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British comedy films arecomedy films produced in theUnited Kingdom. In the early 1930s, film adaptations of stagefarces were popular, notable names beingOld Mother Riley, theCrazy Gang,Arthur Askey andWill Hay inGainsborough comedies. British comedy films are numerous, but among the most notable are theEaling comedies, the 1950s work of theBoulting Brothers, and innumerable popular comedy series including theSt Trinian's films, theDoctor series, and the long-runningCarry On films. Some of the best known British film comedy stars includeWill Hay,George Formby,Norman Wisdom,Alec Guinness,Peter Sellers and theMonty Python team. Other actors associated with British comedy films includeIan Carmichael,Terry-Thomas,Margaret Rutherford,Irene Handl andLeslie Phillips. MostBritish comedy films of the early 1970s were spin-offs oftelevision series.
Recent successful films include theworking-class comediesBrassed Off (1996) andThe Full Monty (1997), the moremiddle classRichard Curtis-scripted filmsFour Weddings and a Funeral (1994) andNotting Hill (1999) the pop-culture referencingThree Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (Shaun of the Dead,Hot Fuzz andThe World's End), and a movie based on a real-life eventThe Boat That Rocked (2009).
In theUnited Kingdom, film adaptations of stagefarces were popular in the early 1930s, while themusic hall tradition strongly influenced film comedy into the 1940s withWill Hay andGeorge Formby among the top comedy stars of the time. In England in the late 1940s,Ealing Studios achieved popular success as well as critical acclaim with a series of films known collectively as the "Ealing comedies", from 1947 to 1957. They usually included a degree of social comment, and featured ensemble casts which often includedAlec Guinness orStanley Holloway. Among the most famous examples wereKind Hearts and Coronets (1949),The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) andThe Ladykillers (1955).
In the 1950s, theBritish film industry produced a number of highly successful film series, however, including theDoctor series, theSt. Trinian's films and the increasingly bawdyCarry On films.John and Roy Boulting also wrote and directed a series of successfulsatires, includingPrivate's Progress (1956) andI'm All Right, Jack (1959). As in the United States, in the next decade much of this talent would move into television.
Norman Wisdom was cast in a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring his hapless onscreen character that was often called Norman Pitkin.
In the late 1950s, as the United States, the television industry has become a serious competition over the film industry. So from the early 1960s, much of the British comedies passes through television.
Monty Python team, created in 1969, is composed of six members :Graham Chapman,John Cleese,Eric Idle,Michael Palin,Terry Jones andTerry Gilliam.
Even if mostBritish comedy films of the early 1970s were spin-offs oftelevision series, includingDad's Army andOn the Buses, the greatest successes, however, came with the films of theMonty Python team, includingAnd Now for Something Completely Different (1971),Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) andMonty Python's Life of Brian (1979).
One of the most famous movies of the 1980s (in part realized byMonty Python team) isA Fish Called Wanda, a multicultural movie between British and American cultures, with the American actressJamie Lee Curtis.
To finish,Monty Python produced in 1983Monty Python's The Meaning of Life.
One of the major developments of the 1990s was the re-emergence of the romantic comedy film, likeFour Weddings and a Funeral (1994),Sliding Doors (1998), andNotting Hill (1999). Recent successful films, more representative ofBritish humour were the working class comediesBrassed Off (1996) andThe Full Monty (1997).
In 1990 Rowan Atkinson created a series for TVMr. Bean, which made the actorRowan Atkinson famous all around the world. Later, he played in two movies based on 'Mr Bean' :Bean in 1997, andMr. Bean's Holiday in 2007.
Later, he parodied theJames Bond film series in thespy seriesJohnny English, consisting of three films releasing from 2003 to 2018, distributed byUniversal Pictures.
SomeBritish comedies examined the role of theAsian community in British life, includingBhaji on the Beach (1993),East Is East (1999),Bend It Like Beckham (2002),Anita and Me (2003) andDeath at a Funeral (2007).
Some other comedies takes place inIndia, such asThe Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012) andThe Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015) withJudi Dench andMaggie Smith.
