Little Britain (2003–2006)

Matt Lucas and David Walliams, the creators of this character-comedy sketch show, delight in all that is mad, bad, quirky and generally bonkers about the people and places of Britain.

Stars:

Matt Lucas, David Walliams, Tom Baker

28 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Matt Lucas	...	Various Roles (23 episodes, 2003-2006)
David Walliams	...	Various Roles (23 episodes, 2003-2006)
Tom Baker	...	Narrator (23 episodes, 2003-2006)
Anthony Head	...	The Prime Minister (23 episodes, 2003-2006)
Paul Putner	...	Various Roles (22 episodes, 2003-2006)
Joann Condon	...	Fat Pat (20 episodes, 2003-2006)
Charu Bala Chokshi	...	Meera (20 episodes, 2003-2006)
Steve Furst	...	Various Roles (15 episodes, 2003-2006)
Leelo Ross	...	Tanya (13 episodes, 2004-2006)
Stirling Gallacher	...	Margaret (13 episodes, 2003-2005)
Ruth Jones	...	Myfanwy (12 episodes, 2003-2006)
Stephen Aintree	...	Fat Fighters Taxi Driver (10 episodes, 2003-2005)

Storyline

Based on the highly successful Radio 4 series, Little Britain is a hilarious exploration of the British Isles and its curious inhabitants after a successful pilot earlier this year. The programme travels from the Scottish highlands, through Wales, the tranquil English countryside and the less tranquil council estates of Britain's inner cities, while the narrator (Tom Baker) adds his insightful and eloquent comments for those less familiar with these fair Isles

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Plot Keywords:

gay | british | village | prime minister | sketch | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Official Sites:

BBC [uk] BBC America

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 June 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Pequena Grã-Bretanha

Filming Locations:

Gaddesden Place, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

29 min 30 min (12 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the week leading up to Christmas 2004, the DVD set of the show's first season was the UK's top selling DVD across all genres, and was the first non-theatrical title to top the charts in Britain since Riverdance had done in 1994.

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Quotes

Pat: [Marjorie is orange from her holiday] A Satsuma.
Marjorie Dawes: Yeah, that's not really bad for you though, is it?
Pat: No, but it is orange.

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Crazy Credits

Every episode of the first series ends with a different farewell message from the narrator and a "world record attempt" sketch. With the second series, the credits roll over the end of a sketch starring Andy and Lou at the end of each episode. The messages from the narrator are still there in the second series.

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Connections

Featured in The Story of Light Entertainment: Radio Stars (2006)

User Reviews

No but no but no but it's simply not funny

I am completely and utterly baffled by the runaway success of this show. I had heard so much hype about it that when I finally saw the first episode, I expected to be laughing to the point of tears. Instead, not only did I fail to laugh a single time, I actually groaned in disbelief on several occasions. The jokes were plain and simply awful.

The premise of this show is that it offers a hilarious caricature of life and people in Britain. This is only partially the case. Little Britain's characters do indeed resemble exaggerated versions of people in the UK, and they do mimic some Britishisms such as chavy 'yeah, but no, but yeah'. However, the characters are more like poor impersonations than true caricatures. And they most certainly are not hilarious.

There is no intelligence, depth, wit, sarcasm or insight into anyone or anything. Instead, sketches rely on repetition of lame catch-phrases and complete gross out humor. Even then, the gross-out is so poorly done when compared to shows such as South-Park or Family Guy in which disgusting scenes are used in context and with intelligence. This show cannot possibly appeal to you unless you have a sense of humor which stopped developing in primary school (or you actually are in primary school).

If you want a proper example of funny and witty caricatures of Britian, check out the Catherine Tate Show. The lewd and crude grandmother character is guaranteed to have you in stitches. For other great Brit comedies, check out the Green Wing, the Office, Black Adder and of course, the legendary Monty Python crew.