Best British TV sitcoms of the 1980s

The 1980s were something of a golden age for British TV sitcoms, with at least four major series that deserve a high place in any list of the greatest sitcoms of all time. Although any such a choice is always subjective, the fact that episodes of these four have been repeated many times in more recent years seems to show that the choice is widely shared.

It happens to be the case that all four of the sitcoms featured here were made by the BBC, for which this was definitely a decade of high achievement in terms of comedy. Although they have produced many other great sitcoms since, as have the other British TV channels, the BBC has never been quite as dominant in terms of quality.

The four series mentioned here are given in alphabetical order, so no implication can be assumed as to whether any one is considered to be better than the rest.

Allo Allo

Series 1 was first shown in 1984 and the final series (9) in 1992.

It was a daring move by the writers (David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd) to take the theme of wartime occupied France as a setting for comedy, especially given that the reality was far from humorous, with the constant threat of death from the German army, plus the savage “secret war” between the French Resistance and the Gestapo. Indeed, it was an earlier BBC drama series, “Secret Army”, that formed the basis for Allo Allo, the latter being an unashamed parody of the former.

The best comedy always has a serious core to it, and that is certainly the case with Allo Allo. There is constant talk of characters being shot, and the main character, the café owner René Artois, is regularly under threat not only from the Germans but the Resistance, should he refuse to carry out their orders. Indeed, at one point he undergoes a mock execution, only to re-appear as his own twin brother!

René (played by Gorden Kaye) is at heart a coward who will do anything he can to save his own skin, although his café is an essential hub of the local Resistance. He is constantly called upon to carry out the increasingly absurd schemes of the Resistance to get two British airmen returned to England, and is the guardian and operator of the radio set (hence “Allo Allo”) that is kept under his mother-in-law’s bed.

The Germans are led by Colonel Kurt Von Strohm (Richard Marner) who occupies the local chateau and would, like René, rather be doing anything other than fighting a war. One major running theme is his scheme to steal works of art that he can sell when the war is over, although to do this he must also outwit the Gestapo officer Otto Flick (Richard Gibson), who combines stiffness of manner (and a particularly stiff leg) with his own version of carrying on a love affair with the Colonel’s nubile secretary, Helga Geerhart (Kim Hartman).

There are many plots and subplots that run throughout the episodes, each of which leads into the next, but each can also be watched in isolation. There are a huge number of catchphrases and running gags which, strangely enough, never seem to get tired because they are always presented in a fresh way.

Blackadder

Four series were made between 1983 and 1989, each belonging a different period of English/British history. The original series, set in the late 15^th century, is generally regarded as not being all that good, but when Ben Elton took over much of the scriptwriting for the second series, set in the court of Queen Elizabeth I, the improvement was immense.

All four series starred Rowan Atkinson as various generations of Blackadder, assisted by manifestations of his manservant Baldrick, played by Tony Robinson. The three most successful series feature Blackadder as a clever and scheming aristocrat who does everything he can to make personal gains without having to do too much work or get found out should his schemes be of dubious legality, which is often the case.

Blackadder’s cleverness is always in stark contrast to the stupidity of the people around him, whether that be the Prince Regent in Series 3 (played by Hugh Laurie) or the British military machine of World War I, represented mainly by General Melchett (Stephen Fry) in the final series “Blackadder Goes Forth”.

This last series is generally regarded as the most successful, mainly because the wartime absurdities brought to the forefront have more than a grain of truth to them, although the “Blackadder view of World War I” has been criticised in some quarters as being unpatriotic and unfair to the generals who led the British forces. In the final episode the comedy gives way to reality as the main characters go “over the top” and the scene melds into a field of poppies.

Only Fools and Horses

There were seven series, written by John Sullivan and made between 1981 and 1991, starring David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst as the brothers Derek (“Del Boy”) and Rodney Trotter. Del Boy is a market trader in south London with an eye for the main chance and Rodney is his younger brother who is constantly roped into Del Boy’s schemes although he can usually see that they are doomed to failure.

The comedy comes mainly from the contrast between ever-optimistic Del Boy and gloomy and pessimistic Rodney. Rodney would love to escape from the situation of living in a council flat surrounded by boxes of merchandise that is either of dubious provenance or quality (usually both) and lead a life of his own, but his schemes come to nothing and he always retains a nagging sense of loyalty to his brother.

There is an excellent set of supporting characters, including Grandad (Lennard Pearce), who was replaced as the live-in elderly relative by Uncle Albert (Buster Merryfield) when Lennard Pearce died during filming in 1984, street cleaner Trigger (Roger Lloyd Pack) and dodgy car salesman Boycie (John Challis). Humour comes from Trigger’s general stupidity and Boycie’s role as the unwitting dupe of Del Boy’s schemes.

Good sitcoms need sensible characters as well, and common sense was introduced in the later series by the two brothers’ girlfriends Raquel (Tessa Peak-Jones) and Cassandra (Gwyneth Strong). Their introduction, as intelligent women, provided a foil to the only other regular female character, Boycie’s wife Marlene (Sue Holderness), whose general stupidity and ignorance had been a long-standing running gag.

Yes Minister / Yes Prime Minister

Three series of Yes Minister (written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn) were shown between 1980 and 1982, followed by two series of Yes Prime Minister in 1986 and 1987/8.

This is a satire on the British system of government, and in particular on the relationship between government ministers (or the Prime Minister) and their civil servants. Ministers may believe that they are in a position to wield power and make things happen, but, as Yes Minister makes clear, the real power lies with the senior civil servants.

Jim Hacker (played by Paul Eddington) is a Member of Parliament who is appointed to the (fictitious) post of Minister of Administrative Affairs (he is promoted to Prime Minister in the later series). His private office is staffed by Permanent Secretary Sir Humphrey Appleby (Nigel Hawthorne) and Principal Private Secretary Bernard Woolley (Derek Fowlds). It soon becomes very clear that Sir Humphrey will allow nothing to happen of which he does not approve, and that means that the status quo must be preserved at all costs.

From the two series we get an exaggerated view of the machinations of government, although many people who have been part of the system have stated that the exaggerations are not all that great! It is known that this sitcom was a particular favourite of Margaret Thatcher, who was the real Prime Minister at the time.

The comedy comes from the battle of wills between the two main protagonists, and the splendid characterisation of Sir Humphrey. Every episode contains a piece of monologue in which he resorts to civil service language that is so full of jargon and verbal dexterity as to be virtually meaningless (for example, “I” becomes “the perpendicular pronoun”)`; again, the exaggeration is not regarded as being over-extreme!

The Best of the Rest

Honourable mentions should be made of several other 1980s sitcoms:

Last of the Summer Wine (by Roy Clarke) ran for 37 years, of which the 80s represented some of its finest years. This gentle comedy about the elderly residents of a Yorkshire town held great appeal for many viewers, and provided employment for many actors nearing the ends of their careers.

Hi-de-Hi (by Jimmy Perry and David Croft) was a satire on 1950s holiday camps.

Bread was an excellent series by Carla Lane about a Liverpool family.

Ever Decreasing Circles by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey was a beautifully written comedy of mature relationships based on the interplay of suburban middle-class characters played by Richard Briars, Peter Egan and Penelope Wilton.

© John Welford