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All British Comedy Explained · June 11 · 40 min

Season Two Explained

All British Comedy Explained… to Abigoliah Schamaun, by Tom Salinsky 2.9: Season 2 reviewed. Released 11 June 2026. Our second season consisted of eight classic BBC sitcoms. Next time, we’re going to finally include some ITV and Channel 4 shows, and we’ll be tackling the thorny question of SATIRE. 1. Spitting Image – the ferociously topical puppet show which taught generations of teenagers who was in the cabinet. 2. That Was the Week That Was – groundbreaking show which said the unsayable and emptied pubs on Saturday nights. 3. Not the Nine O’Clock News – precursor to the alternative comedy boom, this redefined the sketch show when plenty of people thought that Python had had the last word. 4. The Thick of It – Yes Minister in the age of spin, with a star-making turn from Peter Capaldi. 5. The New Statesman – politics from the Westminster side, with a typically powerhouse performance from Rik Mayall. 6. Drop the Dead Donkey – the sitcom with (some) jokes written in the week of production, with the working title “Dead Belgians Don’t Count”. 7. Hot Metal – early success for Renwick and Marshall, with a serialised story and a deft blend of character comedy and absurdity. 8. TBD - Patreons will choose between John Morton's W1A and Chris Morris's Brass Eye. That’s our plan for the next eight episodes. We do hope you can join us. Here’s a long list of social media systems where you can find the podcast and us. Here’s a long list of social media systems where you can find the podcast and us. The podcast JOIN OUR PATREON https://patreon.com/BritishComedyPod https://substack.com/@allbritishcomedy Mailing list: http://eepurl.com/jnPC56 allbritishcomedy@gmail.com https://allbritishcomedy.com https://www.youtube.com/@AllBritishComedyExplained https://www.instagram.com/britishcomedypod https://www.tiktok.com/@britishcomedypod https://bsky.app/profile/allbritishcomedy.bsky.social https://www.threads.com/@britishcomedypod https://www.facebook.com/groups/allbritishcomedy Abigoliah Schamaun https://abigoliah.com https://www.youtube.com/Abigoliah https://www.instagram.com/abigoliah https://www.tiktok.com/@abigoliah Tom Salinsky https://tomsalinsky.co.uk https://www.facebook.com/tomsalinsky https://www.instagram.com/tomsalinsky https://www.tiktok.com/@tomsalinsky1972 https://bsky.app/profile/tomsalinsky.bsky.social https://www.threads.com/@tomsalinsky All British Comedy Explained is produced by The Spontaneity Shop. If you enjoy this podcast, why not check out The Guilty Feminist with Deborah Frances-White, Tom’s other podcast Best Pick all about movies, or Abigoliah’s other podcast Neurodivergent Moments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

0:00-40:45

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show notes

All British Comedy Explained… to Abigoliah Schamaun, by Tom Salinsky

2.9: Season 2 reviewed. Released 11 June 2026.

Our second season consisted of eight classic BBC sitcoms. Next time, we’re going to finally include some ITV and Channel 4 shows, and we’ll be tackling the thorny question of SATIRE.

1.     Spitting Image – the ferociously topical puppet show which taught generations of teenagers who was in the cabinet.

2.     That Was the Week That Was – groundbreaking show which said the unsayable and emptied pubs on Saturday nights.

3.     Not the Nine O’Clock News – precursor to the alternative comedy boom, this redefined the sketch show when plenty of people thought that Python had had the last word.

4.     The Thick of It – Yes Minister in the age of spin, with a star-making turn from Peter Capaldi.

5.     The New Statesman – politics from the Westminster side, with a typically powerhouse performance from Rik Mayall.

6.     Drop the Dead Donkey – the sitcom with (some) jokes written in the week of production, with the working title “Dead Belgians Don’t Count”.

7.     Hot Metal – early success for Renwick and Marshall, with a serialised story and a deft blend of character comedy and absurdity.

8.     TBD - Patreons will choose between John Morton's W1A and Chris Morris's Brass Eye.

That’s our plan for the next eight episodes. We do hope you can join us. Here’s a long list of social media systems where you can find the podcast and us.

Here’s a long list of social media systems where you can find the podcast and us.

The podcast

  • JOIN OUR PATREON https://patreon.com/BritishComedyPod
  • https://substack.com/@allbritishcomedy
  • Mailing list: http://eepurl.com/jnPC56
  • allbritishcomedy@gmail.com
  • https://allbritishcomedy.com
  • https://www.youtube.com/@AllBritishComedyExplained
  • https://www.instagram.com/britishcomedypod
  • https://www.tiktok.com/@britishcomedypod
  • https://bsky.app/profile/allbritishcomedy.bsky.social
  • https://www.threads.com/@britishcomedypod
  • https://www.facebook.com/groups/allbritishcomedy

Abigoliah Schamaun

  • https://abigoliah.com
  • https://www.youtube.com/Abigoliah
  • https://www.instagram.com/abigoliah
  • https://www.tiktok.com/@abigoliah

Tom Salinsky

  • https://tomsalinsky.co.uk
  • https://www.facebook.com/tomsalinsky
  • https://www.instagram.com/tomsalinsky
  • https://www.tiktok.com/@tomsalinsky1972
  • https://bsky.app/profile/tomsalinsky.bsky.social
  • https://www.threads.com/@tomsalinsky

All British Comedy Explained is produced by The Spontaneity Shop. If you enjoy this podcast, why not check out The Guilty Feminist with Deborah Frances-White, Tom’s other podcast Best Pick all about movies, or Abigoliah’s other podcast Neurodivergent Moments.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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