British Comedy Guide
Heroes of Comedy titles
Heroes Of Comedy

Heroes Of Comedy (1995)

  • TV documentary
  • Channel 4
  • 1995 - 2003
  • 33 episodes (6 series)

Long-running documentary series looking at some of the greatest and most famous names in British comedy.

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Press clippings

If the names Captain Kremmen, Marcel Wave, Sid Snot and Cupid Stunt mean anything to you, then it's a safe bet that you're familiar with the work of the late Kenny Everett. Jeremy Beadle, Barry Cryer, Barry Took, and Steve Wright celebrate the work of a comedian who was always in the best possible taste.

Richard Vine, The Guardian, 21st January 2011

The actor and writer Eric Sykes, with whom Hattie Jacques had an enduring partnership on television, once described the matronly comic actress as "one of the very best". She was also referred to as the "Mother Superior of the Carry On family". This repeated profile, with contributions from Sykes, Miriam Margolyes and Mo Mowlam, looks back at Jacques's life and career in television and film, and at the sad fact that her talents as a straight actress were often overlooked because, as she lamented, directors only gave her "funny fat lady" parts. A new drama about Jacques's life, Hattie, airs on BBC Four on Wednesday, January 19.

Simon Horsford, The Telegraph, 6th January 2011

Kenny Everett died 15 years ago, which seems an awfully long time to have been without the DJ/comedian who specialised in bad taste, anarchic humour and a biting line in satire. First shown on Channel 4, this affectionate tribute features Barry Cryer, Steve Wright and Barry Took, who celebrate the weird genius of Everett's career on radio and on TV, where his mix of nonsense, rudery and stabs at authority have been missed. The characters he created, such as Sid Snot and Marcel Wave, also defined his humour, although it's telling that this insecure comedian once said about his time on radio, "It's a good place to work if you are not really a jolly person but want to appear to be one."

Simon Horsford, The Telegraph, 6th August 2010

A worthwhile repeat of this episode from Channel 4's 1998 series Heroes of Comedy about Benny Hill, a comic who managed the trick of being popular on both sides of the Atlantic. And he didn't stop there: Hill had fans from China and Russia too. As he once observed of his visual humour: "I can get my face slapped in six languages." This tribute captures the man behind the bawdy "seaside postcard" humour: the shy, humble loner. With clips from his shows and contributions from Bob Monkhouse and Barry Took.

Simon Horsford, The Telegraph, 25th June 2010

With his hangdog expression and fruity Edinburgh burr Alastair Sim created numerous whimsical characters during a career on stage and screen that spanned more than 40 years - perhaps none more memorable than the creepily convincing Miss Fritton, headmistress in the St Trinian's films. This 1997 profile celebrates his achievements and speaks to his widow Naomi Plaskitt (Sim died in 1976), as well as hearing from friends, co-stars and admirers, including George Cole, Stephen Fry, Ian McKellen, Patricia Routledge and Nigel Hawthorne.

Patrick Mulkern, Radio Times, 26th March 2010

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