Saturday Rave: Blackadder by Richard Curtis, Ben Elton and Rowan Atkinson

There are rumours of a new series of Blackadder: hurray hurray!

(The third hurray will come if they start filming.)

I love Blackadder. It may be said that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, but if that's so then Blackadder, played by Rowan Atkinson, manages to transform low wit into high art.


Blackadder Goes Forth

We've already had a hundred brilliant lines from the egregious Edmund Blackadder, but here's just one favourite to remind us how much fun he is. Here, Blackadder is addressing his dim, grubby and insanely faithful servant, Baldrick:

'Baldrick, does it have to be this way? Our valued friendship ending with me cutting you up into strips and telling the prince that you walked over a very sharp cattle grid in an extremely heavy hat?'

It would be greedy to want more: but I do, anyway. There can never be enough wit, and I, for one, are ready to embrace it - even when it's of the lowest possible kind.

Word To Use Today: adder. This word is a victim of false splitting: a nadder has become an adder. The Old English for snake was nǣdre.