Britcom Goes To The Movies

In 1999, writer-director Justin Kerrigan took a meagre budget and a cast of relative unknowns and made a cult film for the turn of the millennium. Sure, slice-of-life comedies were nothing new, even ones with the kind of absurd flights of fancy Kerrigan employed, but very little on the big screen this side of the Atlantic had shone a light on late-’90s club culture the way this did.

Still endlessly memed today, Human Traffic gave big boosts to the careers of both John Simm and Danny Dyer, and as we’ll be looking at the latter in more depth later in the series (watch this space), we’ve made this episode all about Simm. His TV career had been steadily building, and he’d made his breakthrough in the BBC sitcom Men of the World, starring opposite David Threlfall, which is the paired TV show for this episode.

Joining Guy and Rob to discuss Human Traffic is writer, producer, podcaster and the man with the best Christopher Walken impression in the business, Dan Thomas. Will Dan’s memories of an enjoyable romp hold up, or has it aged like one of Moff’s dodgy disco biscuits?

Men of the World - series 1 episode 1

https://youtu.be/79TddcShAJ4?si=PKcXYQBMetPOFpYl

Comic Strip Presents... - The Yob

https://youtu.be/2-o9TV1AGdk?si=ZNMmCJ-WWq8zklU5

John Simm in Spaced

https://youtu.be/QBiXW-W_V1Y?si=8Ahp_ewQaSgG2gOM

Daniel Peacock’s Cavegirl

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1HL4cgoAcA

Bill Hicks on Waco

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2EqZ4-enx8

Human Traffic trailer

https://youtu.be/PqY6eAro1QY?si=yZDfSzuHD-lTPf3u

Human Traffic - Nice one Bruva

https://youtu.be/qksndNDMDOw?si=rQ4vtWGi1GM0wVre

Human Traffic - Got any Jungle?

https://youtu.be/h5hnbUcJKP4?si=CnZpeisCYZgSzj3l

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

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Now, we’ve dealt with small budgets in our time, but our film for episode two would give Powder Room a run for its money. In 2006, former stand-up comic Jamie Mathieson put pen to paper on his first film: a time-travel rom-com with nods to Alan Moore, Terry Pratchett and Back to the Future. But it took another three years for Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel to make it to the big screen, and you can find out all about that journey in this episode.

Going it alone this time, Rob and Guy link FAQ About Time Travel to mid-noughties cult sitcom The Smoking Room, as both share a director, Gareth Carrivick. The two are stylistically similar, with a bottle-episode feel. The Smoking Room ran for two series on BBC Three and featured some of the most lauded comic actors around, including Robert Webb and Jeremy Swift, as well as giving a fresh showcase to classic sitcom stars like Paula Wilcox.

So join us as we jump back a decade from Fighting with My Family and do a conga in the toilet to “Total Eclipse of the Heart”!

The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse with Jeremy Dyson tickets

https://www.scienceandmediamuseum.org.uk/cinema/league-gentlemens-apocalypse-15-jeremy-dyson

Anna Faris in Just Friends

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOV48dDK0aw

Drop It Like Its Close to Me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsIVMAsQPL4

Dame Edna on Cilla Black (This was meant for this ep, but I put it on the last one!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmLaIrjjS_I

Bjork - Bachelerotte

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNJv-Ebi67I

Allstars - Land of Make Believe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2rtK8gyhrs

The Smoking Room - SE1 Ep1

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0F8A0065462CF0DB

The Smoking Room - Barry’s Crossword

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF4k72uUf2k

Johnny Briggs Theme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq212jZi1yk

Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel - Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBV340x3GcA

Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel - Morrissey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOr28eNTw_Q

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re into our SEVENTH SERIES! It is hard to believe we’ve made it this far, but just as well, really, given the number of films we're still yet to cover. We begin this series with the heartwarming tale of a family, some with dodgy pasts, but all with a lovable lust for life.

The fighting Knights from Norfolk were the subject of a 2011 Channel 4 documentary when son Zak and daughter Saraya were on the cusp of hitting the big time as wrestlers, hoping to join the promised land of WWE. One made it; the other did not.

This documentary inspired arguably the most famous wrestler of all time, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, to retell the tale. Armed with the clout of WWE backing, a cast of BritCom stars, up-and-coming acting starlets, and already-legendary TV comedy writer/director Stephen Merchant, he hoped to transfer this real-life story to the big screen.

The last time we heard from Merchant on this podcast, things were beginning to become considerably less rosy with longtime collaborator Ricky Gervais, after their venture into the coming-of-age com Cemetery Junction was met with the lukest of lukewarm receptions in 2010. We pick up their tale again with their last TV stand as a partnership: the Warwick Davis vehicle Life’s Too Short, also from 2011.

Joining Rob and Guy for this one, all the way from The House of Splain, is confessed wrestling fan and Gervais... anti-fan Ben Baker. He helps our hosts make a bit more sense of the wrestling aspect of Fighting with My Family, which is the first film ever to be covered on BritCom Goes to the Movies that was adapted from a documentary.

We’ve had plenty of fun dissecting Mindhorn and Smashie and Nicey with fellow ’Splainer Ricardo Autobahn, so it seemed only fair to give his podcasting other half a crack at the whip!

Gervais, Merchant and Davis as Gervais, Crouch and Rooney

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDH8RKhwCkc

Life’s Too Short - Bookcase slapstick

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OJiB2BGaoc

Jack Lowden Irn Bru ad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5ocaypgRHM

Dame Edna Cilla Black

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmLaIrjjS_I

The Wrestlers: Fighting With My Family - Full Documentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2dlO_e_HhU&t=20s

Fighting With My Family Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqF3VTv0cqU

Fighting With My Family - My Dream Too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_PPRNXd5yk

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Finding funny stuff on ITV since the turn of the century has been an arduous task. So it was quite the surprise to the 19-year-old Rob and Guy that late night on a Wednesday, one of the new darlings of British comedy, Rob Brydon, could be found as alter ego Peter De Lane performing fake director’s commentary on such classic Granada TV shows as Flambards, Only When I Laugh, and Mr and Mrs! As well as, for some reason, the classic US western TV show Bonanza, for which Brydon’s production company owned the rights to 32 episodes. This is a forgotten Brydon Classic. Shortly after the success of Marion and Geoff and Human Remains, the BBC turned down the opportunity for Brydon’s latest venture with collaborator Paul Duddridge, so their loss was Granada’s gain, and it would serve the dual purpose of giving ITV a comedy vehicle with the man everyone wanted a piece of as well as reminding audiences of some of their back catalogue.
So for our second Rob Brydon-related round table episode, we’ve enlisted the help of two of our favourite former guests to make up a classic De Lane Four. Alison Dennison and Nina Buckley returned to discuss their love (in one case) and disdain (in the other) for a show that neither had previously remembered.
Join the four of us for a deep dive into the world of Peter De Lane, Denny Hall and Lord Cheggers of Oddbins, and we’ll also discuss our favourite real-life director's commentaries and lots more to boot.

Thanks as always to our payingest Patreon, Andrew Greenwood!
Eurovision 1977 - Stewart Morris Talkback
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTgCLfYdRo4
Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, Jessica Hynes and Quentin Tarantino director’s commentary on Spaced
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWOQH76BZbQ
Mike Scully calls John Schwartzwelder on the Simpsons commentary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAWE0Kjn8ac&t=1s
Director’s Commentary - The Duchess of Duke Street
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXVB_tW_KXQ
Director’s Commentary - Flambards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_Df03uATMM
Grace Jones at the Golden Jubilee
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIicwZrkEhY&list=RDkIicwZrkEhY&start_radio=1
The Staggering Stories of Ferdinand De Burgos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v37TG6uG3c

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

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To round off our BritPop Goes to the Movies mini-series, we jump to 2006, a simpler time when fledgling British pop-rockers McFly and their management could force themselves on an unsuspecting Hollywood. Lindsay Lohan (at the height of her fame) and Chris Pine (who Rob would argue is the best of the Chrises) on the come-up, star in an all-American, by-the-numbers romcom, which was sold in this country largely based on the already successful McFly's appearance. However, in America, Tom, Dougie, Harry and Danny were complete unknowns, and this was their only shot to crack the US market.
This film differs in many ways from the previous two in the series, not least because it is a fully American production, but also because the band is very much the B-plot to a high-concept convolution in which Lohan and Pine continue to switch luck and status. There's still plenty of British pop music in it, though. Lots of McFly tracks but a lot of repetition of Five Colours in Her Hair.
Joining Guy and Rob is fellow Film Stories Podcast Network host Dev Elson of Chucky Vision and At The Movies in the Noughties. He did more than his fair share of superfluous research by listening to every McFly album. Is this film as bad as we are making it sound, though? Well, you’ll just have to finish the trilogy to find out.

Five Colours In Her Hair - McFly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h76uVRSJ5bc
Obviously - McFly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiyF3K7hFqM
Harry Judd Wins Strictly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb_s2RHVBdY
Chris Pine in Smokin' Aces
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-tGV96ceBM&t=148s
Chris Pine - The Otley Run
https://x.com/CapitalOfficial/status/1641409178387324934
Just My Luck Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClDQ4SLDDOw
Just My Luck - Central Park Scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZz6l8MCFFY

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode two of BritPOP Goes to the Movies sees Guy and Rob joined by Catrin Lowe to discuss Spice World: The Movie. Kim Fuller, brother of the mogul behind the Spice Girls, Simon Fuller, wanted to make a genuine homage to our previous film A Hard Day's Night, and to do that he wanted to make this just as cynical and rich with meta-textual, self-referential craziness. Cramming in celebrity cameos (too many for his script editor) and musical set-pieces.
Spice World certainly had that and a whole lot more. The film was put in motion before the five-piece had properly blown up worldwide, but by the time shooting had wrapped, they were truly a worldwide sensation. This movie broke all kinds of box-office records; despite being critically panned, it now sits as the most financially successful film about a real pop group ever.
To believe the critics' initial reaction would do this subversive, bonkers and surprisingly well-acted film a disservice. Yes, there's the odd "what the hell were you thinking?!" moment, but for every Michael Barrymore and Gary Glitter (yes, Gary Glitter!) there's an Alan Cumming and Bob Hoskins.
Sit back and listen to the gang wax lyrical and get all nostalgic about the era of Spice. With clear dividing lines about what the Spice Girls meant to their teenage girl and teenage boy fan clubs! There's even a little inside scoop from a familiar voice who appeared in the movie. So Stop! Say you’ll be there with us for a cracking episode that hopefully you won’t find Too Much…
…..Goodbye!

Spice Girls - Wannabe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJLIiF15wjQ
Spice Girls - Say You'll Be There
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ro0FW9Qt-4
Spice Girls - Too Much on Top of the Pops
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iyQBxSbvqg
Spice World - Teaser Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1Ne8oBpQQY
Spice World - American Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmSBtOHzGPM
Spice World Aliens
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yzxxc5KnBOE
Spice World - Boy in coma
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_8fYanJk88
Peter Sissons on Ann Robinson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7PuKPiTT_4
Geri - A Film By Molly Dineen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8bnx0YcFBo
Spice World - Gary Glitter deleted scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYRHoQP75-g
Loaded: Lads, Mags and Mayhem
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbAWc_pQDjk
All Spice Girls Adverts
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zw54uEniaZg
Waynes World - Sponsor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjB6r-HDDI0

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we eagerly await Series Seven in the autumn, how about treating ourselves to a mini-series during the bank holiday? What could be more fun than watching British pop groups trying to crack the movies?

In our new mini-series, BritPop Goes To The Movies, Rob and Guy will be diving into exactly that over the next three days!

We kick off our series with a huge first episode, featuring a returning friend of the show. Tyler Adams from Goon Pod is back for his third appearance, ready to help us explore a film that truly changed everything. Who better to guide us through how a business-savvy soundtrack tie-in became a cinematic masterpiece?

Tyler helps us to start things off with A Hard Day’s Night. Originally commissioned by United Artists to get a Beatles soundtrack album, director Richard Lester and writer Alun Owen took a modest £189,000 budget and a tight schedule and turned it into something sharper, funnier, and more influential than anyone could have imagined. By moving away from the usual vehicles of Elvis and Cliff Richard, John, Paul, George, and Ringo really shine on screen, playing heightened versions of themselves. They are supported by a fantastic cast of British character actors, including Wilfred Bramble, Victor Spinetti, and Norman Rossington, who add a sharp edge to the film’s satire on age, class, and authority.

Come along with us as we get stuck into Beatlemania and the birth of the modern music video as we explore A Hard Day’s Night!

Running, Jumping, Standing Still film - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScwV_yIGZ5Y

It’s Trad Dad (trailer) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jk8ad0u0URw

A Hard Days Night Press Conference - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9VJ7GZYcWU

George Harrison funny scene - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QREeweMWTZk

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the art of parody the sole reserve of Americans? Well, us Brits have had a few jolly good cracks at it. Most recently, Fackham Hall. The star-studded Downton Abbey send-up from 2025, written by the Dawson brothers (one of whom is an Inman) and the Carr brothers (one of whom is the UK’s biggest stand-up of the 21st century).
To round off the sixth series of BritCom Goes to the Movies, Rob and Guy tackle their most recent film to date and have paired it with the other most valiant BritCom ZAZ-style attempt, A Touch of Cloth. The gloriously silly spoof of the police procedural dramas of the BBC and ITV. A programme that started life in creator Charlie Brooker’s spoof TV listings website TV Go Home.
Series six has had our most guests ever, so it's only right to finish it with the original lineup. For this one, Guy and Rob go it alone. There’s also the matter of the Series Six quiz champion to decide, as scores are all level at 24-24 going into this episode. Join us for the last in the series at Fackham Hall!
TV Go Home
http://www.ntk.net/tvgohome/190399.html
A Touch of Cloth - It was 1996
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrOnQG-ZYyM
A Touch of Cloth - I cam As Soon As I Heard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4RKGels8Wo&pp=ygUQYSB0b3VjaCBvZiBjbG90aA%3D%3D&pbjreload=102
Fackham Hall - Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWrZCkL8Kqs
Fackham Hall - Jimmy Carr
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XhP-mmIPDY

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

At BritCom Goes to the Movies, we are dipping back into the world of Armando Iannucci. Last we heard of him on this show, he’d just adapted his hit sitcom The Thick of It into big screen success In The Loop, and eight years later was turning his attention to a farcical retelling of an actual moment in history with The Death of Stalin.
Based on a French graphic novel telling of the Soviet dictator’s demise, Iannucci reassembled some of his most trusted writers and performers to tell this story in a very Thick of It way, without the need for comedy Russian accents. Ian Martin and David Schneider, longtime Iannucci collaborators, would help write, and while the cast had familiar Britcom faces, there would also be a sprinkling of Hollywood with Steve Buscemi and Jeffrey Tambor as well as the cream of theater in Simon Russell Beale as the terrifying Beria.
We dip not only into this 2017 movie but also the critically acclaimed 2001 sketch show, The Armando Iannucci Shows, which was one of the few TV series that Armando wrote and produced, which he also took the lead in performing. This is a second episode in a row in which we feature a TV show written by Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley (amongst others), and (spoiler alert) we enjoyed their work here much more than we did Hyperdrive.
Joining Guy and Rob is the brilliant comedian, writer, and historian Eleanor Morton, who jumped at the chance to talk about one of her favourite films of the 2010s. But would Rob and Guy be quite so effusive? This episode would also represent Guy’s chance to put the quiz competition to bed with one episode remaining. Going into episode nine, Guy had a two-point lead. If he could extend this into episode ten, it would surely be curtains for Rob.
Armando Iannucci - OJ Simpson on the Saturday Night Armistice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKfEtYYqSl4
The Armando Iannucci Shows - Hello Hugh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqmjWCk36C8
The Armando Iannucci Shows - Chronic fatigue syndrome
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDhoM_vhIeo
Death of Stalin - Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9eAshaPvYw
Death of Stalin - Rupert Friend
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN-mq2RPAto
Death of Stalin - Best of Zhukov
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNbvepjd46A

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get on your dancing shoes and join Guy and Rob (because it only takes two to tango) for 2014’s Cuban Fury. Something of a passion project for Nick Frost, who basically wanted to learn how to dance and probably wanted to be the main character in a wish-fulfillment Rom Com. There’s some transatlantic crossover here as Rashida Jones of The Office, Parks and Rec, and being the daughter of famous people, joined the mainly British and Irish cast.
We’ve covered Nick Frost before, of course, but never as a leading man, and while he teamed up with Nira Park and Big Talk once again, there was no trace of Edgar Wright here, but just the tiniest bit of Simon Pegg. To pair a TV show with this, it made sense to pick the first time Frost had a lead role in a sitcom as well, the divisive Hyperdrive. Starting in 2006 and running for two series, this was Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley’s (them again) venture into the unknown, for a space set sci-fi sitcom with just a few echoes of the two big hitters that came before it.
To find out if Rob and Guy liked either Hyperdrive or Cuban Fury, you’ll need to tune in for episode seven, which, in a series laden with guests, stands out as one for the purists. Can Rob claw back the quiz deficit? Will Guy mention The Beatles? Will we have a challenger for the upper or lower places in the league table? Only one way to know for sure!
Hyperdrive Series 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rz-1c2o1Dxw&list=PL2907664D333F4F02
Hyperdrive - Starting Therapy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNbKr4cm1-8
Cuban Fury - Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFSP9iO71AE
Cuban Fury - Kayvan Novak
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrllJthntlE
Cuban Fury - Al Pacino Impression
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVaVICJF_gQ

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode Seven began life as a thread on Bluesky by our guest Tim Worthington. The font of all obscure pop culture knowledge was discussing with followers what the most obscure BritCom they'd seen at the cinema was. Needless to say, a lot of the answers were on our long list, but not Tim's choice.
The Young Poisoner's Handbook is the darkest of all the dark comedies we've covered so far. Based on, but the filmmakers must stress, not a biopic of The Teacup Poisoner Graham Young, who killed several people in the 60s and 70s.
A film full of familiar Britcom faces, including Roger Lloyd Pack, Charlotte Coleman, John Thompson, and Simon Kunz. Still, it's the central performance from Irish actor Hugh O'Connor that really stole the show.
Co-writer Jeff Rawle was at the height of his Drop the Dead Donkey fame when this film was released in 1995, so the topical newsroom sitcom by Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin was the obvious choice for our "source material" and was a joy to revisit. Join Rob, Guy, and Tim for the Young Poisoner's Handbook.

Damien Gets High On The Field - Drop The Dead Donkey

https://youtu.be/JfeQyp0PihM?si=t0cIRk2zFHKVfNZq

Teddy Bear Disaster - Drop The Dead Donkey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip0sLEMCEdY

How To Announce a War - Drop The Dead Donkey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErktQhN6TvM

Episode One - Educating Marmalade

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGeHsjfVptk

Marmalade Atkins joins MI5 - Danger: Marmalade at Work

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHBCxewUANM

The Young Poisoner's Handbook - Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7_e79Ik3Vs

The Young Poisoner's Handbook - Full Movie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ndiGKuUkt0&t=1012s

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last time Kat Hughes joined Rob and Guy, the horror writer and critic had the misfortune of dissecting the Christmas family mess Nativity! This time she’s much more in her wheelhouse as we discuss Bloodbath at the House of Death. A vehicle for Britain’s best loved DJ Kenny Everett to take his brand of spoofing, innuendo and larger than life characters to the big screen after the success on both ITV and BBC with his Video Show/Television Show.
It cannot be underestimated just what a huge cultural phenomenon Kenny Everett was. As one of Britain’s most popular Radio and TV personalities in the early 80s, he could make careers of pop stars and bands and was able to attract some of the biggest names to guest on his TV shows. However, just when it looked like Kenny might hit the big time on the big screen, a controversial incident at the Young Conservatives conference of 1984 was publicity suicide for Bloodbath and it crashed and burned at the box office.
However, as was often the case in the mid-80s, VHS came somewhat to its rescue, and now the film is even on Netflix…but was it any good? Could a supporting cast of such huge BritCom names as Pamela Stephenson, Don Warrington and John Fortune elevate this film beyond Everett’s more disposable TV sketches? Could Vincent Price give it some Hollywood clout and horror credibility? Writer Barry Cryer and writer director Ray Cameron had been working with Everett for years, but the big screen was fairly new to them as well.
We discuss all of the above and more in episode six, so join us as we take a trip to The House of Death.
Kenny Everett Video Show - Best of VHS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HeX1CPQf9k
Kenny Everett Television Show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecqQBG9q3Ok
Charley Says Always Tell Your Mummy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDu7yYHxZr0
The Prodigy - Charly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSTBFZ-To2E
Pamela Stephenson - England My Leotard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMXIro1P_7g
Pamela Stephenson - Shrink Wrap
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZodTyEoFRZQ
Bloodbath at the House of Death - Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6zmvE-uEu0
Bloodbath at the House of Death - Best of Vincent Price
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyLWS_CjI1M

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Now that’s enough of the 1970s, let’s move this series into the 20th century. Well, actually, our story for this icon of BritCom begins at the end of the 20th. Harry Hill won the Perrier award in 1992 and was quickly on TV and radio soon after. Rob and Guy take a particular look at The Harry Hill Show…or rather just Harry Hill as it was known on Channel 4 in the late 90s.

To join the chaps is Harry Hill superfan, internet sensation, and comedy writer Ruth Husko. As it turns out, both Ruth and Rob saw an early Harry Hill tour as their first forays into live comedy. Guy, however, still needed some convincing of the wonder of Hill’s own brand of surreal silliness. Could he be won over?

Well, the chances are that would not be done by watching the universally panned Harry Hill Movie from 2013. Held up as one of the cases that most proves the rule that big-screen adaptations of small-screen comedy don’t work, but is it really that bad? There’s only one way to find out…FIIIIFGHTT! Or just have a listen to the latest episode of BritCom Goes to the Movies.

Harry Hill - Fruit Fancies

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlIGkKUxWak

Harry Hill - Fruit Corner

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOOkh8ffqko

Harry Hill - Channel 4 - SE1 Ep1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUS_EPSNNtY&list=PLVEP6KjsyeTd9sScdD-KH4ZTvvWuW17V5

Harry Hill and Stoofer - 7 seconds

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeW61GTxe-Q

TV Burp - Ear Cataracts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NswiFD8qSgI

Harry Hill Movie - Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywarD9fcZGQ

Harry Hill Movie - Blackpool

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg1AxAHJBJg

Shooting Stars - Billy Elliott

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN-ASY9X1dU

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re on a roll with the 70s sitcom spin-offs. Hot on the heels of George and Mildred and Mutiny On The Buses comes 1971’s Please Sir! This is, in no small part, down to our guest this week, Jason Hazeley, being the world’s loudest cheerleader for this film and its preceding sitcom. We didn’t even need to show him the list; he was straight in there for a personal favourite since his youth.

But never two to hold back, would Rob and Guy’s thoughts on Please Sir! align with Jason’s? Certainly, the ingredients were there for that not to be the case. Some dated attitudes, men and women in their 20s playing teenagers, a rushed release capitalising on the success of its TV predecessor, and our old favourite, a flimsy pretext to get the cast to a holiday camp.

Having said that, both Rob and Guy come to this fresh. Neither had ever seen as much as an episode of this once-beloved sitcom, but both were aware of the all-round entertainment chops of the cast. Not least Deryck Guyler, in whose washboarding hands anyone could feel at ease.

Join us as we delve into one of the last ITV sitcom spin-offs left to cover, which could well prove the best of the lot.

Please Sir! SE1 Ep1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8PVA-TDeYw
Deryck Guyler on the Washboard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWKHTcC-I8k&list=RDGWKHTcC-I8k&start_radio=1
Derrick Geyler Scotch Tape Ads
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AL3mpzAvHFA
Michael Winner Esure Ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efl5pFTFnBU
Victor Lewis Smith pranks Michael Winner
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTGc1PKVrH0
Please Sir! (1971) Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rhhiqg0aKOM
Please Sir! Full Film
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qa0CL4bhlH8

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

After some time away, we’re ready to dip back into the On The Busesverse. Our resident expert in all things Butler and Blakey, John Rain, returns to discuss the Empire Strikes Back of the trilogy. It’s time for Mutiny on the Buses. A mere year after the first film and backed by a (slightly) bigger budget, none of which the actors saw, the Ronalds, Chesney, and Wolf had forged a screenplay with much more of a semblance of a plot and some new characters to boot.

There’s all the usual fun (at Blakey’s expense mainly) as well as naked protest, Arthur joining the depot, a huge fire extinguisher leak, and fun and frolics in Windsor Safari Park in which Reg Varney shits himself with a chimp on his lap.

Great to welcome back John Rain and his unique brand of analysis and even tee up the promise of Holiday on the Buses to come…but one instalment at a time, eh?

Morris Bright’s Elstree On The Buses Documentary

https://youtu.be/luKxuhVxNGQ?si=pZduxvq7pY1CLk5c

Mutiny on the Buses Filming Locations

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9dv6flrmW4

Mutiny on the Buses Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LQbflW--q4

Mutiny on the Buses - Radio Control

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECzCL97E28w

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Time to get our teeth into another straight spin-off. It’s a significant one at that. The final of the ITC/EMI/Hammer spin-offs of ITV sitcoms, which many credit as the death of the genre altogether. That’s right, it is the 1980 big-screen adaptation of the long-running sitcom that in itself was a spin-off. George and Mildred.

Long-time listeners will know that in the first series, Rob and Guy were pleasantly surprised by Man About the House...if not the movie, the sitcom itself. So there’s every chance that George and Mildred could follow suit. As we always end up repeating, this show is all about expectations, which would obviously be on the floor with the reputation this film has preceding it. So things could only look up, right?….RIGHT?!

Joining us to find out is comedian Alison Dennison, so committed to the G&M cause she’d already watched every episode ever made in preparation. With attention to detail like this, episode two of series six would prove to be one of the best we’d ever made. A tale of comedy and tragedy, life and death, both metaphorical and literal. Join us for George and Mildred!

George and Mildred Opening theme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0ygWHpvoFE

Best of George Roper

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2YQtqXTktY

George and Mildred Last Interview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gE-3utPaAdU

George and Mildred Movie in Full

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAaNz1DW1DY

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

No sooner are we gone than we’re back with a brand-new series. In series six, we’ll pass 60 films viewed and reviewed for a project that still has plenty of legs in it yet! But we begin this brand new series by embracing the familiar. Tom Salinsky returns to BritCom Goes to the Movies for the first time since episode six, and not only does he join for a film all three of us have seen before, all three of us love it!

The film in question is the 1955 classic Ealing comedy, The Ladykillers, a real contender for the top ten of our table and beyond. But how will we link this to the small screen, I hear you ask? The answer is…we won’t. We’re going down the Sellers route. As this was one of Peter Sellers’ earliest big-screen appearances, we’ve decided to match it with one of his earliest radio appearances and the rather forgotten, if not prolific, Ray’s A Laugh from the 1950s BBC radio.

Ray’s A Laugh was exactly the kind of broadcast variety/comedy that Sellers and co would go on to blow out of the water with the pioneering Goon Show. While a fair few episodes still exist on BBC Sounds and YouTube, you can hear the star quality of Sellers rising above what was already a pretty tired format in the early 1950s.

Then, of course, the film itself. Widely considered not just the best Ealing Comedy (and the three of us will offer some of our other favourites) but also one of the greatest British comedy films of all time. A heist/farce with some career-best performances, not least from Alec Guinness, Katie Johnson, and many of the supporting cast. But how will it hold up against the top echelons of the BritCom Goes to the Movies league? Tom has already had one table-topper with The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer, but could he have another? Tune in and find out.

Ray’s a Laugh - 1954

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBQ7YrPNx9A

Ray’s a Laugh - 1949

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s77ZhWxf9JU

The Ladykillers - Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDVMD8dktKI

The Ladykillers - Such Pretty Windows

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuIvga5t_Hc

Alec Guinness as George Smiley

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCm3IrscqH8

Tom Salinsky - All British Comedy Explained

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kFktzEvNuI&list=PLmJSdGQRAwRyQjtWhrtFtDpOLo6iaRmpX

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Happy St David’s Day! To mark the occasion here at Britcom Goes to the Movies, we are celebrating one of Wales’ most beloved comedy sons, Rob Brydon, and…actually, it is just a ham-fisted way of doing a round table episode on Cruise of the Gods!

This TV film was written by Tim Firth (remember him from our Blackball episode?) and contained not only some Britcom heavyweights of the time, but also ground zero for the careers of some of the most controversial Britcommers of the 21st century, including Russell Brand, David Walliams, and James Corden.

Despite all that, its stars Brydon and Steve Coogan, along with its premise of forgotten 80s kids sci-fi being celebrated by nerds on a cruise, made it a firm favourite for Rob and Guy, and they welcomed back returning guests Steve Dunne and Stuart Laws, neither of whom had seen the film before. So how would this have aged, and would our guests immediately be regretting their decision? Only one way to find out. Join us in Leicester, 1982…

Cruise of the Gods - Full Film

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uPsHGPKnWk

Children of Castor

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPOMIHJHPks

Sherlock Holmes in Miami

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj8A3OEicBg

Human Remains - Swingers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVAqWMGyqH0

Marion and Geoff - Student House

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5V60QG0mJ0

You’re a Star - New Faces theme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMfzr2Bufkk

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Here at BritCom Goes to the Movies, we love each and every one of our listeners. That is why we’re giving you this Valentine’s present. Rob & Guy discuss their favourite British sketches of all time. To make sure there were no clashes, notes were compared before, duplicates removed, and of course, the arbitrary rule of no more than one sketch from one show per host.

These two top-ten lists have a little something for everyone. A good mixture of styles, eras, tones, and formats. So settle in for nearly two hours of discussion of some of the greatest sketches in the history of British comedy!

Of course, there are some obvious omissions, and some of you may want to take to the socials to share your favourites or give us grief for ours. Both are encouraged! You can find links to every sketch discussed below, but of course, these are in no particular order to avoid spoilers.

Bit of a Chat - Peter Cook & Dudley Moore

https://videopress.com/v/IBVjIA8I

⁠ Dirty Fork - Monty Python

https://youtu.be/Z9VLwV48OHs?si=rYfeDwrAXXrrzwkc

Jackson Jeffrey Jackson - The Fast Show

https://youtu.be/LwbJ-N8rrek?si=U0qdYsRvlkKwOF4r

Tory Conference - Not The Nine O’clock News

https://youtu.be/qB0ZOu_EZ2M?si=lpBupRZ8w36a7Gsb

Billie Piper - Big Train

https://youtu.be/4_3oU-Z4Vxo?si=Hva6PalUR40g82-h

Yoker - Limmy

https://youtu.be/0YfRbNipdOg?si=ON_QecbOTrcnKXgs

Wedding Registry - Smack The Pony

https://www.facebook.com/Channel4Homes/videos/1101703119964373/?vh=e&fs=e&mibextid=wwXIfr

Credit Card Application - Armstrong & Miller

https://youtu.be/loaP46f8Lhw?si=7YILcGPHTANVCHxu

Vape Doms - Ellie & Natasia

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p0c9983q/ellie-natasia-series-1-episode-4

Balham Gateway to the South - Peter Sellers

https://youtu.be/8RTWk9QIKS0?si=ABCE1fZbTsR3QgxG

French and Saunders - Silence of the Lambs.

https://share.google/xvd7XeKyrdR2O0d2R

The Two Ninnies - not the 9 o clock news

https://youtu.be/IbC3Fdv5wKU?si=MPY4UulwEDyfBvZs

Adam and Joe - People Place

https://youtu.be/s1myCos0xXI?si=Ge42ZkfXXHrTY-Xb

Goodness Gracious Me - Going for an English

https://youtu.be/H-uEx_hEXAM?si=wG8IWxZzjWSL0KhG

Brass Eye - Oh Me Oh Myra

https://youtu.be/wVibsNPXBx0?si=ySFCFVmy2LiMBtf_

Alistair Green - Punk Squirrel IPA

https://youtu.be/-wP3BjTdogY?si=G_jh4OGM7Up8OMDe

The Peter serafinowicz show - Brian Butterfield diet plan

https://youtu.be/1NjTWvl8x-U?si=TSC31Jkk3JLvyFyK

Vic and Bob - BBC licence advert

https://youtu.be/xhPVP8cghN4?si=hasgqfSIRU8Gzy8V

Two Ronnies - Mastermind

https://youtu.be/y0C59pI_ypQ?si=7krxJroa1tFKxi4X

Fast Show - Monkfish

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_ohQ7yP0-I&list=PLu_1AWOleoaWWstu62EEnWzDGhOwo1GtD

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Merry Christmas to our beloved BritCom Goes to the Movies listeners!

Thanks for seeing in the festive period with us. This is our third Christmas episode, and while our previous two were a bit of a mixed bag, we’ve finally found a film we can all agree on: the 2009 classic, Nativity!

Writer and director Debbie Isitt was already the pride of the West Midlands theatre scene before turning to film. Her previous feature, Confetti, boasted the cream of British comic talent, even if some of the cast later tried to disavow the experience!

For her first festive foray, Isitt enlisted everyone’s favourite wise-cracking sitcom star, Martin Freeman, at a point in his career where he was firmly transitioning into a leading man. He’s joined by oddball comedian Marc Wootton as Mr. Poppy, Extras star Ashley Jensen and a whole host of familiar British faces, as well as an ocean of charming, non-theatre-school kids.

Joining Guy and Rob to discuss Nativity! (and Martin Freeman’s forgotten early-2000s sitcom Hardware) is writer and film critic Kat Hughes. Kat is the co-host of Movies with Mummy—the podcast where she and her daughter watch films together. But does Nativity! have what it takes to meet their high standards?

We also have the thrilling climax to our Quiz Season. With the scores currently deadlocked at 24-24, it’s all to play for!

So, join us for some "Ho-Ho-Hos" and a whole lot of sparkle and shine. Merry Christmas!

Bruiser - A Level Geography

https://youtu.be/pHmcBFxgov4?si=pNC_rUWx7atIUPrU

Bruiser - Martin Freeman

https://youtu.be/8w55vM3jwuA?si=Z3rgT1xTas8zMsxM

Robert Webb on Confetti

https://youtu.be/16xLrzEuLoM?si=uwIRD78sQFGSZ7YI

Hardware - Student

https://youtu.be/EMDwINZmwp4?si=g68dvIPmkfsnx348

Hardware - S1e1

Dailymotion https://share.google/BACweRPsFHozyTy7o

Martin Freeman argues with Tim Lovejoy

https://youtu.be/cqK-i6KSY88?si=Mmi2JUZ-5usxeNNW

Nativity! - Trailer

https://youtu.be/6DaaTsSQktk?si=-tOiWjTSdavTjoaP

Nativity! - Sparkle and Shine

https://youtu.be/dO6qmNNiAts?si=NUKNVKIv49MFZZir

Part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: https://filmstories.co.uk/film-stories-podcast-network-shows/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.