Oh for God’s sake, have a laugh! Margaret Wilson (1922-2014)

This was the type of psychological advice that our Mum would give us in the 60’s and 70s! When you’ve looked after 9 kids and fostered a couple more, time was of the essence so sitting down and workshopping our woes wasn’t much of a priority! Instead, it was “be grateful for what you’ve got and have a laugh!” I saw what Friday night comedies like Dave Allen and The Two Ronnies did for my Dad, a tortured WW2 veteran and that cemented my love for comedy and how profound an effect it can have. In the darkest of times it has always been those words (which are on our Mum’s gravestone) that have dragged me into the light.

To come up with only 27 comic influences on my life is tough, much like trying to pick a top 50 albums so I decided to go with those movies/TV shows/Artists that I’ve watched and listened to the most over the past 57 years. I understand there are a plethora I haven’t seen that have huge raps, such as Veep and The Larry Sanders Show, but one only has so much time on their hands. I hope there is something here that might spark some interest if you haven’t connected with it in the past.

Sincere apologies to:  The 3 Stooges, Billy Connolly, Fleabag, Extras, The Late Show, Woody Allen, F Troop, George Carlin, Aussie movies The Club, Malcolm and Death in Brunswick, The Two Ronnies, Gavin & Stacey, Hard Quiz, What we do in the Shadows, The Thick of It, Yes Prime Minister, The Four Lions, Stewart Lee, Lead Balloon, The Mighty Boosh, The Simpsons, Blackadder, Miranda, Portlandia, Broad City, Absolutely Fabulous, Cheech and Chong’s Up in Smoke, The IT Crowd, Slapshot, Father Ted, Would I Lie to You?, Spaced, Galaxy Quest, Flight of the Concords, Frontline, People Like Us, Man Down, Caddyshack, and Richard Pryor Live.

#14 – Alan Partridge (1991-present)

I was first introduced to Alan Partridge via a box set given to me by a friend Matai about 12 years ago and instantly had one of those, “where the hell has this been all my life?!” moments. I had seen the actor Steve Coogan in the movie “24 Hour Party People” but was unaware of this BBC gem which had never been released by our ABC. Fortunately that has changed these days, but even so, you still need to keep an eye on late night ABC2 and record it. The Partridge character is incompetent, narcissistic, vengeful, socially inept and has an inflated view of himself. All the hallmarks of great comedy! He had his own light entertainment show called “Knowing Me, Knowing You” on the BBC and did everything possible to stuff it up. After 6 x episodes the show got axed after Alan accidentally shot a guest. For the next phase of his career, it’s “I’m Alan Partridge”. He lives in a roadside motel in Norwich and becomes a broadcaster presenting a graveyard shift on local radio. It’s as cringe-worthy as it gets and won Coogan a BAFTA for best comedy with the help of a sensational support cast including Felicity Montagu as his long suffering PA Lyn, and Michael Greenhall as the PTSD suffering  Geordie, Michael. The final series of “I’m Alan Partridge” is set a few years later after he apparently has a nervous breakdown and shacks up with his Ukranian girlfriend Sonja (Amelia Bulmore) in a caravan whilst building a house next door and still doing the nightshift at Radio Norwich. There are lots of little Alan Partridge vignettes that pop up occasionally like the brilliant shorts, “Mid- Morning Matters” and recently we found another appalling act of shameless self- promotion, “Alan Partridge, Welcome to the Places of My Life” which won another BAFTA. In 2013 Alan appeared in his own film, “Alpha Papa” as a hostage negotiator which was pretty good but not a scratch on his TV performances. Steve Coogan has gone on to make 4 x “Trip” films/TV series with Rob Brydon all directed by Michael Winterbottom who made “24 Hour Party People”. Aside from the beautiful scenery and the expensive cuisine, the film’s focus is on the verbal jousting of the 2 x protagonists as they try and outdo each other’s celebrity impersonations. The first one set in England is a classic and the third one in Spain has some cracking Mick Jagger and Roger Moore impressions that left me doubled over. Steve Coogan deserves his place at the top of the comedy tree because of how much work he put into the narrative to create a diabolical individual such as Alan Partridge. Who knows where Alan will pop up next, but keep an eye on ABC2 and your finger on the record button. Ah Haaaa!

#13 – Curb Your Enthusiasm (1999-present)

Having just finished it’s 10th season, Larry David’s fictional character based on himself and his filthy rich life in Hollywood remains as funny as the first series. This is Jewish humour at it’s most scathing and the most cutting of all is Larry’s manager Jeff’s wife Susie, played shamelessly by Susie Essman, who as Sir Les Patterson would say, “she can take the scab off a cold sore from 10 x paces with a flick of her tongue!” It’s a fantastic character and the argy-bargy between Larry and Susie is brutal, with only ever one outcome…Susie winning! Larry’s character is insensitive, lacks social awareness and quite anal in the sense that he just can’t let something go. It’s a common theme when he wrote Seinfeld with Jerry Seinfeld but this show is like Seinfeld on steroids in terms of its callousness at times. Never fear though, because just when you think Larry has gotten away with something, inevitably it comes back to bite him. The supporting cast and cameos are just friends of Larry in real life and are encouraged to improvise. You can see occasionally where the edit hasn’t quite removed the actor’s intractable laughter including Larry who apparently was the worst at trying to control and sticking to the script. The show is brilliantly written and was nominated for 30 x Emmy Awards winning only 1! I’m tipping the judges saw too much of their own inappropriate behaviour in the show! It also won a Golden Globe but at the end of the day do you really think Larry David the billionaire really gives a rat’s arse what academies think of his show? I think not. Curb Your Enthusiasm provides a glimpse into the pretentious, entitled world of Hollywood and leaves you feeling no empathy whatsoever for the characters, just a sore stomach from the laughs. It’s a ripper and will no doubt stand the test of time. The following clips contain some language which may offend.

#12 – Waiting for Guffman (1996)  Best in Show (2000)

I’m going to pre-empt something here by saying that the film “This is Spinal Tap” is likely to be in the Top 5 of this list, but the reason I mentioned it, is because both these “mockumentaries” were written by an original Spinal Tap member and writer, Christopher Guest. For these 2 films, and a few post these, he wrote and starred with Eugene Levy. These films introduced some amazing comic actors such as Parker Posie, Catherine O’Hara and the late Fred Willard who’s 2 minute cameo as an air force officer in “This is Spinal Tap” is one of my all- time favourites. “In Best in Show”, Willard plays a commentator at the dog show who has no detectable knowledge of dog breeding whatsoever, his background being in sports broadcasting. It’s a masterclass of deadpan that has you crying with joy. “Best in Show” is simply a mockumentary of 5 x contestants and their dogs from all over the USA who are preparing for the national titles. The characters are suitably colourful and the humour black, especially the little cameo from Larry Miller who played a similar role as “the doorman” in a Seinfeld episode.  “Waiting for Guffman” tells the story of a small town theatre group who are putting together a cheesy 150th anniversary play of their town of Blaine, Missouri. The eccentric director, Corky, played by Christopher Guest believes he has a friend in Broadway Producer Mort Guffman, who has accepted an invitation to the show. The laughs come mostly from the itinerate cast who are all locals of Blaine and take the show very seriously, thinking Guffman may arrive and take the show to Broadway. Pretty much the same cast as “Best in Show” appear in this mockumentary with the 2 x other Spinal Tap members Michael McKean and Harry Shearer writing the music. McKean is also in the cast of “Best in Show” with another terrific performance as a gay companion of John Michael Higgins and their Shih Tzu, Miss Agnes. Both films are fantastic examples of the mockumentary genre which was started in 1982 by “This is Spinal Tap” and in both of these, director Christopher Guest insisted on the actors improvising. The result is 2 x cult classics that never achieved the recognition they deserved.