‘Bottom’

 

(TELEVISION MEMORIES 9)

 

“I saw ‘Your Bottom’ on television last night”

 

When I turned onto the new channel ‘Dave’ last night and noticed that ‘Bottom’ was going to be part of the new line up, I instantly thought that this is a show worth talking about again, even though I was uncertain to whether it should be listed under ‘Television Memories’ or just ‘Memories’.

 

Even though I loved watching the television show, I think the best way to have experienced Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson’s creation was to see it live. Over the years, I went to see many of the stage performances that they did at the ‘Manchester Apollo’ theatre and even though each show was essentially two men hitting each over the head for a couple of hours, what brilliant shows they were.

 

As with the ‘Comedy Store Players’ from Channel 4’s ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway’, these were shows that were best enjoyed if you were really going to make a night of it, shows that warranted a few drinks beforehand.

 

Even though a few drinks loosened your inhibitions, you did not want to have too many because you knew that if you had to go to the toilet half way through, you would be singled out and shamed, not only by Rik and Ade, but by the audience as well.

 

Actually, whereas people going to the toilet in the cinema is very annoying, at a ‘Bottom’ concert you always hoped that somebody would try because that was an excuse for them to deviate from the script.

 

The best parts of the show were always when they deviated from the script, when a ‘stunt’ went wrong or when they forgot their lines and ad-libbed. It was fun watching the videos of the concerts back and noticing the differences in the performances.

 

In fact, the live shows were such good fun that when ‘Guest House Paradiso’ was released, you wished that they had just recorded another one and shown that in the cinema instead. I do not know why ‘Guest House Paradiso’ failed in the way that it did as with the talent involved it should have been one of the funniest films of all time. Even though they were not playing exactly the same characters as in the ‘Bottom’ television shows, they were playing a development of them and, it could be said, a development of what was essentially their old ‘Dangerous Brothers’ act from ‘Saturday Live’, so how could it fail?

 

 

 

 

 

not a fan of bottom, i found them very childish and poor character actors.... which is incredible really as 'rik' and 'vyvian' in the young ones were 2 of the best comic creations, excellantly portrayed, by the very same people. id have prefered it IF bottom had been aired before tyo, but it wasnt.

not a fan of bottom, i found them very childish and poor character actors.... which is incredible really as 'rik' and 'vyvian' in the young ones were 2 of the best comic creations, excellantly portrayed, by the very same people. id have prefered it IF bottom had been aired before tyo, but it wasnt.

 

I agree mate, tbh, I thought "Filthy, Rich and Catflap" (which can certainly be seen as a fore-runner to "Bottom") was miles better than "Bottom". I just think Rik and Ade got lazy tbh, and "Bottom" didn't half go on and on... And on...... -_-

 

I liked the first series.

 

Got to the stage where they was doing the same thing in every episode.

I liked the first series.

 

Got to the stage where they was doing the same thing in every episode.

 

That's pretty much the same way I felt tbh... I did quite enjoy the first series if I'm being honest, but when it got to the stage of doing the stage shows and that really sh!t film "Guesthouse Paradiso", well, the jig was up really, Rik and Ade were just regurgitating the same old thing over and over. They should've had the sense to knock it on the head like Ben Elton did with "Young Ones" and "Filthy, Rich and Catflap" and leave us wanting more instead of just going over the same tired formula again and again... But it was pretty clear that Rik and Ade just liked the money too much.... -_-

 

even 'filthy rich and catflap' was poor by the young ones standard.

 

i agree scott, they were recycling old jokes, many done first on tyo, and better. i guess though it was down to the script writers as much as anything... who wrote it?... they did didnt they?..

who wrote it?... they did didnt they?..

 

Yep....

 

The only problem with ‘The Young Ones’ was that I was too young at the time to understand it all and so a lot of the bile about the political figures of the day just passed me by. Having been brought up on Tex Avery and ‘Roadrunner’ cartoons I could appreciate the show for the slapstick, in a way similar to watching ‘Spitting Image’ for the funny puppets.

The only problem with ‘The Young Ones’ was that I was too young at the time to understand it all and so a lot of the bile about the political figures of the day just passed me by. Having been brought up on Tex Avery and ‘Roadrunner’ cartoons I could appreciate the show for the slapstick, in a way similar to watching ‘Spitting Image’ for the funny puppets.

 

true, it was set in the times, of the times and i can see why alot of the referances the young ones used (even to the characters) might leave younger people somewhat bemused.

 

id probably have loved 'bottom' if i was a teenager...

That's pretty much the same way I felt tbh... I did quite enjoy the first series if I'm being honest, but when it got to the stage of doing the stage shows and that really sh!t film "Guesthouse Paradiso", well, the jig was up really, Rik and Ade were just regurgitating the same old thing over and over. They should've had the sense to knock it on the head like Ben Elton did with "Young Ones" and "Filthy, Rich and Catflap" and leave us wanting more instead of just going over the same tired formula again and again... But it was pretty clear that Rik and Ade just liked the money too much.... -_-

 

I never liked 'Filthy Rich and Catflap', it just never got me...

i love Rik and Ade, i remember the first time i saw them when i was younger, i stole my dads videos cuz he thought i was too young to watch them :lol:

 

I agree that most of their stuff is the same tho, same jokes etc, i have to have not seen them for a while to be able laugh at them.

I used to like this show, it was stupid but thats what made it good, and rik mayall is good in most stuff he does. classic show. It would be good to see it again

He was brilliant doing ‘George’s Marvellous Medicine’, though some might say that this was because his act was childish to start off with and so fitted well into the confines of children’s television

I regard "Bottom" to Ade & Rik's comedy back catalogue in the same way I regard "Mr Bean" to Rowan Atkinson's comedy back catalogue = A lazy, waste of talent.

 

"Bottom" was nowhere near as good as their respective characters in the Young Ones, or in many of the Peter Richardson's "The Comic Strip Presents" TV films that they appeared in......

 

...... now is that an idea for a separate thread :lol:

I regard "Bottom" to Ade & Rik's comedy back catalogue in the same way I regard "Mr Bean" to Rowan Atkinson's comedy back catalogue = A lazy, waste of talent.

 

"Bottom" was nowhere near as good as their respective characters in the Young Ones, or in many of the Peter Richardson's "The Comic Strip Presents" TV films that they appeared in......

 

...... now is that an idea for a separate thread :lol:

 

sums it up perfectly m8 :)

 

the comic strip presents was though patchy (abit like spike milligans work tbh ..) from 'eh?', to 'pmsl'.

bottom's brilliant, much better than the young ones (which is boring and overated), the "Gas" episode is so funny lol, when they have to go into the neigbers house

I regard "Bottom" to Ade & Rik's comedy back catalogue in the same way I regard "Mr Bean" to Rowan Atkinson's comedy back catalogue = A lazy, waste of talent.

 

"Bottom" was nowhere near as good as their respective characters in the Young Ones, or in many of the Peter Richardson's "The Comic Strip Presents" TV films that they appeared in......

 

Totally with you on that one mate...

 

Although I regard Mr Bean as being an even bigger turd than Bottom..... I actually sat through that awful film "Mr Bean's Holiday" (I downloaded it, I certainly wouldn't waste my time in a cinema watching it.... :lol: ), and frankly the character came across as being like some perverted, middle aged kiddie fiddler in that film.... -_- Absolutely appalling...... An insult to the memory of Jacques Tati if you ask me.....

I regard "Bottom" to Ade & Rik's comedy back catalogue in the same way I regard "Mr Bean" to Rowan Atkinson's comedy back catalogue = A lazy, waste of talent.

 

 

I would not say that ‘Bottom’ is as bad as that, but on the other hand, where it is true that ‘Mr Bean’ is no ‘Monsieur Hulot’, and Rowan no Jacques Tati, I thought that the show was not complete comedy wasteland and actually had a few comic moments to raise a ‘titter’. ‘Mr Bean’ may not be even on a ‘high comedic level’ as the old Benny Hill show slots, but “I will tell you this, I will tell you this” it worked better than ‘The Baldy Man’.

 

Also remember how bad ‘the Black Adder’ was at first before they revamped the production for the second series.

I dunno. I love the first series of Black Adder - definitely better than the constantly over-rated swansong with a fabulous ending that was Goes Forth.

Did you watch it from the start or come to it from the second series?