Gabriel Tate

Comedy gets no respect, no respect at all. Sure, everyone loves to laugh, and just about every film buff has a comedy movie they hold close to their heart. But for some reason, when it comes to awards and canonisation, comedies still get short shrift in the history of cinema. That’s probably because, more than any other genre, comedy is dependent on context. What’s funny in 1924 might land with a thud in 2024. And that’s to say nothing of varying tastes in humour.  That makes coming up with the best comedy films of all time especially tricky. We had to ask ourselves: what makes a truly great comedy? There’s many criteria, but one of the most important is the question of: ‘Is this film still funny now, and will it still be funny five years, ten years… a century from now?’ With the help of comedians like Diane Morgan and Russell Howard, actors such as John Boyega and Jodie Whittaker and a small army of Time Out writers, we believe we’ve found the 100 finest, most durable and most broadly appreciable laughers in history. No matter your sense of humour - silly or sophisticated, light or dark, surreal or broad - you’ll find it represented here.  Recommended: 🔥 The 100 best movies of all-time🤣 The best comedies of 2024 (so far)🥰 The greatest romantic comedies of all time

A comédia é um género frequentemente ignorado pelos prémios e pela crítica. Mas produzir uma grande comédia, uma comédia intemporal, é uma das maiores conquistas no cinema. É uma forma de arte em grande parte dependente do contexto: aquilo que faz uma plateia chorar a rir em 2024 pode ser recebido mais tarde com olhares vazios – nem sequer é preciso passar meio século, como é muitas vezes o caso; bastam alguns anos de diferença. Por isso mesmo, aqueles que nos fizeram rir durante décadas são verdadeiramente especiais. Para elaborar esta lista das 100 maiores comédias de sempre, pedimos a comediantes como Diane Morgan e Russell Howard, a actores como John Boyega e Jodie Whittaker e a uma pequena legião de escritores da Time Out sobre os filmes que mais os fazem rir, e por mais tempo. Ao fazê-lo, acreditamos ter encontrado as melhores, mais intemporais e amplamente apreciáveis 100 comédias da história do cinema. Independentemente do seu sentido de humor – disparatado ou sofisticado, leve ou sombrio, surreal ou mais abrangente – vai encontrá-lo representado aqui. Recomendado:🔥 Os 100 melhores filmes de sempre🥰 As melhores comédias românticas de sempre

The best comedies in the history of cinema achieve more than just making you laugh (although, granted, it’s not a great comedy if it barely makes you crack a smile). Classic romcoms like ‘Notting Hill’ have us yearning for true love while teen movies like ‘Mean Girls’ get us cringing at memories of being too dorky to join the cool gang at school (and ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ ticks both boxes). Then there are the political satires, like ‘The Death of Stalin’, which serve up uncomfortable truths alongside the funnies. And finally, when we need to get into the festive spirit, the Christmas film archives are crammed with titles that leave you giggling into your eggnog.  All of which makes choosing the 100 best comedies of all time a little tricky. To help us with the task, we enlisted the help of comedians (such as Russell Howard and Diane Morgan), actors (John Boyega and Jodie Whittaker, among others), directors and screenwriters (including Richard Curtis), as well as several Time Out writers. So the next time you need something to turn that frown upside down, you’ll know where to start. RECOMMENDED:  London and UK cinema listings, film reviews and exclusive interviews

I was expecting fold-up bikes. There aren't any. In BBC2 sitcom ‘W1A’, a whipsmart parody of the BBC, the spirit of the Beeb is embodied by Hugh Bonneville’s trusty Brompton. But although the BBC’s nerve centre is now in bikeable Portland Place rather than way out west in White City, on my visit the commuter steeds seem to be in short supply. Since 2012, BBC radio and television have been under one roof, in New Broadcasting House, W1A. Thousands of people beaver away here in Auntie’s shiny new extension to meet the BBC’s public-service mission statement: ‘inform, educate and entertain’. I’ve come for a tour. We start in the grandly named Media Cafe, peering down at the newsroom as it thrums with activity. Our guides Ellie and Steven tear through their info-packed spiel: it’s the biggest newsroom in Europe; dust created by excavations for the extension means Victoria line trains now have windscreen wipers despite never going overground; newsreaders write their own scripts. Although it’s a bit frustrating we’re not allowed into the newsroom itself, there’s no time for disappointment as we’re whisked off to a familiar primetime scene. In a few hours, Alex Jones, Matt Baker and guests will have their bums where ours currently are, on a lime-green, lightly stained sofa. ‘Who here likes “The One Show”?’ asks Steven. One person out of our group of 26 raises a hand, which feels about right to me, though 4 million viewers would beg to differ. There’s an undeniable frisson to being i

It was the first improvised panel show Not just the first, but one of only a handful of improvised shows ever made for television. It first aired on Channel 4 in 1988, after six episodes on Radio 4, and is still considered the high-water mark of TV improv. ‘Improv shows are hard to get right,’ says Anderson. ‘There haven’t been many since “WLIIA?” ended [in 1999]. “Mock the Week” has similarities, and Dan [Patterson, ‘WLIIA?’ co-creator] produces that too. He’s spent his life running improv shows, yet he likes things exactly right. It’s a bad combination. Once “WLIIA?” got to Channel 4 we had camera rehearsals. New players sometimes struggled with that – it’s not very encouraging to perform to an empty studio, and they didn’t know whether to show off or keep their powder dry.’ It made improv cool ‘When you say “improvisation”, people think of drama class where they had to pretend to be a tree that turned into a dog,’ says Anderson. He’s got a point. Improv wasn’t the most fashionable of comedy genres. But thanks to ‘WLIIA?’s popularity it suddenly became okay to admit to liking it. Part of the show’s success was that it ‘squeezed improv into the format of a panel show, playing specific games rather than basing a whole evening’s entertainment on five ideas,’ says Anderson. ‘It’s high-pressure and rough around the edges, but that’s the fun of it.’ It launched comedy superstars In 1988, Paul Merton was already member of the (now world-famous) Comedy Store Players improv team. Bu

What’s the best thing about Christmas? Guilt-free slobbing out and watching telly, of course. Time Out rounds up the TV comedy treats of the festive season.  Live at the Apollo   For the stand-up fan Christmas is the time for stupendously popular MOR comedians to get their names in the titles and, sure enough, ‘The John Bishop Christmas Show’ (December 21, 9pm, BBC1) and ‘Michael McIntyre’s Big Christmas Show’ (Christmas Day, 10.25pm, BBC1) will be bringing variety and chat respectively. For edgier fare, ‘Mike Epps: Don’t Take It Personal’ sees the American comic and rapper in prime form (from Friday December 18, Netflix), while Jack Whitehall will doubtless be enjoying epic bants with his dad and guests on the ‘Backchat End of the Year Show’ (Boxing Day, 10.30pm, BBC2). More traditional stand-up comes from Nina Conti and Josh Widdicombe in ‘Live at the Apollo’ (New Year’s Eve, 10.40pm, BBC2), while Gold will be doing what it does best – showcasing the classics – courtesy of John Thompson’s fictional ’70s club comic Bernard Righton, who introduces clips from Les Dawson, Emo Philips and other ‘Legends of Stand-Up’ (Wednesday December 16, 10pm). There’s also an hour-long tribute to a comedian who has enjoyed a remarkable renaissance this year thanks to his excellent sitcom ‘Car Share’ and a fine character turn in Danny Baker’s autobiographical ‘Cradle to Grave’: ‘Peter Kay: 20 Years of Funny’ (Christmas Eve, 9.05pm, BBC2).  Catherine Tate’s Nan   For the sitcom lover A brac