Did you know that Ivar from Enslaved is a big fan of British comedy? Well you do now! Of course, some programmes and movies are funnier than others so Ivar has given us his ten favourite funny bone ticklers from the world of Britcom…
1. Dr Watson in The Strange Case Of The End Of Civilization As We Know It
“In the absolutely underrated John Cleese movie The Strange Case Of The End Of Civilization As We Know It – where John Cleese is Sherlock Holmes – he has the dimmest Dr. Watson you can imagine. At one point the crook Moriarty has disguised himself as an exact copy of Dr. Watson.
“To reveal the imposter, Sherlock (John Cleese) tells this joke: “Why did the Irish get the potatoes and the Arabs all the oil?” After much ado from two dim Dr. Watsons he reveals that it because “The Irish got the first pick”. Moriarty reveals himself by laughing out loud, while the real Dr. Watson is of course so dim that his response is, instead of laughing; “What’s all this talk about Ireland? What happened to good old England?” This is possibly the best scene ever to have been caught on film.”
2. General Melchett’s German Land
“When Blackadder is presented with the land taken from the Germans. It is a tiny, tiny square of soil with some grass on it; and when Blackadder asks General Melchett about the scale – it is of course, 1:1. There is just so much Enslaved about that scene.”
3. The Mafia In Python
“Okay then, it’s Monty Python time. My favourite is the two Sicilian mobsters trying to intimidate the army colonel into paying protection money. ‘Nice army you got here, colonel. Too bad if anything happened to it’. The minion mobster accidentally pushes a little model tank off the table and the leader goes ‘too bad if anything happened to it’. The colonel is absolutely confused. The idea of two guys in pinstripe suits blackmailing an entire army division is great.”
4. Mr Hitler In Python
“Another Monty Python favourite is when Adolf Hitler is incognito at the retirement home posing as ‘Mr. Hilter’. He is trying to be discreet about plotting over the map of Poland, and does his speeches from his room’s balcony with people just passing by without reacting.”
5. Omid Djalili’s Osama Sketch
“I love Omid Djalili! Everything he does is great, and his Godzilla impersonations are great. But my favourite is the flamboyant Scottish film director hiding Osama Bin Laden in Glasgow and giving him a sexy makeover at the end. I also think Omid Djalili is the one that has pinpointed the hilarity of Middle Eastern tantrums in the best way possible. Religious rage is funny as shit.”
6. Basil Fawlty Vs His Car
“Fawlty Towers is of course brilliant, and my favourite parts are of course when Basil loses it completely. There’s however one particular breakdown that’s above the others; and that’s when his car breaks down in the episode with O’Leary and his men. He runs away from the dead little car, out of the frame, and comes running back in with a measly tree branch which he uses to not inflict any damage on the car whatsoever. I love how real Basil’s madness is, and I’ve read that John Cleese used a lot of his own mental instability of that time in this character. In being part of the management team for our band, this is how I feel when things are a struggle – which is every time we try to do anything, basically.”
7. Welease Wodewick
“You can’t go around talking about British comedy without Life Of Brian. My favourite is Pontius Pilate and his inability to pronounce the r’s. ‘Welease Wodewick!’ is good but when he tests his guards by mentioning his good friend Biggus Dickus and Incontinentia Buttocks I think they pretty much nailed it for all eternity.”
8. David Brent Simply The Best
“Of newer British comedy, Ricky Gervais is one of the really big ones. When I first saw The Office I experienced pain, real pain, from the pure embarrassment. It is so incredibly embarrassing and horrible because these people exist. Even in metal. I won’t start any wars by mentioning names, but these morons that insist on sharing their wisdom without having any are very valuable as they help us explore that edge where things are great and entertaining on the one side and horrible and painful on the other.
“My favourite scene is when David Brent gives the motivational seminar with Simply The Best on the stereo upon his entrance with a resulting absolute lack of any response from the crowd what so ever.”
9. Rhod Gilbert’s Train Rage
“My favourite stand-up comedian from the British Isles is Rhod Gilbert. I like how worked-up he is because it reminds me of two of my favourite people in the world; my manager and Grutle, our singer – they don’t get annoyed; they get furious. When he talks about the travelling chef on the train and how he won’t sell him the last sandwich, it is pure rage poetry.”
10. Peter Sellers’ Inflatable Parrot
“The last spot in this gallery of favourites would have to be given to Peter Sellers, but it is hard to pick a single moment. If I have to, I’ll to go with the inflatable parrot on his shoulder as a pirate in The Revenge Of The Pink Panther. It doesn’t make any sense, it is just great fun – much like life itself!”
