I must admit its very amusing. A bunch of well known comedians all together not allowed to laugh. The winner is the one that lasts longest.

I'm thinking that some of our American friends might not get British humour..😏

People pull some very strange faces when trying not to laugh or smile. 

 

Edited March 26Mar 26 by martin-w

22 hours ago, martin-w said:

I'm thinking that some of our American friends might not get British humour..😏

And to you I say “Ha!!”  I’ll tell you something that happened to me in real life.

Back in the late 1980s I went to the funeral of a family friend and neighbor.  I was at the cemetery after coming from the church and there was a brief ceremony at the grave site.  I was standing at the back of the group of mourners when I noticed the funeral director.  For background, this was the same person who handled my father’s funeral, and my father was a doctor.

Imagine being in the funeral industry.  You always have to be somber and dignified, properly dressed and conscious of the seriousness of what you do for grieving families.  So this funeral director was slowly wandering around during the ceremony.  He saw and recognized me, and slowly sidled up next to me.  While staring straight ahead and looking ever so somber he started whispering to me: “You know Michael, your father was a good man, and a great physician.  But even he forgot the Secret to Eternal Life.” He paused for a moment and I wondered what he was leading to.  He continued: “Never Stop Breathing.”  For a fraction of a second I felt rage (how can he say something like that), but the next fraction of a second I realized he just dropped a thermonuclear prank on me. He was daring me to laugh out loud in the middle of a funeral service, and he was the funeral director! I was able to contain myself, but my right shoulder twitched a few times. I glanced at him and he was still staring sadly straight ahead. Then he slowly wandered away. How did he figure out I was a fellow prankster and wouldn’t be offended?  All I could think was “Well played, sir, well played.”

After that, I thought I’d like to be a fly on the wall at a funeral director convention. I’m sure they have a lot of interesting stories to tell.

On 3/26/2026 at 12:05 PM, martin-w said:

I'm thinking that some of our American friends might not get British humour..

Benny Hill. Monty Python. Rowan Atkinson.

One Brit I talked to referred to Benny Hill as, "... that British vulgarian."  

I had never watched Monty Python until "Holy Grail" which I saw in computer school in the Army in 1976.  My jaw hung open from the opening scene.
 

On 3/26/2026 at 12:05 PM, martin-w said:

People pull some very strange faces when trying not to laugh or smile.

"He has a wife, you know. Do you know what she's called?"

Hook

PS.  Thought of another.

In the James Bond book "You Only Live Twice", Ian Fleming wrote the head of Station J (Japan) as an Australian. The first time I read it when I was young, I didn't know how the Brits viewed Australians, and it was just a character in a book. Reading it later, found it funny as heck. 

"But I didn't actually HIT anyone, did I?" after a bout of drinking.

The head of the Japanese secret service was vastly amused by Dikko Henderson's liberal sprinkling of English swear words when speaking Japanese, which was mentioned had no swear words in the book.

H.

Edited March 27Mar 27 by LHookins

40 minutes ago, LHookins said:

I had never watched Monty Python until "Holy Grail" which I saw in computer school in the Army in 1976.  My jaw hung open from the opening scene.

 

 

3 hours ago, Mike A said:

And to you I say “Ha!!”  I’ll tell you something that happened to me in real life.

Back in the late 1980s I went to the funeral of a family friend and neighbor.  I was at the cemetery after coming from the church and there was a brief ceremony at the grave site.  I was standing at the back of the group of mourners when I noticed the funeral director.  For background, this was the same person who handled my father’s funeral, and my father was a doctor.

Imagine being in the funeral industry.  You always have to be somber and dignified, properly dressed and conscious of the seriousness of what you do for grieving families.  So this funeral director was slowly wandering around during the ceremony.  He saw and recognized me, and slowly sidled up next to me.  While staring straight ahead and looking ever so somber he started whispering to me: “You know Michael, your father was a good man, and a great physician.  But even he forgot the Secret to Eternal Life.” He paused for a moment and I wondered what he was leading to.  He continued: “Never Stop Breathing.”  For a fraction of a second I felt rage (how can he say something like that), but the next fraction of a second I realized he just dropped a thermonuclear prank on me. He was daring me to laugh out loud in the middle of a funeral service, and he was the funeral director! I was able to contain myself, but my right shoulder twitched a few times. I glanced at him and he was still staring sadly straight ahead. Then he slowly wandered away. How did he figure out I was a fellow prankster and wouldn’t be offended?  All I could think was “Well played, sir, well played.”

After that, I thought I’d like to be a fly on the wall at a funeral director convention. I’m sure they have a lot of interesting stories to tell.

That has just reminded me of something I hadn't thought of in a while ... a few years ago now when we used to get our grocery shopping delivered I got on quite well with the delivery driver and we'd talk about football etc while he was bringing stuff to my door from the van. One day he mentioned he was leaving for another job shortly because "people at work don't talk to me much" to which I asked "oh, nice - where you going to be working next?"

To which he replied, "I got a job at a funeral parlour".

I'm not entirely sure he'd thought it through - but I hope he's doing well 😂

5 hours ago, FPVSteve said:

people at work don't talk to me much" to which I asked "oh, nice - where you going to be working next?"

To which he replied, "I got a job at a funeral parlour".

🤣 Yeah, good luck getting those stiffs to talk.