Description

Book Synopsis

The 1970s were the era of the three-day week, the Troubles in Northern Ireland, the winter of discontent, trade union Bolshevism and wildcat strikes. Through sitcoms, Raising Laughter provides a fresh look at one of our most divisive and controversial decades. Aside from providing entertainment to millions of people, the sitcom is a window into the culture of the day.

Many of these sitcoms tapped into the decade’s sense of cynicism, failure and alienation, providing much-needed laughter for the masses. Shows like Rising Damp and Fawlty Towers were classic encapsulations of worn-out, run-down Britain, while the likes of Dad’s Army looked back sentimentally at a romanticised English past.

For the first time, the stories behind the making of every sitcom from the 1970s are told by the actors, writers, directors and producers who made them all happen. This is nostalgia with a capital N, an oral history, the last word, and an affectionate salute to the kind of comedy programme that just isn’t made anymore.

Raising Laughter: How the Sitcom Kept Britain

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    A Paperback / softback by Robert Sellers

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      Book details

      Publisher The History Press Ltd
      Published 7 September 2023
      ISBN-13 9781803993683
      978-1803993683
      ISBN-10 1803993685
      Also in:
      Entertainment Television Oral history Social and cultural history

      Description

      Book Synopsis

      The 1970s were the era of the three-day week, the Troubles in Northern Ireland, the winter of discontent, trade union Bolshevism and wildcat strikes. Through sitcoms, Raising Laughter provides a fresh look at one of our most divisive and controversial decades. Aside from providing entertainment to millions of people, the sitcom is a window into the culture of the day.

      Many of these sitcoms tapped into the decade’s sense of cynicism, failure and alienation, providing much-needed laughter for the masses. Shows like Rising Damp and Fawlty Towers were classic encapsulations of worn-out, run-down Britain, while the likes of Dad’s Army looked back sentimentally at a romanticised English past.

      For the first time, the stories behind the making of every sitcom from the 1970s are told by the actors, writers, directors and producers who made them all happen. This is nostalgia with a capital N, an oral history, the last word, and an affectionate salute to the kind of comedy programme that just isn’t made anymore.

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