Have a good laugh

One evening, while rummaging around on Youtube, I found a documentary called Laughing at the Eighties.

It's not, as you might assume, a mockery on the eighties itself, but rather a look at British comedy of that time.

It's narrated by Ben Elton, the man who amongst his other accomplishments, co-wrote Blackadder 2-4, The Young Ones and many more. He interviews many of the greats in British comedy, as well as sharing some of his own anecdotes.

Then there's the follow up, Laughing at the Nineties. This is narrated by Jennifer Saunders, of both French&Saunders and Absolutely Fabulous fame, to name her biggest creations. As with the Eighties documentary, it analyzes the comedy of the decade and contains a plethora of comedy stars.

Predictably of course, this is followed up with Laughing at the Noughties, this time headed by Catherine Tate. We get an insight into how British comedy yet again has changed, but in the first decade of the new millennium.

As a life long fan of the British school of comedy, I found this trilogy incredibly interesting as well as entertaining. We see how comedy in the 80's changed from the old ways and became politicized, making fun of the establishment, and the police. Not the nine o'clock news, Spitting Image etc.

The nineties brought a new way of life and thinking and comedy evolved again. If course, the 2000's made comedy change once more. I'm not going to go through it here, watch the documentaries instead.

I do want to share one thought that struck me. In medieval times, kings had jesters who could mock and deride things and people that would get others beheaded. It's said that this was not just entertainment, but a form of social critique that gave the king food for thought. What I came to understand is that the jesters aren't gone. They are on television, instead of the throne room.

That's in for today, go forth and have a good laugh, and until next time, have a fun week!

Laughing at the Eighties: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo-6AB08CFM

Laughing at the Nineties:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mgCWxcBkC8

Laughing at the Noughties:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqqCjuV9mSs