Mrs Brown's Boys

[kevtherev]

The repeats of Fools and Horses and Porridge etc is still funnier than any of the crap they churn out these days. I really worry about what some people find funny. As in, worry about the intelligence levels in this country.

 

[Grombleton]

Is that an opinion or statement of fact

An opinion, obviously. Fortunately, i realise that my opinion =/= fact.

 

[Gullys Cats]

Mrs Brown's Boys is terribly unfunny. It's comedy for those who need to be told what is funny.

I agree. my dad loves mrs browns boys!, the same sort of people love Roy chubby brown, no imagination needed!, some people love that sort of comedy!, it's not for me but I can see the appeal.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

When The whistle blows
" is he havin a larf "
"he's havin a larf "

Wilko is spot on in comparing Miranda etc. to When The Whistle Blows.

As for the mention of 8 out of 10 Cats above, I'm sorry but that is just complete dog shit as well. That bald bloke with the stupid facial hair who, in the way that Gervais described that gay bloke in Extras as "Just too gay" is "Just too bald" (I mean come on there's bald and there's bald, but that bloke is taking the piss)

 

[downham seagull]

I don't get Miranda but my kids 7-11 absolutely love her, so she is funny but not to adults, should be on earlier for younger viewers, Mrs Browns Boys again bits are good but the wife loves it,

 

[skipper734]

Tv was so crap, Christmas night especially. I invested £3.49 in Blinkbox and watched The Dark Knight Rises and had a good evening.

 

[spring hall convert]

Am I missing something? I watched MBB a couple years ago and though it was one of the worst things I've ever had the misfortune to watch. I don't mind offensive and funny but offensive & crap is a bitter pill to swallow. It's like Father Ted for cretins,

 

[gripper stebson]

Wilko is spot on in comparing Miranda etc. to When The Whistle Blows.

Ricky Gervais Extras - When the Whistle Blows Christmas Special - YouTube

Yep!

 

[brakespear]

Indeed. Groucho and gang have influenced decades-worth of comedians. In their best films, simply untouchable.

I quite agree - but they also had slapstick moments. Are you saying slapstick cannot be influential? Laurel & Hardy? Charlie Chaplin?

 

[Monkey Man]

Never encountered Mrs Brown's Boys before we were forced to watch about five in a row on the coach up to Anfield in last year's FA Cup game. It was horrendous - not just because I'm having to shield my seven-year-old's ears from pisspoor jokes about vibrators, but because everyone else on the coach seemed to find it hysterical.

I like to think my comedy portfolio is pretty broad, but I was stunned by how flat-footed and puerile MBB was/is. If you're going to swear, or be crude, at least do it in a way that is original or vaguely amusing (Peep Show and Sarah Silverman get this kind of thing right, I'd suggest).

When I think about that Sunday, I smile wistfully at our inept performance and hat-trick of own goals. Couldn't bother me less. But the memory of Mrs Brown's Boys still makes me shudder.

 

[Cian]

I'm 23 and all these new wave comedy shows are terrible! Especially mrs brown boys ...f***ing awful

While I also think its awful, its at least as old as you are - its not "new wave" at all and neither is the style of comedy.

Specifically, Mrs Browne started out as a radio show, then a touring theatre show, moved in to being written as far more serious novels (the first two of which were actually decent, somehow), a movie of the first novel (Agnes Browne - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) and only then the TV show. The comedy in it is identical to the radio and theatre ones from the 1980s.

The author/main actor is the son of an MP and a member of MENSA, not sure he was brought up to use cursing as comedy...

 

[piersa]

I don't get it, I don't get Miranda either, both make me cringe at their non funniness.

Thank you for making some sense. Those two are about as funny as Lenny Henry, which is no compliment.

 

[piersa]

Is that an opinion or statement of fact

statement of fact

 

[Worthingite]

My Mrs loves MBB, but I can't for the life of me understand why. She also likes that bollocks that is "His and Hers", which again, I just don't "get". Even she draws the line at Miranda though....

With the exception of Peep Show, there has, IMO, been no original comedy worthy of being up with the likes of OFAH, Porridge, Blackadder,Red Dwarf, Fawlty Towers etc, made in the last 20 years. I understand the appeal of things like Green Wing and The Royle Family, but I personally don't find them amusing. Each to their own.

What galled me the most was the recent reboot of Red Dwarf. It was proper car crash tv

 

[The Sock of Poskett]

I quite agree - but they also had slapstick moments. Are you saying slapstick cannot be influential? Laurel & Hardy? Charlie Chaplin?

No, just that the Marx Brothers' anarchic style was pioneering in many ways - while a bit of slapstick and physical comedy was part of it, their contribution to the development of comedy was vastly broader than that. And sophisticated.

Chaplin and Laurel & Hardy were influential too, yes – though I'm not too sure there's a vast difference between Chaplin being hit in the face with a plank and the likes of Delboy falling through a bar, or Miranda falling in a grave. Slapstick operates at more of a gut level (eg clowning).

 

[Monkey Man]

As a 43-year-old who grew up on comedy - good comedy, bad comedy, traditional comedy, bizarre comedy - I'm sad that my kids are getting nothing like the same education.

Almost all comedies are post-watershed these days and peppered with swearing and sex references. Some do this with more panache than others - at times it's just really lazy writing. (The Thick of It is 99% swearing but does it brilliantly. Fresh Meat has a fraction of the swearing but it strikes me as coarse and unpleasant. Maybe it's an age thing.)

Not many mainstream comedy programmes are suitable for my three primary school aged kids. I'll make honourable exceptions for Father Ted, and most of The IT Crowd, which appeal to the whole family. The kids also really love Outnumbered, though I'm ambivalent.

There was a time when the schedules were full of quality sitcoms and shows that worked on lots of levels - take Porridge, or the best of Only Fools & Horses, Dad's Army, and even shows that were somehow good despite their flaws - Are You Being Served, The Good Life, Rising Damp, etc etc. The whole family could enjoy them. It's sad that this "8.30pm humour" is pretty much extinct now, and Miranda is what we're supposed to accept as a substitute. I fear for the children.

 

[Randsta]

I've known Christmas cracker jokes funnier than Mrs Browns Boys. The jokes are weak and obvious and then desperation prat falls and swearing come out.
The funniest t.v was the triple comedy bill on channel 4 on Christmas Eve.
8 out of 10 cats
Peep Show
Friday night Dinner
Loads of swearing in all three of those but at least they had the decency to be funny.

Never seen Mrs Brown but from the ads it looks BLOODY awful!!! I agree with 2 out of the 3 but Friday Night Dinner! seriously that is awful not a single joke in an episode! am I missing something NOT being Jewish?

 

[Randsta]

Not many mainstream comedy programmes are suitable for my three primary school aged kids. I'll make honourable exceptions for Father Ted, and most of The IT Crowd, which appeal to the whole family. The kids also really love Outnumbered, though I'm ambivalent.

If your family like outnumbered they will love Modern Family it's 100 times better!

 

[Lethargic]

As a 43-year-old who grew up on comedy - good comedy, bad comedy, traditional comedy, bizarre comedy - I'm sad that my kids are getting nothing like the same education.

Almost all comedies are post-watershed these days and peppered with swearing and sex references. Some do this with more panache than others - at times it's just really lazy writing. (The Thick of It is 99% swearing but does it brilliantly. Fresh Meat has a fraction of the swearing but it strikes me as coarse and unpleasant. Maybe it's an age thing.)

Not many mainstream comedy programmes are suitable for my three primary school aged kids. I'll make honourable exceptions for Father Ted, and most of The IT Crowd, which appeal to the whole family. The kids also really love Outnumbered, though I'm ambivalent.

There was a time when the schedules were full of quality sitcoms and shows that worked on lots of levels - take Porridge, or the best of Only Fools & Horses, Dad's Army, and even shows that were somehow good despite their flaws - Are You Being Served, The Good Life, Rising Damp, etc etc. The whole family could enjoy them. It's sad that this "8.30pm humour" is pretty much extinct now, and Miranda is what we're supposed to accept as a substitute. I fear for the children.

Very true.

 

[Surrey_Albion]

Oh is Mrs Browns boys a new programe I turned it on and with the jokes and delivery I thought it was a repeat of an old tv show from the 70's, awful t.v