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Date: 12-05-95 Time: 04:37p Number: 1
From: Melinda 'Bob' Casino Refer:
To: All Board ID: FIX Reply:
Subject: Bottom (British televisio 204: news.en.alt. Status: Public
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From: bottom@badger.idiscover.co.uk (Melinda 'Bob' Casino)
Subject: Bottom (British television show) FAQ (Part 1 of 3)
Date: 4 Nov 1995 16:43:11 GMT
Organization:
Message-ID:
Archive-name: tv/british-comedy/bottom-faq/part1
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-modified: 13 Aug 1995
Version: 3.0
URL: http://www.cathouse.org/BritishComedy/Bottom/
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THE "BOTTOM" FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS LIST
=====================================================
Compiled and maintained by Version 3.0
Melinda Casino
A three-part FAQ on the British comedy t.v. program, "Bottom".
The most recently posted ASCII version of this file is available via
email. Simply send email to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with this in the body:
send usenet/news.answers/tv/british-comedy/bottom-faq/*
This FAQ is unofficial. Opinions expressed are solely my own, except when
noted.
_________________
Table of Contents
Part 1:
1. WHAT IS BOTTOM?
1.1 General Description
1.2 How many episodes were made?
1.3 Is there an episode guide?
1.4 Who's in the cast?
1.5 When did it run?
1.6 Where can I see/buy it?
2. A LITTLE HISTORY...
2.1 Bottom, the Stage Show
2.2 Rik Mayall Biography
2.3 Adrian Edmondson Biography
2.4 "The Comic Strip Presents"
2.5 "Filthy, Rich and Catflap"
2.6 Private Life?
3. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
3.1 What is "Emmerdale Farm"?
3.2 Who is Sue Carpenter?
3.3 Who is Felicity Kendal?
3.4 Is Eddie Hitler really related to Adolf Hitler?
3.5 How can I make an "Esther Rantzen"?
3.6 Who is Desmond Lynam?
3.7 RE: "A nation of shopkeepers"
4. NEWS AND TRIVIA
4.1 News: "The Big Number Two Tour"
4.2 General Trivia
4.3 The "Red Dwarf" Connection
4.4 The cast--did you know...?
4.5 Dictionary for Americans
4.6 Setting of the show
5. I WANT MORE BOTTOM!
5.1 The cathouse.org British Comedy Pages
5.2 FTP Sites
5.3 The Books
Part 2:
6. THE EPISODES: PLOT SUMMARIES AND QUOTES
7. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Part 3:
FULL TRANSCRIPT OF "'S OUT"
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1. WHAT IS "BOTTOM"?
"We wish to advise that tonights episode of Bottom
is rated M for mature audiences, and contains ribald
sexual humour, extreme comedic violence, and a
religious parody which may offend some viewers"
_ Aus. TV warning before "Bottom"
"These men should be stopped." -- my sister, after seeing series 3
_______________________
1.1 General Description
"Bottom" is a half-hour British comedy program staring Adrian Edmondson (as
Eddie Hitler) and Rik Mayall (as Richard Richard). It's also written by
Adrian Edmondson and Rik Mayall. It's centered on the lives of two
down-and-out ne'er-do-wells who are on the dole. In other words, two people
who are at the bottom of the social scale, financially, socially, and
otherwise.
"Bottom" primarily depends on, but is not limited to, slap-stick humor. The
violence is of the "Tom-and-Jerry" variety, with little or no consequences
in terms of harm to the characters. Most of the violence doesn't have much
of an effect on the character's well-being, but if there are any
consequences, they are greatly exaggerated for comic effect. The sound
effects are also exaggerated, and add to the "cartoonish" style of the
show.
Surprisingly, one can relate to alot of the scenarios its one-diminsional
characters go through. For instance, Eddie and Richie are 1) poor, 2)
socially inept, 3) drifting along with no job prospects, 4) bachelors who
will probably never have a long-term (or short-term) intimate relationship.
Who has not experienced at least one of these at some point in their lives?
I myself qualify for three...but watching Bottom somehow always cheers me
up. :)
Most of the scenes take place in their filthy low-rent apartment. The
kitchen is completely foul. Kitsch articles (like a framed picture of Elvis
Presley) adorn the apartment. Occasionally, the plot will take the
characters outside their flat, into the English "country," for instance, to
the local pub, or to a pawn-broker's.
________________________________
1.2 How many episodes were made?
There are 3 series of "Bottom," each series consisting of 6 episodes. The
names and order of the episodes are as follows:
______________ ________________
Smells | Hole |
Gas | Terror |
Contest ->1st Season Break ->3rd Season
Apocalypse | Dough |
'S Up | Finger |
Accident ____________| Carnival_____________|
______________
Digger |
Culture |
Burglary |
Parade ->2nd Season
Holy |
'S Out ______________|
For descriptions of each episode, consult Part 2 of this FAQ or the "Bottom
Episode Guide" (see 1.3 below).
Jon Morris informs me: "...At the time (it was about
November) there was some murder or attack on Wimbledon Common. ["'S Out"]
was set on the same heath so the BBC thought it would be in bad taste to
show it."
On the back of a poster for the "Bottom Live!" stageshow, a full transcript
is written with the acknowledgement that the murder, which took place the
week before the scheduled transmission, was indeed why "'S Out" was not aired.
Paul Golder explains:
"It was seen on BBC2 last night (Monday 10 April 1995) for the first time.
I always wondered why it wasn't shown originally... An "ex-model", Rachel
Nickell, was murdered on Wimbledon Common that week. Her alleged murderer,
Colin Stagg, was let off after the case was thrown out due to "aggresive
police tactics." ... This was front page news all over the UK."
So why was "'S Out" not aired when the series was re-run? Michael Clarkson
: "...there had been difficulties with the
appeal [of the court case] while the repeat of the second season had been
on."
______________________________
1.3 Is there an episode guide?
Funny you should ask. There is, in fact, a new Bottom Episode Guide. It is
available at Tardis. The URLs:
ftp://ftp.doc.ic.ac.uk/media/tv/collections/tardis/uk/comedy/Bottom/Bottom
http://www.tardis.ed.ac.uk/~dave/guides/Bottom/
______________________
1.4 Who's in the cast?
Although "Bottom" focuses primarily on two great mates in their apartment,
the plots bring Richie and Eddie into contact with other characters. The
list below is not comprehensive, but covers most of the cast:
CHARACTER PERFORMER
--------- ---------
Richard Richard..........................Rik Mayall
Edward Hitler............................Adrian Edmondson
Sex Shop Assistant.......................Kevin McNaly
Woman at bar.............................Harriet Thorpe
Landlord (pub)...........................Lee Cornes
Mr. Harrison.............................Roger Sloman
Gasman...................................Mark Lambert
Mr. Rottweiler...........................Brian Glover
Spudgun..................................Steven O'Donnell
Dave Hedgehog............................Christopher Ryan
Shooting Gallery Stallholder.............Mark Arden
Nurse; Lady Natasha Laticia*.............Helen Lederer
Falklands veteran........................Robert Llewellyn
Veronica Head (barmaid)..................Julia Sawalha
*Sara Jane Wellesley Obstromsky Ponsonsky Smythe Smythe Smythe Smythe
Oblomov Rablomov Dob, 3rd Viscomptress of Moldavia
The music to the show is performed by The Bum Notes.
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1.5 When did it run?
The original transmission dates are as follows:
Series 1 - 1991 Series 2 - 1992
--------------- ---------------
1. Smells..........Tues. Sept. 17 7. Digger..........Thurs. Oct. 1
2. Gas.............Tues. Sept. 24 8. Culture.........Thurs. Oct. 8
3. Contest.........Tues. Oct. 1 9. Burglary........Thurs. Oct. 15
4. Apocalypse......Tues. Oct. 8 10. Parade..........Thurs. Oct. 22
5. 'S Up...........Tues. Oct. 15 11. Holy............Thurs. Oct. 29
6. Accident........Tues. Oct. 29 *12. 'S Out.......Mon. April 10, 1995
Series 3 - 1995 * See section 1.2 for explanation.
---------------
1. Hole............Fri. Jan. 6
2. Terror..........Fri. Jan. 13
3. Break.......... Fri. Jan. 20
4. Dough...........Fri. Jan. 27
5. Finger..........Fri. Feb. 3
6. Carnival........Fri. Feb. 10
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1.6 Where can I see/buy it?
"Bottom" is available in the U.K. on videotape; the following video sources
may not have Bottom; but if you call and ask, they may be inclined to start
buying it for their customers. Join the "U.S. Bottom Campaign" (tee-hee) by
calling and demanding your right to see "Bottom"!
In the U.S.:
Laughinghouse Video
Email (for general inquiries): ; telephone: 714-956-9032;
Mail: P.O. Box 8572, Anaheim, CA 92812-0572. They can import PAL-format
videos and provide a "free" NTSC copy.
Signals
Telephone: 1-800-669-9696.
Mail: Signals, WGBH Educational Foundation, P.O. Box 64428, St. Paul, MN
55164-0428. They accept major credit cards over the phone and take checks
with mailed orders. They have a few different catalogues; request the
video catalogue.
The Video Catalog
Telephone: 1-800-733-2232
Mail: P.O. Box 64267 St. Paul, MN 55164-0267. They also offer a custom
order service, "Video Trackers". Call 1-800-71VIDEO (1-800-718-4336),
toll-free between 7am and midnight (Central Time); if the title you want
is currently available, they'll find it for you.
BFS
Telephone: 1-800-268-3891
BBC's Lionheart Productions
Telephone: 212-705-9300
In Australia:
All 4 volumes are now available from Polygram Video.
No matter where you live, you can always contact the BBC directly:
The BBC Shop Phone: 0191-222 0381 or +44 191-222 0381
P.O. Box 1QX
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne NE99 1QX
_______________________
2.0 A LITTLE HISTORY...
__________________________
2.1 Bottom, the Stage Show
Bottom, the Stage Show, was filmed at Southampton Mayflower Theatre in 1993.
Tickets cost between #8.50 and #13.50. The following is from a press
release.
"Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson star in a full stage play based on the award
winning BBC2 TV series. With their own inimitable wit, style and sense of
the ridiculous they transport you to the explosively insane world of two of
society's most catastrophic no-hopers...
Richie and Eddie are two of life's losers; two pimples on life's bottom.
Surviving on a diet of vitriol, mutually inflicted wounds and pornographic
magazines, they belch, curse and smash their way through the boredom of
life. The effects are disastrous!
EDDIE
He's the sort of person you cross the road to avoid. He likes life's simple
pleasures: a visit to the bookies, cheating Richie out of anything he can
(including the rent) and then breaking his legs on his birthday. If there's
any way he can score, whether it s money, girls or an advantage over
Richie, he'll do it.
RICHIE
He seems nice, well in a smarmy, oozing and oily-tongued way that you
realize isn't really nice at all. His problem is sex: he thinks the 'Kama
Sutra' is an Indian restaurant. Sex is something which happens to other
people and they won't even let him watch."
________________________
2.2 Rik Mayall Biography
NOTE: A more extensive biography is available via ftp:
ftp://ftp.doc.ic.ac.uk/public/media/tv/collections/tardis/uk/comedy/Bottom/
Rik Mayall was born March 7, 1958. His father ran the dramam department in a
teacher training college. Rik went to King's School in Worcester, starting
at 9 years old instead of 11. He then attended Manchester University where
he read Drama and met Adrian Edmondson. While there he formed a theater
company, "20th Century Coyote," which played at the Edinburgh Festival to
great critical acclaim. On graduating from college, he played "Dromio of
Syracuse" in the Oxford and Cambridge Shakespeare Company production of
"Comedy of Errors". The production toured in America for 3 months.
Television credits include:
A Kick Up the Eighties - 'Kevin Turvey' skits (BBC)
The Comic Strip Presents - (Channel 4)
The Young Ones - as Rick (BBC); co-wrote.
Filthy, Rich and Catflap - w/Adrian Edmondson and Nigel Planer (BBC)
George's Marvellous Medicine - for Jackanory, children's show (BBC)
Saturday Night Live - 'The Dangerous Brothers' skits (LWT/CH4)
Grimm Tales - Series 1 & 2, Grimms Fairy Tales (Initial/Central TV)
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