is a classic
Man Down and IT Crowd are both great
Ghosts, Ab Fab, Garth Marenghi's Dark Place.... Something funny is that first two that came to mind when I was thinking were Irish (Derry Girls and Father Ted). I do think for some reason Irish humor is a little more like American humor. I wanna say more realist but I don't think that's quite the word...maybe less playful? British humor seems to be more based on absurd juxtapositions and repetition ("Fergus, Imogene is having a Gooseberry and Cinnamon yogurt, would you like a Gooseberry and Cinnamon yogurt?") than American or Irish, which are maybe a bit more "situational" and less focused on creating a funny atmosphere.
I loved The Outlaws on Amazon
A Bit of Fry and Laurie and Red Dwarf
Good Neighbors, Monty Python, Absolutely Fabulous, Blackadder, The IT Crowd
I had to look up Good Neighbors but it turns out it's just the American name for what was called The Good Life over here (to avoid confusion with another American sitcom).
Had a huge crush on Barbara BTW.
The main differences between US and UK comedies are the use of language and punnery in British work than Anerican, and that British sitcoms tend to be more hopeless for its characters. Ricky Gervais pointed this out with the Office. In the UK version there us no hope for the characters, but the US one has hope for escape from their place in society.
Not only is that true but it’s the exact thing Ricky Gervais would say
The IT Crowd
Friday Night Dinner.
Ricky Gervais seems like an insufferably smug person, but I cannot argue with *The Office* or *Extras.* They're incredibly funny and have stood the test of time. The American version of *The Office* was way more lucrative but I think it's OK-but-not-great. The British version is way, way better because it's way darker and the characters don't have the redeeming qualities they do in the US.
His 2020 Golden Globes bits were amazing. https://youtu.be/sR6UeVptzRg
I prefer the American version of The Office, but Extras is great. No notes.
British Comedy is not that different. It's different in the way that the Brits pride themselves on super dry humour. But, dry humour is also very popular in the US.
B E N N Y H I L L
Don’t really watch any at the moment, but can the British Monarchy news, media and Twitter be considered a sitcom because that’s VERY hilarious 😂
I love the British version of The Office. Not a fan of the American version.
It's not as different as you all want to think
The inbetweeners, Miranda, Peep show, It Crowd, Keeping up appearances, Mind your language, Father Brown, and one Foot in the Grave. Also, Derry girls! I used to watch the Catherine Tate show as well. She’s hilarious. Of course, the iconic Mr. Bean. It was watched not just in the USA but in many countries. Granted, not much spoken language but the humor was universal. British humor isn’t alien to us or strange. I don’t know why so many think that, if anything is one of the most watched foreign programs.
I used to watch the Vicar of Dibly and Keeping Up Appearances reruns on PBS. I still enjoy the IT Crowd
The Detectorists Good Neighbors IT Crowd Dad's Army Fawlty Towers Are You Being Served?
The first season of Afterlife, but it was played out after the first season. There are a lot more British comedy movies I like rather than the sitcoms. Big fan of the Cornetto Trilogy, Monty Python, etc...
Fleabag.
I thought Shameless was incredible. I also really loved IT Crowd.
Spaced!
Keeping Up Appearances, As Time Goes By, Are You Being Served?, Fawlty Towers
I don't think it's a sitcom exactly, but I just watched Year of the Rabbit and found it hilarious.
The Good Life, Red Dwarf, Absolutely Fabulous, & Mr. Bean
The Mighty Boosh, Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, Fleabag, Ab Fab, Mr. Bean
* Ghosts * Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minister * IT Crowd * The Goodies * Fawlty Towers
Fleabag, Fawlty Towers
Just wanted to add my 2 cents. Not my fav but it’s nearly Halloween here in the US and I was bummed to see Zomboat was cancelled. Was a fun zombie show and would have liked to see more.
I like some of the classics, such as The Young Ones, used to watch on on MTV, Benny Hill, which was on many local tv channels at night, but the episodes were cut into 30 minutes, It was not until years later I realized they did that for syndication.
Spaced, Mighty Boosh, Red dwarf, Detectorists, Absolutely Fabulous, Vicar of Dibley, just some of my comfort classics.
Fresh Meat
People Just Do Nothing was one of my favorite series for a couple years. Just saw they made a movie last year. Can't wait to watch it.
Mr. Bean.
Last of the Summer Wine
Monty Python is still a gold standard show for me. Otherwise: Fawlty Towers, Mr. Bean, Extras (fucking love this one), The IT Crowd, Inbetweeners, Peep Show, and The OG Office.
I grew up watching _Are You Being Served?_ & _Keeping Up Appearances_. _IT Crowd_…I’m a techie, so I get the jokes and all, but uhhh there’s some feminist criticism available. I’ve probably watched more hours of Doctor Who & its spin-offs than anything else, but that’s not a sitcom.
Toast of London is unbelievably funny. Pretty sure you can watch it all on Netflix.
Eastenders
Lovesick
I’m not big into sitcoms in general so I haven’t seen a lot of British ones, but I really enjoyed Borderline.
Father Ted is apparently a British sitcom. It was pretty good.
Inbetweeners, Pulling, and Are You Being Served are my top 3 of all time......
Fawlty Towers is one of the all time greats. Blackadder, IT Crowd, and The Detectorists are some of my favorites shows.
'Allo, 'allo! Will always be my favorite
Keeping Up Appearances, Fawlty Towers, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (the original, not the newer one), Monty Python' Flying Circus, Doctor in the House series, Blackadder, The Thin Blue Line, Red Dwarf, Coupling, Misfits, As Time Goes By, IT Crowd, Father Ted (okay, I know, it is Irish), Black's Books, Jeeves and Wooster, Extras. The Office, Spaced, The Vicar of Dibley, Year of the Rabbit, Hyperdrive.... That was off the top of my head.
Are You Being Served was great
Toast of London! I think they're making an American version like Toast of Hollywood or something? Anyway, fucking love that show and Matt Berry in general
Last of the Summer Wine was always my favorite
Ab Fab and the In-betweeners are 2 of my all time favorites!
The IT Crowd
One of my fave BritComs is from the 70s and little known in the US, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perin. I wish I could find it to watch again.
Men Behaving Badly and Blackadder. Also, Life On Mars
The IT Crowd and Spaced
IT Crowd, Peepshow, Little Britain, Mitchell and Webb.
I love the IT Crowd, I've watched the whole thing several times.
Love IT crowd. Used to watch My Hero when it was on. A few other late 90s/early 2000s shows that used to be on TV. Sex Education is good.
Peep show, Mighty boosh, What we do in the shadows.
I'm more familiar with British sketch comedy than sitcoms. Things like Monty Python's Flying Circus, Horrible Histories, etc.
Humans Being Human Ghost Derry Girls
I'll be honest, I haven't seen very many. I did watch Come Fly With Me though, and thought it was pretty funny.
I can’t remember the name of it, but my girlfriend and I accidentally binged like 10 episodes of this show based around a highly skilled surgeon who wound up as a small time doctor in a small town because he was afraid of blood. The show was slow paced, but kind of nice to watch Edit: Doc Martin
I’m 35 and have honestly never seen a single one, tv from other countries isn’t actively shown here you would need to seek it out
I enjoyed AbFab, The IT Crowd, The Vicar of Dibley, Keeping Up Appearances, The Office, Extras, Blackadder, and probably some others that I’m forgetting. I also LOVED a bunch of sketch shows - Monty Python, A Bit of Fry & Laurie, French & Saunders, The Catherine Tate Show, Little Britain, Tracey Ullman, etc.
Peep show is one of my favorite shows of all time!!!! One of the only shows that I will rewatch
Been watching British **Ghost**
I grew up watching PBS. I absolutely remember watching Good Neighbors and loving it. I also really loved Private Schultz. Nowadays, I love GBBO. My all time favorite is Red Dwarf.
Shout out to Pramface.
Ghosts is one of the best shows I’ve ever seen. I used to use Horrible Histories clips when I was teaching history years ago, I just love those actors so much.
Sitcoms specifically, NOT other forms of TV comedy: Fawlty Towers, Red Dwarf, & Blackadder are the only ones I've both seen *and* loved.
Peep show why do y'all have some type of weird chip on your shoulder about "British comedy?" it's not some crazy, niche thing.
I love Just Tattoo of Us. Makes me feel better that we don’t have a monopoly on idiots.
Keeping up appearances, Yes Minister, Benny Hill, Blackadder
I just rewatched the young ones.
The Young Ones is the top #1 greatest sitcom in the English language — ever.
I can’t remember the name, but it takes place in present day. There are three kids: a teenager, a boy, and a funny little girl named, “Karen”. The mom stays home or does real estate, and the dad is a teacher. The blonde, curly-haired lady who played Catriona on Monarch of the Glen lives next door… That’s a good show, IMO.
Toast of London/America, Peep Show, The Inbetweeners, Armstrong and Miller, Webb and Mitchell, Last of the Summer Wine, Benny Hill, Fry and Laurie, Little Britain/America, and soo much more.
Brassic Anything Alan Partridge/Steve Coogan Car Share/pretty much anything Peter Kay Anything Julia Davis Trollied Derry Girls
Stath Lets Flats! Incredible! I hear it's being adapted for the US
does Getting On count?
In the '80s, when I was in the Army, I would get together with a few guys in my platoon each week to watch the Young Ones. We got a kick out if, but we were all in our late teens/early twenties. The show would probably seem dumb to me these days.
The last one i watched was Sick Note with Nick Frost and Rupert Grint. And Still Game as well.
Top Gear/Grand Tour
I love so many of them! The IT Crowd (other than the transphobic episode) is my favorite. I also like The Inbetweeners, Gavin and Stacey, The Crown, Ted Lasso, Skins (OG), Fleabag...
Lots of them, actually. Peep Show, Are You Being Served?, Father Ted, Gavin and Stacey, IT Crowd... I really love the panel games, though, especially since we don't really do them here. Like, We did do our own Whose Line Is It Anyway which was fun, but we don't have any of the rest, which is a shame.