Blackadder Goes Forth 

Stuck in the middle of World War I, Captain Edmund Blackadder does his best to escape the banality of the war.

Stars:

Rowan Atkinson, Tony Robinson, Stephen Fry

Top Rated TV #60 | 3 wins.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Rowan Atkinson	...	Captain Edmund Blackadder 6 episodes, 1989
Tony Robinson	...	Private S Baldrick 6 episodes, 1989
Stephen Fry	...	General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett 6 episodes, 1989
Hugh Laurie	...	Lieutenant The Honourable George Colthurst St. Barleigh 6 episodes, 1989
Tim McInnerny	...	Captain Kevin Darling 6 episodes, 1989

Storyline

It is 1917, and lunatic General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett is leading the British troops at the front lines against the Germans, while everyone waits for Field Marshall Haig's big push. There are various emotions throughout the camp about it. For Captain Kevin Darling, Melchett's bull-dog-like right-hand man, it makes no difference, as it appears he will be safe and sound with the general when the big push occurs. For Lieutenant George Colhurst Saint Barleigh, he is overly excited at thrashing the Germans. For Private S. (probably for Sod-Off) Baldrick, it's a terrifying experience he is not looking forward to. For Captain Edmund Blackadder, however, it's something he's too cowardly too face. Self-centered, arrogant, and sarcastic, Blackadder is always constantly searching for a way out of this silly war, and will try various, often crazy, variations on escape, all of which will take a turn he never expected. Sharing a dugout with George and Baldrick, his main obstacle for ...

---

Plot Keywords:

world war one | 20th century | british comedy | 1910s | british soldier | 

---

Genres:

Comedy | War

---

Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

BBC [UK]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 September 1989 (UK)

Also Known As:

Blackadder

Filming Locations:

Colchester Garrison, Colchester, Essex, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

175 min 30 min (6 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

During rehearsals, the script was exhaustively discussed and redrafted by the cast, with Richard Curtis having the final say on the content. Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie and Rowan Atkinson were comic writers/actors themselves, and having worked together on previous Blackadder series were not afraid to question the script and make suggestions. However, this caused tensions to arise between the writers and the cast; in interviews Ben Elton felt that they had allowed the cast to question every aspect of the script, while Tony Robinson claims "the writers felt we were unilaterally altering the script for the worse; by the end, they felt we had run away with it." The ill-feeling between the writers and actors, coupled with the draining scripting and rehearsals led to everyone deciding not to make more Blackadder shows.

---

Goofs

Captain Darling is supposed to have the same rank as Blackadder, but wears a uniform with red lapels and a red band on his cap, which would make him at least a major.

---

Quotes

[repeated line]
Private Baldrick: I have a cunning plan.

---

Crazy Credits

The titles of the first five episodes are puns, pairing a military rank with a word summing up the episode's theme. The final episode, "Goodbyeee", was the title of a period song

---

Connections

Featured in The 100 Greatest TV Moments (1999)

---

Soundtracks

British Grenadier
(uncredited)
Traditional
(incorporated in the theme)

User Reviews

-

My favorite of the Blackadder series (I love 'em all!). A very funny series about a rather grim subject. Rowan Atkinson, better known in the States for his Mr. Bean character, shows here (as in his other Blackadder incarnations) that he's as good at verbal comedy as he is at physical comedy. This series is funny all the way up to its somewhat surprising ending. Also, very illuminating to me as an American regarding the British slant on the war to end all wars...