Video Pick of the Week

There’s been a sudden resurgence of topical comedy on British television and radio these last couple of months, but nothing has come close to the standard of Not the Nine O’Clock News.

Even the show itself has received a rough ride from the BBC in recent years, with only compilations being available on DVD, which is a shame, as watching the original episodes intact really does act as an evocative reminder of what Britain was like in the early days of Thatcherism – and there aren’t many dramas that manage that without resorting to hamfisted plots and dialogue.

But never mind the politics – here’s Gerald the Gorilla (also known as David Attenborough! David Bloody Attenborough! or, if you prefer, plain old Gorilla Sketch), written by Richard Curtis & Rowan Atkinson, and originally transmitted in April 1980, when daffodils were a lot tastier.