"The Ben Elton Show" (1998)TV series

Director:

Geraldine Dowd

Writers:

Ian Davidson (additional material)
Ben Elton (writer)

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

16 April 1998 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Fast-talking, witty comedy show starring the comedian Ben Elton with a weekly guest appearance...

Plot Keywords:

Monologue | Sketch Comedy | Stand Up Comedy

Cast

Ben Elton	...	Himself (8 episodes, 1998)
Ronnie Corbett	...	Himself (8 episodes, 1998)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Movie Connections:

Follows "Ben Elton: The Man from Auntie" (1990)

Ben Goes Off The Boil

This was Ben Elton's first stand-up comedy show since Tony Blair's 1997 general election landslide. As was the case with Mike Yarwood ( whose comic momentum disappeared when Margaret Thatcher came to power ), Ben's act lost its edge. He still came up with some excellent routines, including a mickey-take of the then-current 'Cool Britannia' fad, but the anger that defined his earlier stuff had largely evaporated. 'The Ben Elton Show' was no 'Man From Auntie'; seeming more like an ordinary variety show, featuring musical artistes such as Kylie Minogue, along with Australian comics 'Roy and H.G.' and our very own Ronnie Corbett. Ronnie's contribution consisted of the same 'chair' routines he did in 'The Two Ronnies', totally out of place in a show like this. Worse, poor Ronnie was forced to coarsen his material to try and match Ben's. The end result was not particularly successful, and Ben did no more of this kind, embarking on a new, lucrative career as novelist, film director and playwright.