Britcom

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

As Britcom (short for 'British Comedy', actually 'British situation comedy'), a TV-entertainment genre is the UK called.

Mark

Britcom is a British sitcom that is broadcast on television. Britcom is often described as darker, more realistic and more socially critical than comparable comedy programs from the USA . Britcoms are also formally structured differently than US sitcoms, so they often only have six episodes per season.

Most Britcoms are written by one or two lead authors and last around 30 minutes per episode. While the programs were initially often recorded in television studios, many Britcoms are now experimenting with other forms of production (for example The Office or Peep Show ). Many Britcoms avoid classic sitcom settings to try out unconventional methods of narration .

history

The beginnings

The first Britcom is Pinwright's Progress , which was broadcast on the BBC from 1946 to 1947 . As an independent form, the Britcom only developed in 1956 with the transmission of Hancock's Half Hour from the radio to television (also BBC). The television station ITV (Independent Television) produced The Army Game (1957-61) a little later , in which some actors were seen who later appeared in the film series Carry On .

In the 1960s, the BBC produced Marriage Lines (1961-66) with Richard Briers and Prunella Scales and a series called The Rag Trade (1961-63, 1977-78), which was a novelty for the time, played in the workplace. At the same time, Steptoe and Son (1962–65, 1970–74) and Till Death Us Do Part (1965–68, 1972–75) were broadcast for the first time: both series had a long running time. For Steptoe and Son (and The Likely Lads , 1964-66), "serious" actor and not comedians were cast for the first time, previously the focus of series like Whack-O! (1956–60, 1971–72) with Jimmy Edwards .

The series Dad's Army (1968-77) was set in the British Home Guard ( British Home Guard ) and mocked the military, while the church in All Gas and Gaiters (1966-71) was dragged by the cocoa. Actresses appeared almost exclusively in supporting roles in the sixties, although the roles played by Wendy Craig and the series written by Carla Lane (including The Liver Birds , 1969-79, 1996) slowly changed this situation.

The seventies and eighties

The effects of the sexual revolution made themselves felt in series like Up Pompeii! (1970) Are You Being Served? (1973–85) and later 'Allo' Allo! (1984-92) noticeable. The seventies are often described as the golden era of Britcom: Well-known series such as Fawlty Towers (with John Cleese and Connie Booth ) or The Good Life (with John Esmonde and Bob Larbey ) emerged during this time. Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads ? , the follow-up to The Likely Lads , which was almost of the same name, surpassed its predecessor in popularity, while Ronnie Barker launched his most successful sitcom, Porridge (1974-77). Roy Clarke's long-term hit Last of the Summer Wine first aired in 1973.

ITV enjoyed popular audiences with series such as Rising Damp (1974-78), Man About the House (1973-76) and George and Mildred (1976-79). The feature- length version of On the Buses (1969–75) was the most successful film in Great Britain in 1971. Series like Love Thy Neighbor and Mind Your Language , which used misunderstandings between different social classes as an occasion for comical effects, were heavily criticized at the time.

Only Fools and Horses first aired in 1981. The series was voted Best Bricom on the BBC's website in 2004. Other well-known series of the eighties were Yes Minister (1980-84) and its successor Yes, Prime Minister (1986-88), Ever Decreasing Circles (1984-89) and the science fiction parody Red Dwarf (1988-99). Aspiring alternative comedians began to take an interest in Britcoms, leading to series such as The Young Ones (1982-84) and Blackadder (1983-89).

After 1990

The commercial broadcaster Channel 4 began producing some successful Britcoms in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Desmond's (1989-94) was the first Britcom in which exclusively black actors acted, while Drop the Dead Donkey (1990-98) was produced so promptly that the series could respond to current events. With Father Ted , Britcom returned to church issues. Some of the best-known Britcoms of the 1990s were Men Behaving Badly , Absolutely Fabulous , Grace & Favor , Birds of a Feather , The Vicar of Dibley , Keeping Up Appearances, and One Foot in the Grave . Later examples of a hyper-realistic approach anticipated by some Hancock scripts include The Royle Family , Early Doors , Gavin & Stacey, and The Office .

The BBC began using its digital channels, BBC Three and BBC Four, to broadcast unusual series such as The Thick of It . Channel 4 has had success with series such as Spaced , Phoenix Nights , Black Books , Green Wing , Peep Show and The Inbetweeners .

Admission in Germany

Britcoms that have gained some popularity in Germany include Fawlty Towers , Catweazle , Blackadder , Little Britain and The IT Crowd . Of Yes Minister , some episodes were aired in the eighties in Germany, Keeping Up Appearances was in the nineties as Keeping Up Appearances , Coupling was around 2002 on ProSieben sent, 'Allo' Allo! on the other hand first shown in 2010 on German television. Nevertheless, British TV series also had a major influence on German television culture: Till Death Do Us Part is considered the template for the German cult series Ein Herz und ein Seele . Also found The Office in Stromberg , My New Best Friend in My new friend and The Worst Week of My Life in Help! Wedding! grateful imitators. In addition, the commercial broadcaster Comedy Central regularly broadcasts Britcoms (including Extras and Green Wing ) in German synchronization. Praised Britcoms such as Look around you , Nathan Barley , Garth Marenghi's Darkplace , Outnumbered , Lead Balloon , The Mighty Boosh or Black Books still have to be imported as DVDs from abroad.

literature

  • The wonderful world of Britcom , TITANIC 6 and 7/2005
  • Great Brit-Coms: British Television Situation Comedy by Gregory Koseluk of McFarland & Co Inc, 2000

Web links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Blackadder, The Vicar of Dibley, Dad's Army, Fawlty Towers, Yes Minister, Porridge, Open All Hours , The Good Life and One Foot in the Grave also received placements