What TV comedy do you find completely and utterly hilarious?

[tastebud]

I've been thinking about this recently and notice that most people seem to find vastly more television comedy funny than I myself do. I don't watch TV as a rule, but have no objection to really good comedy on DVD. In response to these thoughts I found myself asking Brainaddict what he laughed at, today (- he just said that I make him laugh) and then thought to myself that I could only really think of a handful of things that I find extremely amusing.

My family have always been really into Monty Python - though not the Life of Brian so much - which I never understood and never seemed to find amusing. (I always kept quiet on this previously, as thought I was missing something that they clearly "got", but nowadays I just think, it really isn't that funny). They also love(/d) Steptoe & Son, which I can understand a bit more and did used to find amusing, but nowadays it just seems so old.
Friends who I grew up with seemed to love comedians who just didn't really do it for me. Father Ted was quite amusing, as is Eddie Izzard, but certainly not side-splittingly so.

Nowadays I really love Black Books; Dylan Moran is the type of character I love and who provokes laughter with ease. For similar reasons I love The Office and Fawlty Towers - the two central characters being at the root of my amusement. I think I love the fact that whilst we are laughing at them, ultimately they are also just laughing at themselves. To be honest I can't think of much more that has me in stitches.

I often find myself laughing at people - with them, I mean - some people really really make me laugh and I am commonly easily amused when reading a good book - again laughter comes quite easily. Growing up, I also used to find good radio comedy very amusing. Clever, funny radio djs (e.g., on BBC Radio London) also make me chortle.
Funny characters amuse me; I always found Mark Lamarr the most amusing character on Vic & Bob and today I appreciate his dry wit. Stuff that isn't obviously funny and is intelligent makes me laugh more than more obvious, intentional humour.
Though for some reason generally, I find it quite difficult to laugh at comedians and comedy programmes on TV.

I have quite a dry sarcastic personality/sense of humour, but at the same time don't really like to laugh at the expense of others - at the moment Harry Potter is amusing me - see it really doesn't take much! - and I also giggle a lot at The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. I can also laugh at pretty bleak stuff; the film Ghostworld made me laugh a lot when I watched it the other day, and Something Happened by Joseph Hellier made my tube journeys to work a hell of a lot more amusing a few months back when I read that.

Am I alone in this difficulty, and more particularly, what makes you really laugh? (I mean really laugh - I guess I'm asking for high quality TV-based comedy recommendations - does such a thing even exist?)

 

[zoooo]

I find a lot of things funny. And am bordering on obsessive about TV comedy. But the only things that actually make me piss myself laughing so I reach a point where I can't breathe (if that is what you're asking...) are Reeves & Mortimer and Lee & Herring.

 

[stavros]

I think with sit-coms for me it's mainly those based around men (it is always men) stuck in situations they couldn't be less suited to but with no exit and making it worse for themselves involuntarily; Basil Fawlty, Alan Partridge, Ted Crilly and currently Larry David. However I wouldn't say it's a fail-safe device because I always thought The Office for example was overrated although obviously not shite.

 

[zenie]

Phoenix Nights and Peter Kay in general (Good timing ey?)

Fawlty Towers (Yes!!!!!)

ermm what else?? *Goes away to think*

 

[oddworld]

Only Fools and Horses

The Office

 

[spanglechick]

Phoenix Nights and Peter Kay in general (Good timing ey?)

Fawlty Towers (Yes!!!!!)

ermm what else?? *Goes away to think*

it takes all sorts, but i don't find peter kay funny at all.

i'm not a "laugh out loud" kind of person - but the one tv programme that reliably makes me do so at least once each show is "have i got news for you" - it's funny, i can't always be bothered to watch it - but if paul merton is on form i'm amazed and impressed by the sharpness of his wit. Stephen fry on QI comes close to making me laugh out loud (and i like watching him anyway).

OTOH - i adore "Green Wing" - i'm obsessive about not missing it - in a way i haven't been since Blackadder II, when i was a kid. But it doesn't make me laugh. I love it more, though. Tis not all about the laughing...

 

[omlette]

I'm not much of a guffaw-out-loud person, but if you like The Office (who doesn't?), the American NBC version is actually excellent.

The first couple of episodes I couldn't get into it AT ALL - the RG version was too fresh in my mind and it seemed pathetic and odd.

For some reason though I persevered, and it is really really good.

I just saw the episode where Dwight (Gareth) had to choose a new healthcare insurance plan for the company (because Michael (David) knew it would be unpopular and delegated it), and he makes everyone in the office come to the meeting room and state all their health issues, so he can make sure they're all covered. After the predictable outrage at that, he makes it anonymous, and Pam (Dawn) and Jim (Tim) spend the day making up weird-but-possible disorders to write on their forms.

I was crying with laughter.

 

[mozzy]

Does anyone remember 'Spaced'? It was on Channel 4 a few years back. Recently got series 1 and 2 and it's really good, and better than when ii saw it on tv, cause i didn't see every episode then. Watching it from begining to end made much more sense as the plot thickened...!

 

[Termite Man]

Theres a lot of good comedy but not all of it makes me laugh out loud , Mighty Boosh and black books ( I want to be Bernard ) consistently get a laugh , other comedies like IT Crowd , Green Wing etc. get the odd chuckle but can be hit and miss . Stuff like Little Britain/Catherione Tate make me want to turn the television off !

 

[zoooo]

Aye. Spaced gets rewatched regularly round my gaffe.


(Is that how one would spell 'gaffe'? Were one common enough to want to do so...)

 

[Sunray]

I thought that One foot in the grave was a great sit coms, had me in total stiches most of the time, probably because I always wanted to not laugh this time round. Very bitter sweet at times tho, often quite sad.

The greatest tv comdey i've watched I think is probably Father Ted. Pretty much every single episode had me laughing my arse off. Surreal from the moment it started.

Sister Asumpter and the special lent package with the brick beds, the milk float which couldn't go less than 5 mph as it had a bomb, kicking bishop brenan up the arse, loads of priests getting lost in the womens underwear department, Mrs Doyle. Hahahaha, just thinking about all those episodes has me laughing. There's so many and its such a shame he's dead. I've got to watch some more now.

Nothing has come close to the consistency and genius of Father Ted.

 

[Nicsi]

For current things, I always laugh at Green Wing and Scrubs.

Not so distant past: Peep Show and Spaced.

Long ago: Blackadder, Monty Python

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

Does anyone remember 'Spaced'? It was on Channel 4 a few years back. Recently got series 1 and 2 and it's really good, and better than when ii saw it on tv, cause i didn't see every episode then. Watching it from begining to end made much more sense as the plot thickened...!

Isn't there a rumour it might be coming back?

I loved that as well.

Fawlty Towers also makes me laugh out loud, so does Red Dwarf and Green Wing.

 

[foamy]

spaced
black books
dylan moran stand up
bill bailey stand up
peep show
alan partridge
the mighty boosh
nathan barley

 

[Firky]

spaced
black books
dylan moran stand up
bill bailey stand up
peep show
alan partridge
the mighty boosh
nathan barley

And monkey dust, eddie izzard, father ted and porridge of course

 

[purves grundy]

Robin's Nest

 

[Nlogax]

Spaced
Spaced
Spaced
Black Books
Look Around You
Spaced
Big Train
Spaced
Peep Show
Green Wing
Man Stroke Woman
Spaced


There's a theme in there. See if you can spot it

 

[Flashman]

The World at War.

 

[Dubversion]

is it just me that doesn't get Boosh? i honestly think it's quasi-surreal wank that i thought would only appeal to stoned undergraduates

 

[Flashman]

Partridge still has me creasing up. Missed Peep Show first time around but have caught the repeats, very good.

 

[The Groke]

is it just me that doesn't get Boosh? i honestly think it's quasi-surreal wank that i thought would only appeal to stoned undergraduates

heh - I wonder what a quick "hands up if you are a stoned under-grad or equivalent" would reveal about the U75 demographic......

 

[sleaterkinney]

The Fast Show, Father Ted, Fawlty Towers, Frasier - anything with an F in it

 

[strung out]

At the moment, Arrested Development has me in stitches

 

[Flashman]

Fuck, how could I forget Frasier. Class. Just class.

Right now I never miss Curb Your Enthusiasm (there's a lot of similarity between Larry and I even yesterday I had to stop myself "doing a Larry" at a barman who was "too busy" to turn the jukebox volume up "So, you're too busy to just turn the knob there? I'm not that busy, I'm just drinking here, I'll do it..." etc, if you seen it you'll get my drift and know where these things can lead to )I don't guffaw that much but am fascinated by the David character.

 

[Nlogax]

Oh, one more. Malcolm In The Middle. It's had me in stitches for years...

 

[milesy]

is it just me that doesn't get Boosh? i honestly think it's quasi-surreal wank that i thought would only appeal to stoned undergraduates

i think it's just you, to be honest...

start a thread, find out, go on!!

 

[wiskey]

it takes all sorts, but i don't find peter kay funny at all.

me neither. in fact i really dislike him.

i do find some comedy funny, drop the dead donkey, ideal, two pints, red dwarf etc

 

[dirtysanta]

Pet Rescue.

 

[wiskey]

is it just me that doesn't get Boosh? i honestly think it's quasi-surreal wank that i thought would only appeal to stoned undergraduates

i'm not sure i really get it, mind you i've only watched a little and then i was in a k hole.

i'm going to see it live tomorrow - i hope its good

 

[milesy]

i'm not sure i really get it, mind you i've only watched a little and then i was in a k hole.

i'm going to see it live tomorrow - i hope its good

it will be very good they went on for ages when we saw them last month, and had us all in stitches

i honestly think it's quasi-surreal wank that i thought would only appeal to stoned undergraduates

yes they can be a bit surreal at times, but not in a surreal-for-the-sake-of-it type way, it's more like the sort of thing you get in kids stories, strange things happening but things that aren't just out of the blue for something to add into the programme. they work in a zoo - why wouldn't they have a gorilla for a friend? they have a shaman for a friend - well then they're bound to get weird things happening to them and around them! to me, none of stuff that happens in the world of the mighty boosh seems like it has just been stuck there to show how wacky they are, or anything like that. it doesn't make me cringe. it makes me larf out loud