Following a failed assassination attempt, the Prince Regent hires two actors to tutor him in public speaking.Following a failed assassination attempt, the Prince Regent hires two actors to tutor him in public speaking.Following a failed assassination attempt, the Prince Regent hires two actors to tutor him in public speaking.
- Edmund Blackadder, butler to the Prince
- (as Mr. Rowan Atkinson)
- Baldrick, a dogsbody
- (as Mr. Tony Robinson)
- The Prince Regent, their master
- (as Mr. Hugh Laurie)
- Keanrick, thespian
- (as Mr. Hugh Paddick)
- Mossop, thespian
- (as Mr. Kenneth Connor)
- Mrs. Miggins, a coffee shoppekeeper
- (as Mifs. Helen Atkinson-Wood)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe UK compilation DVD set has the actors superstitious chant as "Hot potato, off his drawers, pluck to make amends. Ow!". Drawers is old english for pants or trousers. This version also looks more likely if you observe the lip sync in the scene.
- GoofsWhen Blackadder and George are at the theatre watching "Julius Caesar", electric lights can clearly be seen along the floor at the front of the stage.
- Quotes
Mossop: ...lest you continue in your quotations and mention the name of the "Scottish Play".
Keanrick: Oh-ho... never fear, I shan't do that.
Blackadder: By the "Scottish Play", I assume you mean *Macbeth*.
Mossop, Keanrick: Aahhhhh. Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends.
[They tweak each others nose]
Blackadder: What was that?
Keanrick: We were exorcising evil spirits. Being but a mere butler, you will not know the great theatre tradition that one does *never* speak the name of the "Scottish Play".
Blackadder: What, *Macbeth*?
Mossop, Keanrick: Aahhhhh. Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends.
[They tweak each others nose]
Blackadder: Good lord, you mean you have to do *that* every time I say *Macbeth*?
Mossop, Keanrick: Aahhhhh. Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends.
[They tweak each others nose]
Mossop: Will you please stop saying *that*. Always call it the "Scottish Play".
Blackadder: So you want me to say the "Scottish Play"?
Mossop, Keanrick: [shout] Yes.
Blackadder: Rather than *Macbeth*?
Mossop, Keanrick: Aahhhhh. Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends.
[They tweak each others nose]
Prince George: For heaven's sake, what is all this hullabaloo, all this shouting and screaming and yelling blue murder? Why... it's like that play we saw the other day, what was it called... umm...
Blackadder: *Macbeth*, sir?
Mossop, Keanrick: Aahhhhh. Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends.
[They are bowing toward the Prince, and must tweak their own noses]
Prince George: No, no, it was called Julius Caesar.
Blackadder: Ah, yes, of course. Julius Caesar... not *Macbeth*.
Mossop, Keanrick: Aahhhhh. Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends.
[They tweak each others nose]
- ConnectionsFeatured in Wogan: Wogan with Sue Lawley (1988)
This is strong episode with great performances from main and guest stars and great satire of the economic divide.
The plot is a funny piece of economic satire showing the tensions between bourgeois and proletariat through a theatre scene where George is confronted by an anarchist and his resulting paranoia. This works well following on from Nob and Nobility which was centred around the French Revolution and its treatment of the aristocracy. It also lampoons theatre actors through the persona of the two guest characters and their superstition. As always Blackadder is hilariously cynical and hostile to everything and everyone throughout it all.
All the dialogue is sharp as ever and one running joke that gets constantly repeated never seems to get tiresome. In fact it keeps getting funnier every time Blackadder says it.
The main cast are excellent as ever, but this one features a very funny double act by Kenneth Connor and Hugh Paddick as the aforementioned thespians.
For me it is an 8.5/10 but I like to round upwards.
- snoozejonc
- Feb 1, 2021
Details
- Runtime27 minutes
- Color