The drag act was introduced into the army concert party because there were no women on the front line back then and someone had to sing the female music hall classics. Another show called "It ain't half hot mum" which was based on a British concert party in Burma during WW2 is a real classic. Melvin Hayes plays Bombardier Beaumont, AKA Gloria as the drag act. ✌❤🇬🇧
Daniel is correct- its not about Stephen Fry, it’s a comment on the emotional distance that upper class men had from women at the time. Goes Forth is a wonderful series; glad you guys can appreciate it.
It's also just standard British theatrical comedy, riffing on the likes of Carry On and Pantomime - it's not a "product of it's time", Mrs Brown's Boys is still going strong to this day. We Brits have never really had issue in cross-dressing for comic effect, it's only really this modern era where American influences have people questioning it and trying to figure out some hidden meaning. There doesn't need to be a hidden meaning, it's just a joke .... but, yes, the joke is at the expense of George's naive stupidity and Melchitt's Upper Class stupid naivety
Correct I think. Rumour has it that the word ‘drag’ originates from the phrase ‘dressed as girl’ which appeared in the stage directions for early plays including Shakespeare’s as a shorthand acronym.
@@matthewwalker5430eurgh Mrs Browns Boys is one of the least funniest shows I’ve ever seen… BUT I appreciate that you were making a valid point all the same 😂
In UK theatre it is a historic tradition that the older woman 'dame' is played by a guy and the hero 'best boy' is played by a girl.... so it has nothing to do with USA's toxic politics
The 4th series is my favourite. Their intention when writing it was never to mock the soldiers but to highlight the stupidity & arrogance of high command that leads to a complete disregard for life… they just do it in an extremely funny way. Enjoy & thank you for all the entertainment 😁
As a Brit I like your reactions. Minor point, in this one you left out the very last line. Darling said, No hard feelings I hope Blackadder? Blackadder said, No, not at all, then offered Baldrick's dead slug as a candy to Darling. Liquorice Allsort (a very popular British candy) Darling? Darling said, Thank you and took the slug to eat it. Very funny touch to the ending, although it doesn't sound it if you don't know the type of confection, being American.
Just to give you guys something to look forward to. Black adder goes forth last episode has possibly the most perfect and beautiful ending of any TV series ever in the history of entertainment.
Hugh Laurie and Steven Fry who plays Melchet were a great comedy double act on UK TV long before he turned to serious acting in House. You should check out their show called "A bit of Fry & Laurie" Other good ones are "That Mitchell & Webb Look" (David Mitchell and Robert Webb) and "Armstrong and Miller"
I'd also recommend "Jeeves and Wooster" starring Hugh Lorrie as the inbred cretin Berty Wooster and his long suffering butler Jeeves played by Stephen Fry.
"The three twerps were one twerp short....AGAIN!" I don't know how I missed that in earlier viewings. Stephen Fry nailed that line, nearly pissed myself.
Drag acts were a part of the British Music Hall tradition, which is referred to in the episode, which was a thing in Britain from Victorian times to the early twentieth century. Music Hall was a kind of cheap, variety entertainment in a Music Hall where the audience were sat at tables and eating or drinking while the show was on, which consisted of popular songs, novelty acts, comedy etc etc. The entertainment could be bawdy and raucous, and the atmosphere rowdy. They faded out in the interwar years as things like jazz clubs or cinemas took their place.
I never thought I'd see some regular American lads enjoying Blackadder and getting the cultural references. I'm delighted to be proven wrong. Great job guys, keep it up!
Charlie Chaplin was born in my Manor, The Elephant and Castle, the same as Michael Caine. Sir Micheal decided to take a walk around the Elephant to reminisce. He looked across the road and there on the other side was Charlie Chaplin doing the exact same thing!
Just as Bob was a play on the ‘boys dressing as girls’ Shakespearean plays of the time in Blackadder II, so here she is a riff on the popularity of music hall drag acts from the early 20th century. The sex-starved troops used to love (and likely be titillated by) dudes doing comedy routines as dames. There’s still a strand of this tradition that runs through recent British comedy, such as The League of Gentlemen or Little Britain.
Hiya Spencer and Daniel, my great great Uncle Isaac died of his war wounds in 1919 after the first world war, my Great Uncle Isaac died of lung cancer even though he never smoked a cigarette or cigar in his life, I like the line "they've overthrown Nicholas the second, who used to be bizarre", this is Choppy in Whitehaven, Cumbria, England
Hi guys I don't think you see the satire, the writers are sending up the aristocracy, they ruled by birthright not by intelligence or strength, in fact interbreeding to keep the aristocracy in power resulted in diminished ability physically and intellectually., it was the poorer classes that were far more capable but the peasants who had no education were too busy trying to survive, so it was the middle class, merchants, lawyers, etc were the ones, like Blackadder, who were at the helm without either class being aware of it. cheers!!!
I hope you will understand the meaning of the season finale seen. The insanity of war. I cry every time. And as a Finnish guy looking at Ukraine now, knowing that we could be next, the horrors my grandfather suffered in the trenches during 1939 - 1945 are becoming my future.
Yeah the big difference with season ONE is that in 2, 3 and 4 Blackadder's a schemer... a cunning, sarcastic guy who generally wins the day. In one, he's a plain fool, and never wins.
It's really a continuous trend rather than 1 being one thing and 2/3/4 being another. In each series he is in a lower and lower station in life, but increasingly clever, acerbic, and successful in his schemes. Don't forget that he had several extremely close calls in series 2 as well, which he often escaped by luck rather than cunning.
The main reason for that is who the writers were, Season 1 was RowanAtkinson and Richard Curtis, after that it was Curtis and Ben Elton, hence the huge shift in tone.
Have you seen the last episode yet ? Funny, heartbreaking at the same time, the final scene will break you up😢 When George says “ I’m scared sir” before actually going over the top. My grandfather and great grandfather went through that and it means a lot to me. It’s enveloped in clever humour but it’s very real at the same time. The ending of that last episode as very emotional and respectful, especially the whole black adder programmes took the piss out of the stupid acts of our monarchy , politics etc. and covered it in anarchic humour
I don't know if the drag thing was specifically pointed. Brits have Panto (the part of music hall that stuck around) which has always had a pantomime dame as the comic relief, and the principal boys (hero) was played by a girl. Men dressing in drag was just plain entertainment for decades.
the actual origin of the "drag" act goes back to the Elizabethan/Jacobean era when theatre became mainstream entertainment primarily thx to Shakespeare when it was illegal for women to perform on stage.
The idea about having a male as a drag act in a military variety show is fairly standard. British Army had “concert parties“ in warzones, and with the absence of females, there was always a male drag act. Also very common in Music Halls, which they referred to, which would be the British equivalent of Vaudeville in USA.
Hi there. Did you guys post a reaction to the Blackadder season 3 finale? I can't find it, it should be episode 6 called 'Dual and Duality'. The Very last one I can find it episode 5 'Amy and Amiability'
I think everyone is over thinking it, it’s just absurd comedy - man pretends to be woman and other man fancies him. Woman pretends to be man and everyone believes it even when she’s dressed like a woman. It was the 80s and gender politics wasn’t really a thing then. Comedians cross-dressed for decades just for a laugh… a simpler age
This episode has.. ‘Sticky the stick insect’ ‘Olaf the hairy’ And ‘Tarzan going through Jane’s handbag and ate her lipstick’ Does it get any better than that?!! 😂
This 'Bob' was the same actress who played 'Bob' in Series II, when she was going to marry Blackadder... Until Flash turned up!
The drag act was introduced into the army concert party because there were no women on the front line back then and someone had to sing the female music hall classics.
Another show called "It ain't half hot mum" which was based on a British concert party in Burma during WW2 is a real classic.
Melvin Hayes plays Bombardier Beaumont, AKA Gloria as the drag act.
✌❤🇬🇧
Daniel is correct- its not about Stephen Fry, it’s a comment on the emotional distance that upper class men had from women at the time. Goes Forth is a wonderful series; glad you guys can appreciate it.
It's also just standard British theatrical comedy, riffing on the likes of Carry On and Pantomime - it's not a "product of it's time", Mrs Brown's Boys is still going strong to this day. We Brits have never really had issue in cross-dressing for comic effect, it's only really this modern era where American influences have people questioning it and trying to figure out some hidden meaning. There doesn't need to be a hidden meaning, it's just a joke .... but, yes, the joke is at the expense of George's naive stupidity and Melchitt's Upper Class stupid naivety
Yea nothing funnier than the pythons cross dressing, esp terry jones! Dunno why, it just is. See also Fry and Laurie in their sketch show.
Prob goes back to the fact men had to take all the parts, male or female in early days of theatre, so it’s totally normal.
Correct I think. Rumour has it that the word ‘drag’ originates from the phrase ‘dressed as girl’ which appeared in the stage directions for early plays including Shakespeare’s as a shorthand acronym.
@@matthewwalker5430eurgh Mrs Browns Boys is one of the least funniest shows I’ve ever seen… BUT I appreciate that you were making a valid point all the same 😂
In UK theatre it is a historic tradition that the older woman 'dame' is played by a guy and the hero 'best boy' is played by a girl.... so it has nothing to do with USA's toxic politics
The 4th series is my favourite. Their intention when writing it was never to mock the soldiers but to highlight the stupidity & arrogance of high command that leads to a complete disregard for life… they just do it in an extremely funny way.
Enjoy & thank you for all the entertainment 😁
Unfortunately it's also a completely false narrative. The 'lions led by donkeys' idea is a myth that needs to be put firmly to bed
I think quite a few Americans dont realise Charlie was a Londoner
Saarf Laahndan.
As a Brit I like your reactions. Minor point, in this one you left out the very last line. Darling said, No hard feelings I hope Blackadder? Blackadder said, No, not at all, then offered Baldrick's dead slug as a candy to Darling. Liquorice Allsort (a very popular British candy) Darling? Darling said, Thank you and took the slug to eat it. Very funny touch to the ending, although it doesn't sound it if you don't know the type of confection, being American.
Just to give you guys something to look forward to.
Black adder goes forth last episode has possibly the most perfect and beautiful ending of any TV series ever in the history of entertainment.
I can't disagree with this opinion. 25 mins or so of incredibly funny and poignant comedy about a desperate situation. All involved should take a bow.
Waiting for the reaction to the last episode....
People will know why
Golden moment in British television.
Too soon...
Wobble
It's great that Bob, the character, also crops up in "Upstart Crow", the Shakespeare comedy with David Mitchell. Same time period as BA II.
Hugh Laurie and Steven Fry who plays Melchet were a great comedy double act on UK TV long before he turned to serious acting in House.
You should check out their show called "A bit of Fry & Laurie"
Other good ones are "That Mitchell & Webb Look" (David Mitchell and Robert Webb) and "Armstrong and Miller"
I'd also recommend "Jeeves and Wooster" starring Hugh Lorrie as the inbred cretin Berty Wooster and his long suffering butler Jeeves played by Stephen Fry.
"The three twerps were one twerp short....AGAIN!"
I don't know how I missed that in earlier viewings. Stephen Fry nailed that line, nearly pissed myself.
Ironically, Charlie Chaplin was a big influence on Rowan Atkinson's development of the 'Mr. Bean' character 😂😂
Jacques Tati
"This is the stickiest situation since Sticky the stick insect got stuck on a sticky bun." My favourite metaphor in the whole Blackadder series.
I still favour "more cunning than a fox that has been made professor of cunning at Oxford university"
Just wait until you guys see Rik Mayall’s episode with the return of his character Lord Flasheart
It’s the best episode of this and every season
It's pure quality
Drag acts were a part of the British Music Hall tradition, which is referred to in the episode, which was a thing in Britain from Victorian times to the early twentieth century. Music Hall was a kind of cheap, variety entertainment in a Music Hall where the audience were sat at tables and eating or drinking while the show was on, which consisted of popular songs, novelty acts, comedy etc etc. The entertainment could be bawdy and raucous, and the atmosphere rowdy. They faded out in the interwar years as things like jazz clubs or cinemas took their place.
"Care for a Liquorice Allsort?"
*Opens slug box*
You guys will love the next episode, probably the best Blackadder Episode ever made. 👍
I never thought I'd see some regular American lads enjoying Blackadder and getting the cultural references. I'm delighted to be proven wrong. Great job guys, keep it up!
Charlie Chaplin was born in my Manor, The Elephant and Castle, the same as Michael Caine.
Sir Micheal decided to take a walk around the Elephant to reminisce. He looked across the road and there on the other side was Charlie Chaplin doing the exact same thing!
You watched the same interviews with Michael Caine that I have 😀
@ianstopher9111 OK then, the time MC's mum was a Char lady working under, who's mum????
TV gold, never equalled. Great reaction guys. 👏🏻👏🏻
This is why british humour is held in such high regard
Can't wait for you to do the episode with Rik Mayall and Ade Edmunson. Long time fan and a much anticipated series. Thanks as always guys. ETS
Just as Bob was a play on the ‘boys dressing as girls’ Shakespearean plays of the time in Blackadder II, so here she is a riff on the popularity of music hall drag acts from the early 20th century. The sex-starved troops used to love (and likely be titillated by) dudes doing comedy routines as dames. There’s still a strand of this tradition that runs through recent British comedy, such as The League of Gentlemen or Little Britain.
Hiya Spencer and Daniel, my great great Uncle Isaac died of his war wounds in 1919 after the first world war, my Great Uncle Isaac died of lung cancer even though he never smoked a cigarette or cigar in his life, I like the line "they've overthrown Nicholas the second, who used to be bizarre", this is Choppy in Whitehaven, Cumbria, England
Hi guys I don't think you see the satire, the writers are sending up the aristocracy, they ruled by birthright not by intelligence or strength, in fact interbreeding to keep the aristocracy in power resulted in diminished ability physically and intellectually., it was the poorer classes that were far more capable but the peasants who had no education were too busy trying to survive, so it was the middle class, merchants, lawyers, etc were the ones, like Blackadder, who were at the helm without either class being aware of it. cheers!!!
I hope you will understand the meaning of the season finale seen. The insanity of war. I cry every time. And as a Finnish guy looking at Ukraine now, knowing that we could be next, the horrors my grandfather suffered in the trenches during 1939 - 1945 are becoming my future.
Love the Newcastle Brown Ale t-shirt. Going back to your premier league video, you should have newcastle as your team as default now
It's brewed in Tadcaster. Hasn't been a real Geordie drink for decades.
Bob is a repeat charachter from the slap,my thigh Elizabethan Shakespear8an episone of Blackadder.
...And wait for the next one!!!
24:50 Daniel is spot on, he fully gets it
Yeah the big difference with season ONE is that in 2, 3 and 4 Blackadder's a schemer... a cunning, sarcastic guy who generally wins the day. In one, he's a plain fool, and never wins.
The other difference is series one is awful.
there is that yes @@stevemccullagh36
It's really a continuous trend rather than 1 being one thing and 2/3/4 being another. In each series he is in a lower and lower station in life, but increasingly clever, acerbic, and successful in his schemes. Don't forget that he had several extremely close calls in series 2 as well, which he often escaped by luck rather than cunning.
@@phuealyep, Blackadder gets more intelligent in each series, while Baldrick gets less intelligent in each series.
The main reason for that is who the writers were, Season 1 was RowanAtkinson and Richard Curtis, after that it was Curtis and Ben Elton, hence the huge shift in tone.
I think George's reaction to Blackadder asking if he agreed to be engaged was just perfect.
Not gonna lie, the scenes as Gorgeous Georgina were some of my favourite to do when I did Goes Forth!
I first saw Hugh Laurie in the Blackadder series then the film Stuart Little, then House.
Stephen fry and Hugh Laurie where together Oxford or Cambridge University and how they knew each other
Not to mention how awesome they were in Jeeves and Wooster
Have you seen the last episode yet ? Funny, heartbreaking at the same time, the final scene will break you up😢
When George says “ I’m scared sir” before actually going over the top. My grandfather and great grandfather went through that and it means a lot to me. It’s enveloped in clever humour but it’s very real at the same time. The ending of that last episode as very emotional and respectful, especially the whole black adder programmes took the piss out of the stupid acts of our monarchy , politics etc. and covered it in anarchic humour
be kinda nice not to spoil it for them by saying what happens though yeah???
@@KevPage-Witkicker nah it was 30 yrs ago. I don’t buy into this spoiler nonsense. Here another spoiler, it’s great. 👍
30 yrs ago yet they are currently watching the series and OH I GET IT you're just a **** @@nez9751
@@nez9751 Defeats the point of watching a reaction channel though.
@@NorthDownReader does it, ? Doesn’t really matter does it? Bigger stuff to worry about than that. Fair enough though.
Hey guys. I love your videos and find your humour and insights to be great. Blessings from across the pond from this Brit!
You guy's should try "Jeeves & Wooster" some of steven fry and hugh lauries best
my favourite is Roderick Spode, he's a Nazi leader of Great Britain
"I like the little black one , but who's the burk he's sitting on?"
I went to a Pantomime once where 'Home and Away' was sung by a cross-dressed couple.
A Mustache like a private hedge! Or a dead slug!
If you haven't already watched it - The New Statesman - UK series with the actor who played Flasheart
I don't know if the drag thing was specifically pointed.
Brits have Panto (the part of music hall that stuck around) which has always had a pantomime dame as the comic relief, and the principal boys (hero) was played by a girl.
Men dressing in drag was just plain entertainment for decades.
the actual origin of the "drag" act goes back to the Elizabethan/Jacobean era when theatre became mainstream entertainment primarily thx to Shakespeare when it was illegal for women to perform on stage.
You should recognise Bob from Blackadder II doing much the same thing.
The idea about having a male as a drag act in a military variety show is fairly standard. British Army had “concert parties“ in warzones, and with the absence of females, there was always a male drag act. Also very common in Music Halls, which they referred to, which would be the British equivalent of Vaudeville in USA.
i see the ronnie 147 video did really well
Hi there. Did you guys post a reaction to the Blackadder season 3 finale? I can't find it, it should be episode 6 called 'Dual and Duality'. The Very last one I can find it episode 5 'Amy and Amiability'
Nice Newcastle brown ale T-shirt 💪💪
9:10 mulan is about 2000 years older a story…
The Disney movie though is more recent than blackadder season 4
You guys should watch “allo allo” or “dad’s army”….
Or Bottom, or best of all The Goodies.
Allo allo or Dad’s Army…
Both great shouts.
Woah woah, when did you swap sides????????
I find it so weird when they reverse the screen too.
@@slytheringingerwitch probs for copyright reasons, judt feels wrong
As actors will tell you, until they get a script they gave nothing to say and the writers for this series got it spot on.
Before blackadder Stephen fry and Hugh Laurie had a Successful TV series
They had Alas Fry & Laurie and Jeeves and Wooster
No " A Bit Of Fry And Laurie" was first aired in 1987.
After this you guys need to try Friday night dinner
too jewish??? nah thats a great show too,,, takes you to green wing which was also brilliant
Drag act, uk, British pantomime. Leading lady is the lead make and the panto.dame.
You also.need to find 'upstart crow'.
See, now that you've seen Blackadder, you'll never be able to take House seriously again.
with the horns inward! Christians and lions! believe me, you will remember this even in 20 years! 😂
League of Gentlemen next. & how about some British film like Sexy Beast or Withnail & !?
General Ludendorff's description of his British opponents as " Lions led by donkeys " - would seem particularly apt and poignant.
It was a joke about his sexuality It was Stephen fry's idea
hey guys, you guys going to react to REN- Hi Ren?
Ain't half hot mum next.
Don't read or think too much over the man / woman thing or if they're trying to make a statement about something. I'ts just funny.
Have they not done Father Ted?
You’re on the other side 😱
First date huh? Yeah ok mate😂😂😂😂
I think everyone is over thinking it, it’s just absurd comedy - man pretends to be woman and other man fancies him. Woman pretends to be man and everyone believes it even when she’s dressed like a woman. It was the 80s and gender politics wasn’t really a thing then. Comedians cross-dressed for decades just for a laugh… a simpler age
This episode has..
‘Sticky the stick insect’
‘Olaf the hairy’
And
‘Tarzan going through Jane’s handbag and ate her lipstick’
Does it get any better than that?!! 😂
No, it wasn't about his sexuality.
But Disney stole the story of mulan in the first place, just like they do most of their movie ideas.
I love how these guys read WAY too much into the series. Why do Americans have to over analyse everything? 🙄🙄
Blackadder is older than Mulan. By almost a decade as far as the 4th series goes.
You think Disney made up Mulan? The story comes from a far older legend
@@MyratheDunmer I was talking about the film, like the video was. Disney makes up very few of the characters and stories in their best loved films.
Spencer doesn't get it.
What’s going on with the choppy editing guys? Very odd and doesn’t seem intentional. Like an auto-edit that needs gentler parameters?
😂😂😂😂😂
Chaplin was immensely overrated and got a lot of credit for stuff that Laurel and Hardy came up with first.
I was well disappointed here. Got 2 minutes in, but the copyright renders it pointless so I'm leaving.
The editing on the Black adder they cut out lots of jokes video is awful
There laughing like 2 seconds after its been said
Thank you.