Programmes that have aged poorly and programmes that have aged well?

[HaveYouHadYourBreak]

What programmes that you loved have surprised you on rewatching?

I've just finished the first series of This Life and was surprised at how well it has aged for the most part (but so much smoking!). It was refreshing to see people with imperfect teeth and pubic hair and wobbly bums living in a grotty house share past their early 20s. I'm re-living my youth with the music too.

But Coupling! Oof! I remember it being really good but some clips I've seen (like making sex videos without consent and the way women are talked about) demonstrate exactly why I've never seen any re-runs.

Man About The House is similar. A real snapshot of a time. There's sexism but the women very much have the upper hand.

Fantastic writing and delivery - and still true

Yes we should. It’s what the British have always done.

I remember On the Buses got repeated initially in the 90s and I was braced for it being like an extended party political for the NF but I was pleasantly relieved there wasn't as much racism as id expected. Maybe they just didn't show the worst episodes.

The film versions of it are absolutely horrendous though, particularly how they treat Olive. She's sexually assaulted in a swimming pool at one point in the holiday camp and the sitcom has been repeated more recently and she's just bullied like hell. Poor Anna Karen died quite recently in a fire. Used to work as an exotic dancer with Barbara Windsor.

ITV3 are now doing their bank holidays Thing of rerunning ancient Carry Ons and the film version of steptoe. Within the first 5 minutes Albert has tried to poach neighbours chickens and Harold has just been jumped on by Diana Dors next to the dead body of her husband. OKAAAAAY!

I'm mainly sticking with it for when Yootha Joyce turned up

Anna Karen was an actress, acting. It wasnt real!! She was dressed for the part with the glasses and the dowdy clothing. In real life she was a glamorous and attractive woman. You are reading far too much into these 50 odd year old shows

Might be the reason why people all over the world dislike British people.

Everyone?
All Brits?

No, mainly English people in my experience.

I don’t think I’ve ever cringed when Ive watched re-runs of the programmes I watched many years ago. I can accept that a lot of people might think they are not appropriate now, but they were acceptable at the time they were made. Just because times have moved on, it doesn’t mean that old programmes which were funny at the time are no longer funny. I’d forgotten to check what was on tv today but thanks to this thread, Im off to watch the end of the Steptoe film, and have set my video to record Carry on Matron and Carry on Abroad. 🤣🤣

Were we happier or were we just oblivious to the impact we were having on the people being portrayed?

Some of it was lowest common denominator and just lazy. I remember really liking Little Britain at the time but with more knowledge I can see how dodgy some of it is. Like someone above mentioned, is it actually funny to laugh at disabled kids because of their disability?

If you look at the comedies that have aged well, they are a lot cleverer than making jokes about someone's foreign name or accent. For instance Drop The Dead Donkey made fun of sexism so it was funny but didnt target people.

Weird though isnt it, that despite the horrors of English people, every fucker and his dog wants to be here!!

As pointed out on Reddit, Regan/Thaw was barely in his 30s and Dennis Waterman was 26 but they sound soooo old

https://www.reddit.com/r/oldbritishtelly/comments/1scdocf/this_is_what_a_32_year_old_and_a_26_year_old/

There was definitely a lot of retconning of Morse for Endeavour. I remember Morse with him snappily referring to "Women's libbers" with the female pathologist Grayling is introduced but in the 60s version in endeavour he's the height of emotionally aware wounded hero

Gosh, xenophobia is never far below the surface, is it? Do better.

Just telling my experience. Read better.

I've recently re-watched the old Inspector Lynley mysteries (iPlayer). They've stood up well with great characters and acting and not gory.
The sexism that Barbara faces working in the police is probably a tiny fraction of what actually happened in the 90s/00s. I've been watching them with my 16yo DD so we've had some good discussions.

My mum had a pretty spot on radar for what she'd call inappropriate programs so TV was highly censored if she was about. I appreciate it now, but didn't at the time. I wasn't allowed to watch Friends as a young teen- but having watched it subsequently, it is definitely of it's time.

Frasier, Blackadder and MASH are ok. Star Trek, re-runs of Randall and Hopkirk and Hancock's Half Hour were dinner time viewing. And Dad's Army is still a classic. The one where they all try to look younger still has me in stitches.

No, you have judged every English person, you are guilty of the same thing that you are pointing fingers about.

Oh god yes, I watched men behaving badly recently, and the whole time I was screaming at Dorothy to just leave him to rot and go live her life! So depressing.

No I haven’t 🤣

Dorothy would be starting an AIBU thread if she were real with 90%+ telling her to leave him

I still love The League of Gentlemen - its hilarious. The other shows I think are timeless:
All Alan Partrtidge ones (especially when he was living in a hotel)
Royale Family
Dinner Ladies
The Fast Show (love it!)
Ab Fab
Mighty Boosh - I find them hilarious

I love British comedy from the early 2000s

I agree that Little Britain did not age well, I get the idea behind its offensiveness (as its supposedly mocking the racist/ ableist/ homophobic characters and goes for the shock) but I was surprised even then it was aired. Though it was a time when comics were allowed to say unbelievable offensive shit under the guise of being "ironic" - while not being actually ironic.

Red Dwarf has gone from “aged well” to “current politics” 🤣

https://www.reddit.com/r/GreatBritishMemes/comments/1qh9p6y/kryten_explains_trumps_foreign_policy/

Shooting Stars in the 90s with Vic Reeves perving over Ulrika Jonsson

Carry on abroad and carry on Matron are not in least funny , unless you think it's funny to make fun of foreigners and pregnant women.
They weren't funny at the time and they are even less funny now!

I agree dinner ladies will never age . Victoria Wood was a genius

Tasha Yar, chief of security - though she never had enough to do and left the show because of it. I really loved Dr Pulaski’s character though. Tough and non simpering. Could probably drink Worf under the table.

The Golden Girls has aged well but with that cast it could hardly not.