Talk:Britain's Best Sitcom

message: Yes the top 10 were all BBC made but is that quite so shocking when you consider that something like 60% of British sitcom production is completed by them (plus of course it used to be much higher!). Whilst Father Ted was great don't forget it was a bit of a cult show.
:More than 60% if you're talking about quality stuff that people watch years later. What has ITV done since Men Behaving Badly? What has Channel 4 done since Father Ted? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 212.146.47.250 (talk) 21:42, 19 February 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Given that this is not about 'Britain's' Best Sitcom, should not the heading be changed to 'The BBC's best Sitcom'? For the BBC have found yet another way to plug their own TV shows. 91.110.75.104 (talk) 16:38, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
thread_title: Not shocking

message: "top ten programmes were all their own productions".  In the strict TV meaning of "production" (i.e. the company that made the programme) Dibley was made by Tiger Aspect  as was at least the last (worst) part of Blackadder (same page).  So I think the article should say "were all shown on the BBC" not "were all their own productions". -- Finlay McWalter |  Talk 00:14, 11 May 2004 (UTC)
replies: text: I agree, but think that "were all first shown on the BBC", or "were all produced to be shown on the BBC" would be better to distinguish Blackadder, say, from imports such as Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, or if the BBC showed other British shows from other networks.  I don't know that the BBC have done this, although other channels have (UK gold in particular).  Another alternative is "are all BBC shows", but that's more vague. Silverfish 11:00, 11 May 2004 (UTC)
replies: text: I think I like your last suggestion best (as otherwise the more precise we get, the more ungainly the resulting prose). -- Finlay McWalter |  Talk 13:24, 11 May 2004 (UTC)
replies: text: How about "were all commissioned or made by the BBC"? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 212.146.47.250 (talk) 21:43, 19 February 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: "were all premiered on BBC" is probably sufficiently precise and economical of language. I'm not entirely sure if the word premiered is used much for TV shows but it's meaning is clear here. "were all produced for premiere on BBC" is concise and contains most of the meaning being discussed here. Admittedly, the phrase perhaps implies an intent which might not have always existed during production. Un chien fou (talk) 17:44, 29 October 2013 (UTC)
thread_title: Is it really true?

message: "The high position achieved by The Vicar of Dibley and the low positioning of Fawlty Towers and Open All Hours surprised many observers."
Says who? Personally I'm not in the least bit suprised by the high position of The Vicar of Dibley. I think a citation is needed. Failing that- just remove it. Anyone agree? -Matt
:There was a lot of press articles about this very topic at the time. It was a surprise to many people, therefore it should stay.--HDC7777 13:14, 4 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  NPOV? 

message: I'm almost positive that Blackadder won this competition? Edit: I checked the website, and it says they came 2nd.. but I'm still sure I remember Rowan Atkinson picking up the award. -Mikay 19:33, 14 February 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Only Fools and Horses vs. Blackadder 

message: Further to some of the above posts, the criticism of the BBC for the entire top ten being BBC productions as been removed. Given this was a poll that was open to all, would the BBC ever adjust the rules to get the RESULTS they want?
Personally, I don't think it's at all surprising that the top ten are BBC productions, for" who else makes decent British sitcoms"? The paragraph about some being surprised at the performance (or lack of) by certain BBC programmes has been removed, as it seems to un-sourced and "weaselly".
Just thought I'd explain the removals. Cheers! Miremare 21:37, 13 August 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  BBC Poll About The BBC 

message: Was "Chef!" really not included in the BBC's poll or did the program have a different name in the UK?
75.23.74.36 (talk) 13:51, 25 February 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Chef! 

message: I have started adding the number of episodes to the list. This is vital as just saying the years broadcast doesn't state how large or small the output of the show was. 78.151.115.121 (talk) 06:48, 7 August 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Number of episodes 

message: Rather than just have a vague mention of how different celebrities spoke up for a different sitcom in the Top Ten, and then have a couple listed, wouldn't it be nice to have the complete list of names in here? For example, Donald Dickinson spoke up for Only Fools and Horses, Carol Vorderman for The Vicar of Dibley, John Sargent for The Black Adder, Jack Dee for Fawlty Towers, Anneka Rice for The Good Life and Phil Jupitus for Dad's Army. This information could go in the article to improve the article somewhat. ACEOREVIVED (talk) 19:33, 10 May 2011 (UTC)
thread_title: Complete list of celebrities needed

message: I have now put in the complete list of advocates, although I do wonder whether the expression "spoke up on behalf of" is a little too colloquial for an encyclopaedia. ACEOREVIVED (talk) 23:17, 10 May 2011 (UTC)
thread_title: A question on phraseology

message: The article should be retitled "Britain's Best Sitcom (2004)". The article's list of 100 sitcoms is a "snapshot in time" of tastes and inclinations at a single point many years ago. The present title (without date) is misleading if one arrives seeking up-to-date info (as was the case in my visit). The article should also say more about the TV series of the title, and not just be a list of the sitcoms (useful though they are). The dates when the programmes in the series were aired would be useful. A 2003 comedy-discussion website referred to the limited background to the voting as "viewers have to vote for a mere ten sit-coms, from a practically pre-determined and non-negotiable list of 100 (you can nominate only one of your own choosing that isn't on the list. Woop-de-*******-doo)." Information like this should also be included, although obviously without the descriptive anti-programme bias. It also seems definite, from other web-sources including the BBC, that the poll was conducted by the BBC (not BBC, ITV and Channel 4 as stated in the article opening). Also it is an undisputable fact (pure and simple) that the top 10 were all BBC sitcoms. When someone removed an alleged "criticism" of the BBC for the entire top ten being BBC productions (above, 2007), they took out all reference entirely - a case of throwing out the baby with the bathwater! This is my summary of what's needed [IMHO] to improve the article. I'll leave it for a day or two for any comments, and then try to action as above if no one objects. Pete Hobbs (talk) 12:01, 18 September 2011 (UTC)
replies: text: You make some well-reasoned points. I haven't yet seen the deleted references you mention, but certainly they are worthy of integration if they are from good sources. Earlier this year I added some information about the television series and its context, which I think makes the topic of the article clearer to readers. As for renaming the article to avoid reader disappointment: Britain's Best Sitcom is a proper noun. That should communicate to readers that we are not speaking in general about the subjective identification of Britain's 'best' sitcom (however that's defined). There are no other works called Britain's Best Sitcom from which to distinguish this one. Adding a year implies that there is a Britain's Best Sitcom campaign for some other year, but—as of this writing—there isn't. —Ringbang (talk) 16:57, 14 December 2014 (UTC)

text: To be a statement of fact, should the article should be retitled 'The BBC's Best Sitcom (2004)'? 91.110.75.104 (talk) 17:24, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
thread_title:  Article needs more precise title 

message: I understand the point made above that publishing the whole list has copyvio problems - but not even mentioning which show won seems absurd. A one-line "The eventual winner was [show]" wouldn't hurt, surely? 31.50.56.210 (talk) 15:55, 19 December 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: Added on 8 October 2014. Ringbang (talk) 17:02, 14 December 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  And the winner was...? 

message: Why is it that the written by column constantly has the phrase "TBA" in it? This survey was a long time ago now, back in 2004, so it would seem unlikely there is anything "to be announced" about it.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Vorbee (talk • contribs) 19:39, 4 July 2017 (UTC)
thread_title: TBA

message: This article could do with ranking how the Top Ten sitcoms were ranked following the final poll  - it was 1. Only Fools and Horses 2. The Black Adder 3. The Vicar of Dibley 4. Dad's Army 5. Fawlty Towers 6. Yes, Minister / Yes Prime Minister 7. Porridge. 8. Open All Hours 9. The Good Life 10. One Foot in the Grave. Vorbee (talk) 16:50, 14 August 2017 (UTC)
thread_title: This article could do with a list of rankings

message: Since most, if not all, of the Top Ten sitcoms have their own entries in Wikipedia, the list of episodes could present the names of the sitcoms in Wikilinks. Vorbee (talk) 10:37, 28 March 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: They are wikilinked in the episode descriptions. Linking them in the episode titles creates the expectation that the links lead to a page about the episode. The way they are linked now follows the principle of least astonishment. —Ringbang (talk) 18:49, 31 March 2018 (UTC)
thread_title: Suggestion about putting in wikilinks

message: If one goes to the website tvtropes.org/pm.wiki/pm.wiki.php/Series/Britain's Best Sitcom, one will see the full list of the nation's favourite sitcoms with their rankings. This website could be put in the external links. Vorbee (talk) 14:43, 8 April 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: I don't know if we can link to that. My understanding of the situation is that the list is still protected under sui generis and the "sweat of the brow" doctrine, since it was created in Europe. However, since this restricts use for 15 years, I believe we can publish the complete list by the end of March 2019. Until then, the list is accessible through the archived "Official website" link. —Ringbang (talk) 18:05, 10 June 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: So surely it’s now time to add it… TrottieTrue (talk) 23:08, 8 November 2023 (UTC)
thread_title: Website with complete list on it

message: The article refers to Porridge and then says "and its sequel Going Straight. Since Yes Minister had a sequel Yes Prime Minister, could it not say "and its sequel Yes Prime Minister? Vorbee (talk) 07:55, 26 October 2018 (UTC)
replies: text: Thanks for mentioning this. I checked BBC Comedy Guide about it, and also skimmed the respective episodes for scenes from Yes Prime Minister and Going Straight. As far as I can tell, they were not co-nominees with Porridge and Yes Minister. Maybe Johnny Vaughan uses Going Straight in his case for Porridge? —Ringbang (talk) 20:06, 26 October 2018 (UTC)
thread_title: Sequels

message: Stumbled on this article and it's talk page. I note that a previous section User:Ringbang noted that any copyright concerns about publishing the results of this poll would expire on 27 March 2019. I'm no legal expert, so is there any reason why a list of ranked results (be it bulletpointed or tabled) could be included, as per the page for the similar poll 100 Greatest Britons. Unless there are any objections, I'm happy to draft a list section. I'll wait for responses for a month before acting.
Hjheath1 (talk) 21:35, 10 September 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Where is the list? TrottieTrue (talk) 23:08, 8 November 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  List Inclusion? 

message: The article on 100 Greatest Britons gives the full list. Should this article give the full list of the sitcoms, in order of their ranking?  A ranking of the sitcoms finished up as:
1. Only Fools and Horses
2. Blackadder
3. The Vicar of Dibley
4. Dad's Army
5. Fawlty Towers
6. Yes Minister/ Yes Prime Minister
7. Porridge/ Going Straight
8. Open All Hours
9. The Good Life
10. One Foot in the Grave
11. Father Ted
12. Keeping Up Appearances
13. Allo Allo
14. Last of the Summer Wine/ First of the Summer Wine
15. Steptoe and Son
16. Men Behaving Badly
17. Absolutely Fabulous
18. Red Dwarf
19. The Royle Family
20. Are You Being Served/ Grace and Favour
21. To the Manor Born
22. Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
23 The Likely Lads/ Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?
24. My Family
25. The Office
26. Drop the Dead Donkey
27. Rising Damp
28. Dinner Ladies
29. As Time Goes By
30. Hancock's Half Hour
31. The Young Ones
32. 'Til Death Us Do Part/ In Sickness and in Health
33. Butterflies
34. The Thin Blue Line
35. The Rise and Fall of Reginald Perrin
36. Phoenix Nights
37. Waiting for God
38. Birds of A Feather
39. Bread
40. Hi-de-Hi
41. The League of Gentlemen
42. I'm Alan Partridge
43. Just Good Friends
44. Two Point Four Children
45. Bottom
46. It Ain't Half Hot Mum
47. The Brittas Empire
48 Gimme Gimme Gimme
49. Rab C Nesbitt
50. Goodnight Sweetheart
51. Up Pompei
52. Ever Decreasing Circles
53. On The Buses
54. Coupling
55. George And Mildred
56. A Fine Romance
57. Citizen Smith
58. Black Books
59. The Liver Birds
60. Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps
61. The New Statesman
62. Sykes
63. Please Sir
64. Dear John
65. Barbara
66. Spaced
67. Bless This House
68. Love Thy Neighbour
69. Man About the House
70. Desmonds
71. Duty Free
72 All Gas and Gaiters
73. Terry and June/Happy Ever After
74. Only When I Laugh
75. Brass
76. The Rag Trade
77. Sorry
78. Kiss Me Kate
79. Doctor in the House/ Doctor At Large/ Doctor in Charge/ Doctor on Top/ Doctor At Sea/Doctor on the Go
80. I Didn't Know You Cared
81. Shelley
82. Nearest and Dearest
83. Fresh Fields/ French Fields
84. The Army Game
85. Robin's Nest
86. The Dustbinmen
87. Whoops Apocalypse
88. My Wife Next Door
89. Never the Twain
90. Nightingales. 
91. Early Doors
92. Agony
93. The Lovers
94. Father Dear Father
95. Hot Metal
96. And Mother Makes Three.. and Mother Makes Five
97. Life with the Lyons
98. Marriage Lines
99. A Sharp Intake of Breath  — Preceding unsigned comment added by YTKJ (talk • contribs) 22:06, 3 November 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: Yes! Where is it? TrottieTrue (talk) 23:04, 8 November 2023 (UTC)
thread_title: Full List