In film, television, and radio, British comedy has produced some of the most renowned characters in the world. In it, satire is one of the features of British comedy. Radio comedy in Britain has been almost exclusively hosted on BBC .
23-395: Carry On Emmannuelle is a 1978 British comedy film, the 30th release in the series of 31 Carry On films (1958–1992). The film was to be the final Carry On for many regulars, including Kenneth Williams (in his 26th Carry On ), Kenneth Connor (in his 17th), Joan Sims (in her 24th) and Peter Butterworth (in his 16th). Jack Douglas is the only regular from this film to bridge
46-439: A dozen of so episodes a year. Following the success of Hancock's Half Hour and Steptoe and Son , sitcoms became a part of some television schedules. The BBC has generally been dominant in television comedy , but the commercial stations have also had some successes. Other formats have also been popular, such as with sketch shows , stand-up comedy , impressionists , and puppet shows . Notable satirical comedies are
69-503: A major feature of comedy in the British Isles for centuries. The pictorial satire of William Hogarth was a precursor to the development of political cartoons in 18th-century England. The medium developed under the direction of James Gillray from London, who has been referred to as the father of the political cartoon. In early 19th-century England, pantomime acquired its present form, which includes slapstick comedy and featured
92-449: Is a 1977 British comedy film, the 29th release in the series of 31 Carry On films (1958–1992). The film is a compilation of the highlights of most of the previous 28 films, and features series regulars Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor as co-presenters. It was Windsor's 10th and final appearance in the series. The idea for the film was inspired by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 's popular That's Entertainment! series of documentaries. It
115-482: Is dedicated to his bodybuilding, leaving a sexually frustrated Emmannuelle to find pleasure with everyone from the Lord Chief Justice to chat show host Harold Hump. Theodore is spurned by Emmannuelle, who has genuinely forgotten their airborne encounter, and despite reassurances from his mother, exacts revenge by revealing Emmannuelle's antics to the press. However, after a visit to her doctor, she discovers that she
138-532: Is measured in centuries. Shakespeare incorporated many chase scenes and beatings into his comedies, such as in his play The Comedy of Errors . Punch and Judy made their first recorded appearance in Britain in 1662, when Samuel Pepys noted a "pretty" puppet play being performed in Covent Garden, London . The various episodes of Punch and Judy are dominated by the anarchic clowning of Mr. Punch. Satire has been
161-498: Is often considered to be the worst film in the series. Tom Cole, writing in the Radio Times , found it "undignified" and "laugh-free", noting that the Lolita -esque performance of Suzanne Danielle was "unintentionally creepy". And both Cole and Ian Freer, writing for Empire , laid the blame for the death of the series squarely at the film's door. In a 2018 retrospective on the series,
184-405: Is pregnant and decides to settle down to a faithful marriage with Émile… and dozens of children. Interiors : Exteriors : Critical response was universally negative, even more so than Carry on England which preceded it, and Carry On Columbus which succeeded it 14 years later. Philip French said of it: "This relentless sequence of badly-written, badly-timed dirty jokes is surely one of
207-472: The British Film Institute named Carry On Emmannuelle as one of the series' five worst films, alongside Carry On Girls (1973), Carry on England (1976), That's Carry On! (1977), and Carry On Columbus (1992). In 2023, actor Larry Dann dedicated a chapter of his autobiography Oh, What A Lovely Memoir to share his memories of the making of this production, where he recalls members of
230-586: The 1890s, and Chaplin and Laurel were among the young comedians who worked for him as part of "Fred Karno's Army". Radio comedy in Britain has been almost exclusively the preserve of the BBC . In the 1940s and 1950s, variety dominated the schedules, and popular series included It's That Man Again and Much Binding in the Marsh . In the 1950s, the BBC was running Hancock's Half Hour starring Tony Hancock . Hancock's Half Hour
253-461: The 1960s series That Was The Week That Was , the 1980s series Not the Nine O'Clock News , and ITV 's puppet show Spitting Image . The show of the 1980s and early 1990s, Spitting Image , was a satire of politics, entertainment, sport, and British culture of the era, and at its peak, it was watched by 15 million people. British satire has also gone over into quiz shows ; popular examples include
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#1732890699337276-499: The audience walking out before the credits rolled. British comedy "[Pulcinella] went down particularly well with Restoration British audiences, fun-starved after years of Puritanism . We soon changed Punch's name, transformed him from a marionette to a hand puppet, and he became, really, a spirit of Britain - a subversive maverick who defies authority, a kind of puppet equivalent to our political cartoons." — Punch and Judy showman Glyn Edwards British comedy history
299-459: The boredom of a flight on Concorde by seducing timid Theodore Valentine. She returns home to London to surprise her husband, the French ambassador Émile Prevert, but first surprises the butler, Lyons. He removes her coat, only to find that she has left her dress on the aircraft. The chauffeur, Leyland, housekeeper, Mrs Dangle, and aged boot-boy, Richmond sense saucy times ahead… and they are right! Émile
322-486: The first mainstream clown, Joseph Grimaldi , while comedy routines also featured heavily in British music hall theatre which became popular in the 1850s. British comedians who honed their skills at pantomime and music hall sketches include Charlie Chaplin , Stan Laurel , George Formby , and Dan Leno . The English music hall comedian and theatre impresario Fred Karno developed a form of sketch comedy without dialogue in
345-400: The gap to Carry On Columbus . Beryl Reid , Henry McGee and Suzanne Danielle make their only appearances in the series here. The film featured a change in style, becoming more openly sexual and explicit. This was highlighted by the implied behaviour of Danielle's character, though she does not bare any more flesh than any other Carry On female lead. These changes brought the film closer to
368-517: The glories of the Empire, Barbara leaves the projection room and locks her co-star in. Unable to hold out any longer, Kenneth goes against the projection room door. In a 2018 retrospective on the series, the British Film Institute named That's Carry On! as one of the series' five worst films, alongside Carry On Girls (1973), Carry on England (1976), Carry On Emmannuelle (1978), and Carry On Columbus (1992). This article related to
391-413: The most morally and aesthetically offensive pictures to emerge from a British studio." Christopher Tookey considered the film to be "embarrassingly feeble". In the 1980s Williams himself said of the film: "The script left a lot to be desired and I have to admit that I found many of the jokes quite repulsive". The film performed poorly at the box office and during the first two decades following its release it
414-430: The news quiz Have I Got News for You , 8 out of 10 cats , and Shooting Stars . In the 1980s, alternative comedy was spearheaded by Ben Elton and The Comic Strip group, which included Alexei Sayle , Rik Mayall , and French and Saunders . The 1990s and 2000s also have those that have used editing , surreal humour , and cultural references to great effect. That%27s Carry On! That's Carry On!
437-519: The then popular X-rated series of Confessions... comedies, or indeed the actual Emmanuelle films that it parodies. This film, as well as the initial release of Carry On England , were the only films in the series to be certified AA by the British Board of Film Censors , which restricted audiences to those aged 14 and over. The film was followed by the final installment of the series Carry On Columbus in 1992. Emmannuelle Prévert relieves
460-549: The vintage clips. As the films remorselessly play out, Kenneth feels the need to relieve himself but Barbara is determined to plough through every film. Finally, scenes of speedy roadside urinating from Carry On at Your Convenience prove too much for Kenneth to bear but he holds back the flow to enjoy his finest role as the Khasi in Carry On... Up the Khyber . While Kenneth pontificates about
483-464: Was later transferred to television. One of the notable radio shows was the double entendre -laden Round the Horne (1965–1968), a sequel to the earlier series Beyond Our Ken , which ran from 1959 to 1964. Later radio shows made use of the panel game format, including the long-running Just a Minute (1967–), I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue (1972–), and The News Quiz (1977–), which often broadcast
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#1732890699337506-409: Was only broadcast on UK television in a late night slot, leading author Adrian Rigelsford to comment in 1996 that out of the thirty-one Carry On films it was "the one that barely anybody's seen". Whilst many other Carry Ons have continued to be popular, opinions of Carry on Emmannuelle and its immediate predecessor and successor have not improved over the passing of time, and Carry On Emmannuelle
529-513: Was released in 1977 as a supporting feature to the Richard Harris film, Golden Rendezvous . The film was followed by " Carry On Emmannuelle " in 1978. Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor are imprisoned in a Pinewood Studios projection room and trawl through film can after film can of the Carry On series. Kenneth is delighted with the slap-up food hamper and champagne, while Barbara loads
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