MovieChat Forums > I'm Alan Partridge (1997) Discussion > Any British comedy shows as good as this...

Any British comedy shows as good as this?


Hi, a British comedy fan from across the pond here. I discovered Alan Partridge a couple of years ago and have watched the entire oeuvre a few times now and loved it every time, but now I need something new. Can anyone give me some recommendations? I like the older classics like Fawlty Towers and Black Adder, but I'm looking for more recent stuff, 90s or onward.

Obviously I've seen Gervais's shows. I've also seen Spaced, but to tell the truth, despite a few really good episodes and my affection for the two main characters, the series as a whole left me cold.

I figure if I just recently found out about Alan Partridge, there must be other British gems I've not been exposed to.

And I've also seen and enjoyed Father Ted, but I understand it's debatable whether that can be considered British. As long as it's in English, though, I'm open to it.

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[deleted]

yes minister / prime minister - great inteli comedy here.

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Just to clarify, I love The Office and Extras, I just wasn't that impressed by Spaced. There was definitely a lot of good stuff in it, though; I loved the episode with the oregano.

I've heard some good things about Yes Minister/Prime Minister and IT Crowd, so I think I'll give them a go. I've also heard about The Thick Of It and Peep Show, and I'm interested in seeing them too. Thanks for the recommendations.

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all fantastic recommendations; if you haven't seen them yet you are in for such a treat!
sadly i have seen everything :( but it's always fun to revisit them.

lately ive been watching AP like an addict, brilliant stuff.

have fun viewing!

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You may like Peep Show. Blackadder is brilliant. I would suggest The Young Ones if you're into alternative, you're either gonna love it or hate it.

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Thanks for the suggestions again everyone, I started watching "Yes Minister" a while ago, and it is a work of genius. I haven't even made it to "Prime Minister" yet, but it's obviously one of the smartest, funniest shows ever. It's quite a bit older than what I thought I was looking for too, but it feels a lot fresher than most comedy series of today.

Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

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Peep Show, Operation Good Guys, Brass Eye, Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, Black Books, The IT Crowd, Father Ted, The Thin Blue Line is okay... Sure theres others, but those are more along the lines you seem to be looking for.

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just advising a few= some maybe dramas more than comedy cos literally nothing makes me laugh!! early doors, royal family, bottom, playing the field, prisoner's wives, all good british shows.

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Saxondale is another of Steve Coogan's shows and I love it. It took me an episode or 2 to get into the groove of the characters and joke delivery, but it really grew on me.

Have you seen The Inbetweeners? It's about teenagers and it's a more juvenile style of humor, but I loved the first 2 series. Series 3 sucked though, I didn't like it.

The Mighty Boosh is a very psychedelic musical comedy, but I love it. Different for sure.

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Peep Show is an absolute must. I never thought I'd say this but (I'm closing the bureau... for an hour) it is potentially on par with Partridge, in a way.

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Have you heard of Vic & Bob.A really funny comedy duo.
Check out "Catterick"
or Peter Kay's "Phoenix Nights" and its spin off "Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere"
classic scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03tjePq5D6U&feature=related
also "The Royle Family"

I Know A Seagull Called Stephen.

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Phoenix Nights is one of my favourites

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Aside from the obvious choices (Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, The Office) ...

Peep Show
Black Books
Red Dwarf
Phoenix Nights
Green Wing

- "And the answer is The Shroud of Turin."
- "What did we put?"
- "... Lisa Stansfield."

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UK Office
Peep Show
IT Crowd
Extras
Garth Marenghi's Dark Place
Only Fools and Horses
The Inbetweeners
Fawlty Towers


To name just a few.

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[deleted]



If you like 'The Office' you should try,

'The Brittas Empire', it ran between 1991-1997 and is brilliant

Other shows I would recommend are,

'Bottom' <- too funny
'Keeping Up Appearances'

most of the other great ones have been mentioned already





Last games completed: - Metro 2033 (360), - Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3)

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Black Books is absolutely hilarious and co-written by one of the Father Ted writers. Having the twin talents of Dylan Moran and Bill Bailey makes it one of the best comedies ever imo. Tamsin Grieg is also brilliant in it.

Snuff Box is an acquired taste. You'll either love it or won't. I found it enjoyable but I can understand why some people wouldn't get it.

The Mighty Boosh is fantastic. The pairing of Noel Fielding and Julian Barrett is perfect. Their personalities and humour are so different it works. Bizarre and hilarious.

Nathan Barley is a great little find if you can get your hands on it. Stars the two from Boosh but is completely different. Darker, more satirical.

One thing the Brits are fantastic at, is too-painful-to-watch comedy with totally unlikeable main characters. Indeed, I think the Brits are the only ones who do make comedy like that.
Of this genre we have, of course, The Office and Alan Partridge, and to a lesser extent Fawlty Towers (sure Fawlty is unlikeable but you do feel sorry for him and unlike Office or Partridge there's no scene where you end up watching through your fingers or just leaving the room).
Peep Show can be included in this list, though neither main character is as unlikeable as, say, Alan is but some scenes are just too awkward to watch.
Extras is another good one, from Ricky Gervais of The Office fame. Again, some scenes are painful to watch. A more recent series Gervais has made is 'Life's too short' which is another fictional fly-on-the-wall documentary following the trials and tribulations of failed actor Warwick Davis. Davis is absolutely brilliant in it and the cameos are fantastic. The scene with Liam Neeson ("I want to do comedy. I want to do comedy NOW") is one of the funniest scenes I've ever watched. How they managed to do that scene without cracking up constantly I do not know.

Not a British comedy but worth seeing if you haven't already (and worth seeing again if you have) is 'Flight of the Conchords'

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Another excellent comedy is "The Fast Show"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCe11wiNknI&feature=relmfu

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All of the above recommendations are brilliant, but I am surprised no one has mentioned Nighty Night by Julia Davis. A very dark little show but it's very funny and definitely worth seeing at least once!

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