I’m a huge fan of British sitcoms, but it could be argued they’re a dying art form. To counter that, here’s my top five (in no particular order) to prove why the format still deserves some love!  

Miranda 

Miranda doesn’t really need an introduction. It draws on a classic 70s feel and takes it to another level, with countless instances of breaking the fourth wall which really give the viewer a relationship with the titular character. Miranda is brilliant for catchphrases (‘Bear with,’ ‘Such fun,’ etc), but the reason it’s so addictive is that it’s full of heart (and Hart if you’ll pardon the pun!) – the central characters feel like such a family unit, and you become really invested in their warm lives. Miranda is probably the most recent ‘classic’ sitcom, and it’s well-earned that status.    

Keeping Up Appearances 

Patricia Routledge expertly created a character in Hyacinth Bucket (of course pronounced ‘Bouquet’) who you may not like to meet in real-life but was still likeable on screen. It’s another show with great catchphrases (‘The ‘Bouquet’ residence, lady of the house speaking!’ being one of the best), and the side-cast of Hyacinth’s lower-class family members make a great contrast to Routledge’s middle-class social climber. Always trying to avoid embarrassment, always keeping up appearances, I wonder if the success of this show is that there’s more of Hyacinth in many of us than we’d care to admit! 

The Goes Wrong Show 

Brought to screen by Mischief Theatre, each episode follows the fictional ‘Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society’ performing a televised ‘Play of the Week,’ which inevitably, as the title suggests, goes wrong in the most entertaining and innovative ways. They are all laugh-out-loud funny, but some of my favourites are ‘60s horror pastiche ‘The Lodge’, WWII drama ‘The Pilot (Not The Pilot)’ and the definitely not by Shakespeare ‘The Most Lamentable…’ (which includes one of the series’ best lines, ‘That’s reality, join me in fiction!’). These are all stand-alone stories, but what pushes it into sitcom territory are the narratives around the fictional actors of the Society, whose egos and relationships play out in the background. 

The Good Life 

The Good Life is absolutely glorious! Focusing on Tom and Barbara Good’s (Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal) journey of self-sufficiency in Surbiton, the show really thrives on their relationship with their neighbours Margo and Jerry Leadbetter (Penelope Keith and Paul Eddington). Margot is a particular delight, a pre-Thatcher Thatcherite snob who is somehow still likeable, and there’s an undercurrent that the couples, whilst in loving marriages, also fancy each other! So warm and enjoyable throughout, the end of this series is probably one of the most unique and moving of any sitcom.  

W1A 

I love W1A, it’s my favourite sitcom and might even be my favourite TV show. A mockumentary which follows Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville) in his role as Head of Values at the BBC, the show satirises the corporation’s management in a way that is familiar to anyone who’s ever been in a meeting. The writing from John Morton is sublime and the rhythm of the script is so clever! There are so many strong recurring lines that some (‘Very good very strong’ and ‘Yes exactly yes’ especially) became catchphrases in my family – in my mind one of the marks of a great sitcom! The regular and guest casts are great, the romantic sub-plots are engaging and to top it all off the narration by David Tennant is so funny (‘the Department for Culture, Media and for some reason also Sport’ is one of my favourite lines!). What more could you ask for! 

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