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This week in 1983 one of the great political schemers, Edmund Blackadder hit TV screens for the first time. Matt chart's the politics of the classic sitcom, from the power plays to the by-elections, speaking to Tony Robinson, who played Baldrick, and Miriam Margolyes who was a regular on the show. Plus Columnists India Knight and James Heale discuss whether partygate would have blown over had Boris Johnson fessed up at the very start and whether today's softer work culture is destroying ambition. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
On this episode we journey through the decades with one of the most sarcastic and devious characters in British comedy, Edmund Blackadder. Dipping into a couple episodes of each series, we discuss the shows evolution, its highs and its lows. We resist the temptation to go down too many history rabbit holes and talk about the production, the cast and what it is that makes this one of the most loved UK comedy classics.
Episode Notes Today we discuss a BBC show that Megan grew up on: The Black Adder, starring Rowan Atkinson and Brian Blessed. This pseudo-historical sitcom, somewhat based on William Shakespeare's Henriad and Richard III, follows Edmund Blackadder as he works his way up the ladder in Medieval England. Follow Avant-Bard on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Support the show, access bloopers, and suggest episode topics on Patreon! CAST: Megan Scharlau and Matthew Marquez Theme music by Riley Allen- https://rileyallen59.wixsite.com/music SFX: "Boccherini Minuet Classical", "Record Stop", "Window Curtain Close", "Party Noise Maker Blow Unfold", "Strong Massive Men Laughter", "Cheering 4", "Cheering 3", and "Comic Male Laughter" from Audioblocks.com. Support Avant-Bard by donating to their Tip Jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/avant-bard
Shocking revelations, cunning plans, and *major spoilers* abound as Steff and Kaley travel through 500 years of history, discover the importance of always watching the credits, and debate the merits of Edmund Blackadder as an unlikely sex symbol (and Lord Flashheart as an even less likely feminist figure). You might want to grab some tissues for this one. Seriously.
Our regular host Jason Deline (@JasonDeline) was under the weather and the intrepid Helena Marie stepped in to fill his hosting shoes while we discussed the multi-talented Ben Elton's album Motormouth. Joined by Neil Jones (Radio Project X), myself Matt Ardill (@commonperson) and Kyle Scott (@gkylescott) while we dive into the man who made Edmund Blackadder so delightfully evil and The Young Ones' plot make sense as he delved into the world of staundup. As always our amazing engineer Andrea Miller kept our show ticking along and please check out our home on Facebook for more information about future shows, leaving us a question or suggesting an album.
What do the KLF, Alan Moore and Edmund Blackadder have to do with web design? Find out from Paul Rissen, Senior Data Architect at the BBC, with a deep dive into the structure of narrative and how data could unlock a new approach to creative expression. We’ll cover the BBC’s experiments in structured data for storytelling in drama and news, why we need the Internet of Fictional Things, and the alchemic secrets of the Web’s pioneers. Paul Rissen is a Project Manager of the RES project at the BBC, currently helping open the data held by the UK’s cultural institutions for use in education, via the RES Project (http://res.space). He pioneered the ‘storyline’ architecture that creates structured data from traditional narratives, allowing audiences and machines alike to explore networks of narrative using RESTful Web architecture. He developed this first in fictional environments – continuing dramas at the BBC including Doctor Who and Eastenders – and adapted it to news, where it has been the basis for new approaches to the presentation of news through the BBC’s website. This is a recording of the ODI Friday lunchtime lecture given on 15th April.
Instituto Thomas Jefferson (Podcast) - www.poderato.com/tjradio
@ITJqro Today we talk about Blackadder. This encompasses four series of a BBC 1 period British sitcom. All follow the "misfortunes" of Edmund Blackadder, who in each is a member of a British family dynasty present at many significant periods and places in British history.
Swindon 105.5FM's Sean Hodgson recently spoke to Almost Legal Productions' Olly Ward, who plays the title character in Blackadder. The stage-adaptation of the classic TV show will be performed at Swindon Arts Centre from Friday 27 to Saturday 28 June. Almost Legal Productions bring a British classic from screen to stage with their adaptation of 2 classic episodes of the Ben Elton and Richard Curtis comedy Blackadder. Blackadder is a comedy set in different historical periods that features the ill-fated exploits of the mean-spirited Edmund Blackadder and his dim sidekick Baldrick. Almost Legal Productions is a collective theatre and film production company based in Stroud, Gloucestershire. Swindon 105.5 is a non-commercial radio service in Swindon, by Swindon, for Swindon. Licensed by OFCOM as a Not For Profit community broadcasting organisation and funded by grants, donations, corporate support, fund-raising events and support in-kind.
Blackadder: Where is the prisoner. Baldrick: He's dead. Blackadder: Dead? Are you sure? Baldrick: Well I cut his head off. That usually does the trick. In that episode of Blackadder 2, Edmund Blackadder had been put in charge of the Tower of London and had brought all the scheduled executions forward so he could enjoy a long weekend. Unfortunately Queen Elizabeth had changed her mind about killing one of her favourites. When the change of instructions got through, it was too late. With, needless to say, hilarious consequences.
Napol Wills introduces Episode 8 of Season 6 - Blackadder: General Hospital, Bad Science, Quiet Please: Be a Good Dog, Darling, and X-Minus-One: The Veldt. Andrew McDonnald reads the credits as Edmund Blackadder.