Little Britain

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?

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)

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.

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.

A simple sketch show that takes on stereotypes with interesting angles and some unconventional delivery.

This isn't high brow comedy, but it is not meant to be. It is a lighthearted look at things we don't all want to talk about, or we think but don't say... some are things we do think and talk about. Some things are more abstract.

You can still enjoy this programme today.

If you are perpetually butthurt or politically correct, you will no doubt find plenty to be offended on other people's behalf over. This programme isn't meant for you. You can watch some comedy show where they call *current year* right-wingers or white men names for an hour.