A Bit of Fry & Laurie

Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie are known for their comical timing, wit and acting skills and until now one could only imagine what sort of mad magic will be created if they script down and act out a "sketch" themselves. A bit of Fry and Laurie encapsulates the talents of both of them in the perfect proportions to make the audience laugh. Not having to use a script, but just 'Bits' as the title suggests, makes it all the more light-hearted. The use of language to make something absolutely innocent, to outrageously funny is probably the most striking aspect. Sure they go overboard sometime, but hey like I said, its madness. Funny, insane, sometimes thought provoking and of course Fry and Laurie.

A real gem of a program for anyone who likes their humour dry with a hint of genius! It is said that there are two types of comedy performers, clowns and wits but Fry & Laurie break this rule from the off. With perfect awareness of their characters physical presence they bring the intelligent, charming, surreal and downright odd sketches to life with zest and sheer love of wordplay and being silly for the sake of it. Note to the BBC please pull your finger out and release every last bit of this fine comedy series on dvd right now!

Amidst the 'alternative' comedy chaos of the '80's, 'A Bit Of Fry & Laurie' arrived almost unnoticed. Unlike 'The Young Ones', it had no ambitions to 'tear up the rule book book of comedy', but simply to present funny, surreal sketches. 'Not Only But Also' was undoubtedly an influence; highlights included 'Its A Wonderful Life' starring Rupert Murdoch, 'Kickin' Ass', and the 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy' send-up with Fry as a Smiley-type intelligence boss who comes out with such cryptic phrases as: "You know I can't stick The Department up my arse, George.". Another notable feature were the vox pop sequences. As a double act, Fry and Laurie were peerless. After three excellent seasons, the show moved to B.B.C.-1 for its final run, which predictably became bogged down by guest-stars such as Caroline Quentin. The pair then split to pursue successful solo careers. It would be nice to think that they might come together again some day to give us more of their offbeat brand of humour.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

There's a snobby element of British society that can't do without their humour being 'refined' and 'sophisticated.' Cambridge graduates Fry and Laurie would, by their appearance and eleqution, fit this bill perfectly, and certainly a lot of the humour on offer in this series does test your sense of subtlety to the limit. But these two pithy academics also seem to have an interest in lampooning the lower classes they seem to have less in common with, so the humour covers a wider section of society than those this might be slightly more aimed at.

It was up to these guys to set the standard for fellow Cambridge 'footlighters' Mitchell and Webb and Armstrong and Miller, and their style does seem to have rubbed off, though arguably to less well effect. ABOFAL plays out like a wacky mish mash of ideas in the shape of sketches, where nothing is spared. Unlike more recent 'sketch shows' like Little Britain or That Mitchell and Webb Look, there are no real consistent characters here, just different set ups and scenarios for each new episode, with exceptions such as the people who seem to be stopped in the street and asked for their opinions in each episode. Many have commented on how 'british' the humour is, and this certainly rings true, but there also seems to be a deep affinity with America in a few of the sketches, such as 'Kickin' Ass' and the air force commanders, that doesn't let any of it get bogged down too much in Anglo culture. Indeed, Laurie would go on to achieve international fame as Dr. House in the hit series (as well as having a CD release in the pipeline, displaying his talent for country 'n western warbling that we see a bit of here), and we'd go on to learn that Fry was in fact almost born in the States and later wowed us with his Stephen Fry Does America programme, touring the country, so the early signs of this love and appreciation were already there.

The more modern Mitchell and Webb are eerily similar to this pair, with Fry and Laurie in the respective roles as the portlier, more hesitant one and the leaner, more dynamic sounding one. And while M&W are very good, it was doubtless up to this pair to really show them how it was done. ****

Well, really I don't know what to write, as I summarised it all in the title of the review! "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" is a programme that is unique of its time. There were other surreal comedy products in the 80s, such as the Smell of Reeves and Mortimer, The Young Ones and some of the Comic Strip Presents material. However, this is the only mainstream show which managed to effectively bridge the gap between sophistication and comedy, yet somehow managing to avoid coming across as pretentious.

Often as silly as it is clever, the comedy never falls into the trap of alienating a certain audience, always having something for everyone to enjoy, yet never compromising its unique style in doing so.

It's no surprise that the stars of the show are Stephen Fry - renowned for his intelligence and cultured nature and Hugh Laurie - renowned for his quirky and laughter-inducing surreal style. Combined, they make a perfect team.

In the 80s and 90s Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson were known as the kings of the 'nob gag'. Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie will forever be the distinguished gentlemen of surreal wit.