RIP Jack Smethurst

Seriously; if you think Love Thy Neighbour is the pinnacle of comedy, it’s not me that has no taste.
The only 70’s sit coms that stands the test of time are Porridge and Fawlty Towers.
As for ‘comedy’ as a whole, clearly Python and Milligan were true greats. But the Goodies were definitely a sign of what was to come. NTNON just sneaks into the end of the 70’s I think and is a world away from early 70’s jokes about mother in laws, birds and nig nogs.

Sit Com is the hardest thing to do, not least because the standards in ‘comedy’ today are so high it’s almost impossible to keep that up over 6 episodes and repeat. Just look how Not Going Out turned from being a quick fire edgy look at life to a twee unfunny comfortable clone of ‘my family’.

That said; fleabag is head and shoulders the funniest sitcom of the last 20 years. And After Life is as good telly as you can see.

Compared to the ‘best’, a show which consisted of:
2 neighbours don’t like each other, use racial slurs to show that dislike. Their mutual friends try to make it better, but the wife’s genuine affection for each other saves the day. Every week a different ‘situation’ but exactly the same plot. It’s ‘attraction’ to a good proportion of the audience being the racial abuse between the lead characters.

If that’s ‘great comedy’ I may be a great football pundit

 

Ah! Something we can agree on. (although I only lasted 2 minutes with the 1st episode of Fleabag). Possibly unfair but a monologue to camera whilst being 'rodgered from behind' set the bar too low for me.

 

Your loss, it's fantastic. Out of interest would it have been turned off if it was a bloke giving a monologue to camera whilst rogering someone? I'm not necessarily classing you in this but I note from some people's reactions there's a real squeamishness and sexism when it comes to women talking/joking about sex

 

I was going to argue on the basis The Office exists, but I realised it's now more than 20 years old. Christ.

 

I had a Brexit supporting right wing work colleague who went to see him in southsea… came rushing to tell me the next day how amazing he was… I pointed out it was comedy and an act… he was too stupid to understand. Priceless!

 

There’s an interesting view that it’s ‘The Office’ that killed British sitcom.
It was so ‘different’ that it led all other writers to think they had to also be ‘different’. And it’s impossible to be that original

 

Sorry I didn’t realise I was talking to an expert on the subject

 

I think it could have been avoided if you’d not asserted that if I didn’t agree something was funny I didn’t understand humour

 

Yes, somewhat I reckon but all these channels, streaming platforms and catch-up have played their part. There's no "did you see Only fools and horses last night?" anymore, it's more "have you seen any good comedies recently?". The old sit-coms had a kind of communal effect, you knew next door was likely to be watching the same thing and laughing along.