Grim Tales

Made by Central television at the end of the 1980's, 'Grim Tales' was shown maybe once in the UK and was sporadically featured on 'Bravo' as space filler in the US. The twenty-two stories showcase Rik Mayall's uncanny and natural ability to break through the 'fourth wall' without the device seeming forced or insincere. (The 'fourth wall' is the imaginary barrier between performers and their audiences.)

The premise is good... famous, traditional fairy-tales are re-worked to appeal to 12 year-old boys - which means lots of rude noises, bogie flicking and farting, etc. There's probably nobody else that could have pulled this off with such hilarity and conviction as Rik Mayall. His gift is (was) to be able to directly connect to an audience as if he is sharing the joke rather than telling it. Everything is studiously performed to the level of the audience.

There's a lot to pay attention to, too. For example when he say's "three feathers" he holds up four fingers! It's his 'in joke' with the audience. The idea is that the kids will think it's funny and the grown-ups will think it's a mistake.

Added to the mix is the abstract artistry, bizarre music and stop-motion puppet-work which, when combined with Rik and his insane armchair, propel the storytelling into another dimension.

There aren't any good quality prints available. The YouTube copies are marginally worse than the actual DVD release... and that's a damn shame because the two series are as captivating and as imaginative as kids TV programming gets.

One of the best storytelling shows on tv. Too bad it wasn't shown enough. Rik Mayall was incredible. Hope they release a dvd. Otherwise this will be a forgotten classic. Bravo only showed it once a week and it was late at night or way early in the morning.

Rik Mayall's Grim Fairy tales gave old favourites like Hansel and Gretel, Rapunzel, King Thrushbeard and many others a new lease of life by giving them a modern and totally irreverent interpretation. Mayall's wacky approach to the stories was complimented by a smattering of local accents ranging from cockney, Brummie, Lancanshire and even Irish that lended colour to various character impressions.

You had to watch him in action whether he imitated mean, spoilt princesses (picking their nose, burping etc) or witches (same as above).

Here's an example of his description of a 'really bad smell': "..(the witch) smelt like no one had cleaned the lav. for a year.."

This was British comedy in its full tainted glory that was targeted at the kids but gained many adult fans as well.

"Grim Tales" was an awesome TV show! I used to watch it when I was 8 years old. I never understood why it came on SO LATE at night--around midnight on the BRAVO channel. Rik Mayall is hilarious! If you've ever seen the movie "Drop Dead Fred", you know he is a comic genius. His facial expressions and range of voices give him full ability to tell Grimm Fairy Tales effectively. Each show he would narrate a different fairy tale, like Rapunzel, The Three Feathers, etc. Although the narration stays true to the original stories, he makes full use of improvisization and modern adaptations. In between his narration they sometimes show animations and have little plots going on with Rik Mayall and the crew, or his chicken chair. I hope they make a DVD