British Humour And American Humor

[The Dude]

In the same vein of our American accents and British and American words threads.

 

I was reading some stuff about the difference between British and American humor. Inevitably it always devolved into a war of which was better. I hope that we can stay above that here. Because it's my belief that which humor is funny or good really depends where you're standing geographically as well as in life. By that I mean that Brits will find things humorous in British humor that Americans won't, merely because it doesn't speak to us like it does them. Humor has to have at least a little bit of truth to it in order for people to find it humorous. If you have no frame of reference then of course you won't find it funny. It doesn't mean you're too dimwitted to "get it", you just haven't had the same experiences as those who do find it funny.

 

I submit this for example:

 

I just included the link instead of embedding it because the language is pretty rough and I didn't think that the mods would appreciate that kind of thing being posted here.

 

But in this clip he talks about love and marriage and relationships. Watch this clip. Now if you've read my "I've Been Holding It In" thread you would know that I can completely relate to everything Chris says here and it totally speaks to me. So I of course think this is hysterical. Those of you who haven't been married and/or have never been in love may not find this funny at all. It has less to do with being American or British and more to do with your stage in life. That's not to say that if a British comedian were to perform the same exact type of bit that he wouldn't do it in a completely different, more British, manner.

 

So what's your thoughts on the British and American humor thing?

[Monkey Cartwheels]

Personally, I prefer British to American. The Brits are very cleaver at coming up with the stupidest and funniest things, for example: Monty Python and Little Britain.

A lot of the American stuff I find to be utter rubbish, shows like The Office and 30 Rock etc. I think its rubbish. But I do like American comedy movies. And people like Robin Williams and Adam Sandlers are awesome!

 

For stand up and random movies I would say British, for full length movies, I would say Americans

[flying kiwi]

^^Well although I agree the American Office is rubbish, it is based on a British comedy....'the office' The British Office is similar to the American Office in that people either get it or they don't and some people love it, others just don't get it. I think one of the problems with things like the American Office isn't the humour, but just the fact that American TV assume they can do better then the originals, why can't they just show the British versions of things. Apparently they're making an American Misfits, I can't imagine it being anywhere near as good as the British version, simply because it is a very British program and it wouldn't work being Americanised.

 

 

Back on topic though, I personal prefer British humour, as I have it. Although I do think Americans do come up with some great comedies either films or series. Stand ups I prefer British but that is probably because like Dude said, I can relate to what they're saying more. I do love David Spade though and Rich Hall....although he lives here too and the main part of his act is ''being American'' so it actually probably wouldn't translate as well in America as it does here... or maybe it does I don't know

[Danielle]

Being British myself it's easy for me to say this and come across as biased but I honestly don't think that anybody does humour or comedy as well as the British, I think it stems from our natural knack to be able to joke about almost any situation, to keep spirits up when the chips are down, to laugh in the face of adversity, it's this always keep your chin up attitude which helped people cope and get through the two World Wars.

 

You need to see Monty Python, the "Always look on the Bright Side of Life" in the Life of Brian is a great example and so typical of British humour

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlBiLNN1NhQ

 

I think Joe makes a good point as well, we always seem to be able to laugh about the silliest of things that a lot of other people just wouldn't find funny.

 

I am always watching British comedy, I can't get enough of it and there are some absolutely brilliant stand up comedians around at the moment, I have to admit though that when I see American stand up, I just don't find it funny at all, perhaps it is simply because like you said - it just doesn't speak to me.

 

I do though think that there are some great comedy actors in America though and I have enjoyed a lot of the comedy movies that have come out over the past few years.

[Imagine]

^^Well although I agree the American Office is rubbish, it is based on a British comedy....'the office' The British Office is similar to the American Office in that people either get it or they don't and some people love it, others just don't get it. I think one of the problems with things like the American Office isn't the humour, but just the fact that American TV assume they can do better then the originals, why can't they just show the British versions of things. Apparently they're making an American Misfits, I can't imagine it being anywhere near as good as the British version, simply because it is a very British program and it wouldn't work being Americanised.

 

 

Back on topic though, I personal prefer British humour, as I have it. Although I do think Americans do come up with some great comedies either films or series. Stand ups I prefer British but that is probably because like Dude said, I can relate to what they're saying more. I do love David Spade though and Rich Hall....although he lives here too and the main part of his act is ''being American'' so it actually probably wouldn't translate as well in America as it does here... or maybe it does I don't know

 

well yeah i completely agree. I think i heard somewhere that Ricky Gervais wanted to play the UK version over in the US, but the tested audience didn't find it funny or didnt get the humour so he had to make a US version. Just like Shameless is being remade and skins in the US.

 

^Rich Hall is amazing lol. not keen on david spade on his own, but when he is in a film or tv show i love him.

 

Being British myself it's easy for me to say this and come across as biased but I honestly don't think that anybody does humour or comedy as well as the British, I think it stems from our natural knack to be able to joke about almost any situation, to keep spirits up when the chips are down, to laugh in the face of adversity, it's this always keep your chin up attitude which helped people cope and get through the two World Wars.

 

You need to see Monty Python, the "Always look on the Bright Side of Life" in the Life of Brian is a great example and so typical of British humour

 

I think Joe makes a good point as well, we always seem to be able to laugh about the silliest of things that a lot of other people just wouldn't find funny.

 

I am always watching British comedy, I can't get enough of it and there are some absolutely brilliant stand up comedians around at the moment, I have to admit though that when I see American stand up, I just don't find it funny at all, perhaps it is simply because like you said - it just doesn't speak to me.

 

I do though think that there are some great comedy actors in America though and I have enjoyed a lot of the comedy movies that have come out over the past few years.

 

Oh my gosh monty python is my whole life lol i love all the films.

 

 

^"Shes a witch" scene just kills me everytime i see it, this is truly British humour.

 

I think British humour is just random, i think we can turn something small and everyday like into something really strange but yet so funny. For example, the green wing, the show turned a hosptial setting into a unprofessional yet so funny place

 

 

It wont let me post this embedded but here is another that is just funny

[The Dude]

Any Americans have any thoughts on this?

[yorkshire]

Stand up wise, I prefer Brits. But I do prefer American comedy movies, especially any with the Frat Pack in. Anchorman is just brilliant.

[Danielle]

Oh my gosh monty python is my whole life lol i love all the films.

 

^"Shes a witch" scene just kills me everytime i see it, this is truly British humour.

It's brilliant, I think that if Americans (or anyone else for that matter) want to learn or understand British humour then they definitely need to check out the Monty Python movies and also shows like Blackadder before moving onto British stand up..

 

It's typical of the British to come up with something so ridiculously stupid as the 'Knights who say Ni' and turn it into comedy gold..

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTQfGd3G6dg

 

A scene from Blackadder (featuring one Hugh Lawrie)

 

[The Dude]

I enjoy Monty Python. Holy Grail is my favorite. I also enjoyed the Flying Circus show. I liked Hot Fuzz okay, it was better than Shawn of the Dead as far as I'm concerned.

 

I have a friend who has the U.K. Office on DVD. I couldn't hardly understand a word they were saying. There was a lot of mumbling under their breath going on. We put on the subtitles which helped but then it wasn't really funny because it was a reading assignment rather than something to enjoy. So I think that has a lot to do with why Americans didn't "get" the U.K. version of The Office. And it's not that we think that we can do a better version it's just that if the networks are going to put something on the air they want people to be able to understand what is being said.

 

I'm not all that familiar with British stand up comedy. What I've seen I don't really care for. I think stand up tends to be even more cultural than movies. Comedians make commentaries on our society and that's what makes it funny. So it's like I said before it becomes a thing of them making jokes about things you understand and can relate to. And what one side of the Atlantic can relate to the other can't and vice versa.

 

The British stand up I've seen seems to be jokey and the comedians laugh at their own material. Now you'll see some American comedians crack themselves up sometimes, usually when they screw up a joke or something, but for the most part in America you're its considered poor taste if you laugh at your own jokes.

 

But a lot of it still comes down to what you relate to. A joke about the British royalty might get a huge laugh in England but blank stares in the US. And the same can be said in reverse with a joke about an American Football team.

[flying kiwi]

^^I've not seen the office for a while so can't comment on the way they speak to be honest. But not all British shows are like that, the one I mentioned before misfits, I honestly don't see why Americans wouldn't understand what they're saying. There's a couple of terms which may be used which aren't really used in America, there's a bit about things like chav culture as well. But I don't think that's enough to say it cannot be understood. We watch plenty of American shows which have certain things we don't use or understand here, even in some episodes of friends they make jokes which don't translate over here and yet it was still a popular show because we get past those and enjoy the rest which we can understand.

 

Fair enough, a show which you can't enjoy the majority of cannot be enjoyed. But something with just a couple of cultural differences can be if your open minded enough.

 

I have watched plenty of things where characters have very strong accents and I have got on fine, sometimes struggling but not that much.

 

It depends how your looking at it, if you honestly can't understand something then like I said fair enough, but unless there is a lot of mumbling ect. I don't think different ways of saying a few things or a strong accent makes something un-watch able.

 

I'm not saying you are like this at all, but my friend does spring to mind at this point. She won't watch anything Scottish, she hates Frankie Boyle (she says he's too crude but she likes other comedians who are just as bad as him) but she has also has admitted she can't stand his accent. She refuses to watch Balamory (she does have a child I don't just walk around trying to get people to watch kids shows ) and when watching TV and someone with a slight Scottish accent comes on she moans and says she can't understand them. If you ask her about it she is adamant she doesn't understand them, but she doesn't even try.

[Danielle]

Personally I was never much for The Office, I tried to get into it but I just didn't see the point of it at all, but then I don't like Ricky Gervais, I don't find him funny and he often comes across as boring and miserable, that's just not comedy for me and the less said about his stand up the better but he must be doing something right as The Office is one of the greatest comedies of all time. I though Extra's was ok though.

 

As for stand up there are some brilliant stand up comedians around at the moment. Frankie Boyle is absolutely brilliant but I would advise against watching him if you are easily offended as he really doesn't hold back at all, Al Murray's Pub Landlord character is really good for being British versus everybody else, he plays on stereotypes brilliantly, although i'm not much for anything else he has done. Other stand up comedians I really like are Rob Brydon, Lee Evans, Bill Baily, Rhod Gilbert & Peter Kay.

 

Another form of comedy which I love is panel shows and I have been wondering if these are popular in America too? A panel show is where a number of guest comedians alongside regulars take part in a quiz like game about current affairs, music or anything really, two of my favourite are Have I Got News For You and QI....

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-JKTHmwNkw

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbZ0mWplklU

[lavieenrose]

I think Jeff Dunham's comedy is pretty American. I find him hilarious, as do most Americans... he's very popular here. But he I guess he might also be a little insulting.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uwOL4rB-go

*Warning, some swears...

 

As for which I prefer, *shrugs* I haven't seen enough British comedy to make a proper judgement.

Edited December 5, 2010 by lavieenrose

[The Dude]

kiwi,

 

I'm not really talking about not getting cultural references. I was talking about not being able to understand what was being said. Some of the characters on that show might as well have been speaking Swahili as far as that's concerned. Like I said, I do enjoy some British comedy. Monty Python's flying circus was great.

 

And I thought the pilot episode of The Office (which was the exact same script as the British pilot episode) was funny. But that's not really a cultural thing unless you're talking about corporate culture. Because cubical comedy has been around here for quite some time with Dilbert and the 1999 movie Office Space.

 

Talk about cultural differences just look at the movie Coming to American with Eddie Murphy. I read an article written by a white guy about this movie. He said he always found it funny but noticed that when he watched it with black people they would laugh in areas he never laughed at or understood why it was funny. The author of the article's best friend was black so he asked him to explain it to him and his friend told him that Coming to America is one of the blackest movies ever. He explained the cultural differences to his friend and why black people found these other scenes so humorous.

 

Just out of curiosity, what jokes from Friends do not translate?

 

As far as stand up goes, Jeff Dunham is okay but not one of my favorites. I enjoy a wide variety of stand up. I like Daniel Tosh, Jeff Foxworthy, Chris Rock, Larry the Cable Guy and Jerry Seinfeld to name a few.

[flying kiwi]

Oh I know that wasn't what you were saying, as I said-if you couldn't understand what they were saying then fair enough. I just then went on to talk about other differences as I have heard these being brought up in discussions about this before, sorry if I was misunderstood I wasn't saying this was what you had problems with.

 

I can't pinpoint anything at the moment, I haven't seen friends for years. I've actually grown to hate friends as its just too overplayed and over quoted ect. But there are jokes on most American sit-coms which relate to things we don't have over here, not hundreds of them but they're there.

[Danielle]

I can't be doing with Friends personally, but there are a few American sitcoms that I like such as The Big Bang Theory at the moment, and while there are a few things which I don't really get, I understand most of it and find it quite funny, I can relate to it though because the main characters are into a lot of things that I am.

[Imagine]

I can't be doing with Friends personally, but there are a few American sitcoms that I like such as The Big Bang Theory at the moment, and while there are a few things which I don't really get, I understand most of it and find it quite funny, I can relate to it though because the main characters are into a lot of things that I am.

 

i adoooore the big bang theory lol So funny.

[honeytinkle]

I just say one thing - Eddie Izzard.

Can't understand no one mentioned him before. I saw him live 2009 when he did Stripped and he's sooo funny. We have all his stand up movies and can watch it over and over.

But yeah, I think I prefer British humor, but American work too.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAOLOGGftTY

 

And when we on the subject Brit vs. US

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjC3R6jOtUo&feature=related

[ckravitz]

I live in America, and I like Monty Python, Mr. Bean, etc. which is more known of in the United Kingdom than in the United States. However, at the same time I like Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, John Pinette, etc. that are more known in America than England.

 

I would post some videos, but I'm on my cell phone; my Internet (wi-fi) is down.

[The Dude]

I just say one thing - Eddie Izzard.

Can't understand no one mentioned him before. I saw him live 2009 when he did Stripped and he's sooo funny. We have all his stand up movies and can watch it over and over.

But yeah, I think I prefer British humor, but American work too.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAOLOGGftTY

 

And when we on the subject Brit vs. US

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjC3R6jOtUo&feature=related

It's interesting he mentions the thing about Darth Vader because the guy who was in the suit is actually British. But George Lucas didn't think the audience would take Vader seriously if he had an English accent plus he had a very unintimidating voice so they decided to get a black dude with a deep voice and the rest is history.

 

Don't get the deal with him performing with make up and women's clothing. I guess that's a British thing too like Benny Hill. Over here Milton Berle did that kinda thing but that was 60 years ago.

[honeytinkle]

I guess that's a British thing too like Benny Hill.

 

Well, I think it's a transvestite thing actually

[The Dude]

Well, I think it's a transvestite thing actually

I meant as far as a humor thing.

[yorkshire]

I meant as far as a humor thing.

 

To be fair I don't know why British comedians do it either. Although the only 2 I can think of that do it are Eddie Izzard and Lily Savage (Paul O'Grady). It is a little strange.

 

One of my favourite British comedians is from Scotland. He's Frankie Boyle, and he's quite notorious over here for going over the line. I won't post any videos of him in case people are offended, but feel free to look into him...

[flying kiwi]

^^Lily Savage isn't really the same as she's a character, like Al Murray's ''the pub landlord'' neither of them are actually comedians, but characters the comedians play out.

 

I love Frankie Boyle, I actually used him when I was dating, if a guy thought he was too offensive then we just weren't going to work out. He is one of my favourites.