A Bit of Fry and Laurie was a British television series starring former Cambridge Footlights members Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, broadcast by the BBC between 1989 and 1995. It ran for four series, and totalled 26 episodes, including a 35 minute pilot episode in 1987.
The programme was a sketch show cast in a rather eccentric and at times high-brow mould. Elaborate wordplay and innuendo formed a large cornerstone of its material — some sketches deliberately threatened to cross the line into vulgarity, but would always finish just before reaching that point.
It was a progressive show, playing with the audience's expectations. For example, it frequently broke the fourth wall; characters would revert into their real-life actors mid-sketch, or the camera would often pan off set into the studio. In addition, the show was punctuated with non-sequitur vox-pops in a similar style to those of Monty Python's Flying Circus, often making irrelevant statements, heavily based on wordplay. Laurie was also seen playing piano and a wide variety of other instruments, and singing comical numbers.
MUSIC
Laurie is an accomplished musician and this talent was often featured on the show in the form of plot points in a sketch and satirical songs. The first such song, was 'Mystery'. This segment of the show quickly became one of its most popular. Laurie still plays these songs when appearing as a guest star, such as on Saturday Night Live and Inside the Actor's Studio. Among the most famous tunes are:
Mystery: parodies a mournful love song from a lounge singer and presents the obstacles to a relationship between the singer and the object of affection, which become more outlandish every verse: he/she lives in a different country, would probably have a problem with the singer's job ("with the Thames Water Authority"), has never actually met the singer, and has been dead since 1973 ("fifteen years come next January").
Watch the Mystery Song
Little Girl: Wearing a false pencil mustache and overly-oiled hair, Laurie, in the role of a child pornographer/photographer, tells of how he made an underaged girl famous by seducing and taking wildly erotic pictures of her, in the style of Noel Coward. The girl becomes a singing sensation, marries and divorces a pop singer, and is retired by the pornographer, who would now rather meet her young daughter instead.
Watch the Little Girl Song
America: Laurie dresses in what was, at the time, the 'standard' American rock star uniform – flannel, white t-shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a bandana headband in the style of Bruce Springsteen and Jimi Hendrix. Laurie dramatically sings the song, the lyrics of which consist of "...America, America, America..." and "...the States, the States, the States...", until Fry comes on stage quite annoyed, and punches him. This song is arguably the most popular of Laurie's songs.
Watch the America Song
Sophisticated: Laurie, in a white and black suit, plays guitar, accompanied by a back-up band, singing about how normally he is very cool until he needs to talk to his true love, at which point he becomes so speechless, he begins to drool.
Watch the Sophisticated Song
The Polite Rap: Prancing around in neon gangsta clothing, Laurie parodies the hip-hop culture with this rap telling people to be nice, rather than bad, and that he's a "good-ass motherliker", rather than "bad-ass mother****".
Watch the Polite Rap Song
Where is the Lid?: Laurie announces that he has written a very angry (emphasis on the angry) song about "jars that become separated from their lids." Playing the piano, he sings "Where is the lid?" mournfully and repetitively. In the background, Fry finds a stray lid, and tries it on an open jar sitting on the piano; it fits, and he pleads with Laurie to stop singing as the lid has been found and restored to its jar. Laurie ignores Fry and continues to play until Fry punches him. (This is immediately followed by a mini-feature about Laurie's "death".)
Watch the Where Is The Lid? Song
Kicking Ass: Laurie and Fry, dressed as two rednecks, introduce the song. A poke at the American Southern patriotism, Laurie sings about how the only way to solve the world's problems, from the hole in the ozone layer to poverty, is to kick some ass, while Fry, playing his mentally challenged brother ("the victim of an unfortunate musical accident"), shouts out "yee-hah!" and stomps around.
Watch the Kicking Ass Song
I'm in Love with Steffi Graf: Laurie is once again with a back-up band while he plays the acoustic guitar, and makes a play at the depressing post-grunge music of the 1990s. He overdramatically flips the hair out of his eyes in the style of Robert Smith of the Cure and, affecting an effeminate lisp, proclaims his love for tennis player Steffi Graf. He goes as far as to proclaim he stalked her during her tournaments and finally reveals himself as the man who stabbed Monica Seles as revenge for her defeat of Graf, a big news story in 1993. While the tune is performed, a slideshow of Steffi Graf playing tennis is shown on a projector screen. In accordance to the dreariness of the parody, the line "and I don't care if people laugh" is followed by a detached "Ah hah."
Watch the I'm In Love With Steffi Graf Song
Too Long Johnny: Laurie dresses completely in black like Johnny Cash and wears a bright red cowboy hat. Playing the dobro and affecting a southern accent, he sings, "Too long, Johnny, it's long, it's way too long," then proceeds to sing/explain how he wants to cut whatever "it" (presumably wood) is down to a perfect length. Unfortunately, though Johnny does get "it" down to the perfect length, he makes "its" width much too thin, and must now start all over.
Watch the Too Long Johnny Song
Hey Jude: Laurie plays his grand piano and sings "Hey Jude" by the Beatles, in a voice reminiscent of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Fry eventually joins him on stage and begins to sing along with an impossibly deep voice. Fry then holds up cue cards so the audience may sing along with the "na na na na" of the refrain.
Watch the Hey Jude Song
Love Me Tender: Laurie once again covers a famous musician, this time Elvis Presley. He even adopts an incredibly accurate Presley-esque voice for the song. However, Laurie's attempt at seriousness becomes decidedly skewed after it is made clear he singing to Nicholas Parsons sitting on a stool, who has become quite uncomfortable by Laurie's intimate love song. Laurie finishes up the song then tenderly kisses Parsons on the shoulder, effectively shocking him.
Watch the Love Me Tender Song
What I Mind: Laurie on piano and accompanied by a back-up band sings a country song about hard times with his girl, who will not stop referring to him as inanimate objects, such as a hoover, a key, and a garage.
Watch the What I Mind Song
The Protest Song: Laurie again provides himself with a backup band and plays acoustic guitar as well as harmonica. He spoofs American college activist rock, singing about how everyone can make the world a better place. Much like his cover of "Love Me Tender", this song appears to be Laurie's attempt at seriousness, at least until he reaches the part when he must actually sing what everyone is supposed to do to build a better society. Every time he reaches this part, as if unable to think of an actual course of action to save the world, he mumbles incoherently in to the microphone.
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