British Comedy: Billy, Benny and co'

[garth cartwright]

Watched the South Bank on Billy Connelly and while he is always a great interview I still find Melvin Bragg an annoying interviewee - and all those shots of him "reacting"! Anyway, Billy is my favourite British comedian of recent decades. His exasperated narratives take a while to build but possess a really warm absurdity. whether its nonsense or common sense I just want to laugh with him, he's such an engaging character. That said, i noted in some of the live footage audiences roaring at anything he muttered - I guess that is superstardom, just turning up on stage mean the audience love you.

Then switched over to a Benny Hill Best Of on ITV3. I used to love Benny as a kid - his humour was so simple, largely silent, and his facial expressions just cracked me up. He won huge international popularity and when Danny Baker intvd Michael Jackson and asked him what made him laugh he said Benny! Obviously, during the PC years he was demonised but watching these clips - satires of ad's, hipsters in clubs, mock historic adventures, lounge singers etc - I still think he was a master of simple yet funny comedy.

Who are your favourite British comedians? Or your least favourite? AA Gill recently put the knife into Ricky Gervais and I must admit that beyond a few Office episodes I find him massively overrated.

[Adam Blake]

Comedians or comic actors? Subtle but crucial difference.

Anyway, for starters:

Alastair Sim
Peter Sellers (with or without Spike Milligan)
Frankie Howerd
Peter Cook (with or without Dudley Moore)

and, in recent times - Julian Barrett and Noel Fielding as Vince and Howard in The Mighty Boosh have made me laugh a lot.

[Rob Hall]

There was an article in today's Observer about women comics, that reminded how good Victoria Wood can be as a stand-up; it's been too long since she's done any.

Eddie Izzard can be good too, but I fear he may have lost his mojo a bit recently.

[CantSleepClownsWillGetMe]

Dave Allen
Kenneth Williams
Frankie Boyle

[Des]

Ronnie Barker
Milton Jones
Frankie Boyle
Tim Vine
Frankie Howerd
Terry Jones
Shappi Khorsandi
Ricky Gervais
Stuart Francis (Canadian but what the heck)
Lucy Porter
Michael Palin
Victoria Wood

Least favourite Jim Davidson. Not just cos he's a racist tosser, but cos he's not funny (bit of a disadvantage for a comedian).

[john poole]

Spike Milligan
Tony Hancock
Tommy Cooper
Peter Cook
Linda Smith

[Malachy O'Neill]

Les Dawson

[Hugh Weldon]

Rob

Eddie Izzard can be good too, but I fear he may have lost his mojo a bit recently

Well wouldn't you after 34 marathons in five weeks or whatever it was? (A feat I intend to imitate just once in a few weeks time and I'm terrified). He seems to be more interested in the serious acting these days.

A couple of old favourites not yet mentioned:

Eric Morecambe
Ken Dodd

[Rob Hall]

Well wouldn't you after 34 marathons in five weeks or whatever it was? (A feat I intend to imitate just once in a few weeks time and I'm terrified).

Good luck Hugh! Been there, got the t-shirt, etc.

[Dayna]

The only thing I've seen Ricky Gervais in so far, was Night At The Museum & he was so good, I looked for who he was after watching the film. He was really hilarious just because he was so serious. "Po' faced" That's what you'd call him.

We used to watch Benny Hill all the time. Most of the jokes were funny. I still have it in my head the skit where he was mimicking an airline pilot, with his "Deep brown voice..."

[kas]

I would like to humbly raise the flag of Sally Phillips (and the rest of the Smack the Pony crew).

[Des]

I would like to humbly raise the flag of Sally Phillips (and the rest of the Smack the Pony crew).

Good shout - all of the Green Wing/Big Train people as well. A particularly creative period in TV comedy.

[will vine]

It's funny Benny Hill should make an appearance on this site at this time as I was thinking about him a couple of weeks back when playing a couple of cds namely I Flathead by Ry Cooder and Bob Dylan's Beyond Here Lies Nothing. Both contain the very same elements of pastiche, plagiarism, and comic lines that Benny used to employ. I kinda like Bob's record - sounds like he just picks up a raggedy blues band, says "play me what y'got" and then digs into his bag of jokes and bon mots. "Hell is my Wife's Hometown" is pure Benny Hill. Whereas Bob's cd is narrated from the perspective of the wisdom and wistfulness of his years, Ry Cooder's effort tries hard to add a comic turn to songs about girls'n'cars'n'steel guitars. Sadly neither man comes up with lines as truly great as -

"......the concrete hardened crust
of a stale pork pie
hit 'im in the eye
and Ernie bit the dust."