The Comic Strip

Lore & Background

Two double acts, Adrian Edmondson and Rik Mayall under the name 20th Century Coyote and Nigel Planer and Peter Richardson as The Outer Limits, started performing at the newly opened Comedy Store in London in 1980, alongside compere Alexei Sayle who had been resident there since the Comedy Store opened in 1979. Concurrently Richardson searched for a venue to mount a play he had produced with Michael White. He planned to run the Comic Strip late at night after the play's performances. He sourced the Raymond Revuebar in Soho, but realising it was unsuitable for a theatrical production and running out of enthusiasm for the play, he decided to continue with the idea of a cabaret night. He persuaded the double acts and Sayle to move from the Comedy Store along with Arnold Brown, an older stand-up comic who did not fit so obviously into the alternative comedy scene. Sayle again resumed his compere duties and decided the running order, with Richardson having behind-the-scenes control. Richardson put out an advert for female performers which was answered by French and Saunders.

The Comic Strip opened at the Revuebar's Boulevard Theatre on 7 October 1980 and ran until 1981, when the troupe went on a national tour and then a tour of Australia. While the performers gained more exposure, actors such as Jack Nicholson and Robin Williams turned up to watch. A half-hour television documentary about the Comic Strip was broadcast in 1981. Richardson approached producer Mike Bolland, the newly appointed Channel 4 youth-and-entertainment commissioning editor to propose a series of Comic Strip films for the channel. Bolland agreed to his proposal, his first commission for the station and Jeremy Isaacs quickly approved the budget. Richardson negotiated a deal with the channel for six self-contained half-hour films, using the group as actors rather than standup performers.

Reader's Guide

The Comic Strip Presents... debuted on 2 November 1982, the opening night of Channel 4. The first episode was Five Go Mad in Dorset, a parody of the Famous Five, which drew anger from some viewers. The final episode of the first series was to have been a spoof chat show called Back to Normal with Eddie Monsoon, but it was never produced, as it was considered too vulgar even for the 'alternative' Channel 4, and contained material that was possibly libellous. A second series of seven episodes followed in 1983–84, including Five Go Mad on Mescalin and Eddie Monsoon – A Life?. The group made two feature films—The Supergrass (1985) and Eat the Rich (1987). The third series was broadcast in 1988, and some episodes had longer running times, mostly around 50 minutes. They included The Strike, which won the Golden Rose of Montreux. In 1990, the series transferred to BBC2. In 1998, the original team reunited and returned to Channel 4 for a one-off special, Four Men in a Car. The group's work is considered a pioneering example of alternative comedy on British television.

Did You Know?

• The Comic Strip opened at the Raymond Revuebar's Boulevard Theatre on 7 October 1980.
• The first episode of The Comic Strip Presents... was Five Go Mad in Dorset, a parody of the Famous Five.
• The episode The Strike won the Golden Rose of Montreux.
• The name Eddie Monsoon is a corruption of 'Edmondson' and was later used by Jennifer Saunders for her character in Absolutely Fabulous.

From the Comedy Store to the Revuebar

The Comic Strip did not arrive fully formed. In 1980, two separate double acts—Adrian Edmondson and Rik Mayall as 20th Century Coyote, and Nigel Planer with Peter Richardson as The Outer Limits—were regulars at London's newly opened Comedy Store, where Alexei Sayle had been resident compere since 1979. The group's true birth came when Richardson, searching for a late-night slot to mount a play he had produced with Michael White, secured the Raymond Revuebar in Soho. Finding the space unsuitable for theatrical work and losing enthusiasm for the production, he pivoted to a cabaret night. He convinced both double acts and Sayle to relocate, bringing along Arnold Brown, a veteran stand-up whose style sat outside the emerging alternative comedy movement. Sayle handled compere duties and running order while Richardson managed operations behind the scenes. An advertisement seeking female performers drew responses from Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, completing the core six. Richardson formalised the arrangement by having everyone sign a contract. The troupe opened at the Revuebar's Boulevard Theatre on 7 October 1980, ran through 1981, then toured Britain and Australia, attracting audiences that included Jack Nicholson and Robin Williams. A half-hour television documentary captured their work that same year.

Channel 4's Pioneering Commission

Richardson pitched a series of Comic Strip films to Mike Bolland, Channel 4's newly appointed youth-and-entertainment commissioning editor. Bolland agreed—it was his first commission for the station—and Jeremy Isaacs quickly approved the budget. Richardson negotiated a deal for six self-contained half-hour films in which the group appeared as actors rather than stand-up performers. The series debuted on 2 November 1982, Channel 4's opening night. Each episode opened with an animated sequence: the words 'The Comic Strip Presents' set to a drum machine and Farfisa organ rendition of 'Quando quando quando,' while a bomb labelled 'Have a nice day' tumbled toward a map. In early episodes that map centred on Shaftesbury in north Dorset and southern Wiltshire. The first instalment, Five Go Mad in Dorset, was a merciless parody of the Famous Five children's books, written by Richardson and Pete Richens. Though the Enid Blyton estate had granted permission, viewer anger prompted a meeting to discuss the group's future with the channel. A second series of seven episodes followed in 1983–84, including the sequel Five Go Mad on Mescalin and the first episode filmed outside Britain, A Fistful of Travellers' Cheques, shot around San José in Andalusia, Spain.

The Eddie Monsoon Saga

The most enduring thread in the group's television output is the fictional character Eddie Monsoon, a corruption of Edmondson's surname. The planned finale of the first series was a spoof chat show, Back to Normal with Eddie Monsoon, written as a collaboration by the entire cast—a unique occurrence for the group. It was never produced; Channel 4 deemed it too vulgar even by the standards of its 'alternative' brand, and the material raised potential libel concerns. The script was later published in book form alongside the rest of the series. The character resurfaced in the second series through Eddie Monsoon – A Life?, a spoof documentary in which Edmondson played the obscene, drunken television host and Michael White, the Rocky Horror Show producer brought in as executive producer, appeared as Monsoon's producer. The in-joke reasons for the character's show being axed—lines about Burt Reynolds—mirrored the real cancellation of Back to Normal. The name 'Eddie Monsoon' would later be repurposed by Jennifer Saunders, Edmondson's wife, for her iconic Absolutely Fabulous character.

Cross-Pollination and Wider Reach

The Comic Strip's influence radiated well beyond their own output. Almost simultaneously with the Channel 4 commission, the BBC signed Edmondson, Mayall, Planer, and Sayle to star in The Young Ones, a sitcom sharing the group's anarchic sensibility. Richardson had initially been set to play the role of Mike but withdrew after differences with producer Paul Jackson; Christopher Ryan ultimately took the part. The group also produced two feature films, The Supergrass (1985) and Eat the Rich (1987), alongside one-off television episodes. Their Christmas 1985 pair—Consuela, a French and Saunders-led pastiche of Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca, and Private Enterprise, a music-industry satire—reflected the tight scheduling demands of a group juggling multiple projects. The Bullshitters, a parody of television spy and detective shows, was notably not broadcast under the Comic Strip banner, partly because only Richardson appeared in it and partly because co-star and co-writer Keith Allen preferred not to be closely associated with the group. The ensemble was widely labelled a pioneering force in the alternative comedy scene, a designation encompassing their blend of theatrical cabaret, scripted television, and feature-film work.

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