Silly humour is the best. There was no smut or bad language with Morecambe and Wise. Most people in the UK watched them and their Christmas specials were very popular each year. There is a sketch they did where they were preparing breakfast in time to the music called “the stripper” which was so clever and funny.
I just enjoyed them for the Comedy they did together, no other comedy has come close, Morecambe & Wise, were simply one in a million, the best, the cream of humour, sadly never to be repeated, I am very glad and proud to have grown up with them, The only sad thing is they are not here anymore, and thankfully TV Archives allows us to still enjoy what they did throughout the brilliant years they were together
Magnus has/ had a daughter called Sally Magnusson. Mastermind is a real quiz programme on the BBC with John Humphreys who is a BBC journalist and presenter.
André Previn was lost to us a couple of weeks ago. His appearance in the "Grieg's Piano Concerto" sketch with these two has long been a favourite of mine. The list of celebrities elbowing each other to get on the Morecambe and Wise Show to get insulted is legendary.
@@jonathanmaybury5698 I'll go further and say it is THE best Morecambe and Wise ever. The way the world-class conductor Andy Preview entered into the spirit of the sketch and held his own against two comedy legends was superb. It's a pity the BBC has pulled the sketch from UA-cam on copyright grounds.
Enjoying your reactions to our programmes. Ha ha. If you think smut and double entendres are new to British comedy the you clearly haven't watched any of the "Carry On " movies from the 60s and 70s...classics😆 Although I do agree comedy was gentler and less abusive back then.
yes!!! was just about to say that but saw yours first! Of course Ernie was supposed to be the clever sophistocated one but then confuses Mick McManus with Magnus Magnusson!
To: Andrew McCormack - You are quite correct. The irony of it, was that many of the wrestling matches were somewhat staged and Mick McManus (William George Matthews) was 'scheduled' to be the 'heel' or losing opponent. He was however a professional wrestler, and a British and European champion at different weights.
I enjoy watching this couple getting their grip on British humour. Try watching another 2 Ronnies sketch, The sweet shop. Hilarious! All the best. Brian.
The real Mastermind was a very tense and serious affair. To be Mastermind for a given year was quite prestigious. It was a brain show not a game show. There was also University Challenge. Athletics of the mind and titles to be coveted and won. Magnus Magnusson was the actual host of the real Mastermind. He wasn't about to decline to appear on Morecambe and Wise. The Beatles even appeared way back.
They were very influenced by Laurel and Hardy, Laurel once said "If you couldn't do the gags at a Sunday school meeting, they were too risque". How times have changed.
British comedy fundamentally changed in the late 1970's with shows like "Not the 9 O'clock News" and in the early 1980's with shows like "The Young Ones" featuring an emerging wave of new comedians.
Morecambe and wise came from the theatre and the humour comes from that. If you watch the whole show they include the theatre aspect. There were plenty a coarse comedians around then, not on the tv. The radio was pretty bawdy with round the horn
I wouldn't say you was funny but I keep coming back to you because you are nice people and interesting to listen too. I love listening to your views on all subjects
yeah Mastermind was a real game show where contestants were asked questions on their chosen subject. I have a book written by one of the winners who specialised on railway questions :-) Also I am glad you went back to Morecambe & Wise ^_^
Mastermind is still aired today (different presenter), in fact i watched one episode last week of the celebrity version. They did not do a celebrity version back in the 70's. It was open to members of the public to apply. I can't quite remember what the prize was for the series champion but i remember a crystal bowl at some point. There may not have been any other prize, just the kudos!
i love abbott and costello :) and also you are mostly correct ...... most british humour is slightly insulting :) keep up the good work guys!. big love from the north-east of england
Magnus Magnusson was the actual host of Mastermind and appears here on the Morecombe and Wise show, they appeared on American tv back in the sixties, there was a programme on Gold on Sky TV looking at their appearances they made on The Ed Sullivan Show, they were a hit they struggled on their first show they did not get many laughs but after then got lots of laughs. They had shows on ITV (now ITV1) and BBC1 as well as the summer season in Blackpool, they had been together since they were kids but it sadly came to an end when Eric Morecombe died after having a heart attack in 1984 after coming off stage after appearing with another fellow comedian.
Yes they do have a real Mastermind being on for years the one you need to watch is the 2Ronnies where Ronnie Corbert answers the question before very clever doing Mastermind
Mastermind was a real game show. I love Morecombe and Wise. I grew up watching them on the tell and now have them on DVD. One of the sketches they are perhaps best well know for is with Andre Previn doing Grieg's Piano Concerto. As a suggestion for another "reaction" video you may want to consider is The Two Ronnies. Their Four Candles sketch is famous and quite funny but the one I really like is the Sheikh in the Grocery Shop
Mastermind is still going strong. Magnus Magnusson was the original presenter, he’s sadly passed away now, John Humphrys (of the R4 Today programme) is the current presenter.
I think you're a lovely, amusing and engaging couple. Les Dawson said that humour is the flipside of tragedy. Speaking of whom, check out Cissie & Ada sketches on this very site.
We still have Mastermind on UK TV but Magnus Magnusson (who was Icelandic) died in 2007. Both Eric and Ernie died well before that. Morecombe and Wise was 'must see' TV in the seventies that drew viewing figures in the tens of millions but of course its quite dated now. Back then we only had three channels to chose from! However some of the sketches are considered the best sketches ever.
Better choice of morecambe and wise sketch than your last one. I love your analysis of different aspects of life in the U.K. So Lillian have you done your baby concert yet,how did it go
@@alansmith1989 I can understand that. I'd imagine it'd be difficult to find anyone who didn't find Stan and ollie funny. Perhaps only a few of the terminally hip that are desperate to seem individual 😃
Ahh Morecambe & Wise. British comedy at it's best. Hilariously funny and from a more innocent time. My favourite sketch was the one where Eric is playing classical piano for the esteemed conductor Andre Previn. Mr Previn interrupts Eric several times to question his diabolical piano playing. Eric calmy rises to his feet and grabs Mr Previn by his lapels. Nose to nose he calmly says to him "listen sunshine. I'm playing all the right notes. Not necessarily in the right order " Classic! And my second favourite sketch.Eric does his own version of Gene Kelly singing in the rain routine. Just brilliant.
That was so funny and yes you're right, completely innocent. I sometimes wonder if the media affects public behaviour or public behaviour affects the media. I think it's the former.
Rosalind Russell. Always enjoyed your movies.Ah, innocence. I miss it so. In later series M&W had a regular sketch in the show set in a kitchen or a lounge etc, implying that they lived together. Eventually it was necessary to show them in bed waking up and they indulged in their usual banter but were put in a double bed to make this more effective. It had obvious connotations of homosexuality and they weren't sure about doing it. They were persuaded to go ahead and no-one raised the issue. They just enjoyed the comedy interaction between 2 wonderful people who obviously were quite comfortable together.
I met Morecambe and Wise in 1979 when they came to my home town in Portsmouth. I was only 9 at the time and Eric Morecombe bumped into me in the department store where we were all waiting for them. He didn't seem to be too happy being there on a Saturday morning at 10am and was probably none too pleased bumping into a 9 year old kid who got in his way causing him to mutter something that was probably better off not heard by my 9 year old ears at the time.
Mastermind is still going. Magnus Magnusson was the original question master. Mastermind also exists in several other countries. There's even been a World Championship... and a surprisingly popular boardgame. It's part of the tradition of genuinely difficult and intellectual British quiz shows. University Challenge and Only Connect also fall into this category. There's also a celebrity version, where the questions are easier. There are 4 or 5 contestants each round, with the winner of each round progressing. The series eventually culminates in a grand final, with the winner crowned Mastermind Champion for that year. It's one of the longest running shows on British tv and there's genuine kudos to being crowned champion. :)
There was a person that Abbot and Castelo sort of copied that sketch from and made their own. A comedian called Will Hay in the UK did that sketch but differently from UKs comedy circuit on radio later TV 1920's to 1940's.
That was the real host and his real name. Couple of British jokes there. 1/ When he coughed and he said "Arsenal" that was a long-running gag thru' the various series of Morecambe and Wise and 2/ He deliberately kept mis-pronouncing his name 3/ At the end when he says " I will never watch you wrestle again!" that refers to famous "unbeaten-on-tv" wrestler Mick McManus NOT Magnus Magnusson ..lol
At the time, there was a growing impatience among some people over the disconnect between what was being broadcast and the reality of life in Britain, and of the broadcasting restrictions that maintained this state of affairs. Mainstream comedians started pushing the envelope - and getting away with it - as the seventies rolled into the eighties, and competition to be seen as edgy has meant that some (not all) have continued to push back the threshold of acceptability ever since. One early pioneer was Rowan Atkinson as part of the Not the Nine O'clock News team. Another was Dave Allen, who broke the taboo against atheist jokes about religion through sheer personal charm and charisma. He would end each show with "Goodnight, and may your God go with you." Beautiful double-sided comment!
Originally comedy came from the music halls/theaters and then radio and in movies, once television came along it was a springboard for mainstream comedy. In the 1980's a new alternative comedy was developingwith the likes of The Young Ones, whose influence came from The Goons and later Monty Python. This new brand of comedy is still around today, while mainstream comedy is rarely seen now in the UK.
British humour in the Northern clubs was a forerunner of today's "shock" comedy.....jokes about race, gender and just about anything went on back then. But I think the 1980's was when it really changed, the Yuppie culture changed life in many ways. Those less fortunate were fair game to be laughed at along with minorities. Comedians become braver with their language and before we knew it, the "F" word was used on so called "alternative" comedy shows. The upshot of all of this was that comedians like Morecambe & Wise were considered uncool and old time with younger audiences preferring comics like Ben Elton. I guess society has moved on too, so there is more to it than my simple explanation. I still enjoy watching Morecambe & Wise.......but then I also enjoy the modern comedians as well - apart from a few that are just downright crude.
A real game - run by the same guy (back then, he died and another guy took over but Magnus Magnusson was THE guy). Program still runs - even now, 46 years after this show and was around before that... In UK we like situations where the "little guy" wins - since we went from ruling 1/4 of the world to almost nothing we like the little guy. But in honesty humour like this is working class humour as nowadays upper class are what Ernie (as the first guy was supposed to be) and normal (Eric). Class was a big thing in comedy in the 50s through to 80s (or maybe 90s).
The Two Ronnies' version is based (spoiler alert) on delayed answers to (the wrong) questions. Benny Hill did a sketch using a similar premise, but with the delay in response caused by a satellite TV link, which was a more plausible scenario. I am not sure whether one of these sketches was influenced by the other, and if so which came first.
@@MrJonno85 Actually the basic premise of answering questions out of order goes back further than that. After a bit of searching online found a reference to a NBC show from circa 1958 where host Hugh Downs did an interview where engineer screwed up order of tapes to same effect. It doesn't really mean anything as all comedy is based on what we find funny, mixing up words is one of them. It's like the thought that every story written is connected to a Shakespeare play.
@@alfredthegreat9543 I found the Benny Hill sketch on UA-cam last night - it is fairly risque, as you might expect from him! As you say, there is nothing new under the sun - many British acts were influenced by Hollywood and American TV, and in turn we had a fairly strong initial influence on their culture!
It's true that comedy has changed. In this context Morecambe &Wise (born in 1925 and 1926 respectively) were born into a very different world and Britain was a different country; many things that are considered subjects of comedy today would not have been considered appropriate in the world they grew up in. Also, censorship was used to control the distribution of art and entertainment, so the content that most people had access to was strictly controlled. Morecambe and Wise were part of the canon of "family entertainment" but performers from across the arts spectrum (Andre Previn, Vanessa Redgrave, Shirley Bassey, Des O'Connor) wanted to appear on their shows. End of rant
And a good sense of humour is a sign of good mental health. It’s very important tot be a s to laugh at yourself or at things we all find ridiculous. I think many people take themselves too seriously and their mental health is poor and they don’t laugh much at all.
Wasn't that Magnus Magnusson who asked the questions in the real Mastmind competition? And you had to watch a lot of Morcambe and Wise to understand the cough-Arsenal joke.
There was occasional subtle smut in M&W. Look what happens when Eric gets to his feet - he pretends he's had his bottom pinched/groped. It was one of his running gags.
Morecambe and Wise's early inspiration was believe it or not, Abbot and Costello. It's not surprising you sense something American in it, because actually you are correct. Catch any episode where Eric gives Ernie the two handed face clap and you'll recognise the origin. The straight man role (Abbot) has been reversed to the small guy and the tall guy is now Costello. The tall guy still does the face clap, but now Costello is doing it to Abbot. Watch that once and you'll get it in an instant, trust me.
Hi guys... and yes, Filippe has it spot on... British comedy has changed... not for the good I think... but as I'm a 60+ yr old, maybe it's just that enjoy the older style of humour... whereas younger folks find different more modern humour funny! Thanks for all the great videos!
Morecambe and Wise had a long-standing joke that, every time Ernie Wise coughed, Eric Morecambe would shout "Arsenal". It was a call back to a very early sketch of theirs where Eric was pretending to be a "memory man" and Ernie asked him who won the FA Cup (soccer) in a particular year. The answer was "Arsenal" but, of course, Eric didn't know - so Ernie kept trying to prompt him with the answer disguised as a cough. They carried on the resulting jokey reference to this long after the original sketch was a distant memory. I used to laugh my head of at it without the faintest idea of why it was funny.
I cannot believe you guys make a living doing this. Good for you. I don't believe Americans would be remotely interested in seeing Brits react to American comedy.
I have seen yr 2 other M&W reactions. They r the greatest comedy double act of all time in my opinion. I would recommend 2 u a personal favourite from their original tv series Two of a Kind (b&w) where they do Julius Caesar with Ernie supposedly dead as Caesar. It is hilarious!
Philippe, I'm glad you mentioned in your comments that the Morecombe and Wise humour is far more ''innocent'' and child-like compared with today's humour. I have said for a long time now that today's ''comedians'' can only get laughs using foul language! Sadly, the comedians like Morecombe and Wise and their ilk from the 70s, 80s and 90s, are too timid for today's younger society. I love ''innocent'' humour because it doesn't hurt or offend.Please keep doing what you're doing. Have you ever been asked to react to a DJ and comedian called Kenny Everett? He was great and before his time. I say was because he sadly died from Aids some years ago. We shall never see another one of him again either.
Morecambe & Wise cannot be beaten always been the best
That's why we love M&Wise so much, harmless, innocent, non smutty humour... 😉
Yes you are right, call me old fashioned but yesterday's comedy, I think was more innocent and just funny. 🇬🇧👍
I think so too! I don't like filth nor cruelty nor being shocking for the sake of it! I miss this type of comedy!
Silly humour is the best. There was no smut or bad language with Morecambe and Wise. Most people in the UK watched them and their Christmas specials were very popular each year. There is a sketch they did where they were preparing breakfast in time to the music called “the stripper” which was so clever and funny.
I just enjoyed them for the Comedy they did together, no other comedy has come close, Morecambe & Wise, were simply one in a million, the best, the cream of humour, sadly never to be repeated, I am very glad and proud to have grown up with them, The only sad thing is they are not here anymore, and thankfully TV Archives allows us to still enjoy what they did throughout the brilliant years they were together
Mastermind was a very popular show back then.
Magnus Magnusson was/is a very real person and his family are of Icelandic origin hence the name.
Magnus has/ had a daughter called Sally Magnusson. Mastermind is a real quiz programme on the BBC with John Humphreys who is a BBC journalist and presenter.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnus_Magnusson
Magnus Magusson’s daughter is a news anchor on BBC Scotland, Sally Sallyson
He was born in Reykjavík
Every Icelandic surname ends in "son"- without exception. One for the pub quiz!
André Previn was lost to us a couple of weeks ago. His appearance in the "Grieg's Piano Concerto" sketch with these two has long been a favourite of mine. The list of celebrities elbowing each other to get on the Morecambe and Wise Show to get insulted is legendary.
The best sketch is the Andre Previn conducts Eric Morecambe in Griegs Piano Concerto.ua-cam.com/video/rxIO7I_qJA8/v-deo.html
@@jonathanmaybury5698 I'll go further and say it is THE best Morecambe and Wise ever. The way the world-class conductor Andy Preview entered into the spirit of the sketch and held his own against two comedy legends was superb. It's a pity the BBC has pulled the sketch from UA-cam on copyright grounds.
André Preview
Another masteind sketch by morcum and wise.
Eric did play all the right notes, just not necessarily in the right order...
Enjoying your reactions to our programmes. Ha ha. If you think smut and double entendres are new to British comedy the you clearly haven't watched any of the "Carry On " movies from the 60s and 70s...classics😆 Although I do agree comedy was gentler and less abusive back then.
"Never watch you wrestle again" at the end. There was a wrestler in the 60's/early 70's called Mick McManus
Best joke of the sketch for me, all good though.
yes!!! was just about to say that but saw yours first!
Of course Ernie was supposed to be the clever sophistocated one but then confuses Mick McManus with Magnus Magnusson!
Yes, you are right,In my teenage years in England I remember watching him wrestle,he was the guy everyone loved to hate,became famous for it.
To: Andrew McCormack - You are quite correct. The irony of it, was that many of the wrestling matches were somewhat staged and Mick McManus (William George Matthews) was 'scheduled' to be the 'heel' or losing opponent. He was however a professional wrestler, and a British and European champion at different weights.
Funnier than a lot of the crap that passes for comedy now days.
So funny , never be another couple of comedians like these two or the two Ronnies
highly recommend the two ronnies mastermind sketch. one of the cleverest sketches ever.
Great word play, aka double meaning.
The two Ronnies do a mastermind sketch as well
Yes, you've got to see that one, it'll drive you nuts:)
Yes! The far superior Mastermind sketch - they should react to that one!
ua-cam.com/video/y0C59pI_ypQ/v-deo.html
Mastermind was such a great programme. The knowledge of the contestants was incredible.
It's still being shown.
I enjoy watching this couple getting their grip on British humour. Try watching another 2 Ronnies sketch, The sweet shop. Hilarious! All the best. Brian.
The real Mastermind was a very tense and serious affair. To be Mastermind for a given year was quite prestigious. It was a brain show not a game show. There was also University Challenge. Athletics of the mind and titles to be coveted and won. Magnus Magnusson was the actual host of the real Mastermind. He wasn't about to decline to appear on Morecambe and Wise. The Beatles even appeared way back.
The masters at work.
“Childlike”?! Bah! This comedy is genius. It doesn’t rely on smut, innuendo or swearing that modern “comedy” does.
They were very influenced by Laurel and Hardy, Laurel once said "If you couldn't do the gags at a Sunday school meeting, they were too risque". How times have changed.
British comedy fundamentally changed in the late 1970's with shows like "Not the 9 O'clock News" and in the early 1980's with shows like "The Young Ones" featuring an emerging wave of new comedians.
Morecambe and wise came from the theatre and the humour comes from that. If you watch the whole show they include the theatre aspect.
There were plenty a coarse comedians around then, not on the tv. The radio was pretty bawdy with round the horn
Plenty of innuendo, titter ye not
I wouldn't say you was funny but I keep coming back to you because you are nice people and interesting to listen too. I love listening to your views on all subjects
I love the intro to these videos, the cool music and how they all smiling then go serious face, what a lovely family. 🙂
I totally agree,A very beautiful family and I love the way their facial expressions change to a serious look,even the young girl does it..Very sweet..
A classic Must watch TV as kids in the 1970's....timeless, we love wordplay.
Mastermind was a huge TV show in the 70s. pretty much a national institution.
The Two Ronnies do two versions of the Mastermind sketch, It's well worth checking both of those out, British comedy at its finest.
Felipe you’ve got the British sense of humour summed up ,and you get it
yeah Mastermind was a real game show where contestants were asked questions on their chosen subject. I have a book written by one of the winners who specialised on railway questions :-) Also I am glad you went back to Morecambe & Wise ^_^
What happened was 1979, and in particular 'theTube' with the Alternative humour ie Ben Elton.
turned out to be--the alternative TO humour, ie crap.
Highly recommend Morecombe and Wise’s “Griegs piano concerto with Andre Previn” sketch. Absolute classic Morecombe and Wise.
Mastermind is still aired today (different presenter), in fact i watched one episode last week of the celebrity version. They did not do a celebrity version back in the 70's. It was open to members of the public to apply. I can't quite remember what the prize was for the series champion but i remember a crystal bowl at some point. There may not have been any other prize, just the kudos!
Magnus Magnusson was a real person and that was his name He was the question master. It was very prestigious to be that year's Mastermind
i love abbott and costello :)
and also you are mostly correct ...... most british humour is slightly insulting :) keep up the good work guys!. big love from the north-east of england
Magnus Magnusson was the actual host of Mastermind and appears here on the Morecombe and Wise show, they appeared on American tv back in the sixties, there was a programme on Gold on Sky TV looking at their appearances they made on The Ed Sullivan Show, they were a hit they struggled on their first show they did not get many laughs but after then got lots of laughs. They had shows on ITV (now ITV1) and BBC1 as well as the summer season in Blackpool, they had been together since they were kids but it sadly came to an end when Eric Morecombe died after having a heart attack in 1984 after coming off stage after appearing with another fellow comedian.
There is sometimes a place for swearing, etc in comedy but often it is used as a cheap substitute for being genuinely funny or witty.
Yes they do have a real Mastermind being on for years the one you need to watch is the 2Ronnies where Ronnie Corbert answers the question before very clever doing Mastermind
Mastermind was a real game show. I love Morecombe and Wise. I grew up watching them on the tell and now have them on DVD. One of the sketches they are perhaps best well know for is with Andre Previn doing Grieg's Piano Concerto. As a suggestion for another "reaction" video you may want to consider is The Two Ronnies. Their Four Candles sketch is famous and quite funny but the one I really like is the Sheikh in the Grocery Shop
You are correct , there used to be a program called Mastermind , and the host’s name was Magnus Magnusson
Mastermind is still going strong. Magnus Magnusson was the original presenter, he’s sadly passed away now, John Humphrys (of the R4 Today programme) is the current presenter.
You need to watch the best comedy voted by us Brits over the last 40 years..yes 40 years..and that's Faulty Towers.
British humour is the best in the world. We just don't see any on the BBC any more.
You should check out their André Previn sketch. It’s classic comedy.
Look at Morecombe and wise Breakfast clip and the two Ron's mastermind. Both legend of comedy duos
I think you're a lovely, amusing and engaging couple.
Les Dawson said that humour is the flipside of tragedy. Speaking of whom, check out Cissie & Ada sketches on this very site.
We still have Mastermind on UK TV but Magnus Magnusson (who was Icelandic) died in 2007. Both Eric and Ernie died well before that.
Morecombe and Wise was 'must see' TV in the seventies that drew viewing figures in the tens of millions but of course its quite dated now. Back then we only had three channels to chose from! However some of the sketches are considered the best sketches ever.
Morecambe & Wise was Carry on type comedy
Better choice of morecambe and wise sketch than your last one.
I love your analysis of different aspects of life in the U.K.
So Lillian have you done your baby concert yet,how did it go
It went well! We did record some but haven’t make it into a video yet
Mastermind was and still is a quiz show. Magnus Magnusson was the quiz master for many years
The two Ronnies doing master mind was good as he gives the answer to the previous question. 🤔🏴🇬🇧🤠
Morcambe and wise were fans of Abbott and costello by the way.
They amended that in an interview with Parkinson where they favoured Ollie & Stan.
@@alansmith1989 I can understand that. I'd imagine it'd be difficult to find anyone who didn't find Stan and ollie funny. Perhaps only a few of the terminally hip that are desperate to seem individual 😃
A very interesting discussion, thank you for making me think.
Ahh Morecambe & Wise. British comedy at it's best. Hilariously funny and from a more innocent time. My favourite sketch was the one where Eric is playing classical piano for the esteemed conductor Andre Previn. Mr Previn interrupts Eric several times to question his diabolical piano playing. Eric calmy rises to his feet and grabs Mr Previn by his lapels. Nose to nose he calmly says to him "listen sunshine. I'm playing all the right notes. Not necessarily in the right order " Classic! And my second favourite sketch.Eric does his own version of Gene Kelly singing in the rain routine. Just brilliant.
It would interesting to see their reaction to Eric and Ernie making breakfast to "The Stripper".
they saw it, and surprise surprise--Felipe was NOT amused.
They didn't understand it because they didn't know the music was called The Stripper. Completely lost on them!
@@Lily_The_Pink972 they should of looked it up a bit first . The bloke had a face like a slapped fish
That was so funny and yes you're right, completely innocent. I sometimes wonder if the media affects public behaviour or public behaviour affects the media. I think it's the former.
Rosalind Russell. Always enjoyed your movies.Ah, innocence. I miss it so. In later series M&W had a regular sketch in the show set in a kitchen or a lounge etc, implying that they lived together. Eventually it was necessary to show them in bed waking up and they indulged in their usual banter but were put in a double bed to make this more effective. It had obvious connotations of homosexuality and they weren't sure about doing it. They were persuaded to go ahead and no-one raised the issue. They just enjoyed the comedy interaction between 2 wonderful people who obviously were quite comfortable together.
What happened to UK comedy culture, it was "The Young Ones".
I met Morecambe and Wise in 1979 when they came to my home town in Portsmouth. I was only 9 at the time and Eric Morecombe bumped into me in the department store where we were all waiting for them. He didn't seem to be too happy being there on a Saturday morning at 10am and was probably none too pleased bumping into a 9 year old kid who got in his way causing him to mutter something that was probably better off not heard by my 9 year old ears at the time.
Morecambe and Wise! Such a fantastic duo!
Yes there was a quiz show called Mastermind in UK with Magnus Magnussan
There still is a quiz called Mastermind!
im 14 and i love morecambe and wise. they are my heros.
Eric was a genius. Have you watched the Two Ronnies Mastermind sketches?
Mastermind is still going. Magnus Magnusson was the original question master. Mastermind also exists in several other countries. There's even been a World Championship... and a surprisingly popular boardgame. It's part of the tradition of genuinely difficult and intellectual British quiz shows. University Challenge and Only Connect also fall into this category. There's also a celebrity version, where the questions are easier. There are 4 or 5 contestants each round, with the winner of each round progressing. The series eventually culminates in a grand final, with the winner crowned Mastermind Champion for that year. It's one of the longest running shows on British tv and there's genuine kudos to being crowned champion. :)
Amazed that you two took so long to recall it was `Abbott & Costello` who did "Who's on First?" That really surprised me!
There was a person that Abbot and Castelo sort of copied that sketch from and made their own. A comedian called Will Hay in the UK did that sketch but differently from UKs comedy circuit on radio later TV 1920's to 1940's.
That was the real host and his real name.
Couple of British jokes there.
1/ When he coughed and he said "Arsenal" that was a long-running gag thru' the various series of Morecambe and Wise and 2/ He deliberately kept mis-pronouncing his name 3/ At the end when he says " I will never watch you wrestle again!" that refers to famous "unbeaten-on-tv" wrestler Mick McManus NOT Magnus Magnusson ..lol
At the time, there was a growing impatience among some people over the disconnect between what was being broadcast and the reality of life in Britain, and of the broadcasting restrictions that maintained this state of affairs. Mainstream comedians started pushing the envelope - and getting away with it - as the seventies rolled into the eighties, and competition to be seen as edgy has meant that some (not all) have continued to push back the threshold of acceptability ever since. One early pioneer was Rowan Atkinson as part of the Not the Nine O'clock News team. Another was Dave Allen, who broke the taboo against atheist jokes about religion through sheer personal charm and charisma. He would end each show with "Goodnight, and may your God go with you." Beautiful double-sided comment!
The double entendre is very much a part of British comedy history, it’s not a modern thing
Originally comedy came from the music halls/theaters and then radio and in movies, once television came along it was a springboard for mainstream comedy. In the 1980's a new alternative comedy was developingwith the likes of The Young Ones, whose influence came from The Goons and later Monty Python. This new brand of comedy is still around today, while mainstream comedy is rarely seen now in the UK.
Eric Morecambe’s timing was impeccable!
British humour in the Northern clubs was a forerunner of today's "shock" comedy.....jokes about race, gender and just about anything went on back then. But I think the 1980's was when it really changed, the Yuppie culture changed life in many ways. Those less fortunate were fair game to be laughed at along with minorities. Comedians become braver with their language and before we knew it, the "F" word was used on so called "alternative" comedy shows. The upshot of all of this was that comedians like Morecambe & Wise were considered uncool and old time with younger audiences preferring comics like Ben Elton.
I guess society has moved on too, so there is more to it than my simple explanation.
I still enjoy watching Morecambe & Wise.......but then I also enjoy the modern comedians as well - apart from a few that are just downright crude.
The Two Ronnies' version of Mastermind is even better, imo. Mastermind is still going strong - now in its 50th year on TV (started in 1972).
A real game - run by the same guy (back then, he died and another guy took over but Magnus Magnusson was THE guy). Program still runs - even now, 46 years after this show and was around before that...
In UK we like situations where the "little guy" wins - since we went from ruling 1/4 of the world to almost nothing we like the little guy. But in honesty humour like this is working class humour as nowadays upper class are what Ernie (as the first guy was supposed to be) and normal (Eric). Class was a big thing in comedy in the 50s through to 80s (or maybe 90s).
i agree humour as changed but everyone still loves the old ones
It's like the Carry On movies... A glimpse back-in-time to when things were innocent.
@@Lily-Bravo I have to disagree, they're not dodgy - it's was innocent, slapstick comedy 50 years ago. Ever had a postcard from Blackpool?
Pure class
'Take offs' of Mastermind were also done by Benny Hill and The Two Ronnies.
There is a two Ronnie's sketch of mastermind you really need to check that out but good find I forgot about this one
Yes definitely. Not only hilarious but brilliantly done.
The Two Ronnies version is the better of the two even if Morecambe and Wise's is more accurate with the presentation
The Two Ronnies' version is based (spoiler alert) on delayed answers to (the wrong) questions. Benny Hill did a sketch using a similar premise, but with the delay in response caused by a satellite TV link, which was a more plausible scenario.
I am not sure whether one of these sketches was influenced by the other, and if so which came first.
@@MrJonno85 Actually the basic premise of answering questions out of order goes back further than that. After a bit of searching online found a reference to a NBC show from circa 1958 where host Hugh Downs did an interview where engineer screwed up order of tapes to same effect.
It doesn't really mean anything as all comedy is based on what we find funny, mixing up words is one of them.
It's like the thought that every story written is connected to a Shakespeare play.
@@alfredthegreat9543 I found the Benny Hill sketch on UA-cam last night - it is fairly risque, as you might expect from him!
As you say, there is nothing new under the sun - many British acts were influenced by Hollywood and American TV, and in turn we had a fairly strong initial influence on their culture!
It's true that comedy has changed. In this context Morecambe &Wise (born in 1925 and 1926 respectively) were born into a very different world and Britain was a different country; many things that are considered subjects of comedy today would not have been considered appropriate in the world they grew up in. Also, censorship was used to control the distribution of art and entertainment, so the content that most people had access to was strictly controlled. Morecambe and Wise were part of the canon of "family entertainment" but performers from across the arts spectrum (Andre Previn, Vanessa Redgrave, Shirley Bassey, Des O'Connor) wanted to appear on their shows. End of rant
Try Dave Allen on Airplanes. Dave Allen had a sit down comedy show on UK TV. This sketch is on You Tube. Very funny!
And a good sense of humour is a sign of good mental health. It’s very important tot be a s to laugh at yourself or at things we all find ridiculous. I think many people take themselves too seriously and their mental health is poor and they don’t laugh much at all.
You really have to watch the 2 Ronnie's mastermind sectch that's really brilliant
I personally prefer the two Ronnie master mind sketch. Can you react to that?
Agree not much difference but just edges it
Wasn't that Magnus Magnusson who asked the questions in the real Mastmind competition? And you had to watch a lot of Morcambe and Wise to understand the cough-Arsenal joke.
There was occasional subtle smut in M&W. Look what happens when Eric gets to his feet - he pretends he's had his bottom pinched/groped. It was one of his running gags.
Morecambe and Wise's early inspiration was believe it or not, Abbot and Costello. It's not surprising you sense something American in it, because actually you are correct. Catch any episode where Eric gives Ernie the two handed face clap and you'll recognise the origin. The straight man role (Abbot) has been reversed to the small guy and the tall guy is now Costello. The tall guy still does the face clap, but now Costello is doing it to Abbot. Watch that once and you'll get it in an instant, trust me.
The two Ronnies sketch is so much performed and written
Mastermind is still running on the bbc
Hi guys... and yes, Filippe has it spot on... British comedy has changed... not for the good I think... but as I'm a 60+ yr old, maybe it's just that enjoy the older style of humour... whereas younger folks find different more modern humour funny! Thanks for all the great videos!
I know I'm late to the party but I do hope you have looked up Mastermind to see what it's all about. You have a good channel. I like it
Morecambe and Wise had a long-standing joke that, every time Ernie Wise coughed, Eric Morecambe would shout "Arsenal". It was a call back to a very early sketch of theirs where Eric was pretending to be a "memory man" and Ernie asked him who won the FA Cup (soccer) in a particular year. The answer was "Arsenal" but, of course, Eric didn't know - so Ernie kept trying to prompt him with the answer disguised as a cough. They carried on the resulting jokey reference to this long after the original sketch was a distant memory. I used to laugh my head of at it without the faintest idea of why it was funny.
The two ronnies Mastermind is so funny 😂
They started off doing the routines from Abbott and Costello before developing their own sketches and routines.
Try the Two Ronnies Mastermind sketch.... Or the " Four Candles" in the Chandlers Sketch.
Should also check out their take on Singing in the Rain - it is said even Gene Kelley saw it and liked it .
"Oh you've got a little Dad have ya?"
Mr McManus, I will never watch your wrestle again - LOL at the end.
Mastermind is a real quiz and it's still on. It was created by a man who had been a Prisoner of War and was interrogated by the Nazis.
Magnus Magnusson wasn't a joke, that's his actual name
That's what I just thought. Ha ha she thought it was funny
I cannot believe you guys make a living doing this. Good for you. I don't believe Americans would be remotely interested in seeing Brits react to American comedy.
I have seen yr 2 other M&W reactions. They r the greatest comedy double act of all time in my opinion. I would recommend 2 u a personal favourite from their original tv series Two of a Kind (b&w) where they do Julius Caesar with Ernie supposedly dead as Caesar. It is hilarious!
Philippe, I'm glad you mentioned in your comments that the Morecombe and Wise humour is far more ''innocent'' and child-like compared with today's humour. I have said for a long time now that today's ''comedians'' can only get laughs using foul language! Sadly, the comedians like Morecombe and Wise and their ilk from the 70s, 80s and 90s, are too timid for today's younger society. I love ''innocent'' humour because it doesn't hurt or offend.Please keep doing what you're doing. Have you ever been asked to react to a DJ and comedian called Kenny Everett? He was great and before his time. I say was because he sadly died from Aids some years ago. We shall never see another one of him again either.