An examination of British comedy cinema spanning from 1930s Aldwych Farces all the way up to contemporary British satirists including Chris Morris, Steve Coogan and Armando Iannucci.

In this 4-week course we’ll examine British comedy cinema from its origins to the modern day, taking in 1930s Aldwych Farces, Ealing and the Carry Ons to Richard Curtis’ romantic comedies, the Pythons and Mr Bean. We’ll look at British Asian comedy from the 1980s onward through the work of Gurinder Chadha and Meera Syal, alongside the darker tones of contemporary satirists like Chris Morris, Steve Coogan and Armando Iannucci.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Price: £55 / £50 Concessions / £45 Members

Tutor: Laraine Porter

Booking Information:

This 4-week course will run at Phoenix on Mondays, 2pm – 4pm, 7 Sep – 28 Sep 2026.

You must be 18 or over to attend.

Cancellation Policy:

We do not offer refunds for cancellations of bookings, except in exceptional circumstances. In the event that an advertised course is withdrawn, we will endeavour to give 7 days’ notice and a full refund will be made.

View our Learner Agreement.

ABOUT THE TUTOR

Laraine Porter is a film historian and recently retired academic having taught Film Studies at DMU from 2009-2025. Prior to that she was the Director of Broadway Cinema in Nottingham having been a former Cinema Programmer at Phoenix Arts until 1998. She has run major research projects looking at the transition between silent and sound cinema in Britain and the British Silent Film Festival between 1998 and 2019.