...and representing Scumbag College (Young Ones, The)

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Product:	Young Ones, The
Date:	08/11/00 (1100 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It was the eighties...

Disadvantages: It was the eighties...

Starring:
Rick: Rik Mayall
Vyvyan: Adrian Edmonson
Neil: Nigel Planer
Mike: Christopher Ryan

If you don’t already know, The Young Ones was a series running in the early eighties featuring 4 male students sharing a house in North London. It first appeared on BBC 2 in November 1982, and ran until June 1984, but has been repeated numerous times since then. Although there were only two series in total, each one consisted of six programmes, one a week, it contained many of the UKs best comedians around today. The characters played by Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmonson also set the stage for what became known as “Bottom”.

Rick is a sociology student who professes to be rebellious, and goes around shouting “Fascist” at people in the post office, Vyvyan is an anarchic punk medical student, Mike, a rather suave (but short) self-styled playboy type, and Neil is a hippie. The Young Ones was the epitome of eighties Britain – socialist students, fighting the establishment, poll tax, giros, grants, Anarchy, “The Pigs”, “Thatcher!” etc…

Series One (1982):
“Demolition”, “Oil”, “Bomb”, “Boring”, “Interesting”, and “Flood”.

Series Two (1984):
“Bambi”, “Cash”, “Nasty”, “Time”, “Sick”, and “Summer Holiday”.

One of my favourite episodes called “Bambi” is when The Young Ones go on University Challenge representing “Scumbag College” against “Footlights College, Oxbridge” (a team which consists of Ben Elton (Kendal Mintcake), Stephen Fry (Lord Monty), Emma Thompson (Miss Money-Sterling), and Hugh Laurie (Lord Snot)). Griff Rhys Jones appears as Bamber Gasgoine (the question master). It is so funny watching the two teams, one of which is actually *above* the other, as the camera
angles on the real University Challenge used to suggest. Even the trip down to the television studios on the train is funny, with Neil swatting up on possible answers, Rick going over his History O’Level notes in the vain attempt to revise for the show, and Vyvyan reading the “The Daily Mirror Book of Facts: Did You Know”, which contains trivia classics such as: “The World’s Loudest Bottom Burp”, and “The World’s Stickiest Bogey” (both apparently by Toxteth O'Grady, U.S.A)

Another favourite episode is where Vyvyan “eats” the television, when the TV licence man comes round, because they haven’t got a licence, and because it’s a kind of “punky” thing to do – and he is left with just the cord and the plug hanging out of his mouth.

NEIL: Oh, no! It's the TV Detector Van!
RICK: MIKE, YOU B******D! Why didn't you buy a license? I can't go to prison! I'm too pretty!

These shows were absolute classics, and launched the careers of some of the UKs best comedians. French and Saunders used to appear on the show regularly, as did Alexei Sayle, playing numerous characters from the Balowski family, including the Young Ones’ foreign Landlord, Jerzy. Robbie Coltrane also appeared in one episode as “Dr Carlisle”, as did Hale and Pace, Mel Smith, and Tony Robinson, amongst others.
The Young Ones also used to have a band on every show, playing in some room in their house, and featuring some real eighties classics such as Rip, Rig and Panic, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, and Madness (who played at “The Kebab and Calculator” a nearby pub where Vyvyan’s Mum worked). They also had Motorhead, and The Damned, as well as Alexei Sayle singing a song about Dr Marten Boots.

Some real features of the show include:
- Rick’s Poems – throughout both series, Rick designates himself as 
220;The People’s Poet”, and manages to write about anything from Cliff Richard to Trotsky, and Pollution.

- Mike’s absolutely terrible jokes. (which would definitely qualify for the “tumbleweeds and bell-tolling silences” featured in Shooting Stars after Vic Reeves’ jokes):

TV LICENCE MAN: Where's your licence?
MIKE: As the eunuch said to Mussolini, “I haven't got one, and if I did, I wouldn't show it to you!”
NEIL: That was a really cheap joke, Mike.
MIKE: I'm saving up to pay the licence fine

…And who would be without the animated household objects – such as the rotten vegetables in the fridge (the singing tomato, or the disabled carrot), or a plug-socket in love, or even the flies making a “Fly on the Wall Documentary”!!!!

Another example classic line:

RICK: [look at Vyvyan flatly] Well, someone's got to do it, Vyvyan! It's very easy to sit on your backside, isn't it?
VYVYAN: Not if you haven't got a bottom!


There are several BBC videos available of The Young Ones, in different episode compilations. I bought “The Very Best of the Young Ones” in the budget section at Virgin for £5.99. Videos currently available include:

The Young Ones – Cash/ Interesting/ Summer Holiday
The Young Ones – Demolition/ Bomb/ Sick
The Young Ones – Oil/ Boring/ Flood
The Young Ones – The Complete Young Ones Series 1
The Young Ones – The Complete Young Ones Series 2
The Young Ones – The Very Best of the Young Ones

My advice is to go for the “complete series” videos, as on just two tapes you get the entire series, so it’s cheaper, *and* takes up less space on your video collection shelf (or in my case “Video Collection Room”!) Also, look out for re-runs on TV, I know both The Comedy Channel, a
nd UK Gold have shown episodes again on Sky, so keep an eye out.

Finally, if you want a really big laugh, buy a compilation video with the episode “Bomb” on it (First Series), if only for the “Dicky and Dino” sketch. Rik Mayall and Nigel Planer feature as two American TV show hosts, with a penchant for golf. It is hysterical.

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