I haven't had the chance to see that much UK TV recently, so are there any shows (preferably those available on DVD) that people would recommend?
The best sitcoms of the past 5 years?
Toast Of London is my nomination.
https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/toast_of_london/
As with pretty much everything, the quality can vary between episodes, but I've always found something to enjoy and laugh at. I very very rarely buy TV comedy DVDs, but I think I might need to get this one.
It's pretty silly, so check out some clips first.
Hi Nick,
My recommendations (they all get good reviews, most have won awards):
Car Share (Peter Kay)
Chewing Gum (Different)
People Just Do Nothing (Chabuddy G)
Flowers (Dark)
Mum (Subtle)
So what (English speaking) Japanese Comedians are good ?
I second Toast of London, plus Fleabag.
Roger and Val Have Just Got In.
Why five years?
+Peep Show, old Cuckoo, recent Red Dwarf
Quote: Firkin @ 21st July 2017, 2:47 PMHi Nick,
My recommendations (they all get good reviews, most have won awards):
Car Share (Peter Kay)
Chewing Gum (Different)
People Just Do Nothing (Chabuddy G)
Flowers (Dark)
Mum (Subtle)So what (English speaking) Japanese Comedians are good ?
Thanks for the tips. I was planning to check out Car Share, but the others are new to me.
English speaking Japanese comedians? Very few Japanese people can speak English and I think Yuriko Kotani is one of the only English speaking comedians working right now.
Quote: Paul Wimsett @ 21st July 2017, 5:02 PMRoger and Val Have Just Got In.
Why five years?
Simply because over the past 5 years I have missed so much TV. When I heard about things like Catastrophe and Drifters recently, I was embarrassed to find that they have been going for years...
You could do much worse than looking over the results of our awards, Nick.
There are very few actual sitcoms in the posts above though. Of all that lot I've seen only Toast of London could be classed as a true sitcom. This thread sums up all that is very wrong with contemporary 'sitcoms' - most just aren't bloody sitcoms! Is it too much to ask writers to find out what a sitcom is before they start off writing their drifty lightly humorous mini soaps and send them to producers for instant commissioning?
And what really p*sses me off is the commissioners and/or prods just allowing this great flood of non sitcoms to pour in and saturate the genre and ostensibly radically redefine what a 30 min primetime sitcom is, ffs! Soon some younger people are going to stumble across an old repeat of OFAH or Rising Damp and say 'hmm, that was really funny, what was that? It's not a sitcom cos I've watched all the new sitcoms for the last ten years and not one of them has been that funny or snappy. I wonder what they called that type of show?' 
Effing makes me want to smash my TV in and eat the broken glass. Broadcasters - stop giving us light soaps for sitcoms, effing sort it out you overpaid morons! 
Steam. A sitcom is a f***ing sitcom! It's a very well defined form with hundreds of great examples to learn from in the archives. Start making them again please, useless tw*ts.
Father Ted is a sitcom, therefore Count Arthur Strong is a sitcom. Have you thought of getting a hobby, Kips?
I have a very rewarding hobby thank you annoying people on the interweb. No, I meant the ones from the list above, not all current sitcoms, a few proper sitcoms still being made like CAS yes.