For all the classic British comedy fans out there, it may amuse you to learn that ‘Allo ‘Allo has recently been snapped up by a German TV network. This sitcom, set in Nazi-occupied France, ruthlessly made fun of every European stereotype including the Gestapo and it will be interesting to see how well the Carry-On style double entendres translate for German audiences! Shows like ‘Allo ‘Allo have been popular for so many years that it would be easy to assume that all Britain has to offer is camp comedy with farcical set-ups and wet seaside locations. Happily, the new school of Britcom changed all of that for us – here’s a guide to the truly unmissable programmes that marked the dawn of a brand new era.

The Mighty Boosh

Brainchild of comedians Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt, this bizarre comedy about two unlikely friends and their unusual musical adventures made the transition from stage to radio to television in 2004. Surreal and often totally nonsensical, featuring pretty boys, outrageous dressing up and singing songs (sometimes all at once), the show’s main recurring theme is the epic battle between the two friends about the merits of Jazz vs. Electro. Happily, there’s still time for a talking gorilla, a shaman who shops at Shamansburys and a desert island where you can marry a coconut.

Monkey Dust

This bleak animated sketch show first aired on BBC3 in 2003. Unrelentingly dark and incredibly funny; Monkey Dust deals with the issues of the day with searing honesty and an ever-mocking slant.

The show features a number of recurring characters, such as Ivan Dobsky, the spacehopper-riding simpleton who was wrongly convicted of being the “Meatsafe Murderer” in the 1970s, and the incompetent terrorists, a group of fanatical Islamist teenagers from West Bromwich who form “The International Revolutionary Jihad for the Liberation of the Islamic Republic of Great Britain” but occasionally have to cease their plots to overthrow the infidels because the football or Pop Idol is on the telly. They spend a lot of time eating Findus’ Crispy Pancakes, served up by Shafiq’s mum.

Green Wing

Green Wing was the ship that launched a thousand faces in comedy; a look back at the cast of the first series (originally aired in 2004) turns up some household names such as Olivia Colman, Steven Mangan, Tamsin Greig and Mark Heap. It should therefore come as no surprise that this sitcom, set in an English hospital, was consistently brilliant. The plot developed through lots of sketch-style set pieces and unforgettable characters include Michelle Gomez playing Sue White, a staff liaison officer with sociopathic tendencies and Alan Statham (Mark Heap) the stuttering radiologist who can’t help but enjoy the ritual abuse served up to him by his colleague and lover Joanna (Pippa Haywood). Doctors and Nurses was never this much fun.

And that’s without even touching on Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, Nathan Barley or Shameless, all of which had a massive part to play in the Brit comedy revolution.

Until next week, Britfans!

Buy Green Wing at Amazon - Green Wing Series 1 [2004]

Buy The Mighty Boosh Series 1 & 2 at Amazon - The Mighty Boosh : Complete BBC Series 1 & 2