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107-431: Absolutely Fabulous (often shortened to Ab Fab ) is a British television sitcom created and written by Jennifer Saunders , which premiered in 1992. It is based on the 1990 French and Saunders sketch " Modern Mother and Daughter ", created by Dawn French and Saunders. Saunders stars as Edina Monsoon , a heavy-drinking, drug-abusing PR mogul who spends her time failing to lose weight and chasing bizarre fads in

214-540: A 30-minute time slot. Throughout their history, American sitcoms have often drawn inspiration from British counterparts. Popular shows like All in the Family , Three's Company , and Sanford and Son were adapted from successful British series. More recently, The Office achieved significant popularity in the United States , following the success of its British counterpart. Numerous television networks in

321-489: A Prime membership. It is also available on the Britbox streaming service. In Israel, some of the series was aired on Yes Plus and on BBC Entertainment . In Brazil, all episodes were aired on Eurochannel & Multishow in the late 90s & 2000s beginning, and in the 2010s at GNT . Tim Gray of Variety magazine said that " Absolutely Fabulous , British sitcom about a rich, self-absorbed, falling-down-drunk woman,

428-495: A black comedy called If You See God, Tell Him . Edmondson played Gordon Spry, whose uncle (Briers) is paralysed and has a greatly reduced attention span. His erratic behaviour causes problems for Gordon. The series comprised four episodes, each 45 minutes long, and only broadcast once. The BBC has not repeated the series, although one episode was broadcast on BBC Four on 3 December 2007. In September 1995, Edmondson released his first (comic) novel, The Gobbler . In 1996, he played

535-456: A cameo in the first-series episode "Magazine", before making a brief cameo in the 2016 film. French was originally intended to play Edina's daughter, Saffron, but a younger actress (Sawalha) was ultimately cast. The first three series were broadcast on the BBC from 1992 to 1995, followed by a series finale in the form of a two-part television film entitled The Last Shout in 1996. Saunders revived

642-590: A child, Edmondson lived with his family in a variety of places including Cyprus , Bahrain , and Uganda , where his father was a teacher in the British Armed Forces . In the mid-1980s, his father became the deputy headmaster at the former Drummond Middle School in Manningham in Bradford. Edmondson attended Pocklington School , East Riding of Yorkshire , from 1968 to 1975. In an interview with

749-544: A core group of characters who interact in a recurring setting, such as a family, workplace, or institution. However, British sitcoms typically consist of shorter series, often six episodes, and are frequently developed by a smaller writing team. The majority of British sitcoms are half-hour comedies recorded in studio settings using a multiple-camera setup. While many adhere to traditional sitcom conventions, some have ventured into more unconventional territory. For example, Blackadder and Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister shifted

856-439: A desperate attempt to stay young and "hip". Edina's best friend is ex-model and magazine fashion director Patsy Stone ( Joanna Lumley ), whose drug abuse, alcohol consumption and desperate promiscuity far eclipse Edina's. Edina relies upon the support of her daughter Saffron ( Julia Sawalha ), a student and aspiring writer whose constant care of her immature mother has left her a bitter cynic. Ab Fab also stars June Whitfield in

963-557: A dream sequence in the series 5 episode "Birthin'". In addition to the official theme song, in 1994, Pet Shop Boys recorded a song for Comic Relief using excerpts of dialogue from the series put to dance music. The single was attributed to "Absolutely Fabulous produced by Pet Shop Boys". It peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart in July 1994. The music video featured clips from the show and specially recorded footage of

1070-445: A five-DVD box set titled The Complete DVD Collection: Series 1–4 in 2002. BBC Video distributed all releases and 2 Entertain (post 2004) except for The Last Shout which was released by Vision Video and Universal Studios . The entire series is also available on demand on iTunes . When the first three series were re-released on DVD, they did not include corresponding cover photography to their series: Series 1 included an image from

1177-687: A gay-oriented channel. In Canada, the programme has appeared on the BBC Canada , the CBC , The Comedy Network and VisionTV . In the United States in April 2021, the entire series is being included with Amazon’s Prime streaming service; while listed slightly differently, e.g., ‘Season 5” adds the final three episodes from 2011 to the British series five from 2003 to 2004, all episodes are available with

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1284-700: A greater extent, The Young Ones , Edmondson and Mayall returned to their "Coyote" dynamic in the double act the Dangerous Brothers with Edmondson as "Sir Adrian Dangerous" in Saturday Live (1985–1987). In 1983, he appeared as the lead singer "Vim Fuego" in the spoof heavy metal band called "Bad News" with his Young Ones co-stars Rik Mayall , Nigel Planer , and Peter Richardson of "Comic Strip Presents...". In 1985 Edmondson starred with his wife Jennifer Saunders in Happy Families ,

1391-410: A lot of gags from Bananarama because they were big vodka drinkers...when I started doing AbFab, I remembered all of the falls that I saw Bananarama do. I once saw one of them coming out of a cab bottom first and hitting the road, and I thought 'that's class'". Although Ab Fab was produced by Saunders and French's company, Saunders & French Productions, Dawn French appeared on the show only once, in

1498-546: A minor role in the 2012 film Blood . Edmondson and Saunders reunited with their former Comic Strip colleagues in 2012 for a Famous Five sequel, Five Go to Rehab . It aired on 7 November on Gold . Edmondson won the 2013 BBC One cookery series of Celebrity MasterChef . In 2014, Edmondson presented Ade at Sea , a factual six-part programme for the ITV network which follows Ade in Britain . In 2014, he played DCI Warner in

1605-483: A more favourable review, Meredith Blake of The A.V. Club stated, "While longtime AbFab fans will enjoy this latest incarnation of the series, which has been reprised multiple times since its official end in 1995, 'Identity' most definitely isn't for AbFab neophytes, who will most likely be confused by the broad performances, the outré costumes, and the disembodied canned laughter." Friday 9:00 pm (1–7) Wednesday 9:05 pm (8) In 2000, Absolutely Fabulous

1712-517: A new series. Lumley and Saunders reunited for the M&;S Christmas advert in 2009, along with other stars such as Twiggy and Stephen Fry . In August 2011, Lumley confirmed the planned filming of three new episodes. In 2011, plans for a 20th-anniversary revival were welcomed in The Guardian , which applauded the show as "prophetic". The first new special of Absolutely Fabulous: 20th Anniversary

1819-529: A possible Fall 2009 entry with Kathryn Hahn as Eddy and Kristen Johnston as Patsy. In May 2009, Fox decided not to commission a full series. The stage for the kitchen in Ab Fab was subsequently used as the stage for the shop in the British comedy Miranda . Miranda Hart, creator of the show, had previously appeared on Absolutely Fabulous . Mirrorball was a pilot set in the London theatre scene, starring

1926-512: A rural comedy drama written by Ben Elton, which appeared on the BBC and told the story of the dysfunctional Fuddle family. In 1987, Edmondson reunited with Planer and Mayall to star in Filthy Rich & Catflap , a comic attack on showbiz, again written by Elton. He played "Edward Catflap", a coarse, drunken minder of light-entertainment nonentity "Richie Rich". In this show Edmondson displayed

2033-613: A script for a film of Absolutely Fabulous in 2012. The film would begin with Edina and Patsy waking up on an oligarch's deserted yacht, drifting in the ocean. Saunders later said that the film would be set on the French Riviera. In March 2012, Saunders confirmed that she was working on the script. She said of the film's plotline: Eddy and Patsy are looking for what they imagine glamorous life should be. They're constantly searching for that perfect place to sit or that perfect pair of sunglasses. It's Shangri-La and it just might be round

2140-402: A sequel to the film be made. Saunders said she wished to focus on new projects and spend more time with her family. Even so, in 2018, Saunders, when asked about the prospect of reviving the programme yet again, did not entirely dismiss it, saying "I am thinking at the moment of writing a little something. It has to be age-appropriate otherwise we’d have to be in wheelchairs basically. I think Julia

2247-411: A sixth series for 2013. Saunders denied the reports of additional episodes via her Twitter account. Episodes of Absolutely Fabulous were shot in front of a live studio audience. The theme song for Absolutely Fabulous is " This Wheel's on Fire ", written by Bob Dylan and Rick Danko and performed by Julie Driscoll and Saunders' Comic Strip fellow and later husband, Adrian Edmondson . The song

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2354-410: A supporting role as Edina's dotty, sarcastic and often thieving mother, who appears in nearly every episode. Jane Horrocks as Edina's utterly brainless personal assistant Bubble also features frequently. The first three series of Absolutely Fabulous were broadcast on the BBC from 1992 to 1995, followed by a series finale in the form of a two-part special entitled The Last Shout, in 1996. In 2000,

2461-404: Is driven mainly by Patsy, who is both co-dependent and an enabler to Eddie. Their lifestyle inevitably leads to various personal crises, which are invariably resolved by Eddie's daughter, Saffron "Saffy" Monsoon (Sawalha), whose constant involvement in their exploits has left her increasingly bitter and cynical. Eddie's mother visits the home frequently to keep Saffy company and help her with

2568-553: Is not as funny as it intends to be, but it is absolutely unique, absolutely rude and absolutely politically incorrect". He also said that " AbFab offers no sense of justice, which may give viewers the heebie-jeebies, since Americans like to believe that the wicked, even if they are amusing, will get punished. But the characters are originals, and AbFab has the courage of its convictions, encouraging audiences to find humor in such recent comedic taboos as substance abuse or mistreated offspring." Michael Hogan of The Daily Telegraph gave

2675-515: Is old enough to be my mother now." Saunders said the prospect of writing new stories with those characters was "always on [her] mind, always". In November 2020, Joanna Lumley was asked about the possibility of another revival and said that that would be up to Saunders. Lumley said it was unlikely, as Saunders did not want to work on new stories featuring the characters at that time. Lumley said that June Whitfield's death in December 2018 also meant it

2782-564: Is one of the leading channels in India, dedicated entirely to Sitcoms. Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah is the longest-running sitcom of Indian television and is also known as the flagship show of SAB TV . On Tiptoes and Shabhaye Barareh were among the first and most important sitcoms that led to the growth of this type of comedy in Iran, both receiving wide critical and audience acclaim. El Chavo del Ocho , which ran from 1971 to 1980,

2889-487: The Times Educational Supplement ( TES ), he stated that he did not enjoy his education at Pocklington, and that his group of friends considered the school's printed booklet of "endless" behavioural rules to be "a personal challenge to break". Edmondson calculated that during his time at Pocklington, he received a total of 66 strokes of the cane as well as frequent slipperings . By the time he

2996-502: The ABC and on cable on UK.TV , and moved to The Comedy Channel in 2007. Repeats of the first three series were also shown on the Seven network . ABC continues to show it sporadically, including Christmas specials and occasional repeats of series five episodes. ABC2 also shows repeats of the show. As of 6–7 August 2016, the series was shown on Nine Network 's sister channel 9Gem to promote

3103-511: The Alan Carr Chatty Man show that she had doubts about the film as she felt the cast was "too old". She felt pressure to write it and did not want to commit herself to it at this early stage. On 4 January 2014 whilst appearing on The Jonathan Ross Show , Saunders officially confirmed that the movie will definitely be happening, as she felt obliged to write a script for a film adaptation after threatening it for so long. Saunders

3210-725: The Canadian Screen Award for Best Comedy Series . In 2020, the sixth and final season of Schitt's Creek was nominated for 15 Primetime Emmy Awards . This broke the record for the most Emmy nominations given to a comedy series in its final season. During the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards , the show became the first ever comedy or drama series to sweep the four acting categories ( Outstanding Lead Actor , Outstanding Lead Actress , Outstanding Supporting Actor , Outstanding Supporting Actress for Eugene Levy , Catherine O'Hara , Dan Levy , and Annie Murphy respectively) and one of only four live action shows, along with All in

3317-753: The RTR channel. The "boom" of Russian sitcoms began only in the 2000s, when in 2004, the STS started the highly successful sitcom " My Fair Nanny " (an adaptation of the American sitcom " The Nanny "). Since that time, sitcoms in Russia have been produced by the two largest entertainment channels in the country — STS and TNT . In 2007, the STS released the first original domestic sitcom — " Daddy's Daughters " (there were only adaptations before), and in 2010, TNT released " Interns " —

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3424-700: The United States feature sitcoms in their programming. CBS , TBS, Nickelodeon , and Disney Channel are just a few examples of networks that air sitcoms. Adrian Edmondson Adrian Charles Edmondson (born 24 January 1957) is an English actor, comedian, musician, writer and television presenter. He was part of the alternative comedy boom in the early 1980s and had roles in the television series The Young Ones (1982–1984) and Bottom (1991–1995), which he wrote together with his collaborator Rik Mayall . Edmondson also appeared in The Comic Strip Presents... series of films throughout

3531-730: The Victoria University of Manchester (now known as the University of Manchester) to study drama, where he met his future comedy partner Rik Mayall , and graduated with a 2:1 degree. Edmondson and Mayall soon became best friends and before long found work on the burgeoning alternative comedy scene. Under the name 20th Century Coyote , Edmondson and Mayall became one of the star attractions at The Comedy Store . As their popularity grew, Edmondson, Mayall and other upcoming comedians, including Nigel Planer , Peter Richardson , Alexei Sayle , and French and Saunders moved from

3638-664: The comedy-dramas of the 1980s and 1990s. Although there have been few long-running Australian-made sitcoms, many American and British sitcoms have been successful in Australia, since sitcoms are considered a staple of the government broadcaster Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). In the 1970s and 1980s many British sitcoms also screened on the Seven Network . By 1986, UK comedies Bless This House and Are You Being Served? had been re-screened several times by ABC Television ; they were then acquired and screened by

3745-552: The 1980s and 1990s. For two episodes of this he created the spoof heavy metal band Bad News , and for another he played his nihilistic alter-ego Eddie Monsoon, an offensive South African television star. He played the lead role in the Comic Strip 's 1985 feature film, The Supergrass . In the 2000s, Edmondson appeared in numerous TV programmes in drama roles including Jonathan Creek , Holby City , Miss Austen Regrets , as himself on Hell's Kitchen and created

3852-431: The 1990s these included: Dekh Bhai Dekh (1993), Zabaan Sambhalke (1993), Shrimaan Shrimati (1995), Office Office (2001), Ramani Vs Ramani (Tamil 2001), Amrutham (Telugu 2001–2007), Khichdi (2002), Sarabhai vs Sarabhai (2005) F.I.R. (2006–2015), Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah (2008–present), Uppum Mulakum (Malayalam 2015–present), and Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain (2015–present). SAB TV

3959-482: The 1990s, sitcoms have since expanded to animated sitcoms , with successful shows of the genre including The Simpsons , King of the Hill , and Family Guy . Critics have debated the exact definition of a sitcom, mostly regarding productions created at the turn of the 21st century. Many contemporary American sitcoms use a single-camera setup and do not feature a laugh track, instead more resembling documentaries or

4066-521: The 2002 Christmas special "Gay" (where Harry also guest-starred), as well as in series 5. For series 4, a line sung by David Bowie , "Ziggy played guitar", from his song " Ziggy Stardust ", played at the end of each episode. Due to copyright issues, the theme song is missing from many US Region 1 DVDs, replaced by an instrumental version. Also excised from the US DVD release is the musical number from Chicago performed by Horrocks, Gaffney, and Ryan during

4173-482: The 2010s, resulting in a decline in sitcom popularity. Nevertheless, there have been recent efforts to revive the sitcom genre. For instance, Netflix released So Not Worth It in 2021, featuring many creators from popular South Korean sitcoms. Popular South Korean sitcoms include the High Kick series, which has spawned several spin-offs. British sitcoms , like their American counterparts, often revolve around

4280-414: The 20th Anniversary episodes, although Logo removed some scenes for its airings. BBC America broadcast it in full. Both channels aired the episode in a 40-minute block to allow for commercial interruptions. On 3 January 2012, following the success of the 20th anniversary specials, it was rumoured that Saunders was set to write another Christmas special for 2012. The BBC was rumoured to be urging her to write

4387-401: The 20th Anniversary specials a negative review; following the "Olympics" episode, he commented, "The special Olympic edition of Absolutely Fabulous [...] would have won no medals for comedy." He added, "This was the last of three 20th anniversary specials, the first pair of which were shown over Christmas. Every single one of those 20 years showed on-screen during this torturous half-hour." In

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4494-506: The BBC mystery series Jonathan Creek , broadcast in 2003–2004. He had a lead role playing an NHS doctor in the comedy series Doctors and Nurses first broadcast in early 2004. In Surviving Disaster , a BBC docudrama about the 1986 Chernobyl disaster , broadcast at the start of 2006, Edmondson played the role of Valery Legasov . In 2005 he appeared as a celebrity model on Star Portraits with Rolf Harris . That year, he also competed on " Comic Relief Does Fame Academy " where he made it to

4601-714: The Canterbury Marlowe Arena pantomime during its Christmas 2009 run. In an August 2010 edition of Radio 4's Chain Reaction programme he said to Lee Mack that he had not really quit but was focusing more on music and farming. He also said that he and Mayall often spoke of a reunion when they are old men, or in fifteen years' time. Mayall appeared during Edmondson's winning performance of The Dying Swan on BBC One's Let's Dance for Comic Relief on 5 March 2011, and in September 2011, Edmondson appeared on

4708-541: The Comedy Store to The Comic Strip club. The Comic Strip soon gained a reputation as one of the most popular comedy clubs in London and soon came to the attention of Channel 4 . Edmondson and the others were commissioned to act in 6 self-contained half-hour films, using the group as comedy actors rather than stand-up performers. The series, titled The Comic Strip Presents... debuted on 2 November 1982 (the opening night of Channel 4). The first episode to be broadcast

4815-417: The Family , The Golden Girls , and Will & Grace where all the principal actors have won at least one Emmy Award. Sitcoms started appearing on Indian television in the 1980s, with serials like Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi (1984), Nukkad (1986), and Wagle Ki Duniya (1988) on the state-run Doordarshan channel. Gradually, as private channels were permitted to operate, many more sitcoms followed. In

4922-669: The ITV series Ade in Britain that year, where he travelled to different parts of the United Kingdom in a Mini Countryman towing a small caravan, often including a performed segment from local folk singers. A second series followed in 2013. Edmondson appeared on the BBC One series That's Britain! 2011. In each episode, his task was to report as an "insider" in how a region of Britain works. A one-off special, Britain Beware , about

5029-429: The London fashion scene. Eddie runs her own PR firm, and Patsy holds a sinecure position at a top British fashion magazine. The two women use their considerable financial resources to indulge in cigarettes, alcohol (most notably Bollinger Champagne ) and recreational drugs and to chase the latest fads in an attempt to maintain their youth and recapture their glory days as Mods in swinging London . The partnership

5136-853: The MTV awards. He also directed and appeared in "International Rescue" (1989) by Fuzzbox and appeared in the music video " Terry " (1983) by Kirsty MacColl . In 1991, Edmondson formed the Bum Notes , who were a jazz instrumental band and conceived exclusively to perform theme music for Bottom . A fan of the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band , Edmondson performed vocals with them as part of their 2006 reformation and countrywide tour. He also contributed vocals and writing for their 2007 album Pour l'Amour des Chiens . Together with Maartin Allcock , Andy Dinan and Troy Donockley , Edmondson founded

5243-467: The Pet Shop Boys with Patsy and Edina. On 10 June 2016, Kylie Minogue released a cover version of "This Wheel's on Fire" for the soundtrack to Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie , before the film's release in July 2016. On 29 November 2016, Jennifer Saunders confirmed that she was "done" with Absolutely Fabulous and that it would not return to television for another series or specials, nor would

5350-582: The Red Baron , nemesis to Mayall's character, Lord Flashheart . Edmondson played Brad Majors in the 1990 West End run of The Rocky Horror Show , alongside Tim McInnerny as Frank-N-Furter and Ed Tudor-Pole as Riff-Raff. He also appears on the soundtrack album of the production. In 1991, he teamed with his comedy partner Rik Mayall once more, this time co-writing and co-starring in their own sitcom, Bottom . Edmondson starred as "Edward Elizabeth Hitler" opposite Mayall's "Richard Richard". The series featured

5457-489: The Series 3 episode "Jealous", Series 2 had an image from the Series 3 episode "Doorhandle" and Series 3 is from the Series 2 episode "Poor". All other releases included imagery from the correct series, as do the original VHS releases. In North America, all episodes have been released on DVD by BBC Video and Warner Home Video , including a complete collection named Absolutely Everything . The Last Shout and Gay (released in

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5564-728: The Seven Network. In 1981, Daily at Dawn was the first Australian comedy series to feature a regular gay character (Terry Bader as journalist Leslie). In 1987, Mother and Son won the Television Drama Award for portraying a woman suffering from senile dementia and her interaction with her family, presented by the Australian Human Rights Commission . In 2007, Kath & Kim ' s first episode of series 4 attracted an Australian audience of 2.521 million nationally. This

5671-613: The Sunday morning cooking show Something for the Weekend and told presenter Tim Lovejoy that he and Rik Mayall were planning to reunite and make another series of Bottom , set in an old people's home. In 2011, Edmondson hosted the ITV documentary series The Dales , in which he followed a number of families who live and work in the Yorkshire Dales , including the "Yorkshire Shepherdess" Amanda Owen . He also presented

5778-452: The TV series, The Comic Strip Presents... . The name "Edina Monsoon" is derived from Edmondson's name and "Eddy Monsoon" is a nickname of his. Saunders revealed in 2012 that she was inspired by pop band Bananarama , with whom she and Dawn French had become friends after their Comic Relief collaboration in 1989. "The nights with Bananarama were some of the best nights of my life, and I got

5885-698: The UK individually) were released as a collection called Absolutely Special in 2003. Another feature-length special White Box was released exclusively to the American market. It was eventually released in the United Kingdom on 15 November 2010 with its inclusion in the Absolutely Everything box set. Sitcom The structure and concept of a sitcom have roots in earlier forms of comedic theater, such as farces and comedy of manners . These forms relied on running gags to generate humor, but

5992-525: The United States in 1926 with the radio show Sam 'n' Henry . The subsequent success of Amos 'n' Andy , also created by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll , solidified the sitcom's place in American radio programming. The transition to television brought about significant changes in the sitcom format. Mary Kay and Johnny , which premiered in 1947, became the first American television sitcom. Today, American sitcoms typically run for 22 minutes, allowing for approximately eight minutes of advertising within

6099-901: The band the Bad Shepherds in 2008, performing punk and new wave classics on traditional folk instruments. The band released three albums and first toured in 2009, playing at places such as the Trowbridge Village Pump Festival . The Bad Shepherds also headlined the first ever Looe Music Festival in 2011. They disbanded in October 2016. In 2010, he founded the Idiot Bastard Band with Simon Brint , Rowland Rivron , Neil Innes and Phill Jupitus . The Idiot Bastard Band perform original comedy songs as well as cover versions, and their shows often feature guest performers. The group continued to perform following

6206-483: The cast of Absolutely Fabulous as alternative characters. While writing and filming the show, Saunders was inspired to revive Absolutely Fabulous for a fourth series, which resulted in her abandoning Mirrorball . It was eventually aired as a television special and is included as a special feature on the fourth series DVD. Some original characters from Mirrorball feature in the fourth series. A French film inspired by Absolutely Fabulous , titled Absolument fabuleux ,

6313-503: The cooking and cleaning; Eddie and Mother, on the other hand, have a strained relationship, as they disagree on virtually everything and are rarely alone together. Also recurring in their lives are Eddie's ex-husbands, Marshall and Justin, and their respective new partners, the American hippie Bo and the acidic antique dealer Oliver. Absolutely Fabulous evolved from a French and Saunders sketch called " Modern Mother and Daughter " (from series 3 episode 6), which starred Saunders as

6420-448: The death of Brint in 2011. Edmondson married comedian Jennifer Saunders on 11 May 1985. They have three daughters: musician Ella , actress Beattie , and designer/stylist Freya. He is a supporter of Exeter City F.C. Edmondson's autobiography, Berserker!: An Autobiography , was published by Pan Macmillan in September 2023. In September 2023 Edmondson was the guest for BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs . An extended version

6527-660: The eighth film of the Star Wars series, The Last Jedi , a casting decision made by the film's director Rian Johnson , a self-proclaimed fan of Edmondson's work in The Young Ones and Bottom . In August 2018, Edmondson voiced the character of Bunny in the English version of the French/Belgian animated film The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales... . In September 2018, Edmondson featured as Sergeant Dogberry in

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6634-647: The episode "Sigh No More" of Ben Elton 's Upstart Crow . From September 2018 to November 2018, Edmondson toured with Nigel Planer in a play that they wrote together called Vulcan 7 (restaged in 2023 as It's Headed Straight Towards Us ). In 2019, Edmondson appeared in EastEnders as Daniel Cook . In 1984, Edmondson formed the spoof heavy metal band Bad News as part of The Comic Strip Presents... series with Comic Strip regulars Rik Mayall , Nigel Planer and Peter Richardson . The band proved popular, and they released two singles (neither of which reached

6741-584: The film began on 12 October 2015 in the south of France and it premiered in London on 29 June 2016. Absolutely Fabulous was initially released on VHS in the UK by BBC Video ending with the eight-VHS box set Series 1–4 in November 2002. In the United States, series 1 and 2 were released together on Laserdisc by CBS/FOX in a boxed set in 1995, followed by series 3, released by CBS/FOX the following year and "The Last Shout" released by Image Entertainment in 1997. All episodes were later released on DVD, including

6848-675: The final episode of the series, Edmondson played Vyvyan one last time in the video. The same year he co-wrote the book How to be a Complete Bastard together with Mark Leigh and Mike Lepine. Edmondson has directed pop videos for "Fiesta" (1988) by the Pogues , "Prime Mover" (1987) by Zodiac Mindwarp , "Like the Weather" (1988) by 10,000 Maniacs , "Please Help the Cause Against Loneliness" (1988) by Sandie Shaw and "Hourglass" by Squeeze (1987). The latter won Best Video at

6955-475: The finale and came in 3rd place. From 2005 to 2008 he appeared as Percy "Abra" Durant in the medical drama Holby City . In 2008 he played Henry Austen in the BBC produced film Miss Austen Regrets and Vernon in the ITV sitcom Teenage Kicks . In April 2009 he appeared on the cooking show Hell's Kitchen , where he reached the final, coming second to Linda Evans . Edmondson played the role of Captain Hook in

7062-647: The first sitcom, filmed as a comedy (unlike dominated "conveyor" sitcoms). Sitcoms, or "시트콤" in Korean, gained significant popularity in South Korea during the 1990s. This popularity was fueled by the success of shows like Dr. Oh's People , LA Arirang , and Men and Women . The use of computer graphics (CG) in sitcoms began to increase in the late 1990s as more broadcasters adopted CG technology. This led to more visually dynamic and creative sitcoms. However, viewer preferences shifted towards dramas and thrillers in

7169-441: The focus from domestic or workplace settings to the world of politics. A more recent development in British comedy is the mockumentary , a style that blends documentary and comedic elements. Shows like The Office , Come Fly with Me , W1A , People Just Do Nothing , and This Country have successfully employed this format to explore a variety of topics and characters. Sitcoms, or situation comedies, made their debut in

7276-438: The history of British public information films , was hosted by Edmondson and aired on ITV on 7 May 2012. In August 2012, the BBC announced plans for a 2013 television adaptation of Edmondson and Mayall's 1997 Hooligan's Island tour, but Edmondson announced later that year that he had pulled out of the project to pursue other interests. Rik Mayall , Edmondson's long-time creative partner, died on 9 June 2014. Edmondson had

7383-468: The mother, named Adrianna, and French as the daughter, named Saffron (as in the series). The sketch revolved around a middle-aged single mother who acted like a teenager and was reliant upon the emotional and financial support of her teenage daughter, who behaved like a middle-aged woman. It has no connection, other than the character's name, to the earlier film, Eddie Monsoon: A Life? , a comedy play written by Saunders' husband Adrian Edmondson in 1984 for

7490-523: The new adventures of Edina, Patsy, Saffy, Bubble and Mother, plus a few surprising guests, will be a real treat for viewers." Saunders announced in November 2011 that she had begun work on a film version of the series. In the United States, the episodes were jointly co-produced by Logo and BBC America in the US. and aired in January 2012 for broadcast by both BBC America and Logo Channel. Both channels co-produced

7597-411: The next corner. In the meantime, they decide to take Saffy's (Julia Sawalha) daughter off her – she calls her Jane, I call her Lola – but then they lose her. Saunders also stated that now that she had announced plans for a feature, there was no going back. She would do it for no reason other than having her alter-ego and Patsy walk down the red carpet at the film's premiere. In April 2013, Saunders said on

7704-470: The remaining episodes – including Edmondson's scheduled guest appearance in episode 5 – have never been shown. However, all seven episodes of ‘Hardwicke House’, including Edmondson’s appearance, can now be seen on YouTube. In 1988, Edmondson released a follow-up to How To Be A Complete Bastard called The Bastard's Book of the Worst . In 1989 he made an appearance in an episode of Blackadder Goes Forth as

7811-749: The role of Ace Face/Bellboy at the Who's performance of Quadrophenia at London's Hyde Park . A video game called Animal , featuring Peperami's "the animal", was released the same year, with the character being voiced by Edmondson. From 1997 to 1998 he voiced engine stoker Jones, a major character in the animated series Captain Star . In the 1998 ITV pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk , Edmondson played Jack's mother Dame Dolly alongside Neil Morrissey, Denise Van Outen, Paul Merton, Julian Clary and Julie Walters. Edmondson appeared regularly as Brendan Baxter in Series 4 of

7918-492: The same slapstick characteristics as Vyvyan in The Young Ones but was closer in personality to his later character "Eddie Hitler" in Bottom . The show was cancelled after one series. Edmondson was also slated to make a guest appearance along Mayall in the fifth episode of the ITV sitcom Hardwicke House . Due to the adverse reaction of both press and viewers, however, ITV withdrew the series after showing only two episodes and

8025-531: The series ranked #9 in Radio Times ' top 20 British sitcoms of all time. Absolutely Fabulous has a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes . From its earliest series, Absolutely Fabulous won a devoted cult status with gay audiences, which persists. There have been numerous tributes over the years, such as an Absolutely Fabulous drag show at Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras , and the song " Absolutely Fabulous " by synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys . Later series of

8132-593: The series was aired on B92 , while in the Czech Republic, all episodes have been shown. In North Macedonia, all episodes have been shown several times on Sitel. In the Netherlands and Flanders, the series is popular, and it is still regularly re-broadcast by the VPRO and Canvas , respectively. In Sweden, all episodes were first broadcast by SVT , but reruns have later appeared on other channels. In Germany, it

8239-410: The series was in the works. The series was tentatively called Ab Fab and relocated to Los Angeles. Saturday Night Live writer Christine Zander worked on the new scripts and would have been executive producer along with Saunders and BBC Worldwide 's Ian Moffitt . Sony Pictures Television , BBC Worldwide , and indie Tantamount were producing the new series for Fox , which greenlighted the pilot as

8346-474: The show for a fourth series in 2001 after writing and submitting a pilot entitled Mirrorball , which recruited nearly all of the original cast in new roles. The pilot was intended to be turned into a series of episodes. However, Saunders felt the AbFab characters were too rich and interesting to put aside and were far better suited for her new story ideas. Instead of Mirrorball , a new series of Absolutely Fabulous

8453-532: The show has earned an estimated $ 1 billion in syndication fees alone for Televisa . Gliding On , a popular sitcom in New Zealand in the early 1980s, won multiple awards during its run including Best Comedy, Best Drama and Best Direction at the Feltex Awards . The first Russian sitcom series was "Strawberry", which resembled "Duty Pharmacy" in a Spanish format. It was aired from 1996 to 1997 on

8560-447: The show into the ninth season of her eponymous show Roseanne , in which her character wins the lottery: Saunders and Lumley reprised their characters Edina and Patsy, and Mo Gaffney also appeared in the episode, though not as her character Bo. Two later American sitcoms, Cybill and High Society , also adapted elements of Absolutely Fabulous for the American audience. It was announced on 7 October 2008 that an American version of

8667-401: The show leaned into its cult status, including more gay-related storylines, such as Edina's search for her estranged gay son and Edina and Patsy marrying each other in a same-sex commitment ceremony. A proposed American remake that would have starred Carrie Fisher and Barbara Carrera was put into motion by Roseanne Barr but never materialised. However, Barr did incorporate many elements of

8774-549: The show was ranked number 17 on the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes by the British Film Institute . It was revived for two more series and two one-hour specials from 2001 to 2004. Three new episodes, collectively titled Absolutely Fabulous: 20th Anniversary , were released in 2011–2012. Two sketches for charity specials were also released, for Comic Relief in 2005 and Sport Relief in 2012. A film continuation, Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie ,

8881-437: The show's 20th anniversary, with the first special, "Identity", airing on 25 December 2011. Jon Plowman , executive producer and original producer of the series, said: "Viewers have been fantastically loyal in their devotion to our show, so we're really thrilled to say that it's coming back for three new shows to celebrate our 20th anniversary. All of the originals who are back together again are still truly absolutely fabulous and

8988-434: The sitcom Teenage Kicks . Edmondson performed and wrote for the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (2006-2007). In 2008 he formed a folk punk band, the Bad Shepherds , singing and playing mandola and mandolin . In 2011, he presented a series of shows for ITV : The Dales , which focused on people working in the Yorkshire Dales , and Ade in Britain in which he undertook a tour of numerous places in Britain. In 2013, Edmondson

9095-694: The slapstick, crude humour for which the pair had become famous but with more in-depth character analysis. Edmondson played Estragon to Mayall's Vladimir in Samuel Beckett 's play Waiting for Godot in the West End , in a production that opened at the Queen's Theatre on 30 September 1991. Bottom became very popular, but it was criticised for its often vulgar humour. The show was also turned into five UK stage tours (1993, 1995, 1997, 2001 and 2003). In 1993, Edmondson starred alongside Richard Briers in

9202-434: The term "sitcom" emerged as radio and TV adapted these principles into a new medium. The word was not commonly used until the 1950s. Early television sitcoms were often filmed in front of a live studio audience using a multiple-camera setup , the latter of which continues in some modern productions such as The Big Bang Theory and Fuller House . Other formats make use of a laugh track or "canned laughter". Since

9309-455: The three-part mini-series Prey . He played the role of Gordon in the 2013 Chichester Festival Theatre production of Neville's Island. In 2014, he reprised the role for the show's West End run. In 2015, Edmondson voiced Stanley the Dachshund in adverts for health and life insurance company Vitality. In 2016, Edmondson took part in episode 4 of The Great Sport Relief Bake Off and won

9416-745: The title of Star Baker. From 2 November to 3 December 2016 Edmondson starred in an adaptation of William Leith's bestseller Bits Of Me Are Falling Apart at the Soho Theatre , London . Edmondson's children's book Tilly and the Time Machine was published on 4 May 2017. From November 2017 into 2018, Edmondson played the character of Malvolio in the Royal Shakespeare Company 's production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night . Also in 2017, Edmondson appeared as Captain Peavey in

9523-498: The top 40) and two studio albums. They also played a series of small gigs around the country, culminating in their performance at the Monsters of Rock festival in 1986. In 1986, Edmondson achieved a number one hit in the UK Singles Chart when he and his co-stars from The Young Ones teamed up with Cliff Richard to record a new version of " Living Doll " for the inaugural Comic Relief campaign. Despite having been killed off in

9630-518: The upcoming film adaptation. All five series were broadcast in New Zealand on TVNZ . In India, all five series, including the specials, have been shown on BBC Entertainment. In the United States, Absolutely Fabulous premiered on 24 July 1994 on Comedy Central with a 12-episode marathon. Some public television stations have also broadcast it, but not as part of the PBS program offerings, in addition to BBC America , Oxygen Network , and as of 2011, Logo ,

9737-592: Was " Five Go Mad in Dorset ", a parody of Enid Blyton 's Famous Five , which drew anger from some viewers for the way it mercilessly satirised a children's classic. Edmondson starred as one of the five. By the same time as The Comic Strip Presents... was being negotiated, the BBC signed Edmondson, Mayall, Richardson, Planer, and Sayle to star in The Young Ones , a sitcom in the same anarchic style as The Comic Strip . (Richardson later decided not to proceed and

9844-402: Was also sung by Marianne Faithfull and P. P. Arnold for the two-part special, "The Last Shout", in 1996. Hermine Demoriane sang the theme song with a French accent over the closing credits of the series 4 episode "Paris" in 2001. At the end of the series 1 episode "Birthday", Edina and Patsy sang the song together on a karaoke machine. It was later performed by Debbie Harry and Edmondson in

9951-572: Was broadcast by the Franco-German TV network Arte and gay-oriented channel TIMM . In France, before it was rerun on terrestrial TV arte, it was successively premiered on pay TV channel Canal + , cable channel Jimmy, and is now broadcast on France 4 . In Finland, the series was broadcast by YLE TV1 . In Estonia, the series was broadcast by ETV . In Poland, two series were broadcast by Wizja Jeden , later by TVP3, TVN7 and BBC Entertainment . In Australia, all series were initially shown on

10058-460: Was broadcast on 25 December with the second episode being shown on 1 January 2012. The third and final special, aired on 23 July 2012, coincided with the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, with Stella McCartney appearing in a cameo role. A sketch for Sport Relief was also broadcast in 2012. A film version of the series, Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie , was released to theatres in the summer of 2016. Three new specials were announced to celebrate

10165-927: Was criticized by several social commentators as inappropriately disrespectful to the office of the Prime Minister. The show nevertheless proved very popular with both television audiences and critics, becoming the most-watched Australian scripted comedy series of 2011. It was nominated at the 2012 Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards for Best Television Comedy Series. Although there have been several notable exceptions, relatively few Canadian sitcoms attained notable success in Canada or internationally. Canadian television has had much greater success with sketch comedy and dramedy series. The popular show King of Kensington aired from 1975 to 1980, at its peak garnering an average of 1.5 to 1.8 million viewers weekly. The 1999 movie Trailer Park Boys

10272-516: Was crowned the winner of Celebrity Masterchef , and from 2019 to 2020, he appeared in the BBC soap opera EastEnders as Daniel Cook . In 2022, he also played Ebenezer Scrooge in the Royal Shakespeare Company 's adaptation of A Christmas Carol . The second of four children, Adrian Charles Edmondson was born on 24 January 1957 in Bradford , West Riding of Yorkshire , to Dorothy Eileen Sturgeon (born 1930) and Fred Edmondson (1929–2014). As

10379-530: Was followed up by a television series of the same name that ran from 2001 to 2018, airing in Canada, the U.S., and the U.K. Corner Gas , which ran for six seasons from 2004 to 2009, became an instant hit, averaging one million viewers per episode. It has been the recipient of six Gemini Awards and has been nominated almost 70 times for various awards. Other noteworthy recent sitcoms have included: Call Me Fitz , Schitt's Creek , Letterkenny , and Kim's Convenience , all of which have been winners of

10486-460: Was in sixth form, with his parents working abroad, Edmondson began to enjoy himself, "which involved lots of drinking and smoking and petty acts of vandalism ." He made some good friends at the school and had a favourite teacher, Michael Aubrey. Aubrey taught English and encouraged Edmondson to pursue drama , casting him in a number of school plays, and allowing him to take time out from other lessons to do drama. After Pocklington, Edmondson went to

10593-423: Was less likely to happen, but said if Saunders wished to write new Ab Fab stories, she would be up for returning to play Patsy; she said "wait and see". Many celebrities, mainly British or American, appeared in the series, most of them as themselves. They include: In Portugal, Ab Fab has been shown on RTP2 . In Serbia, the first series was aired in 1998, through a network of local television stations. In 2004,

10700-612: Was proposed to the BBC, which later commissioned the fourth series in 2001. From 2001 to 2004, two series were produced, along with two one-off hour-long specials; Gay (retitled and issued as Absolutely Fabulous in New York for the United States) in 2002 and White Box (another series finale), which aired in 2004. A Comic Relief sketch was broadcast in 2005. In November 2010, Lumley revealed to Playbill magazine that she had recently spoken to Saunders about possibly filming

10807-462: Was quoted as saying: " Joanna Lumley kept announcing it and saying, 'Yes she's going to do it,' and then Dawn French on our radio show at Christmas said, 'I bet £100,000 that you don't write it,' so now I have to write it, otherwise I have to pay her £100,000'". In April 2014, Saunders again confirmed on BBC Breakfast that she was in the process of writing the film, and gave a prospective release date of sometime during 2015. Principal photography on

10914-501: Was ranked as the 17th greatest British television show of all time by the British Film Institute (BFI). In 1997, the pilot episode, "Fashion", was ranked #47 on TV Guide ' s "100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time" list. A scene from the show was included in the TV's 100 Greatest Moments programme broadcast by Channel 4 in 1999. In 2004 and 2007, the show was ranked #24 and #29 on TV Guide ' s "Top Cult Shows Ever" list. In 2019,

11021-481: Was released in 2001. It was written and directed by Gabriel Aghion , and starred Josiane Balasko as Eddy and Nathalie Baye as Patsy. Saunders had a small cameo alongside Catherine Deneuve as a spectator at a fashion show. Amanda Lear was asked to play the part of Patsy but turned it down laughingly, saying she had "already lived it". In 2011, before the release of the new episodes for 2011/2012, Deadline Hollywood reported that Saunders planned to begin writing

11128-449: Was replaced by Christopher Ryan .) The show revolved around the shared house where four students lived during their studies at Scumbag College. It was noted at the time of its first airing for its violent slapstick, and the series retains a cult following . During this time, Edmondson also appeared in a bank advertisement portraying a character very similar to his "Vyvyan" guise. Following the success of The Comic Strip Presents... and, to

11235-559: Was the highest rating for a first episode in the history of Australian television, until the series premiere of Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities in 2009, which garnered 2.58 million viewers. In 2013, Please Like Me received an invitation to screen at the Series Mania Television Festival in Paris, was praised by critics, and earned numerous awards and nominations. Also in 2013, At Home with Julia

11342-546: Was the most-watched show on Mexican television and had a Latin-American audience of 350 million viewers per episode at its popularity peak during the mid-1970s. The show continues to be popular in Central America as well as in Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Spain, the United States, and other countries. Syndicated episodes average 91 million daily viewers in all its American markets. Since it ceased production in 1992,

11449-422: Was theatrically released in 2016. Saunders then confirmed that she is "not doing anything more with Ab Fab ", as she wanted to focus on new projects. However, in October 2024, Saunders, Lumley, Sawalha and Horrocks appeared in a retrospective, titled Absolutely Fabulous: Inside Out , which broadcast on Gold . Edina "Eddie" Monsoon (Saunders) and Patricia "Patsy" Stone (Lumley) are two high-powered career women on

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