Little Britain

Says our dignified narrator and guide, "Britain...Britain...Britain...land of tradition...fish and fries...the changing of the garden...trooping the colours. Have you ever wondered about the people of Britain? Nor have I..."

And with that, Matt Lucas and David Walliams take us into a Britain far removed from Jane Austin. Lucas is short, fat and hairless, something like a pink, soft kewpie doll. Walliams is tall, hirsute (hair suit?) and, depending on the occasion, wolfish or just showing a lot of teeth. They are the creators, writers and performers of Little Britain, a sketch comedy series centered on the lives of a dozen or so worst examples of British human life. Want an obnoxious, trouble-making teen with a thick accent and an excuse for everything? Try out Vicky Pollard. How about the effeminate assistant to the Prime Minister, who invariably finds excuses to fall to his knees directly in front of the man. Or the fat, wheelchair-bound Andy Pipkin, who mumbles and lolls, and is just too lazy to walk. And there's plump Daffyd Thomas, young Welsh lad who dresses in tight, bright polyester and is the only gay in his village...and is determined to keep it that way. And more and more. We visit them often, usually in places like Kelsey Grammar School and St. God's Hospital. Since Lewis and Walliams play all of them (backed up by a small cast of straight-faced actors), the old tradition in Britain of men wearing dresses is alive and well.

There's nothing like it in the United States, and probably never will be. The FCC would have a fit, and so would most U.S. social service agencies. Little Britain is ferociously un-PC. If you think it is terrible taste to make fun of homosexuals, old ladies, the mentally disturbed, the fat, minorities, or any number of other groups (politicians and teenagers, of course, excepted), this is not the show for you. ("Are you fat because you're a lesbian or are you a lesbian because you're fat?") Matt Lucas and David Walliams have created a world (and a series) that is silly, bawdy, brutal, clever, satiric, surreal, lewd and funny. It's best watched in small doses. Little Britain was so popular in Britain that it just about became an empire...Christmas specials, performances for charity, a try at transplanting to America, interviews and awards. Of course, the pecksniffs and self-appointed moral guardians are always on the alert. Said one British critic, "Little Britain has been a vehicle for two rich kids to make themselves into multi-millionaires by mocking the weakest people in Britain. Their targets are almost invariably the easiest, cheapest groups to mock: the disabled, poor, elderly, gay or fat. In one fell swoop, they have demolished protections against mocking the weak that took decades to build up."

Perfectly true. Shame they're so funny.

Contrary to the featured review, I think this looks better with the passage of time. I found it creepy and off-putting at first view - maybe I noticed those implicit themes the FR mentions, while they didn't. If this was a picture of Britain, even one meant in fun, it was depressing. Without doubt Lucas and - especially - Walliams are, shall we say, unusual people, and they used this show to air some of their issues, pioneering things that are regarded as normal on TV now. And I can't say I enjoyed that aspect.

But it has two great saving graces. Firstly, it doesn't vilify or browbeat the audience squares as comedies do now - instead it invites you to laugh good-naturedly, with them, at their own oddities and neuroses. Second, it really is funny, permanently funny, not just dependent, like Catherine Tate, on temporary mass hysteria, or, like Enfield and Whitehouse, on mere exaggerated observation. LB's best gags are outrageous not just because they are rude, or taboo, but because they are so completely ludicrous. As with Python, though, there is usually a core of strange plausibility: we don't really act like this, but some of us would probably like to.

I think, eg, of wheelchair-bound Andy jumping into the aquarium and swimming behind his oblivious carer's back. Or tiny Denis Waterman with his giant cup of tea - it was a bit rough on the unsuspecting Waterman, but it really is funny. Or Bubbles Devere and Desiree rolling around naked on top of one another. The studio audience *howls* with laughter, the way they often did in the 70s, but rarely did in the 90s and 00s and probably never will again.

In its time, the BBC has churned out sketch shows by the ton - remember all those shows by Spike Milligan, Les Dawson, Little & Large, Morecambe & Wise, the Two Ronnies, Russ Abbott, Smith & Jones, French & Saunders, Armstrong & Miller etc etc? Apart from Python almost none of it worth returning to (except maybe out of nostalgia) - but this is.

Caught this on BBC America and have been Tivoing it ever since. The characters are great, but some tend to do the same joke over and over again. So, though this may not be a wonderful show for extended viewing, the first few episodes you see will have you in stitches.

Overall, I've seen about 7 episodes and haven't gotten tired of it yet. The show draws its humor from a deep well of absurdity, a natural resource the British seem to have in abundance.

They tell me I'm required to put 10 lines of text in this comment, so for the rest of this message, I will make giraffe noises.

Thank you.

STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs

Comedy duo Matt Lucas and David Walliams portray a series of eccentric or satirical characters roaming modern day Britain and how the rest of society is faltering at the course of their actions.

When this show first came about,I was unable to show much interest in it.It was only until I sat down and really watched a few episodes that it began to grow on me (really so) and I began to see that,along with The Office,it was probably the only modern day comedy that could really be described as truly funny.

Like The Office,there's talent behind it,although like a modern show such as Bo Selecta!,which does tend to rely on just being really crude and vulgar as opposed to really being funny in any way,a fair bit of the humour on display is rather gross-out and rude.But therein lies the biggest irony:it's an interpretation of modern British society,which is vulgar and tacky.Who,when walking through some run-down council estate or local park,has't walked across some nonchalant,monosyllabic,incoherent trollop like Vicky Pollard?!?How many of you have come across some bitchy,condescending person like Marjorie Dawes when attending a weight-loss therapy session?How many Lou and Andys do we cross?

Lucas is the star of the show for me.I can't think of a character he does who I don't like.Walliams isn't bad,it's just one or two of his characters I can't stand (that 'eh eh eeeeeh' thing he does does my head in-I'd be liable to punch anybody who did it by me!).His 'I'm a laaaaaaaaaay-dee' thing is a little irritating too.He's good support to Lucas,but on his own,he ends up detracting from the show a little.

Okay,so it's a good realization of the people currently living in Britain.The thing is,the show's come on quite a way now,and it still seems to be very one-joke!In every episode,in every sketch,despite the show's continuity and its ability to be funny,it does still seem to be the same joke repeating and repeating itself in relation to every character.Pollard's 'yeah-but-no-but-yeah-but-no-but' thing is very true (it's how these common tarts speak!) but it is the same thing every episode,just done in a different context.It's not that it's necessarily bad because of this,on the contrary it's consistently funny every episode,but I can just see it being one of those shows where the gimmick will wear off rather quickly and the last episode will be screened in maybe two years time instead of lasting as long as,say,The Simpsons or Only Fools and Horses.

Having said all that,though,it's certainly one of the best shows around at the moment,and well worth seeing now if you haven't already seen an episode.****

Britain! Britain! Britain! There's an old saying in Britain. 'Britain is top banana, yay!' I have had the pleasure of meeting both Matt Lucas and David Walliams dressed as Andy and Lou at a series 1 DVD signing, and touched Matt Lucas' head! and David Walliams did a really cool handshake with me! Probably the funniest British comedy of the new millennium, Little Britain leaves us giggling and shouting out quotes from last night's episode from offices and playgrounds all across Britain! Hilarious characters, the amount of racism and homophobic behaviour of it characters are what make it even more funny! I must see for anyone who respects British comedy! 10 / 10!!!