Not the Nine O'Clock News

Not the Nine O'Clock News ran on the BBC from the late '70s through the early '80s, and while some of the material is severely dated — be warned that there are double usages of the word "colored" in the first few minutes — the rest is still hilarious. In fact, the few truly passé sketches — such as one in which a clerk ridicules a customer for not knowing about such high-tech stereo equipment as cassette decks — might even benefit from their datedness. A skit featuring Ronald Reagan's press secretary frantically preventing him from answering reporters' questions, for instance, is all too relevant today. Keep an ear out for England's second most well-known parrot routine, a sadistic twist on Game for a Laugh, and such musical hits as "England My Leotard." The show combined topical, observational and absurd humor in a rapid-fire format, and this collection preserves that pace. Though it's a shame not to be able to see Rowan Atkinson in his pre-Bean days, the audio version stands on its own.