The Comedy Years

A look at how comedy has defined a changing Britain. In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister and political satire made a return with Not The Nine O'Clock News.

This episode looks back at comedy from 1984. It was the year of the miners’ strike; a conflict that saw Britain embroiled in a bitter industrial dispute as Margaret Thatcher took on Union leader Arthur Scargill.

This episode looks back at 1998. It was the era of New Labour and Blair’s Britain - and also a year that saw some ground-breaking new comedy series.

The Comedy Years 2003 features interviews with stars of comedy past and present - revealing the comedy moments that inspired them - including the likes of Joel Dommett, Shappi Khorsandi, Dom Joly, Joel Beckett, Ewen MacIntosh, Ninia Benjamin, Clive Anderson and John Thomson. This episode looks back at comedy from 2003. The final series of The Office took a swipe at the world of reality television and instant celebrity - and the love triangle between Tim, Lee and Dawn reached a memorable conclusion. Ordinary members of the public found themselves the unwitting comedy stooges of TV hidden camera shows like Trigger Happy TV and Three Non Blondes. It was also the year Bruce Forsyth made a memorable appearance as guest host of Have I Got News For You and comedy legend Bob Monkhouse performed his last ever stand-up gig to an audience of fellow comics in a small London pub. Meanwhile, the original run of award-winning comedy drama series Cold Feet bowed out with a tragic storyline.