What If Other Authors Had Written The Lord Of The Rings? ...Wilde, Wodehouse, and more.
posted by The Whelk on Aug 19, 2012 - 50 comments

'Bookish' Australians indifferent to Olympics success.
posted by MartinWisse on Aug 8, 2012 - 68 comments

From 1999 to 2003, the largely-female UK comedy trope Smack The Pony had a series of short skits based on video dating ads. Youtube user myLastTears has edited them together into a supercut: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 [more inside]
posted by The Whelk on Aug 21, 2011 - 18 comments

'If you value nothing, then nothing you value can be taken from you.' William Donaldson, the author of the infamous Henry Root Letters led a life more colourful than any of his literary inventions. [more inside]
posted by ob on Feb 20, 2009 - 12 comments

For the past 50 years, The British have made some of the funniest Comedy TV Shows. Come inside for A Video Chronology of The History of British TV Comedy. [more inside]
posted by Foci for Analysis on Jan 24, 2008 - 96 comments

Hippie Atrocities and Beautiful Freaks -- Oz Magazine was, for a ten year run during the Sixties and Seventies, Australia's, and later England's, premier underground satire 'zine. Featuring contributions from (among others) Lenny Bruce and Germain Greere, and subject to two obscenity trials--one in Australia and another, more famous one following the editors' exile to England--it evolved, in its English incarnation, a wicked, witty and of course, thouroughly psychedelic design aesthetic. There are galleries of cover art here and here, and a Shockwave adaptation of the infamous School Kids issue here. [warning: some images NSFW.]
posted by arto on Aug 26, 2003 - 6 comments

When Washington writes Blair's autocue. For those of you outside the U.K. a very funny clip from Rory Bremner, about the only satirist left on U.K. television. (Real Video Stream - 'Blair & Campbell Autocue').
posted by rolo on Mar 3, 2003 - 9 comments

Comedian Rowan Atkinson is understandably nervous about his career in the light of proposed laws in the UK to outlaw insightment to religious bigotry. Having built his career from playing comedy vicars and priests you can imagine him wondering if all his old material is suddenly worthless. Downing Street has sought to re-assure as usual but you can see why he'd be filled with uncertainty. As he points out in a situation were personal opinion is involved, how would one tell if one was breaking the law. For example, some stand up comedy may be fine, but how about movies? Where does 'The Life of Brian' stand? Or 'Dogma' for that matter...
posted by feelinglistless on Oct 17, 2001 - 10 comments

Contrary to what you may have heard, the new Brass Eye is indeed about paedophiles. And it's got Phil Collins wearing a "Nonce Sense" t-shirt.
posted by Mocata on Jul 19, 2001 - 20 comments

Last night's Brass Eye special was mysteriously pulled from the schedules, seemingly because it concerned "an army of paedophiles". Apparantly, this is not the case
posted by Grangousier on Jul 6, 2001 - 15 comments

Great news! Channel 4 to re-screen Brass Eye - with restored footage.
posted by Mocata on Mar 23, 2001 - 6 comments