The Young Ones 

The crazy and sometimes surreal comedic adventures of four very different students in Thatcher's Britain.

Stars:

Rik Mayall, Adrian Edmondson, Nigel Planer

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Adrian Edmondson	...	Vyvyan / ... 12 episodes, 1982-1984
Rik Mayall	...	Rick / ... 12 episodes, 1982-1984
Nigel Planer	...	Neil / ... 12 episodes, 1982-1984
Christopher Ryan	...	Mike / ... 12 episodes, 1982-1984
Alexei Sayle	...	the Balowski Family / ... 12 episodes, 1982-1984
Mark Arden	...	Boy in Comic Strip / ... 7 episodes, 1982-1984
Stephen Frost	...	Bank Vault Manager / ... 7 episodes, 1982-1984
Ben Elton	...	Baz / ... 5 episodes, 1982-1984

Storyline

Vyvyan (Adrian Edmondson), Rick (Rik Myall), Mike (Christopher Ryan), and Neil (Nigel Planer) are four college students who share a house in North London: Vyvyan is a violent punk who smashes everything to pieces, Rick is a political fan of Cliff Richard, Mike is the serious and bossy cool person, and Neil is the depressed hippie who does most of the cooking and cleaning in the house, and his only desire is to commit suicide. Vyvyan, Rick, Mike, and Neil pay their rent to their Russian landlord Jerzy Balowski (Alexei Sayle) and his various family members. The world of this show is surreal, hilarious, and violent as the show also interacts with other characters, and featured live performances from bands.

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Plot Keywords:

surreal | british humour | narcissist | written by star | 1980s | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Many then-current and future BBC comedy stars made appearances on this program. Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders (French and Saunders (1987), Absolutely Fabulous (1992)), Hugh Laurie (most recently of House (2004)), Dame Emma Thompson (dramatic and comedic actress), Stephen Fry (intellectual and comedian), Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones (of Alas Smith & Jones (1984)), Robbie Coltrane (of the Harry Potter film franchise), Lenny Henry (comedian), Ben Elton (playwright and comedian), and countless others.

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Alternate Versions

The original episodes when first broadcast were 35 minutes long. Some repeat showings were edited versions running 30 minutes long, abridging various bits of material from each one.

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Connections

Featured in British Sitcom: 60 Years of Laughing at Ourselves (2016)

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Soundtracks

The Young Ones
(theme)
Written by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett
Sung by the cast

User Reviews

Would've loved it if not for Alexi Sale and a few parts that just aren't funny.

This show is pretty much the height of stupid British humor. I struggle to think of one show that was more brainless, more violent and more "wrong" than The Young Ones and I still can't think of any.

This show is about 4 students who could not be more different that live in the same house together. This might sound a bit boring but make the characters a violent punk (Adrian Edmondson), a poet/political rights activist (Rik Mayall), a hippie (Nigel Planner) and the stereotypical "cool guy" (Christopher Ryan) and you've got a combo that is lethal to anyone who stands in its way.

Although while this show does deliver in the laughs department it has its problems. The worst one is Alexi Sale. Maybe its the view of a foreigner, maybe its the view of someone who wasn't alive at the time but Alexi Sale has never so much as raised a smile from me in relation to this show. Episodes that he is in for more than half, I give at the very best 4/10. Then again there are also sequences that just aren't funny. This show did provide plenty of laughs along the way. The best example I can think of is the entire episode "Bambi" which is my favored.

Overall this is a good show for those who are Adrian Edmondson/Rik Mayall completionists and people who want a laugh, in spite of its small errors.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 March 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Young Ones

Filming Locations:

Bristol North Swimming Baths, Gloucester Road, Bristol, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

410 min 35 min (12 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1