Brit-coms

Properly known in England just as sitcoms, Brit-coms, a neologism coined and used regularly in United States, include any situation comedy produced in the United Kingdom. They are aired on the other side of the pond by the state level public television stations that compose the Public Broadcasting System or PBS and are also available around the world on several cable stations that focus on comedy and other entertainment offerings that originated in the United Kingdom[1].

For the most part, the British sit-coms aired on US public broadcasting stations, are long-time favorites that are no longer in production. Along with airing the original episodes, that make up each series or season of the television production, it is not unusual to include reunion episodes of the comedies currently included in the network’s lineup. In some cases, the British entertainers who starred in one or more of the Brit-coms currently offered to viewers, are invited to participate in dedicated talk shows or special nights built around the series, often providing interesting tidbits about behind-the-scenes events that took place when the show was in active production.

Typical of most Brit-coms is the unique blend of wit coupled with the traditional conservative bearing that many people consider a hallmark of true British breeding[2]. They have a reputation for being bawdier and more daring than US Sitcoms and this combination of dry wit and formality is often loaded with double entendre and self-deprecating humor: Britcom leads are usually lonely, miserable, doomed to failure or just plain weird, a fact that delights audiences around the world[3]. Even shows that are decades old and obviously dated by clothing and political references of the day can still elicit laughter due to the clever use of this device in the scripting.

The majority of Brit-coms are series that tend to last six 25-30 minutes long episodes and are recorded on studio sets with a limited number of stationary cameras. However, several notable sitcoms have experimented with this, especially in recent years (for example The Office or Peep Show). Most British sitcoms are written by one or two people, usually those  who originally conceived the show and/or its performers. [4]

As for the American market, some British sitcom enjoyed a significant following overseas: Absolutely Fabulous was a big success when it aired on Comedy Central in the 1990 and The Office won a Golden Globe award in 2004 for "Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy", beating rivals such as Sex and the City and Will & Grace.

Also, few British sitcoms were successfully remade for the US market: some notable examples are Steptoe and Son, which became Sanford and Son,  Man about the house, which became Three's company, Keep it in the family which became Too close for comfort and  Till death us do part, which became All in the family[5].

---

[1] http://www.comedy.co.uk

[2] “What are Brit-Coms?”, http://www.wisegeek.com

[3] http://www.televisionaryblog.com

[4] Berman G., Best of the Britcoms: From Fawlty Towers to Absolutely Fabulous, Taylor Publishing, 1999

[5] http://www.tvtropes.com