Alex's Bottom

[Reece]

A lovely essay by Alex Newsome about why Bottom is such a bloody brilliant show.

http://www.chortle.co.uk/correspondents/2013/01/14/16952/why_bottom_should_be_top

Topic

[genericnerdyusername]

This opening sentence of my post is an attempt at making a pun-ish thing about how Alex Ferguson is an arse.

But I agree with Newsome! Ta for the article!

[MANI506]

This has inspired me to watch the camping episode from series 2. Great set! Also this episode wasn’t originally shown for some reason.

What bugs me is that on the series 2 DVD I’ve got the episodes are in the wrong order and the inferior extended version of Holy is included as standard.

[Ian Symes]

Alex is bottom. Of the list of the best people who run Red Dwarf fan sites.

[pfm]

Wtf Symes on the main show!!?!?!!!

[Reece]

Alex is bottom. Of the list of the best people who run Red Dwarf fan sites.

Which would put him at a solid second.

[Ridley]

Anyone looking at the contents of Alex’s Bottom entry will have no doubt that a solid number two came from the same place.

I myself have perused it, uncensored, on at least two occassions.

[Taiwan Tony]

“This has inspired me to watch the camping episode from series 2. Great set! Also this episode wasn’t originally shown for some reason.”

There was a murder on Wimbledon Common at the time… The one that Colin Stagg was acquitted of.

I agree about the ordering and the extended Holy… not as good. The BBC do some shit DVDs.

Have you noticed on the Bottom series one DVD (episode: ‘Accident’, I think) the scene with the ‘thieving bastard gyppos’ has been edited to change the line to ‘thieving bastard yobbos’? And yet on the scene selection, the scene is called ‘thieving bastard gyppos’.

Good work!

“A solid number two.” Marvellous!

[MANI506]

Thanks TT!

[Alex]

Thank you all for humouring my inane ramblings on something I was so desperate to defend after the Christmas Red Dwarf Introcast that I may have overstated the case a bit. The original sadly got a little bit mangled in places when Steve edited it so there are a couple of sections that read a bit oddly. That said, the original was fairly long and those bits aside it probably scans better now. I’ve never shaken off the style of essay writing I had to use for my History degree and that’s not really the style Chortle go for.

Anyway, I put the unedited version up on my site.

[Taiwan Tony]

I must admit I didn’t read this all… but I will do. Because I love Bottom.
I like the fact that you’ve taken the time to write this, but I can’t quite get behind it as an argument or a call to arms or whatever it is meant to be… Because I don’t know that Bottom is overlooked.

It was featured (on its own) on the titles to Britain’s Best Sitcom in 2004 – in between Fawlty Towers, and a composite of The Office, Absolutely Fabulous and Phoenix Nights.That’s quite high praise, isn’t it?

Meanwhile, The Young Ones was probably the most important sitcom there had ever been up to that point, so it’s no wonder that it’s well remembered. Bottom is, essentially, Hancock’s Half Hour vs The Young Ones.

But then you might say all this in the body of your article… I’ll have a proper read soon.

[Alex]

I think it’s a difference of experience. I’ve been told quite a few times in the past by comedy fans that they didn’t like Bottom as they thought it was puerile. Plus I do believe that it is a much stronger effort than The Young Ones, but tends to get overlooked in favour of it when people talk about comedy. There are a few instances where it’s been held up quite well, like in the Britain’s Best Sitcom poll, but with critics it’s often more of a footnote than an important point of comedy history and just ‘the thing they did after The Young Ones’.

[Pete Part Three]

My problem with Bottom is the stories just lack focus and often just kind of meander about, I don’t have a huge problem with the violence and silliness. I rewatched the whole series a few weeks back and found some of them a bit of a chore, particularly in Series 3. There’s usually a couple of great moments in each episode, mind.

[Taiwan Tony]

Puerile? Really? And the same fans cite The Young Ones as a good sitcom? …
I’d say they’re both puerile, but I think Bottom has more sophistication, while The Young Ones has a charming naivety. Kind of.

Bottom sometimes does lack focus, but I think that was sort of the point. Ade Edmondson has always talked about Beckett plays being a direct influence. It doesn’t stop me from enjoying them.

Of the 3 series, I’d say that the third series was most like The Young Ones. Are you a fan of the Young Ones, Pete Part Three?

Did anyone see this? The bit where they’re kicking the bloke at the end really reminded me of Rik and Ade laying into the gas man.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/turkey/9813146/Fight-after-Turkish-politician-threatened-on-stage-with-gun.html

(Still haven’t read it… Today I will!)

[Reece]

Yeah I agree with TT, Some of my favourite episodes are the ones where nothing really happens, lol.

[simon]

When I was younger I used to love Bottom and I recently saw some episodes for the first time in years and I was surprised how good it still was.

My memory was that it was a puerile show just with crude knob gags and hitting each other with frying pans so it wouldn’t have aged well, but I really enjoyed it and it made me laugh a lot as it is superbly written and is a million times better than The Young Ones

My favourite exchange is in the camping episode where they realise they don’t have any food to eat and Richie says “what’s that film where they eat each other” and Eddie replies “Deep Throat wasn’t it”

[Taiwan Tony]

That joke was sort of in the Young Ones too. Except in the Young Ones the film was called ‘They Ended Up Having To Eat Each Other’.
A case in point perhaps?
Bottom is brilliant.
The line from that episode that always whirls around in my head is: “You pick it up. It’s a bit near the shit for me.”

[Pete Part Three]

>Some of my favourite episodes are the ones where nothing really happens, lol.

I don’t have a problem if nothing happens. Very little happens in Culture, for example, and I’m very fond of that. I just have a problem if they bounce around from one idea to the next…like they do in Parade, for example.

>Of the 3 series, I’d say that the third series was most like The Young Ones. Are you a fan of the Young Ones, Pete Part Three?

No, not at all…so your point may be validated! I’ve only watched a couple of episodes of The Young Ones and really didn’t like it.

I enjoy a lot of Bottom and think some of it is very funny, but I can’t help thinking that Ade and Rik needed a bit of help with the writing as some of it is very messy.

[Carlito]

“Quick, Eddie, how do I look?”
“Through your eyes normally”
“Okay”

[Carlito]

I too far prefer Bottom to the Young Ones. I certainly feel it has aged better, though I doubt a show of its ilk would ‘fit in’ nowadays.

The stage shows were also good fun… well, the first three anyway.

[MANI506]

Slip fookin Digsby.

[Reece]

“‘Le Danger’… ‘Le Nuclear Bomb’… shit, it’s all in French.”

[Taiwan Tony]

>I’ve only watched a couple of episodes of The Young Ones and really didn’t like it.

I didn’t think you’d like it. I do feel validated. Thanks!

If I had to recommend an episode of TYO to any non-fan, I’d suggest they try Cash and Nasty. Possibly Sick. I think they hang together the best. But then I might be completely wrong about that.

>The stage shows were also good fun… well, the first three anyway.

You fucking well hit the clit right on the nail there, you etc. etc.

[Carlito]

Pleased to hear that Rik Mayall is reprising his role as Gideon in the next episode of Jonathan Creek. By far the Black Canary, his previous appearance, is the preeminent episode of Creek to date.

[simon]

I’m a big fan of Jonathan Creek and I’m really glad to see Rik Mayall’s character back and I agree Black Canary is the finest episode but I just wish they’d bring back Caroline Quentin as Maddy’s relationship with Jonathan was always the show’s strongest point

[Pete Part Three]

>By far the Black Canary, his previous appearance, is the preeminent episode of Creek to date.
>I agree Black Canary is the finest episode

Agreed. Watched it before Christmas and it still rocks.

Would be nice to have Maddy back for, at the very least, a proper goodbye. I really don’t get what Renwick is trying to do with Joey and the stuff with Carla never really went anywhere.

[Taiwan Tony]

I loved Black Canary. Hannah Gordon killing herself shit me up. And when the blade comes down always makes me jump. I probably like this one the best, but I think they’re all really good.

>I really don’t get what Renwick is trying to do with Joey

I think I might know what Renwick is doing with Joey. I think he’s a dirty bastard who likes to see some ‘tit’ now and again. It’s in all his work. (And he’s directed the later ones himself.) I’ll never forget the scene in Love Soup where that girl’s fucked by a Golden Retriever.

Shame that Rik Mayall doesn’t do much any more. I think he’s one of Britain’s best actors who are also brilliant at comedy… Like Ronnie Barker and David Jason.

[MANI506]

Syuper fucking glue!!!

[Reece]

“Oh Monica… you took my cherry…

Right off!”

[Danny Stephenson]

Ha..Monica… *doodly-di-doodly-do…*

[MANI506]

My favourite line (possibly ever) is from Bottom live 2.

‘What a fortuitous happenstance, I’ll be porking the Queen by 3.’

[si]

I’ve got the Bottom Live Scratch and Sniff VHS boxset. I’ve not watched it in *years*. I shall have to do this sometime.

[Reece]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxNf45AZWBE

[Author]

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