Comments on: 199 Peter Cook videos

199 Peter Cook videos

Kattullus — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:39:51 -0800

199 Peter Cook videos (in case you don't know who Peter Cook is, he's often considered the funniest English comedian of the 20th Century, this myspace page has a concise biography).

By: IndigoJones

IndigoJones — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:48:19 -0800

He and Dud did a nice turn in The Wrong Box as well. (Didn't see it mentioned link three). Good stuff. Well, it would be, wouldn't it?

By: mattoxic

mattoxic — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:50:46 -0800

"...in case you don't know who Peter Cook is, ~~he's~~ was often considered..." Freakily, myspace says I can add him to my extended network. But he's DEAD. How do I do this?

By: Faze

Faze — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:57:18 -0800

Peter Cook was was most certainly not the funniest English comedian of the 20th Century -- and NOT because he wasn't funny. He was very funny. He's not the funniest English comedian of the 20th century because there are so many funny English comedians in the 20th century, that it's simply impossible to set any one of the top ten over the others. See this previous Metafilter post. They're all -- Peter Cook included -- really funny.

By: maudlin

maudlin — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:57:54 -0800

I've got Jimmy Hoffa in my basement. Anything is possible. I always loved Peter Cook. Thanks!

By: longsleeves

longsleeves — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:23:21 -0800

The wheel on the Windows Vista unicycle goes 'round and 'round..........and 'round......

By: edgeways

edgeways — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:46:09 -0800

"and now comes the wry twist..."

By: neuron

neuron — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 19:31:34 -0800

Hardly a week has gone by in the past 20 years that the word "unidexter" hasn't crossed my mind. (I probably see a lot more amputees than you do.)

By: LeLiLo

LeLiLo — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 20:23:22 -0800

Thanks, Kattullus. Peter Cook was indeed very very funny, as we noted here last month. (A post noted for its rigor.) These videos will be great to watch when I get home from tomorrow night's late supper at the Frog & Peach. He and Dud did a nice turn in The Wrong Box as well. Even better was the original Bedazzled.

By: Sticherbeast

Sticherbeast — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:07:10 -0800

Oh my goodness gracious.

By: oneirodynia

oneirodynia — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:25:49 -0800

He and Dud did a nice turn in The Wrong Box as well. A film that has somehow failed to make it to DVD for far too long.

By: caddis

caddis — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 01:43:40 -0800

sorry, not funnier than John Cleese.

By: arzakh

arzakh — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 03:28:44 -0800

Not to mention their totally outrageous Derek and Clive.

By: greytape

greytape — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:53:16 -0800

Peter Cook is definitely up there with the funniest English comedians. I don't think there's anyone better. Great post.

By: Kattullus

Kattullus — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 05:17:17 -0800

caddis: sorry, not funnier than John Cleese. One might explain the poll's discrepancy from objective reality by mentioning that Peter Cook was the deceased childhood hero of the comedy generation most polled, never got his due, satire being the highest form of humor etc. etc. blah blah blah. Or one could say that humor is by definition subjective, that one's own opinion is not the be all and end all of everyone's sense of humor, but it is the be all and end all of one's own. Furthermore, tastes in humor evolve over time and differ between cultures. In fact, should this list be dug up and pondered a hundred years from now the denizens of the 22nd Century may well wonder how on Earth these 50 people were chosen when clearly the greatest comedian of all times was not only still living, but still making yearly TV broadcasts. Where on this list, the posthumans might wonder, is Jerry Lewis? The past is a different country and the future is France.

By: Sparx

Sparx — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 05:30:11 -0800

sorry, not funnier than John Cleese. Apparently, in person, he totally was.

By: Sparx

Sparx — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 06:07:29 -0800

I should actually qualify my previous comment by noting that in the Cook biography "Tragically I was an only twin", it's noted that Cook was a natural wit and could just sit there and be jaw-droppingly funny off the cuff - which was hugely useful whenever Private Eye, the satire magazine he was involved with, was running short of material. John Cleese, OTOH, IIRC, prefers to work of a script. Not that there's anything wrong with that.