SCOTTISH TV COMEDY

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SCOTTISH TV COMEDY

• By Michael Cain,
• Charlotte Cragg
• Janine Croft

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SIR HARRY LAUDER

• Born 1870, died 1950
• Probably most successful in terms of overseas
  fame, along with Billy Connolly
• Variety theatres, panto
• Some very famous songs
• Knighthood in 1919 as a result of his war work

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SIR HARRY LAUDER (cont.)

• Scottish identity
• Scotland's image in the world today owes much
  to
• the caricature presented by Harry Lauder's
  stage performances, particularly in England,
  Canada and the
• 22 tours in the United States. His extravagant
  highland
• dress, glengarry at a jaunty angle, pawky
  humour,
• "ultra-thrifty" attitudes and sentimental songs
  
• endeared him to many audiences.
• (rampantscotland, 2010)

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RIKKI FULTON

• Comedian actor, born in Dennistoun in 1924,
  died in 2004
• Early career as a serious broadcaster for BBC,
  performed in Theatre
• Popular in panto from 1950s
• Francie Josie, Scotch Wry,
• The Tales of Para Handy

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RIKKI FULTON (cont.)

• Retired from stage in mid-1990s
• Very popular in Scotland, but not so successful
  elsewhere
• BBC Scotland Controller John McCormick
• He was a legend for people across the whole
  country.
• Scotch Wry was watched by half of this
  population.
• Those figures will never be exceeded and it was
  Rikki
• they made an appointment with on Hogmanay

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SCOTCH WRY

• Traditional sketch show on BBC
• Began in 1978- ran for 14 years
• 2m Scottish viewers at its peak
• The Reverend I. M. Jolly
• Shown once in England (1982)
• Working class, references to Scottish culture

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SCOTTISH TV COMEDY

• Usually set in Central or West of Scotland.
• Scottish dialect can be a challenge to understand
  for people outside of Scotland and even outside
  the region by some.
• Situation comedies are expensive to produce if
  they are only watched by a small proportion of
  Scottish viewers. However, there has been 3 very
  successful series City Lights (1987- 1981), Rab
  C. Nesbitt (1990-present) and Still Game
  (2002-2008)

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SCOTS VS ENGLISH

• No programme made in Scotland can compare to the
  best English comedies.
• Only Fools and Horses is the only sitcom ever to
  have attracted half of the British population to
  watch its final episode.
• Scottish comedy is almost invariably working
  class. Whereas many English programmes including
  Vicar of Dibley and Keeping up Appearances are
  set in exclusively middle-class surroundings.

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SCOTS VS AMERICAN

• In contrast is much bigger business than Scottish
  and English Comedy
• Friends, Frasier and The Simpsons are examples of
  hugely successful American TV comedies.
• Very famous actors and quite common to use guest
  appearances.
• Class is completely different- most are
  exclusively middle-class

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COLIN GILBERT

• Joined the BBC as assistant floor manager, 1975
• First programme in Scotland- Naked Radio
• Moved on to start The Comedy Unit

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CITY LIGHTS

• Scottish TV sitcom made by BBC Scotland
• Modern-day living
• 20th Century

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RAB C NESBITT

• Began in 1990
• Glaswegian dialect
• Most successful comedy to go from Scotland to
  England

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CHEWIN THE FAT

• Chewin the Fat is a Scottish comedy useful for
  an illustration of the ned phenomenon (aimless
  cropped-haired council- scheme male hooligans),
  which itself goes a long way towards describing
  modern Scottish culture. (Gardiner, 2005 180).
• Started as a Radio series on BBC radio Scotland
  in 1997.
• Produced many series and
• Hogmany specials.

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STILL GAME

• Originally part of the Chewin the Fat sketch
  show until 2002 when it became a sitcom in its
  own right.
• The show focuses on two Glaswegian pensioners,
  Jack Jarvis and Victor McDade and live in the
  fictional Craigland.
• Also Broadcast on BBC1 Scotland, with later
  screenings being shown in
• England on BBC2.

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STILL GAME (cont.)

• Played by actors approximately 30 years younger
  than their characters
• This is quite surreal but adds greater humour to
  the programme.
• It can be suggested that Last of the Summer Wine
  (1973-), One Foot in the Grave (1990-2000) and
  Waiting for God (1990-4) preceded it by several
  years in dealing humourously with the problems
  of old age (Ian Mowatt, 2008).

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BURNISTOUN

• Set in fictional Scottish town, Burnistoun.
• Written and performed by Robert Florence and Iain
  Connell and produced by The Comedy Unit for BBC
  Scotland
• First episode of the series was Broadcast on 1st
  March 2010.

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LIMMYS SHOW

• Written, animated and directed by Brian Limond.
• Created as a result of the success of Limmys
  live performances at the Fringe and Glasgow
  International Comedy Festival
• First series aired on 11 January 2010 for 6
  episodes.

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RECENT SCOTTISH COMEDIES

• Limmys Show
• Burnistoun
• Have they got the same appeal as previous
  comedies, and what do they do for our national
  identity?