Blackadder: The Whole Damn Dynasty - Richard Curtis, Ben Elton

Advantages: A collective publication of perhaps the best British comedy scripts ever written
Disadvantages: If you disliked the TV series this book will do nothing for you

BlackAdder, The Whole Damn Dynasty 1485-1917 is a superb addition to any book collection. One of the funniest books I have had the pleasure of reading, the humour starts on the dust cover with a quote from the great Edmund Blackadder himself "The greatest work of fiction since vows of fidelity were included in the French marriage service", and the stupid, but much loved, Baldrick whose opinion of the book is simply "Not bad". The book is a collection ...
...Lloyd, and Rowan Atkinson, for the Blackadder series'. The first series 'The Black Adder' came to our screens in 1983, followed in '85 by my personal favourite 'Blackadder II'. 1987 saw 'Blackadder the Third' and finally in '89 'Blackadder goes Forth'. Presented as four main chapters, one for each series, the forewords of chapter one give some background to history before we are actually introduced to Edmund Blackadder in 1485, (the start of series ... Read review

Advantages: A great companion to the series
Disadvantages: -

The Blackadder series, begun in the 1980s, was a comedic masterpiece set forth by Rowan Atkinson and his comrades. From start to finish, the first series was a masterstroke of wit, irony and comedic styling that fits both the contemporary and medieval situations perfectly. The combination of slapstick and intellectual humour blended well, and the literary types will not miss the occasional credit of William Shakespeare as a collaborating writer on ...
...comedy Shakespeare would have produced today. The first series was set in the pre-Tudor royal family, projecting that Richard III won at Bosworth Field, and a rather older Richard IV succeeded him, until after many adventures, the entire royal family was done in, and Henry Tudor reworte history thereafter (as the victor often does). The first series starred Brian Blessed and Elspet Gray as the King and Queen, and Robert East as their eldest son, ... Read review

Advantages: Hilarious, complete collection
Disadvantages: Better on TV? Vieiwing may be needed for full effect!

I was given this book as a Christmas present, and probably would not have bought it of my own accord. Before you read it, you'd think the format of a book would not work for such a series as the immensely successful Blackadder This is not the case, however. Because of the inherant humour of the script itself, the series is less reliant on visual gags as you might think. Although, if you haven't seen the episodes already, the book is, I suppose, ...
...of a hilarious nostalgia trip. Without the brilliant acting of the Blackadder crew, you might think the book is missing something genuinely essential. However, in your head, every joke can be told with perfect timing. The book even has the odd humourous addition - Baldrick's family tree, for example, as well as the laundry bill of Prince George. So, then, if you want a book to read in bed that will literally make you laugh out loud, then this is ... Read review

Advantages: Reasonably priced and money goes to Comic Relief
Disadvantages: Quite lengthy and "Blackadder's Christmas Carol" is missing

I was given "Blackadder: The Whole Damn Dynasty 1485-1917" as a present and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It will appeal to fans of the series who are sad enough to want the scripts! As well all the scripts from each series, there are extra funny stories, features, introductions and illustrations. The usual Blackadder wit is even in the credits and the blurb. The cover shows all 4 Blackadders through the ages. Laugh at the haircuts and drool over Blackadder ...
...Curtis, Ben Elton and John Lloyd and it's published by Penguin. It was first out in 1999. The first proper page has the credits. Comments like "Richard Curtis....he's been to a lot of weddings" made me laugh. Next is the contents page and then it's the introduction to "The Black Adder" (these intros are called the Blackadder Chronicles). This is a hilarious - almost entirely false - history of the British Isles. It goes up to 1484, which is where ... Read review

Advantages: you can pretend to have the wit of Blackadder
Disadvantages: you may mistakenly pretend to have the intelligence of Baldrick

The arrival of the "Whole Damn Dynasty" (released by Penguin books circa 1999) was just in the nick of time to save us from the ritual torture of the family holiday. On wet evenings, faced with endless games of charades ("oh it's a scythe!"); uninspired suppers ("it is mud, we ran out of coffee thirteen months ago"); forced conversation ("Contrafibularities sir, it's a common word down our way")and excuses for attempting to avoid savage games of ...
...his underpants on his head and stuffed two pencils up his nose")this book became our saviour. A chunky paperback offering, the weight of an average turnip, it holds between its hallowed pages the full scripts of all of the Blackadder programmes, including stage directions. Written by Messrs Curtis and Elton, the amusement within is purest green. Scuffles ensued over who got to play whom, because you just have to act this all out. A system developed ... Read review