Britain's contribution to the comedy of the seventies wore a tanktop pullover (now that IS funny). Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em was childish, with plots you could drive a bus through, but with spectacular stuntwork. The series was rescued by the enormous talent of its star, a certain Michael Crawford. That he could appear in one of the BBC's highest rated comedies as a complete halfwit AND be taken seriously as The Phantom of the Opera is a tribute to his ability. Again Mothers is still being re-run round the world.
Last of the Summer Wine is one of the longest-lived comedy series of all time - the gentle comedy based on the northern characters of writer Roy Clarke features some of the finest actors of a generation (albeit the older generation). Peter Sallis and the late Bill Owen made up two thirds of the trio of old codgers with a talent to amuse - the 'third man' was played by Michael Bates, Brian Wilde, Michael Aldridge and Frank Thornton. It also made a star of Holmfirth, a Yorkshire town nestling in the beautiful Dales.
The Goodies, featuring the curiously British and anarchic trio of Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie ran throughout most of the seventies (see an earlier article on this page of Suite 101 at http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/broa... ). The three men were also responsible as writers, performers, producers (or sometimes all three) for much TV comedy in the UK through the sixties, seventies and into the eighties.
But, as in America, there were series from the UK that it's probably kinder to leave unmentioned. Oh alright, a dishonourable mention for Beryl's Lot, Get Some In, Moody and Pegg and a host of other unlikely series.
And there's more
And, the seventies brought untold riches in technological advances - stereo TV, lighter, portable video recorders; lighter, portable cameras, satellite links at the beginning of the decade and pictures of the news from the other side of the world took hours to arrive. By the end, cheap satellite links meant we could watch events unfold as they happened.
But, more is not necessarily better as we found in the eighties. And that's the subject of our final Suite101 trip down memory lane.
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