Top 5 British Sitcoms (21st Century)

Bang up to date and into the 21st Century then. It's harder to be objective about these show as they've not had the passage of time to help sort the great from the good. There does seem to be a resurgence in good comedy though, possibly thanks to the increase in channels wrought by the digital age.

1. Extras (2005-2007)
2 Series written by Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant
"The Office" may have been more groundbreaking but for me Extras wins out as it's got more laughs per episode. Stephen Merchant is outstanding as inept agent Darren Lamb, and the episode where Kate Winslet, whilst dressed as a nun, gives Maggie advice on how to talk dirty to attract a man is enough to claim first place on it's own.

2. Black Books (2000-2004)
3 Series written by Dylan Moran & Graham Linehan
A hidden gem in the Channel Four listings. Dylan Moran wrote and starred in this comedy about life in a small independent book shop in which the proprietor (Bernard Black) was more interested in downing quantities of red wine than selling books. Some great interaction between Moran, Bill Bailey and Tasmin Greig (often the only three participants of the episode) who bicker and goad each other to escape their insulated world only to repeatedly get sucked back in to old habits. Bernard's foul-mouthed, eccentric, misanthropic and nihilistic views on the world are oddly pretty accurate and in many ways chime pretty closely with my own.

3. Peep Show (2003 - ongoing)
5 Series written by Jesse Armstrong & Sam Bain
When I first started watching Peep Show it was on late at night which usually meant having to read the subtitles with the sound off. I think I properly discovered it flicking through the channels for anything to watch when I really should have been getting a good nights sleep. The "eye level" point of view created something a bit different that caught my attention as I flicked through endless channels of rubbish. Somewhere between then and now it's actually become quite successful and, having been moved to a more accessible time slot, is currently pushing the boundaries of taste during it's 5th series with a 6th series already commissioned.

4. The League of Gentlemen (1999-2003)
3 Series written by Jeremy Dyson, Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton, Reece Shearsmith
As I write this I've realised that this is possibly more of a sketch show than a sitcom. Too late for me to take it out now, and in any case whatever genre you might think it belongs it's a show that pushes the boundaries of both.


5. The Office (2001-2003)
2 Series written by Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant
Wasn't sure I really wanted to have two shows written by the same team in the Top 5 but it's impossible not to have this series included. Painfully cringeworthy at times but still very funny indeed.

Bubbling under but not quite making the final cut are The I.T. Crowd (2006 - ongoing - 2 Series written by Graham Linehan) which I may enjoy more than I should as it so closely resembles my own working life and The Mighty Boosh (2004 - ongoing - 3 series written by Julian Barrett & Noel Fielding) which I'm only just getting to grips with and still haven't decided if it's genuinely funny or just plain weird (could also be a sketch show not a sitcom. Damn! I think I'm losing the plot after 4 weeks of comedy).

Top 5 British Sitcoms (Nineties)

The third week of Sitcom Top fives and we're into the Nineties, a decade that seems so much more recent to me than it actually is. I'm fast running out of ways to say this show is really funny so by next week's Noughties (I hate that if you've got a better way of describing the decade please let me know) it'll probably be just a straight list!

1. Father Ted (1995-1998)
3 Series written by Graham Linehan & Arthur Matthews
Genius from start to finish. Dermot Morgan was outstanding as the scheming Father Ted and perfectly matched with Ardal O'Hanlon as simple-minded Father Dougal. Father Jack became something of a legend and gave me a new way to swear politely. Mrs Doyle was just as important to the humour. Great characters and great writing.

2. Men Behaving Badly (1992-1998)
6 Series written by Simon Nye
Partly responsible for "New Laddism" or just reflecting the times? I think it probably just showed what blokes have always been like. Deep down we all just want to slob out on the sofa, drink beer and talk about Kylie Minogue. Incidentally this was rubbish when Harry Enfield was in the original series which just goes to prove that ITV cannot do comedy. Best leave it to the Beeb chaps.

3. One Foot In The Grave (1990-2000)
6 Series written by David Renwick
Richard Wilson was outstanding as Victor Meldrew and although this did little to break away from the traditional white middle class suburban setting that still dominates mainstream television this was comedy with a dark edge.

4. Red Dwarf (1988-2000)
8 Series written by Rob Grant & Doug Naylor
At its peak used all the possibilities of science-fiction to their full comedy potential. Rimmer and Lister were perfect antagonists but for me it was the introduction of Kryten that really made the series take off. Ran out of steam a bit in the last couple of series but I don't think I'd ever tire of hearing "Space Corp Directive" jokes - Rimmer: "May I remind you all of Space Corp Directive 34124". Kryten: "34124? No officer with false teeth should attempt oral sex in zero gravity".

5. The Royle Family (1998-2000)
3 Series written by Caroline Aherne & Craig Cash
There's a subtlety to the humour that works really well, and, although it is very Northern and working class in it's references, I'm sure everyone can recognise some aspects of it that matches their own family upbringing. Jim and Twiggy dancing to the radio, whilst failing to make any discernible progress with the decorating they're supposed to be doing is an image that will live with me for some time.

Top 5 British Sitcoms (Eighties)

The Eighties saw a transition from the long running traditional sitcoms of the previous decade into new and more radical forms. Overall there were less quality shows but the ones I enjoyed were absolute gems that pushed sitcom and television comedy into new territory. Oh, and yes I know I haven't included "Only Fools and Horses" it's not an oversight.

1. Blackadder (1983-1987)
4 Series written by Richard Curtis, Rowan Atkinson & Ben Elton
Tough choice between this and "The Young Ones", but Blackadder just shades it by pushing the boundary of mainstream comedy whilst staying within the basic structure of traditional sitcom. The changes in period kept it fresh through four series and various one-offs. I remember being on a school field trip when the first series was shown and the whole year cramming into the common room to watch that week's episode. At the time I thought it lost something after the first series, being constrained in budget and location for the second series onward, but watching now it's the later shows that have all the jokes in and a more cunning Blackadder is always great to watch.

2. The Young Ones (1982-1984)
2 Series written by Rik Mayall, Lise Mayer & Ben Elton
"The Young Ones" probably had more influence on television comedy than any other show. Originally aired in the four years I was at secondary school it blew my preconceptions about humour out of the window. This was punk rock comedy, anarchic and on the edge. Something I could laugh about with my mates that my parents would never understand.

3. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (1981)
1 Series written by Douglas Adams & John Lloyd
One series, six episodes. Not much to compete with but this was a pivotal show for me. It was my introduction to Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's series and led on to reading all his books and picking up many more formats (the radio shows, the LP, the books, the book narration, the film - got the lot). Much like the first series of Blackadder the budget for Hitchhiker's probably blew their chances of making any further shows. Whilst it does show it's age watching now, there's still something fantastic about what they achieved. In particular the Peter Jones narrated Guide sequences which were so good they pretty much recreated them for the recent motion picture version.

4. Yes Minister/Yes Prime-Minister (1980-1988)
5 Series written by Antony Jay & Jonathon Lynn
All a bit stuffy and grown up for me on first viewing, I gradually came round to appreciating it as a cutting and accurate portrayal of political life. As the Thatcher era began to show signs of cracking, and I went from school kid to student to employee, political humour became something worth watching. A sign I was growing up maybe ... or just pretending to.

5. Terry and June (1979-1987)
9 Series written by John Kane & others
Odd in some ways that during a period when I was discovering new exciting and rebellious shows like "The Young Ones" and "Blackadder" that I would still retain a fondness for a show many critics decried as the "epitome of the bland middle-class sitcom". Seeing that at the time I was living a very middle-class life in Surrey maybe it's no surprise I still like it. In my head Terry & June is a 70's sitcom but when I came to check my facts I was surprised to find it was mainly shown in the 80's. Not only that it almost outlasted all my other selections and according to Wikipedia "received viewing figures three times those of any of the 'alternative' comedies of the era".

Top 5 British Sitcoms (Seventies)

I've been planning to do a Top 5 70's sitcoms for a while, but in compiling it I realised one of my choices (Terry & June) was really an 80's series. It's kind of snowballed from there, so I now have Top fives for the 80's, 90's and 00's as well. If this isn't you're bag you might want to come back in 5 weeks or so when it's all over! Might even manage a Top 5 US Sitcoms if you're lucky. The seventies seems a great place to start though. For me (at an impressionable age) it was prime time for British situation comedy.

1. Dad's Army (1968-1977)
9 Series written by Jimmy Perry & David Croft
Probably my all time favourite sitcom. So many fantastic characters and some great lines throughout it's long life. The "Don't tell him Pike!" sequence still makes me laugh today.

2. Porridge (1973-1977)
3 Series written by Dick Clement & Ian La Frenais
Consistently brilliant from start to finish. Ronnie Barker is superb and his on screen chemistry with Richard Beckinsale is wonderful to see.

3. Are You Being Served? (1972-1985)
10 Series written by Jeremy Lloyd & David Croft
Classic stuff during the 70's period. Probably ran for 5 years to long and the quality tailed off dramatically as the writers increased its "sauciness" at the expense of actual humour. It also lost a lot when Trevor Bannister (Mr Eve) left in 1979 and the original Mr Grace (Harold Bennett) died in 1981.

4. Citizen Smith (1977-1980)
4 Series written by John Sullivan
Possibly my memories of this are swayed by Wolfie being a Fulham supporter, but this was revolutionary stuff at the tail end of the 70's.

5. Fawlty Towers (1975-1979)
2 Series written by John Cleese & Connie Booth
Not sure I like this as much now as I did back then. Farce is never the most subtle vehicle for comedy but the cast play it well and with only 12 episodes ever made it disappeared before it had a chance to really grate.

Top 5 Books I've Struggled to Read

Friday comes around so quick and yet again I've not managed to get something written ahead of time. I have done a lot of thinking, usually in the shower (though that might be too much information for you) and I've realised that so far, some 46 Top Fives into this project, that I've not done a single book related topic. I read quite a bit, I really enjoy books, and I definitely expected to talk about books when I started this up. However, having decided it was time for me to attempt a book Top 5, I really struggled to come up with a subject I felt I could do justice. Too many authors I've enjoyed but not read enough of, too many books I've read but since forgotten all the details. As book titles flowed through my brain this topic came to the fore. Books I've struggled to finish. These aren't necessarily bad books, some of them I very much enjoyed, they're just stories I found really hard to read.

1. "Desolation Angels" Jack Kerouac - Possibly not the best Kerouac novel to start with I was in my mid-teens when I first attempted to read it. The book is in two quite distinct sections. The first part is based on diaries Kerouac kept as a fire lookout on Desolation Peak in Washington State. It's a discourse on his state of mind at the time but has very little action to grab hold of and keep your attention. Kerouac's stream of consciousness style takes some getting used to and, unlike "On The Road" where there is movement and characters to help you along, the first part of "Desolation Angels" just has Jack and the Mountain. This was the first book I had ever completely given up on. I made it about 50 pages in before having to admit defeat. I came back to it a few years ago and, although it still took me a good month to complete, I was determined to finish it. The second section "Passing Through" is more standard Kerouac fare and left me ready for more. A tough book to complete but worth the effort.

2. "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" Thomas Hardy - I can't think of a book that I have enjoyed less than this. Effectively it ended my chances of successfully passing (or even completing) my English A-Level. It was a story that said nothing to me and completely failed to fire my imagination in any direction. As I stumbled my way through the first few months of my course I got away with reading a chapter ahead of our class wherever I could, eventually, having been caught out by my teacher, I did sit down and read the whole book. It didn't help, I didn't understand it at all and was never going to be able to put enough effort into analysing a text I had no interest in. It's put me off Hardy for life though maybe at some point I should go back and try another book. For now that's still very unlikely.

3. "The Silmarillion" J.R.R. Tolkein - Without going into too much detail regarding my prog-loving past it's fairly obvious which band made me want to read this book. I'd read "The Lord of The Rings", which is a good story though one that could definitely benefit from a little editing, and was keen to read more of the same. "The Silmarillion" is a different kettle of Orcs however. A collection of Tolkein's draft narratives, compiled and completed by his son, explaining the pre-history of Middle-Earth building up to the time just before LOTR. I enjoyed it in the main but it's a complex book consisting of many characters with long names, many passages that list or explain family trees and other sections in elvish or rhyme.

4. "Scenes of Clerical Life" George Eliot - I picked this up in an attempt to expand my knowledge of classic literature. It was a random choice, Eliot was an author I'd not read before and this was her first published work. Maybe not the best reason to choose a book. With a little bit of thought I might have gone for "Middlemarch" or "Silas Marner" instead. With a bit more thought I might have skipped Elliot altogether and gone for an author I actually liked. I ploughed on regardless, it wasn't a difficult book to read per-say, just very very dull. I think I actually took longer to read this than I did to read "Lord of the Rings", which must make this the slowest book I've ever read.

5. "Catch 22" Joseph Heller - This is one of those books I feel I might not be clever enough to really appreciate. Having taped the film off the telly I decided I'd read the book first but found it hard going. It's not a book you can easily dip in and out of, with many narratives retold from different points of view, but I did eventually get into the flow. Having finished the novel I hoped the film might help pull together my understanding of the deeper themes. It turned out to be messier and more confusing than the book.

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Top 5 Spaceships

Space is cool. Spaceships are cool. I was 9 in 1977 and, I suspect like many other boys and girls of a similar age, Star Wars changed my life. Before Star Wars I went to the cinema to watch Disney films, after Star Wars all I cared about was spaceships and lasers and aliens and explosions and ... well you get my drift.

1. X-Wing Fighter (Star Wars) - The Ford Capri of space fighters. The X-Wing doesn't appear until well over half way through the original film but steals the show when it does. The battle to destroy the Death Star is a glorious climax to the only film of the saga that can really be considered a self-contained story and is reminiscent of classic war films. The X-Wing plays it's role as the Rebel Alliance's Spitfire against the Empire's Messerschmitt equivalent, the Tie-Fighter, winning the day for the heroes with the bombing run that leads to the Death Star's destruction. I spent most of the next five years drawing pictures or building models of X-Wing fighters and my appreciation of it is yet to dim.

2. Liberator (Blake's 7) - Blake's 7 may of been produced on a shoestring budget but following in the wake of Star Wars this was a dark tale of rebel outlaws fighting running skirmishes with a totalitarian Federation. In the early episodes it was a genuinely scary show and the talk of the playgrounds. The Liberator was a stolen alien ship that provided Blake and his crew of escaped convicts the upper hand against Servalan's forces of evil. It was faster and better equipped than anything the Federation could muster. It also looked cooler.

3. Eagle Transporter (Space: 1999) - The Eagle transporters were not the prettiest spaceships ever designed but there was something totally believable about them. Even today they look genuinely like something NASA might build if we were going to inhabit the moon. Space 1999 was at times a little too serious for a seven year old expecting the thrills and spills of a "live-action Thunderbirds" but the scenes with the Eagles quenched my thirst for space action and were always a highlight.

4. Millennium Falcon (Star Wars) - I was torn for a while between going for this or an Imperial Star Destroyer. The Star Destroyer is physically impressive and sets the tone for the whole saga with that slowly expanding opening shot. However, it's the Millennium Falcon's general decrepitude that wins me over. The constant need for Chewbacca or Han to fix things or hit something hard with a wrench, the expectation that at any moment something might break and that in Han Solo's own words "it may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts" all combined to make the Falcon a firm favourite.

5. U.S.S. Enterprise (Star Trek) - The original 60's design rather than any of the subsequent redesigns, proving that sometimes budget isn't everything. Whoever came up with the original design (Matt Jefferies I've just discovered via Wikipedia) created one of the most enduring images of my generation. It didn't look like any flying machine I had ever seen before and really could only have existed in space. Whilst the eventual movies and spin-off shows found ways to make the ship look smarter and faster they were merely fine tuning a design classic.

Top 5 "Ukulele Man" Videos from YouTube

I have no musical talent of any sort and despite having long held the desire to play guitar I've never had the patience or the aptitude to actually do so. I'm 40 in June and had set myself the target of finally learning (nothing fancy, just a couple of songs with a few basic chords) by the time I reached that milestone. It's not going well. However, should I fail, I may just go out and buy a Ukulele instead. My friend John introduced me to these YouTube clips by the Ukulele Man (Gus) and his pal. There are over 40 currently available, these are my favourites but pretty much every single one is great. Enjoy.

1. Jack The Ripper - Link Wray




2. Down Down - Status Quo




3. Blitzkrieg Bop - Ramones




4. Get Carter theme - Roy Budd




5. Ruby - Kenny Rogers

Top 5 FA Cup Semi-Finals

Seeing as it's FA Cup Semi-Final weekend and I hadn't really got another topic lined up I'm afraid (for the non-Footy fans) it's another football topic. I knocked this up quickly for my friend Andy's blog Wick to Wembley?, which follows his attempt to follow the road to Wembley from an Extra Preliminary Round match at his hometown of Chertsey to the Wembley Final. He's already reached Wembley actually as he's off to see Cardiff play Barnsley in the Semi Final on Sunday. Anyway, this was written and ready and gives me a bit of thinking time for a new topic next week.

1. Birmingham 0 Fulham 1 (1975) - Obvious reasons for this, our only semi-final win and the game that led to my first contact with Football and Fulham. In securing our only Final appearance Fulham played more games (Twelve) than any other team to reach the final. If the Final was year zero for my love of football, then John Mitchell's goal to put us there was the big bang!

2. Crystal Palace 4 Liverpool 3 (1990) - One of those games that I can still remember vividly even though it didn't involve my own team. A game that just gripped you the longer it went on and led to one of the most remarkable results in cup history.

3. Middlesbrough 3 Chesterfield 3 (1997) - Chesterfield had an incredible run that year and were amazingly close to reaching the final. In the end this game ended all square and 'Boro went on to win the replay 3-0.

4. Liverpool 0 Arsenal 1 (1980) - Not so much this particular game, which was the third replay, more the whole series. In the pre-penalties era they had to keep replaying the game until they got a result. Arsenal took four attempts to get past Liverpool this year and having finally done so were beaten in the final by West Ham.

5. Man United 2 Arsenal 1 (1998) - I think this was also a replay, and is most remembered for that mazy dribble and goal from Giggs at the end (and thanks to Baddiel and Skinner, his hairy chest). I'm not that big a fan of the goal but this was a cracking game.

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Top 5 Footballers who smoked

A topic prompted by a discussion with fellow Fulham F.C. blogger Rich who writes the very excellent Craven Cottage Newsround. I was surprised at some of the names that popped up when I started to investigate this and, whilst a lifetime non-smoker myself, feel the players that made my eventual list would make a pretty decent five-a-side team.

1. Socrates - Brazil's bearded midfielder and one time captain made a fairly big impression on me as a teenager watching the '82 World Cup. An elegant midfielder, who had great vision and was genuinely two-footed, he didn't make his international debut until he was 25 but still managed 60 caps and 22 goals for his country. He has a doctorate in medicine and worked on a masters thesis that proposed football be reduced to nine-a-side in a bid to increase skill levels. He also managed to turn out for Northern Counties League side Garforth Town at 50 back in 2004. This quote from the BBC seems to sum him up fairly well "The chain-smoking former Brazil captain, a member of the Workers' Party and founder member of the movement Corinthians Democracy, became a leading figure in the push for political reforms in his home nation and is widely regarded as one of the most influential civilians to challenge, and ultimately end, the country's dictatorship".

2. Zinedine Zidane - Undoubtedly one of the greatest footballers of the last ten years, as with so many greatly talented footballers "Zizou" was a bit of an enigma. I took a while to really appreciate how good he was, with my glimpses limited pretty much to World Cups and occasional European games. My admiration for him rose somewhat when he was shown briefly vomiting prior to dispatching a penalty against England in the Euro 2004 group match. In 2002 he was selected to front a campaign against smoking, which probably went some way to explaining the outrage caused when a press photographer captured him having a crafty fag before the 2006 World Cup semi-final against Portugal.

3. Dino Zoff - One of the all time great goalkeeper's smoking didn't seem to affect the length of his career. Dino played at four World Cups and was 40 when he captained the Italian side that won the competition in 1982. Our own David James recently outed himself as a smoker and is currently staking a fairly good claim to be England's number one 'keeper at a very similar age.

4. Osvaldo Ardiles - When Ossie and Ricky Villa arrived at Tottenham following their countries triumph at the '78 World Cup they caused a huge stir. At the time there were very few foreign players in the English league and it was very exciting to see two World Cup winners turning out regularly. Glenn Hoddle, then England manager, defended Paul Gasgoigne (who was also famously unmasked as smoker just prior to the World Cup in 1998) saying "Paul's been smoking since he was in Rome with Lazio, six or seven years. If I tried to stop him for three weeks now, it might have an adverse effect. Ossie Ardiles was on 40-a-day when he won the World Cup with Argentina. It didn't bother Ossie and it doesn't bother me".

5. Sylvain Legwinski - Well I couldn't compile a Top 5 without including a Fulham player. Legwinski arrived during the Tigana era that was synonymous with fitness, good eating and professional athletes. Tigana had managed Legwinski at AS Monaco previously so clearly had no concerns about his habit. Leggy was something of a cult hero amongst Fulham supporters. His passion and work rate made him one of the hardest working players in the side and helped enable the flair players in the side to work their magic. He eventually fell out of favour with subsequent manager Chris Coleman, and there were suggestions that his smoking was at the root of this, however Sylvain eventually moved on to Ipswich Town where he won the Supporter's and Manager's Player of the Year Award for the 2006/07 and became the only Ipswich player to have scored in all the games against East Anglian opposition (Norwich City, Colchester United and Southend United) during one season.

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Top 5 Albums (update)

This will be the first Top 5 I've felt the need to update. It's been something of a Sonics-mania weekend for me and the fact that their debut album "Here Are The Sonics" wasn't in my top 5 albums had been nagging at me for quite a few days. Not a duff track in sight and five or six absolute classics. REM drop out from my original Top 5 Albums but the rest hold on to their places.

1. "Surfer Rosa" - Pixies

2. "Ramones" - Ramones

3. "Here Are The Sonics" - The Sonics

4. "Nevermind" - Nirvana

5. "The Undertones" - The Undertones

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