6 British Comedies You Should Be Watching
Posted by Allison Cianci on 1st Apr 2016
With Netflix and all the other streaming sites out there, it has become so much easier to find amazing shows to watch from outside the US. In the past few years I've gone through so many British shows that are honestly better than a lot of the ones here! When thinking about British comedies, I used to only think of the British version of The Office, and wasn't really interested. And then I found these shows and couldn't stop watching.
Know of any shows I'm missing, let me know in the comments.
Pramface
Out of all the shows on here, Pramface is probably the least popular. I only found it by scrolling through all the foreign shows on Hulu. In the show, 16 year old Jamie and his friends go out to a sixth form party, where he ends up having a one night stand with one of the girls he meets there. Six weeks later, he gets a call and Laura is pregnant. Together they have to find a way to work around their crazy lives and families to make it all work.
The show was canceled after its third season without a proper ending, but it is still definitely worth the watch with each episode and season being funnier than the last! All 19 episodes are available on Hulu for free.
Catastrophe
Catastrophe is kind of the more adult version of Pramface in that a (sort of) one night stand leads to a couple having a baby. Rob, an American who had met Sharon while on a business trip in London, packs up his life and moves into Sharon's place as soon as he finds out the news. It's a rom-com that doesn't feel like your typical cheesy romantic comedy. The writing and the cast are a perfect combination and will have you hooked after the first episode. Good thing both seasons are now available on Amazon Prime in the US!
Bad Education
If you want a show that will actually make you laugh out loud, it's Bad Education. The show follows Alfie Wickers, a teacher who is "a bigger kid than the kids he teaches." Trying to impress his class and the fellow teacher he's got a crush on, Alfie gets himself into the strangest situations. Always wanting to be the "cool" guy doesn't make him the best teacher at the school in the eyes of any other adult, but hey, his class definitely thinks he is. Jack Whitehall is perfectly cast as Alfie, as is everyone else on the show. It's a great comedy with some heart thrown in there (especially that last episode) and well worth the watch.
I haven't found the show on any American sites, but if you have the Hola extension for Chrome, you can watch all 3 seasons it on BBC Three. And don't forget to look for the movie that came out last year!
Fresh Meat
Take six students just starting University, throw them into a house together, and you've got Fresh Meat. It's Skins meets comedy. It's raunchy and hilarious, but the best part of the show isn't the jokes, but the characters. Each one is very well written and unique and the combination of all six of them is perfection.
The first two seasons are currently available on Netflix, but all six can be watched on Channel4.com using the Hola extension.
Miranda
Miranda is totally unlike all the other shows on this list, but it's one of my favorites. It kind of feels more like you're watching a play in that there are only a few different sets used and the forth wall is broken many times. The show is based off a radio comedy written by the writer and star of the show, Miranda Hart, and it keeps a similar feel to it. Miranda's social skills are laughable, her mother is just a little bit crazy, and her love life is hopeless. It'll have you watching an entire season in a day! Each character brings something different to the table and are HILARIOUS. If you're into more silly comedies, this is one show you need to check out.
Miranda is available on Hulu.
Inbetweeners
If you happen to be familiar with the American version of The Inbetweeners, forget about it entirely. The original show is the only one you need to pay attention to. The show follows four teenage guys through the four years of high school, doing all of the things you'd expect them to. Dating, drinking, dating...They're definitely not the coolest kids at their school, but they aren't the biggest losers either. Just stuck somewhere in between.
All 3 seasons and both movies are available now on Netflix.