To think that there's nothing funnier than people falling over?

[PiddlePoo]

Inspired by Madonna's fall at last nights Brits. I can't remember the last time I've laughed so much at a live TV event, it was hilarious. Even the reporter on Sky News was trying not laugh whilst talking about it later on in the evening, and myself and my colleagues have been laughing about it all day today.

A few years ago during the bad snowfall we had there was a clip shown on ITV news of a group of people slipping over on the same patch of ice on a pavement. That made me howl as well.

What is it about people falling over that makes it so amusing?

Never heard that before lol

he saw a woman running for the bus. She tripped and fell in the middle of the road, apparently quite a bad fall. Everyone on the bus burst out laughing. My father found himself laughing right along with them. And he knew at that moment that he had to get out of that country ASAP.

What kind of 'bad fall' rather than prat fall did the woman suffer, FromSeaToShining? And if it was so bad, why did your father laugh? Shock or unpleasantness or something in between.

And why did he feel compelled to leave this unnamed country, rather than just resolving to help in future?

It looked like a bad fall to my father. She went sprawling into the road. What more can I say? He didn't have access to her medical records.

He felt that the crowd's laughter at this disturbing incident was representative of the culture of that country: finding humour in someone else's misfortune. The fact that his immediate reaction was to laugh as well indicated to him that he had been negatively influenced by that culture. For him, it was the last straw and he felt he had to leave. And he did just that.

This very afternoon I stumbled in Sainsbury's in a comedy moment and went 'Ooh er!' and crashed into another woman who saved me from sprawling on the floor.

I have a neurological condition which fucks with my balance and sadly means I can no longer wear high heels. And I used to wear some skyscrapers

It was funny but very embarrassing so I thanked her and scuttled off in my sensible shoes. I do that because people often think I'm drunk.

At the self-service till the woman next to me dropped her basket, smashing her bottle of wine. She said: 'I'm sorry. I'm so clumsy' and then added: 'Oh God, it's you.' She was the person who'd propped me up. I hadn't recognised her because I'd been so embarrassed that I'd left before I'd clocked her. We giggled. I told her to take care of herself and she said the same.

You know what's as funny as people falling over? Mrs. Brown's Boys.

I don't get it either, seeing someone fall makes me have the "my hand over my mouth" reaction.

I have mobility problems which means I fall a lot. I have sustained various injuries and EVERY SINGLE TIME I have fallen in public, someone has come over to help me up but at least one other person has laughed. I find it very upsetting as on a couple of occasions I have cried (in shock I think) and have obviously felt embarrassed, yet someone finds it funny

The fear of falling and worsening mobility means I now use have to use crutches, a stick or a wheelchair. I fell in a car park the other week, whilst using my stick, and still someone laughed.

The posters that do laugh, do you realise how upsetting it might be and think it more appropriate to try not to? And if it's involuntary, do you try and hide it or not?

Try falling over in a rabbit hole on the side of a busy duel carriageway having pulled a car over for driver not wearing a seat belt
I said to the driver "Don't even THINK about laughing!" (then gave him words of advice rather than a ticket and ran back to my car and drove off)

Given what you've said, I find your nickname interesting YesIDidMeanToBeSoRudeActually

Talking of rabbit holes. When I was about 10 we were having building work which meant I wasn't allowed to visit my rabbit because it was too dangerous.

My dad used to feed him.

One night my dad and mum rowed and he said dramatically: 'FGS shut up. I'm going to feed Limited's rabbit.'

She shouted: 'Please yourself. The egg and chips are on.'

He was gone for some time. We ate our egg and chips. She waited it out a bit but started to get a bit worried. After about 20 minutes we were alerted to feeble scratchings at the door.

It was my dad. He'd fallen in the darkness into the footings, which were probably nearly 6ft, and scrambled out and crawled round.

He could barely breathe. My mum was screaming that he'd had a heart attack and was hugging him, which wasn't making his breathing much better.

I dialled 999.

It turned out he had two broken ribs. In daylight we discovered a carrot, some rabbit food and a very hungry rabbit.

He said he could cope with the pain. The worst thing was having to beg her to help him.

limited, I loved that vignette of the pair of you at the self-service till. That's just, I dunno, oddly cockle-warming.

YesI, sorry about your health problems. Suspect this isn't the thread for you.

Oh shit, the rabbit story.

Pissing myself laughing at that. It's the scratching at the door that does it.

Sorry, bad person.

EatShitDerek, now I have to change my knickers.

Is the electricity thing even possible???!!!

Derek you have just made me lol
I must be a really bad person!

Limited, my name refers to that ubiquitous, PA MN phrase "did you mean to be so rude?" and I'm not actually very rude myself...only when provoked

Mildlyacquiescent, you're right, it's very much not the thread for me and I'm hiding it now but I did want to provide a perspective from the person who is upset when people laugh at me falling over.

But people don't really give a shit I suppose.

I remember laughing so hard when my dad electrocuted his self, touched mum and she flew across the room.

This is comedy gold EatsShitDerek.

My dad cut through an electric cable while trimming the hedge and nothing like that happened. He probably had wellies on.

my cousin once jumped into a hole in the pavement like a dick head that he is bloody idiot. when he was climbing out he grabbed a live wire...the only thing that saved his life was the stupid rubber soled shoes his mum made him wear!... he looked like an alien for months afterwards, no hair anywhere not even eyebrows or eyelashes.
his nn...sparky

This Irish news piece on the Big Snow of 2011 still makes me laugh. Must have made the meanies who compile the news clips laugh too.

squoosh