TV Comedy
Television comedy had a presence from the earliest days of broadcasting. The situation comedy, or sitcom, has been the most common, successful and culturally significant type of television comedy. As the name suggests, these programs feature recurring characters placed in humourous situations. Since the early 1950s with "I Love Lucy" in the US and "Hancock's Half Hour" in Britain, sitcoms have always had a special place in the hearts of viewers and gathered highly devoted followers, as the familar characters often become beloved. Below you may scroll though time to your fondly remembered telly programs. For Alice's motherlode of Television, stay with "Television Shows".
Pictured: Ricky Gervais as The Brentster in the BBC's brilliant 'The Office'.
You Bet Your Life! - The Best Episodes (1958)
Starring: Candice Bergen, Phyllis Diller, George Fenneman, Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx, Johnn...
Groucho Marx hosted this classic 1950s game show where he had free reign to say and do pretty much whatever he liked - with hilarious results. Collect... Read more
Moonlighting: The Pilot (1985)
7.6/10
Director: Robert Butler
Starring: Cybill Shepherd, Bruce Willis, Allyce Beasley
Former model Maddie Hayes (Cybill Shepherd) sets out to liquidate what little she has left after her embezzling business manager robs her of everythin... Read more
Ronnie Barker: The Best of (1971)
8.4/10
Director: Terry Hughes
Starring: Ronnie Barker
The sketches and scenes included on this DVD were selected by Ronnie himself as representations of some of his best work. From the Two Ronnies we are... Read more
Keeping Up Appearances: Christmas Specials (2005)
7.8/10
Director: Harold Snoad
Starring: Patricia Routledge, Clive Swift, Josephine Tewson, Judy Cornwell, Geoffrey Hughe...
Hyacinth Bucket is at her snobby best in these 4 Christmas Specials. 1991: Hyacinth gets poor Richard into a Father Christmas outfit, then has to conf... Read more
Hi-De-Hi!: Series 1 and 2 (1980)
6.7/10
Director: John Kilby
Starring: Paul Shane, Ruth Madoc, Su Pollard, Simon Cadell, Jeffrey Holland
Hi-de-hi all! It's the summer of 1959 and gang is in for a big surprise when Jeffrey Fairbrother (Simon Cadell) becomes head of entertainment at Mapli... Read more
Absolute Power: Series 1 (2003)
8.2/10
Starring: Stephen Fry, John Bird, James Lance, Zoe Telford, Sally Bretton
Set amidst the murky world of Public Relations, this BBC series was adapted from a popular radio show and stars Stephen Fry and John Bird as Prentiss... Read more
Hancock's Half Hour: Volume 2 (1959)
8.6/10
Starring: Tony Hancock, Sid James, Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Williams
The yardstick against which all subsequent British sitcoms have been measured, many failing to measure up. The brilliant Tony Hancock translated his... Read more
The Killian Curse (2005)
7.8/10
This tongue-in-cheek horror series, with creatures created by the WETA workshop, tells the 21 stories of 21 students from Room 21, each of whom must f... Read more
Much Ado About Nothing - Shakespeare Retold (2005)
Director: Brian Percival
Starring: Sarah Parish, Damian Lewis, Tom Ellis, Billie Piper, Martin Jarvis, Olivia Colma...
Set in the contemporary world of broadcasting, Beatrice (Sarah Parish) is an ambitious anchor who finds herself back working with detested 'old flame'... Read more
Pushing Daisies: Season 1 (2007)
8.4/10
Starring: Lee Pace, Anna Friel, Chi McBride, Jim Dale, Ellen Greene, Swoosie Kurtz, Kristi...
Meet Ned, a lonely pie maker whose touch can reanimate the dead, but there's a hitch. If Ned touches the person again, the miracle is reversed. If he... Read more