A Bit of Fry and Laurie
From Free net encyclopedia
Image:A Bit Of Fry And Laurie Title.jpg
A Bit of Fry and Laurie was a British television series starring Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, broadcast by the BBC between 1989 and 1995. Running for four series, it totalled 26 episodes (including a 35 minute special in 1987).
The programme was a sketch show cast in a rather eccentric and at times high-brow mould. Elaborate wordplay and innuendo formed a large cornerstone of its charm - some sketches consciously threatened to cross the line into vulgarity, but always finished just before reaching that point.
It was actually a very progressive show, playing with the audience's expectations. It frequently broke the fourth wall, characters would revert into their real-life actors mid-sketch, and the camera would often pan off set into the studio. In addition, the show was punctuated with non-sequitur vox-pops often making irrelevant statements, heavily based on word-play.
Contents |
Pilot
Image:A Bit Of Fry And Laurie Police.jpg The 36-minute pilot was broadcast on BBC2 on Boxing Day 1987 - it was later edited down to 29 minutes for repeat transmissions (including broadcasts on the Paramount Comedy Channel), although the full version is intact on the DVD.
Note: The date of the pilot is often listed incorrectly as 26/12/86. It was definitely 1987.
Soupy Twist
The catchphrase 'Soupy Twist' was uttered by Fry at the end of each episode of series 3 and 4, and is believed to be a phrase from the language Strom, likely meaning 'cheers', invented by Fry and first used on his BBC Radio 4 series Saturday Night Fry. Strom consists of nonsensical single-syllable words often meaning different things in the same sentence, even shorter words that can only be expressed over a full sentence in English and vulgar faux amis.
Recurring characters
Image:A Bit Of Fry And Laurie John and Peter.jpg Though the programme was mostly made up of one-time situations and sketches, a few characters appeared over several episodes and series.
Alan
Alan (Laurie) is hired as a secret agent by a mysterious organisation known only as 'The Department', before which he was a gun-runner, supply teacher and Home Secretary. The character is a parody of several television shows of the 1970s, most prominently The Professionals.
Control and Tony
Control (Fry) and Tony (Laurie) are two overly nice secret agents who first appear in Series 1 of the show. Control is head of MI5, the British secret service. Tony is Subsection Chief of the East Germany and Related Satellites Desk, who brings Control his morning coffee. The show follows their slow, unlikely, and almost sickeningly pleasant interchanges about anything other than concerning national security.
John and Peter
John (Fry) and Peter (Laurie) are hard-driving, hard-drinking executives, with a different business in each episode, ranging from a health club to the Diocese of Uttoxeter (John as Bishop, Peter as Executive Vice-Bishop). The characters are a parody of high-powered American businessmen of the time, with their loud catchphrase 'Damn!' or 'Damnit John!'. Their plans are usually derailed by the casual interference of the diabolical Marjorie, John's ex-wife.
Gelliant Gutfright
Gelliant (Fry) is the host of short-horror program The Seventh Dimension, who presents stories such as 'Flowers For Wendy' and 'The Red Hat of Patferrick'. He is depicted as an older gentleman who takes great joy in using elaborate wordplay and double negatives whilst sat in his improbably large burgundy leather chair. The stories told were often in the style of The Twilight Zone.
Mr. Dalliard
Mr. Dalliard is a non-appearing character in various sketches, all taking place in a shop environment. Though Dalliard never appears, and is inferred to be a creation of Fry's character's imagination, he is referred and spoken to several times in every sketch.
Episode guide
- Pilot : 26 December 1987 (36 minutes)
- Series One : 13 January 1989 - 17 February 1989 (Six episodes)
- Series Two : 9 March 1990 - 13 April 1990 (Six episodes)
- Series Three : 9 January 1992 - 13 February 1992 (Six episodes)
- Series Four : 12 February 1995 - 2 April 1995 (Seven episodes)
DVD release
After much fan-driven petition, the first series of A Bit of Fry and Laurie, plus the pilot, was released on DVD on 3 April 2006 in Region 2. Series two is due to be released on June 19.