The Famous Five - Julian (Peter Richardson), Anne (Jennifer Saunders), Dick (Adrian Edmondson) and George (Dawn French)

Five Go Mad in Dorset was the first of the long-running series of Comic Strip Presents... television comedy films. The Comic Strip is a group of British comedians known for their Television series The Comic Strip Presents It first aired on the launch night of Channel 4 (November 2, 1982), and was written by Peter Richardson and Pete Richens, and directed by Bob Spiers. Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began Events 1570 - A Tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast from Holland to Jutland, killing more than 1000 Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) Peter Richardson, born 15 October 1951 in Devon, is an English Actor, Comedian, director, and Pete Richens is best known as the writing partner of Peter Richardson, writer/director/star of the long-running TV series The Comic Strip Presents. Bob Spiers is a two-time BAFTA Award -winning British Television director best known for his work on various Sitcoms and other comedy programmes

Plot and satire

The film is an extreme parody of Enid Blyton's Famous Five books, in which the titular Five - children Julian (Richardson), Dick (Adrian Edmondson), George (Dawn French), Anne (Jennifer Saunders) and their dog Timmy - investigate the disappearance of their Uncle Quentin (Ronald Allen). A parody (ˈpɛɹədiː US, [ˈpaɹədiː] UK) in contemporary usage is a work created to mock comment on or poke fun at an original work its subject Enid Mary Blyton ( August 11 1897 &ndash November 28 1968) was a British children's writer. The Famous Five is the name of a series of children's books written by Enid Blyton. Adrian Charles "Ade" Edmondson (born 24 January 1957 is an English Actor, Comedian, director and Writer Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957 is a Welsh actress and Comedian. Jennifer Jane Saunders (born 6 July 1958 is a BAFTA and Emmy Award -winning English Comedian, Screenwriter and actress Ronald Allen ( 16 December, 1930 – (some sources say 1934 in Reading Berkshire — 18 June, 1991) was an established Daniel Peacock and Robbie Coltrane also made appearances, the latter in his first television role. Daniel Peacock is a British actor writer and director best known for his work with the team of The Comic Strip Presents Robbie Coltrane, OBE (born 30 March 1950) is a Scottish Actor, comedian and author

The satire on display was seen as particularly brutal, parodying established aspects of Blyton's books in addition to placing newer, sinister overtones onto them. Examples of the former include repeated demeaning reference to Anne as a "proper little housewife", the gang's propensity for overhearing shady conversations between criminals (portrayed in the film by burly thugs muttering "Blah blah blah, stolen plans, blah blah blah, missing scientists" and so on) and their taste for outdoor picnics of "ham and turkey sandwiches, bags of lettuce, heaps of tomato, hard-boiled eggs and lashings of ginger beer". Ginger beer is a type of carbonated Soft drink or occasionally Alcoholic beverage flavored primarily with Ginger, Lemon and However, the film also portrayed Uncle Quentin as a "screaming homosexual" and his wife Fanny as an "unrelenting nymphomaniac", as well as strongly implying a homosexual relationship between Dick and Julian and a bestial one between George and Timmy. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. Hypersexuality is the desire to engage in Human sexual behavior at a level high enough to be considered clinically significant Zoophilia, from the Greek ζῷον ( zṓion, "animal" and φιλία ( philia, "friendship" or "love" is a Paraphilia In addition, much was made of the children's apparently racist and extreme right-wing views - a reference to the controversy that has retrospectively haunted Blyton's work. List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that In Politics, right-wing, the political right, and the Right are positions that uphold traditional values and/or authorities Enid Mary Blyton ( August 11 1897 &ndash November 28 1968) was a British children's writer. Despite all of this, however, Blyton's estate were said to have "loved" the film. [1]

Controversy

Upon transmission, the film attracted some controversy among the British press for its treatment of the well-loved books (although much of the satire, particularly the Five's apparent racism and extreme class-consciousness, could be said to be a reflection on wider perceived 1950s prejudices rather than a specific attack on Blyton's characters), particularly as it had come from a set of comedians who at this point were not very well-known. Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. However, the film also received a large amount of critical praise, and was instrumental in launching the successful careers of many of the team - and to this date, it remains among the best known of all the Comic Strip Presents . . . films.

Five Go Mad on Mescalin

A sequel, Five Go Mad on Mescalin, was produced for the second Comic Strip series in 1983, but was seen as a poor imitation of - and unworthy successor to - the first, despite being created by the same writer/director team. The plot, involving a pushy rich American with a spoiled son, is loosely based on Enid Blyton's Five on Finniston Farm (1960). Notably, it implies that the Five might have sympathised with Nazi Germany because the Nazis were not as "vulgar" as Americans. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The United States of America —commonly referred to as the For some, this was a comparison too far.

Cast

• Julian – Peter Richardson
• Dick – Adrian Edmondson
• George – Dawn French
• Anne – Jennifer Saunders
• Uncle Quentin – Ronald Allen
• Aunt Fanny – Sandra Dorne
• Toby – Daniel Peacock
• Shopkeeper / Gypsy – Robbie Coltrane
• Dirty Dick – Ron Tarr
• Fingers – Nosher Powell
• Police Inspector – Raymond Francis
• Railway Porter - Marcus Ford