"not been deaded this week"". Bluebottle was based on Ruxton Hayward, a Scoutmaster Sellers once met. In an interview with Michael Parkinson, Sellers described trying to keep a straight face while talking with a large red-bearded Scout leader who nevertheless spoke in a falsetto voice and had an ingratiating manner. The identity of the individual was later revealed in ""The Goons"", one of several books featuring memoirs and scripts from ""The Goon Show"". Bluebottle (character) Bluebottle is a comedy character from ""The Goon Show"", a 1950s British comedy radio show. The character was created and performed by Peter Sellers. Bluebottle"
"by Ray Ellington. After an exchange of empty threats with the Bladder, Bloodnok is told by his aide, Singhiz Thing, that it is time for his ""perversion"". There follows an interlude of bizarre and suggestive sound effects overlaid with ecstatic yelps from Bloodnok, although this could be more of a satire on the kind of lascivious roles Peter Sellers played in several of his films up to that point. Bloodnok then sends Seagoon to the cellar to rest, this serving to re-introduce Eccles to the audience. Eccles has been in the cellar since he delivered coal and forgot to let"
"the 3rd Bombay Irish to fight the Red Bladder. Denis is plagued by chronic gastro-intestinal problems and his entrance is usually accompanied by explosions or flatulent sound effects, the sound being created by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop (on the one occasion it wasn't played, Bloodnok cried, ""I'm Cured!"") and quotes such as: In ""The Policy"" Bloodnok sings a song called ""The Indigestion Waltz"". In several episodes Bloodnok has an Indian manservant called Singhiz Thing. Bloodnok's arch enemy is ""The Red Bladder"", voiced by musician Ray Ellington. In the DreamWorks film ""Shrek"", a reference is made to the Major when the"
"play, performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company, to a television drama, due in part to the BBC's fear of legal action. Each of the nine episodes of the serial takes place in the year for which it is named; ""1964"", ""1966"", ""1967"", ""1970"", ""1974"", ""1979"", ""1984"", ""1987"" and ""1995"". The episodes follow the four main characters and their changing lives, careers and relationships against the backdrop of the political and social events in Britain. The four friends are Dominic 'Nicky' Hutchinson (played by Christopher Eccleston), Mary Soulsby (Gina McKee), George 'Geordie' Peacock (Daniel Craig) and Terry 'Tosker' Cox (Mark Strong)."
"resemblance to Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Shakespeare's ""Twelfth Night"". Indeed, as with ""The Black Adder"", the series featured many tongue-in-cheek references to Shakespeare's plays; Shakespeare is mentioned a number of times as a contemporary Elizabethan, and many of his famous quotations are twisted for comic effect. In particular the first episode ""Bells"", follows a similar plot to ""Twelfth Night"". The series aired for six episodes broadcast on Thursdays on BBC One at 9.30pm between 9 January 1986 and 20 February 1986. ""Head"" was originally intended to be the first episode and was first to be filmed. This resulted in the"
"Roughnecks (TV series) Roughnecks was a British television series that ran over two series between 16 June 1994 and 21 December 1995 on BBC1 and produced by First Choice Productions for the BBC network. The show centred on the working and personal lives of those who worked on the fictional oil rig ""The Osprey Explorer"" in the North Sea. Offshore filming was undertaken on the oil rig ""Dan Countess"" which was not in use at the time. The cast included Liam Cunningham, Teresa Banham, James Cosmo, Bruce Jones, Clive Russell, Ricky Tomlinson, Paul Copley and Ashley Jensen. It was created"
"size of the principal cast was reduced compared to the previous series, with a fixed number of characters appearing in every episode. Richard Curtis has been quoted as saying that due to the familiar cast, the series was the happiest for him to work on, comparing it to a ""friendly bunch of school chums"". The series also featured at least one significant cameo role per episode. Notable appearances include Rik Mayall as the debonair Lord Flashheart in ""Bells""; Tom Baker and Simon Jones as Captain Redbeard Rum and Sir Walter Raleigh, respectively, in ""Potato""; Miriam Margolyes, who had appeared in"
"Cuckoo (TV series) Cuckoo is a British sitcom that began airing on BBC Three on 25 September 2012, repeating on BBC One, and in 2016 began airing worldwide on Netflix. Written by Robin French and Kieron Quirke, ""Cuckoo"" stars Andy Samberg, Taylor Lautner, Greg Davies, Tamla Kari, Esther Smith, Tyger Drew-Honey, Helen Baxendale, Matt Lacey and Kenneth Collard. The series launch became BBC Three's most-watched comedy launch, beating the record set by ""Bad Education"", which debuted the previous month. Greg Davies was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Male Performance in a Comedy Programme. At the British Comedy Awards, ""Cuckoo"""
"Derek Roy (comedian) Derek Roy (25 August 1922 – 15 March 1981) was an English comedian, whose public profile was at its greatest in the late 1940s and early 1950s. His BBC Radio show, ""Hip Hip Hoo Roy"", was written by amongst others Spike Milligan, and was the show where Milligan's Goon Show character Eccles first appeared. Roy's unsuccessful star-vehicle ""Happy Go Lucky"" also gave the first writing break to Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, who would soon team up with the show's last producer Dennis Main Wilson to create ""Hancock's Half Hour"". Roy also hosted ""Variety Bandbox"", a talent"
"Uncle Croc's Block Uncle Croc's Block is an hour-long live-action/animated television series. It was produced by Filmation, and broadcast on ABC in 1975–76. As a spoof of kid shows, Charles Nelson Reilly played the eponymous Uncle Croc, a crocodile that hated his job as the show's host and was implied to be at least somewhat inebriated throughout the series (he hiccups during the theme song, for example). Also featured were Alfie Wise as his rabbit sidekick, Mr. Rabbit Ears, and Jonathan Harris as Basil Bitterbottom, the show-within-a-show's frustrated director. Each episode contained a ""Star Time"" segment, in which parodies of"
"Brush Strokes Brush Strokes is a British television sitcom, broadcast on BBC television from 1986 to 1991. Written by Esmonde and Larbey and set in south London, it depicted the (mostly) amorous adventures of a wisecracking house painter, Jacko (Karl Howman). There were 40 episodes spread over five series. Jacko (Karl Howman) works as a house painter alongside his brother-in-law, Eric (Mike Walling), who was married to Jacko's sister Jean (Nicky Croydon). He lives with his sister and brother-in-law in a similar set up to Stan Butler's (Reg Varney) character in ""On the Buses"". Jacko also shares an anti-authority humour."
"Hollyoaks Hollyoaks is a British soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the Channel 4 soap ""Brookside"". The programme is set in a fictional suburb of Chester called Hollyoaks, and features a large cast of characters, primarily 16-35 year-olds. The soap is targeted towards an adolescent and young adult audience, and is mostly filmed and produced in Childwall, Liverpool, although nearby locations are sometimes used. Beginning with a cast of seven major characters in 1995, the serial has approximately 65 main cast members today. ""Hollyoaks"""
"stupid teenager who often found himself involved—usually alongside Bluebottle—in one of the nefarious schemes created by arch-villain Hercules Grytpype-Thynne. Eccles was often referred to as being something other than an ordinary human. Seagoon says of him ""He was the nearest thing I had seen to a human being without actually being one"" (""The Dreaded Batter Pudding Hurler of Bexhill-On-Sea""). In ""Lurgi Strikes Britain"", in a conversation about how Lurgi could easily kill every human in England, Eccles quips, ""Then I'm okay, fellers!"" In ""The Greenslade Story"", Grytpype-Thynne mentions that Eccles is colour-blind, and in ""The Missing Scroll"", Seagoon says of"
"a UK comedy-drama television series starring Russ Abbot and Michael Williams which ran for three series between 1993 and 1995. The music was also used for the credits British sitcom in the television series ""May to December"" (a quote from the opening line of the song), which ran for 39 episodes, from 2 April 1989 to 27 May 1994 on BBC One. It was covered by Anjelica Huston (Huston's granddaughter) in an episode of the NBC musical series Smash(S01.ep14). The BBC Radiophonic Workshop recorded a cover of September Song, which was commonly used in intervals on both BBC1 and BBC2."
"Game On (UK TV series) Game On (alternatively Two Men and a Blonde in Finland and The Game of Life in Portugal) was a British sitcom which ran for three series, and aired on BBC2 from 27 February 1995 to 6 February 1998. The central characters are three childhood friends from Herne Bay in Kent; laddish agoraphobe Matthew Malone (Ben Chaplin in the first series and Neil Stuke in the second and third), man-eater Amanda ""Mandy"" Wilkins (Samantha Womack née Janus), and wimpish Martin Henson (Matthew Cottle). When into their twenties, the trio move into and share a flat in"
"Crackerjack! (TV series) Crackerjack! was a British children's television series that aired on the BBC Television Service from 14 September 1955 until 21 December 1984 (except during 1971). The programme title included an exclamation mark. Through its long run it featured Eamonn Andrews, Max Bygraves, Leslie Crowther, Ed ""Stewpot"" Stewart, Joe Baker, Jack Douglas, Stu Francis, Peter Glaze, Don Maclean, Michael Aspel, Christine Holmes, Jacqueline Clarke, Stuart Sherwin, Little and Large, Jan Hunt, The Krankies, Basil Brush, Geoffrey Durham, Bernie Clifton, Rod McLennan and Ronnie Corbett amongst many others. Among the performers who appeared as singers/dancers, assisting the host with"
"Bleak House (1959 TV serial) Bleak House (1959) is the first BBC adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel of the same name. It was adapted by Constance Cox as an eleven-part series of half-hour episodes first transmitted from 16 October 1959. It stars Andrew Cruickshank in the role of John Jarndyce, Diana Fairfax as Esther Summerson, Colin Jeavons as Richard Carstone, Elizabeth Shepherd as Ada Clare, Iris Russell as Honoria, Lady Dedlock, Timothy Bateson as William Guppy, John Phillips as Mr. Tulkinghorne, David Horne as Sir Leicester Dedlock, Richard Pearson as Inspector Bucket, Malcolm Knight as Jo, Eileen Draycott as"
"detective. His portrayal remains very popular and is accepted by some as the definitive on-screen version of Sherlock Holmes. In addition, Holmes's faithful friend and companion Dr. Watson is portrayed as the kind of thoroughly competent sidekick that Holmes would want. Initially, Watson was portrayed by David Burke (who had earlier played the villain in an adaptation of ""The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet"" for the 1965 BBC series starring Douglas Wilmer and Nigel Stock). Burke appeared in the first year of the ""Adventures"" series before leaving to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. He was replaced by Edward Hardwicke, who"
"regular cast members were Deryck Guyler as local constable Wilfred ""Corky"" Turnbull and Richard Wattis as their snobbish, busybody neighbour Charles Brown. Wattis left the show after series 3 and his departure was explained by having Mr Brown emigrating to Australia. Other guests included Hugh Lloyd, John Bluthal, Leo McKern, and Arthur Mullard. The first series (five episodes, all written by Johnny Speight) premiered on 29 January 1960 and were an immediate hit, establishing 'Eric and Hat' as one of Britain's most popular and enduring comedy partnerships. The second series of six episodes (written from storylines suggested by Speight) were"
"Lovesick (TV series) Lovesick (formerly known as Scrotal Recall) is a British sitcom created by Tom Edge which was first broadcast on Channel 4 in October 2014 and stars Johnny Flynn, Antonia Thomas, Daniel Ings and Joshua McGuire. After the show was originally aired on Channel 4, it was made available by Netflix, who then commissioned a second series globally on 17 November 2016, where it was billed as a Netflix Original. The show was renewed for a third series, which was released exclusively on Netflix on 1 January 2018. The show revolves around a group of English friends sharing"
"Bleak Expectations Bleak Expectations is a BBC Radio 4 comedy series that premièred in August 2007. It is a pastiche of the works of Charles Dickens – such as ""Bleak House"" and ""Great Expectations"", from which it derives its name – as well as adventure/ science fiction and costume dramas set in the same period, and parodies several of their plot devices (such as cruel guardians, idyllic childhoods interrupted, lifelong friendships, earnest young people), whilst simultaneously tending toward a highly surreal humour along the lines of ""The Goon Show"". The series has also demonstrated a fondness for allusions to and"
"of a cavalry regiment: Roper's Light Horse are mentioned in more than one episode. In ""The Last of the Smoking Seagoons"", Major Bloodnok hides Ned of Wales in the Bloodnok Patriotic Military Museum; in doing so, he hears the cash register's ring, and reminisces: ""Oh, that tune how it haunts me; it's my regimental march for the Third Mounted Cash Registers, you know"". In ""The Fear of Wages"", Seagoon is the commander of the Third Armoured Thunderboxes (""who vanished in Burma ten years ago""), while Bloodnok is an officer in the regiment. In ""Dishonoured"", Bloodnok recruits Seagoon and Eccles into"
"drawn closer together. Others include Chris Jury, Belinda Lang, Rula Lenska, Amanda Noar and Dougray Scott. Stay Lucky Stay Lucky is a British television comedy-drama series ran from 8 December 1989 to 6 August 1993. Made by Yorkshire Television and screened on the ITV network, it starred Jan Francis and Dennis Waterman. Drama about a small-time gangster Thomas Gynn (Dennis Waterman) from London who discovers a new life up north in Yorkshire. Helping widowed, self-sufficient businesswoman Sally Hardcastle (Jan Francis) when her car breaks down on the motorway, Thomas reluctantly accepts an offer of a lift to Leeds. Over the"
"these sequences involved the use of complex multiple edits, echo and reverberation and the deliberate slowing down, speeding up or reversing of tapes. One of the most famous was the legendary ""Bloodnok's Stomach"" sound effect, created by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop to represent the sound of Major Bloodnok's digestive system in action, which included a variety of inexplicable gurgling and explosive noises. Lewis (1995, p. 218) states Bloodnok's stomach ""was achieved by overlaying burps, whoops from oscillators, water splashes, cork-like pops, and light artillery blasts"". Several of the words and phrases invented for the show soon entered common usage, the"
"Chalk (TV series) Chalk is a British television sitcom set in a comprehensive school named Galfast High. Two series, both written by Steven Moffat, were broadcast on BBC1 in 1997. Like Moffat's earlier sitcom ""Joking Apart"", ""Chalk"" was produced by Andre Ptaszynski for Pola Jones. The series focuses upon deputy headteacher Eric Slatt (David Bamber), permanently stressed over the chaos he creates both by himself and some of his eccentric staff. His wife Janet (Geraldine Fitzgerald) and new English teacher Suzy Travis (Nicola Walker) attempt to help him solve the problems. Because of the very good reaction of the studio"
"be snobbish, Elsie soon learns to appreciate Sharon and the two become friends. Many episodes revolve around the family life of either Sharon or Elsie, with Sharon's brother Elvis (Lee Daley) and her boyfriend Wayne (John Wild) and Elsie's husband Roland (Bruce Montague) making regular appearances. Factory scenes would usually involve the lecherous floor manager Stanley Crabtree (John F Landry) and Sharon and Elsie's prickly responses to his womanising. Grumpy tea lady Ivy (Maggie Jones) would also make regular appearances. The series did not have individual episode titles. The series was shown on BBC1 between 1984 and 1985. It was"
"the UK version of the Mickey Mouse Club, ""Disney Club"", the success of which led to his presenting ""Run the Risk"", ""The Big Dish"", the children's magazine show Brill and ""Get The Picture"", for Nickelodeon. It took seven years for him to realise he did not like being pointed at in the street and he has remained off screen ever since. Eccleston, who hails from Cumbria, worked alongside Don Austen on the Saturday morning children's show ""What's Up Doc?"", operating and providing the voices for the puppet wolves Bro and Bro. Their writing skill on this show garnered a spin-off"
"of Fletcher's advice on dealing with his wife that Barrowclough is especially lenient when dealing with his requests and misdemeanours. Fletcher once described him as looking like 'Arthur Askey on stilts'. Leonard Arthur ""Lennie"" Godber was played by Richard Beckinsale. Godber is from Birmingham, supports Aston Villa, has an O Level in geography, and studies for a history O Level while in prison. Before he was arrested he shared a flat with his girlfriend Denise in nearby Smethwick. In an effort to get her a gift, Godber broke into a neighbour's flat. He was caught, and it was for this"
"the second episode of the series. The British Prog-rock group Crippled Black Phoenix sampled Reeve's character DI Fowler in the song ""Laying Traps"" on the 2012 album ""(Mankind) The Crafty Ape"". Catterick (TV series) Catterick, aka Vic and Bob in Catterick, is a surreal 2004 BBC situation comedy in 6 episodes, written by and starring Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, with Reece Shearsmith, Matt Lucas, Morwenna Banks, Tim Healy, Mark Benton and Charlie Higson. The series was originally broadcast on BBC Three and later rerun on BBC Two. Reeves has said that the BBC do not want another series of"
"series. The theme tune ""Busy Line"" is performed by the main cast (known as 'The Teletones' in the programme). Each episode is 30 minutes in duration. Series One Series Two The show was directed by both Dermot Boyd and Richard Laxton The Hello Girls The Hello Girls was a British comedy-drama (not to be mistaken for a sitcom) which originally aired on BBC One for two series from 5 September 1996 to 13 August 1998. It was inspired by the novel ""Switchboard Operators"" written by Carol Lake. The series was set in and around the Derby telephone exchange during 1959"
"contrasted with the more tolerant attitude of his wife. The main male black character (Bill Reynolds, played by Walker) was, in contrast educated and sophisticated, although stubborn and also capable of using insulting phrases, such as the terms ""Honky"", ""Snowflake"", ""Paleface"" or ""Big White Chief"" to describe his white neighbour (often in response to being called ""nig-nog"" or ""Sambo""). The series has since been repeated on satellite television stations in the UK, although each episode begins with a warning about content. Repeats of the show are also shown in Australia on 7Two. The theme song, ""Love Thy Neighbour"", was composed"
"Bruce Mackinnon, son Rick; Catherine Shepherd, his naïve girlfriend Xanthe; and Daniela Denby-Ashe, youngest daughter Egg, who is studying for A-levels. It was broadcast in three series, each with six half-hour episodes, in August–September 2003, November–December 2004 and January–February 2006, and has been repeated on BBC Radio 7 and BBC Radio 4 Extra. The Guardian found it ""tightly scripted"" and ""horribly realistic"". Ring Around the Bath Ring Around the Bath is a domestic situation comedy series broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 2003 and 2006. It was written by Lucy Clare and Ian Davidson and produced by Elizabeth Freestone. Stella"
"Baldrick Baldrick is the name of several fictional characters featured in the long-running BBC historic comedy television series ""Blackadder"". Each one serves as Edmund Blackadder's servant and sidekick and acts as a foil to the lead character. Each series of ""Blackadder"" is set in a different period in British history, and each Baldrick character (as with the character of Edmund) is a descendant of the Baldrick from the preceding series. Just as Blackadder exists in many incarnations throughout the ages, so does Baldrick; whenever there is a Blackadder there is a Baldrick serving him. They are all portrayed by Sir"