John Cleese? Oh Please!

I know I'm a bit late on this one, but I suppose I've been stewing it over, and my frustration has grown so much that I'm ready to report.

John Cleese, the other day, said that comedy writing, and therefore the output, is not as good as it used to be.

"I don't think the writers work as hard as they used to and I think they may lack experience because I don't think the writing is as good as it used to be.

"But I do proudly say that, in the 60s, 70s and 80s, we did have the least bad television in the world and that's quite a claim."

Really? Surely your gripe should be John, and it pains me to say this, that you are not as good as you used to be. The fact that he whored himself out for several episodes of the long-running Will & Grace hints at this.

Comedy is subjective (see Will & Grace comment above). I relish half an hour spent watching Peep Show, where as some people dislike it. There must be people out there who enjoy Two Pints of Lager - considering it's longevity.

It's fine to have an opinion 'I prefer comedy of my era', but saying that comedy isn't as good, and 30, 40 years ago it was better, is like saying that past eras weren't as cultured and intelligent as us - and I'm sure that Shakespeare, Gallileo, Da Vinci, Mozart, Einstein, Alexander The Great and such others would have something to say from beyond the grave about this misjudgment.

Also, I often read about new comedy being funded, awards being won (heck there's even the comedy awards), comedy DVD sales going through the roof... Even facebook pages are proof that comedy exist. Bloody life is comedy! Sure there are some stinkers in the pack. There are sitcoms that split people into those who obsessively quote and those who would rather run a marathon than watch a single second (Gavin & Stacey), and there are some that we secretly watch as they're not considered hip. But frankly there was also some crap in the 60's, 70's, 80's (mainly of the racist and bigoted kind), but he seems to have forgotten about that, choosing to relish in some form of comedy Arcadia.

So not only are you incorrect, Mr Cleese, you are actually insulting. Insulting to writers, producers, directors, actors and most importantly the viewers, the people you need to thank for your success. I imagine that Terry Jones is hanging his head in shame (Michael Palin is probably climbing a mountain in disgust).