Little Britain

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.****

I live in France, and I am virtually the only person at my school who does not have Sky. Therefore, I never saw Little Britain on television, but I heard everyone else at school talking about it and quoting it. So I decided to get this DVD.

Little Britain is possibly one of the smartest, funniest comedies I have ever seen. It was EVEN better than I expected it. If you aren't British, you will probably not understand all of the humor. Most of the stereotypes in the show are exaggerated, but actually real. In Britain, every town has loads of Vicky Pollards. Its hard to believe, but true.

Little Britain is absolutely Unmissable I give in 9.9 out of 10 (because nothing is perfect)

Ah Britain, the home of the gentleman, the birthplace of industrial, the home of football, the country that taught the world civilisation. But all is not well in Britain. Chavs have taken root deep in the culture, sexual practices have changed away from the norm even for those in high office while the old and infirm are allowed to remain within the wider population with inadequate controls. This is Britain. This is where we live.

And I suppose that is the best way to sum up how Little Britain began; a sketch show with exaggerated characters drawn from various aspects of life and blown up for effect. Whether it is the "ladies", the benefit fraud, the good-natured sop or the female teenage slag – all were here and all were good targets. The humour was rather crude and easy (surprisingly so for something that came from Radio 4 of all places) but once the characters were in place it was easy to enjoy it. This has changed a little bit over the course of three series and we now find ourselves with a series that has probably peaked and now seems to be desperately aping its better days in the hope for ongoing success. It was never so good that it would appeal to a mainstream audience (shown by the BBC editing it for repeat on BBC1) but it was snug on BBC2 with low However with generally good praise and lots of catchphrases comes more pressure and a key spot on BBC1. This has not been a good thing for a series that really shouldn't have gone beyond 2 runs on television. The mainstream audience has come for the catchphrases and they are being fed them over and over without anything really new added. The sketches are not cleverer or funnier, they are just louder or cruder than they were before. The old characters are in a rut and the new characters have settled into repetitive jokes with alarming speed. Relying on catchphrases and such is good for one series, maybe two, but it quickly gets old and, with nothing new coming through Little Britain has managed to outstay its welcome while ironically doing better in the ratings than ever.

With the new series even those that like the show will admit that things have gone for more base targets than before. Many of the characters now rely on physical and toilet humour (always the same jokes as well) and not enough of them are actually funny. Tom Baker's stuff remains funny because, although the approach is the same, his voice and his dialogue is funny. Lucas and Walliams are both funny but they can't totally carry it; given them good material (Orville was an example) and they can do it but ask them to just role around in fat suits and that is what they will do.

Overall this is quite a funny show but not one that is clever or funny enough to appeal to the audience share that it is currently vying for. Relying heavily on extreme characters, catchphrases and crudity is not sustainable and, although I enjoy it, I rarely sit to watch it because I started becoming aware long before series 3 started, that I had probably seen the vast majority of what it had to offer. After that, why watch it retread old ground?

This is one of the funniest T.V. shows I have seen in a long time. A mix of Monty Python, Kids In The Hall and toilet humor, Little Britain is laugh-out-loud hilarious.

Matt Lucas and David Walliams create some of the most memorable characters in a long time. Yes, the show runs their characters into the ground and it becomes repetitive but when they are fresh, these caricatures are winners.

Some of my favorites:

Marjorie Dawes, the hypocritical leader of the Fat Fighters, who calls her customers fat despite being overweight herself.

Sebastian Love, the openly gay aide to the Prime Minister of the U.K.

Emily Howard, the Victorian era cross-dresser.

Vicky Pollard, the fast-talking teenage delinquent.

Daffyd Thomas, who claims to be the only gay in the village when there seems to be plenty of them around him.

Kenny Craig, master hypnotist.

There's other characters I like, though some of them aren't as funny. It can be hit-or-miss.

The show also relies on a lot of toilet humor and tastelessness at times, seemingly in the later seasons.

Still, it's a tremendous show. I hope to see Season 3 on Netflix soon. However, I would definitely not allow kids to see this show. It's R- rated to be sure.

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!!!