What Makes You Laugh?

[Richard]

Hello Jon!

Just say something good about Manchester United and you'll be all right! i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Richard

[Richard]

postscript said:

Tommy Cooper sure does get my support. Now, was it him, or someone else and if so whom, who played the piano disastrously badly but just once, and may be twice in his career did actually play the music properly proving he could, as we always suspected, play the piano extremely well.

Hello Peter!

I don't remember Tommy Cooper playing the piano, but Les Dawson was brilliant at playing it badly, so he must have been a good pianist really!

Best Wishes,

Richard

[jons]

ManU are The b... The be... The bes.... The b.....

I can't do it Richard, I'm doomed...DOOOMED!!!!!

[Martin]

jons said:

I shouldn't, but I can't resist:

'Evon Guillemots' meets:

Hayley

Hayley: Hi Evon!

Evon: Hi, do you think ManU will win premier league?

President Bush


Bush:Howdy!

Evon: Hi your Highness, I predict ManU winning International.

The Pope

The Pope:Blessings upon you

Evon: Yes, do you think Rooney will sustain another injury soon?


Evon joins the army

Sargent: So you want to join up? Do you have any questions?

Evon: Does the army support Manchester United?

i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

He'll kill me!

Hi Jon
I think you're quite safe as he isn't a member of HWI (yet). Perhaps someone should also point out to him that Hayley doesn't look like Russel Watson either!

Best Wishes
Martin

[comet]

The bricklayers accident.

Also Known in song as THE SICK NOTE by the Dubliners.

It is very funny

[postscript]

Oh Grant, Hoffnung indeed! I have somewhere his Address to the Oxford Union. Of course we must have his English translations for tourists in foreign hotel rooms.

Perhaps Joyce Grenfell? What About the Navy Lark. 'Left-hand down a bit'.

'When ever it was, where ever it weas that what ever it was happened, I wasn't there!'

Peter S.

[postscript]

The Bricklayer's Accident
Hoffnung delivering it makes it even funnier!

It also reminds me of another insurance claim for damages. This was a motorist who stated 'The accident happened due to me colliding with the car in front of me, which I had not noticed had stopped, as I was busy waving to a driver travelling in the opposite direction. This was the chap whose car I ran into yesterday, which is why I was preoccupied with waving to him. But he seemed to be all right about it'!

Peter S.

[postscript]

Mentioning Hoffnung reminds me of a purely American chap, Tom Lehrer. What do you think of his period, Joe?

Thoughts that come into mind are both his songs and his monologues. One phrase about airline advertising telling you 'flying being the safest way to fly' until you see all the insurance booths inviting you to take out a policy 'just in case'.

Then in flight, the captain comes on to reassure. 'We are flying at around 36,000 feet, or so and should be putting down about half-an-hour ahead of schedule.'
'Rather than reassure this scares the hell out of me because he can put the plane down a whole hour ahead of schedule, if he ditches in the North Atlantic!'

Then there were his songs, like 'Masochism Tango' and 'Poisoning Pigeons in the Park'

What are your views Joe on one of your compatriots?

I think the general concensus so far emerging is that you can't beat the classic one-liners but who, then delivers the best of those? For quality, I would imagine a wide variety of individuals, not all of them by any means comedians. For quantity it must perhaps be Groucho Marx? But then, of his many one-liners, which? The more well known must surely be, 'I wouldn't join any club that would have someone like me as a member!'?

Peter S.

[roger]

postscript said:

'I wouldn't join any club that would have someone like me as a member!'

Peter S.

Now we know why the membership is so low!

J/K, honest!



Roger

[Joe]

postscript said:

Mentioning Hoffnung reminds me of a purely American chap, Tom Lehrer. What do you think of his period, Joe?

Hello Peter
Sorry, I've not heard of Tom Lehrer. I'll have to google him! Also you refered to my liking of British TV comedy. American comedy programmes just don't have any zing to them. One downfall is that comedy programmes from the BBC i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif or ITV ;)or Channel 4 etc. have only about a dozen episodes every series (or season) whereas in America may produce twice that amount in a year.

In the 1970's US producers were keen to "remake" popular comedy programmes airing in the UK.

An American version of 'Are You Being Served?' never fared well. It was the same basic idea of the shop floor in a dept. store but US viewers prefered the UK ver. better.

On the other side of the coin, UK viewers loved the popular American show "The Golden Girls". A British version of the show never took off, as they also tuned in to watch the original version.

Most recently, "The Office" was re-done for US viewers. It's doing quite well at the moment.

OK, enough of my twittering for today!

All the best to you, Peter
Joe

[postscript]

roger said:

postscript said:

'I wouldn't join any club that would have someone like me as a member!'

Peter S.

Now we know why the membership is so low!

J/K, honest!



Roger

That last line just makes it worse, for they say that many a true word is spoken in jest!

Peter S.

[postscript]

Thanks for all your encouragment, Joe, and for your follow-through on points raised.

My initial response to your admission you did not know of Tom Lehrer made my flabber so ghasted (Franky Howard) I could not believe it (Tom MacEnroe, reminding us you don't have to be a comedian to be funny and entertaining). Then I checked something. You're half my age (as makes no difference). Suddenly I do feel so old!

Peter S.

[jons]

I’d like to thank Peter for starting this thread, laughter is the best medicine. And its interesting to see the differences between what makes the young and old laugh.

A number of things:

I’m glad Richard brought up Les Dawson - I loved his Mother-in-law jokes.

I’m a big fan of UK sitcoms too. I used to watch repeats of Dad’s Army, Are You Being Served, and Open All Hours, among others on UK Gold.

Blackadder was a favourite though. I think the last series was the most popular (Blackadder Goes Forth), which was set during the first world war.
No Mans Land was beckoning for Captain Blackadder and he was trying to do everything he could to escape what was basically a death sentence(including pretending to be mad.(wibble,wibble!). But I remember it for the last episode: Capt. Blackadder and his fellow men were standing at the bottom of the trench ready for the ‘big push’. Boldrick had one last ‘cunning plan’ up his sleeve (Is it as cunning as a fox who as been appointed ‘Master of Cunning’?). But it had to wait, said Capt. Blackadder. They were about to go over.
They were joined by Captain Darling, sent there by the order of the unlikable General Melchett(played by the very likeble Stehpen Fry). Then the moment came: The guns stopped; ‘The war is over’ thought Blackadder. But then the order came to advance. They made their first steps onto No Mans Land. Everything went into slow motion; a slowed tempo version of the Blackadder theme started to play. These men, who for a a whole series were presented to us as scared and cowardly (they had absolutely every right to be!) had become heroes. I remember watching them fighting to survive in those first few moments before the screen faded to the poppy fields of today, and for that moment I was not just seeing characters that I cared about and hoping that they made it through, but the real men in that war. It was one of the most moving moments in any sitcom I’ve seen.

Its just an example of the possibility to perfectly juxtapose comedy and serious issues together (Its what some of the best comedies do.)

Back to what makes me laugh: I would recommend anyone in the UK watch Jennifer Saunders ‘Jam and Jerusalem’ next week. Great comedies don’t come along very often.

[postscript]

Thank you Jon S for appreciating my having started this thread. Certainly it has been very reassuring to see how many people have added to it with some very illuminating observations, including some pithy ones that have been succinct but made as effective a point as the longer illuminaries.

Very encouraging. I don't often start threads as I feel there are more here who have a better grasp of the 'mood' or 'relevance' than do I.

I think, Jon, you make a very important point in your quoting the last scene of the Black Adder series. That juxtaposition of comedy with seriousness is none other than the reflection of life itself, hence the singular aptness of Shakespeare's insight four centuries ago: 'All the world's a stage, the men and women merely players, they have their exits and their entrances and in time one man plays many parts'. Perhaps, more aptly, in the light of the scene to which you refer, from The Burial Service, 'in the midst of life we are in death'.

Turning to brighter thoughts in conclusion, I refer to my riposte to Roger's assurance that he was only joking when he accused me of being the reason why the numbers here rarely increased and I stated that many a true word is spoken in jest!

However, of course, we do have a very high percentage of people taking active part. Many are not post-inclined but happy to glean information. In that, we are probably giving Hayley a far greater boost than we know as these people will not register but will remain simply as guests.

Looked at from the view of the casual browser seeking information, it may be quite daunting to see so many people making hundreds of posts. So they feel inhibited. Hopefully, however, our lively banter each with each should dispel that reluctance.

Peter S.

[jons]

Hi Peter,

Yep, the more fun this forum is the better. As you mentioned, there is plenty of info for people to gleam over, so fun isn't at the expense of that.

It is thought that if you give 100 people a computer and software each, one person will create content; ten people will respond and add to it and the rest will just view it. And thats the case here, on this forum.

By the way, I'm writing some original Les Dawson Mother-in-law jokes (Its ironic because Les adored his Mother-in-law, who was nothing like what he described in his jokes!).