Best tv shows like Asylum
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Asylum is a British comedy series which was shown on Paramount Comedy Channel in 1996. Set in a mental asylum, it ran for one series of six episodes. Unlike traditional sitcoms or comedy television shows, it was to some extent an opportunity for stand-up routines by various comedians, mixed with an overall story involving much black humour. It is significant for involving a large number of British comedians, many who have gone on to work on some of the most successful comedy programmes of the last decade. It marked the first collaboration of Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, who would go on to make cult sitcom Spaced. Many of the characters names were the same as those of the actors who portrayed them. David Devant & His Spirit Wife were the "house band" for the series, performing segments in every episode, from their first album, Work, Lovelife, Miscellaneous. The lead-in track "Ginger" served as the programme's title music. The series has yet to be released on DVD; however, the full episodes are viewable on Norman Lovett's website.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 279
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 21 min
Plot tags: sitcom, dark comedy, offbeat, humorous, realistic, surreal, not serious, parody, black comedy, weird
Best tv shows and movies like Asylum (1996):
Similar in 83%
Fool Britannia (2012)
Plot Summary:
Fool Britannia is a hidden camera sketch series which has aired since 1 September 2012 on ITV. Fool Britannia sees Dom Joly surprising unexpected members of the public with pranks. The first series aired for eight episodes. The second series is scheduled to begin airing on 5 October 2013. This series will consist of six episodes.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 93
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration:
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, not serious, witty
Similar in 78%
Dead Boss (2012)
Plot Summary:
Helen Stephens is wrongly sentenced to 12 years in prison for murdering her boss Eric Bridges, the managing director of Entirely Tiles. Although she is sure that it will only be a matter of time before this mistake is rectified, everyone around her seems to be conspiring to keep her behind bars. Lawyer Tony is incompetent, sister Laura wants her flat, and fiancé Justin - her alibi - has disappeared. Colleague Henry seems to be the only one willing to help, but he has an ulterior motive.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 642
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, not serious, captivating, dark comedy, realistic
Similar in 86%
Black Adder the Third (1987)
Plot Summary:
During the Regency period, the insane King George III's stark raving mad son, George, is the Prince Regent of Wales. Vulgar and staggeringly slow-and-dim-witted, George exhausts the country's money and would surely be dead by know were it not for his dry, angry, bitter, arrogant and cynical butler, Edmund Blackadder, Esq. Blackadder is an ex-aristocrat who has lost his family fortune and been reduced to servant-hood, and full of loathing knowing he should have a better position then serving a lunatic. Sod-Off Baldrick is his dirty, smelly peasant servant, and Mrs. Miggins is an annoying cheerful coffee-shoppe owner who is too stupid to understand most of Mr. Blackadder's insults.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 46000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 180 min
Plot tags: humorous, sitcom, funny, controversial, costume drama, hilarious, offbeat, witty, not serious, black comedy
Similar in 77%
Benny Hill (1962)
Plot Summary:
This timeless modern slapstick-format doesn't really have a plot, but is an irresistible rapid succession of independent short, comical scenes, mostly without any text, often using artificial speed enhancing in the countless chases, which have little in common except the eponymous title-hero himself, who like several frequently recurring sidekicks (especially the old bald guy, who gets countless knocks all over the place) turns up in all sort of places and is frequently tempted by too blond, young and long-legged to be true Benny Hill-girls, getting in - but mostly also out of all kinds of trouble with jealous husbands, police etcetera.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 25 min
Plot tags: slapstick, parody, humorous, realistic, cynical, stylized, not serious, sexual, fast, sketch comedy
Similar in 88%
Star Stories (2006)
Plot Summary:
Star Stories is a British television comedy programme that takes a satirical look at celebrities and their lives. It was first shown on Channel 4 on September 15, 2006. Star Stories is made by Objective Productions commissioned for Channel 4 by Shane Allen and Andrew Newman with Lee Hupfield producing, Elliot Hegarty directing and Phil Clarke and Andew O'Connor as executive producers. The Sun reported that Channel 4 had axed Star Stories to free up cash to invest in other shows. The main theme of the show is the theme from the film Gone with the Wind.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 520
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: parody, humorous, realistic, witty, not serious, offbeat
Similar in 82%
Asylum (2015)
Plot Summary:
After a year in the El Rican embassy under the threat of extradition to America, Dan is bored, depressed and has little hope of getting out - his only chance is to push his case in an interview with the Guardian. The embassy staff are struggling to attract people to the annual embassy ball, as Dan is old news and nobody wants to come. Rafael decides to offer sanctuary to another international fugitive, a childlike, internet pirate called Ludo Backslash.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 148
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, not serious, realistic, sitcom, touching, feel good, captivating, tense, suspenseful, exciting
Similar in 84%
The Green Green Grass (2005)
Plot Summary:
Green Green Grass is a new comedy series and is a spin-off from Only Fools And Horses. It features the characters of Boycie and Marlene and introduces their son, Tyler, now 15 years old. Since we last met them, Boycie's second-hand car empire has gone from strength to strength, yet, despite his success, Boycie is becoming tired of life in Peckham and is secretly (at least, secretly from Marlene) craving a more tranquil existence in the English countryside. His decision to finally make the move is prompted by a chance conversation with Denzil who has some rather disturbing news. Within two weeks Boycie, Marlene and Tyler have left London - forever.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, witty, not serious, realistic
Similar in 85%
House of Fools (2014)
Plot Summary:
Surreal sitcom with Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer. A series of anarchic affairs featuring the uninvited lodgers and guests that cause chaos and disruption in their home.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 28 min
Plot tags: sitcom, surreal, humorous, realistic, not serious
Similar in 78%
Are You Being Served? Again! (1992)
Plot Summary:
Grace & Favour is a British sitcom sequel to the long-running series Are You Being Served? It aired on BBC1 for two series from 1992 to 1993 and marked the return of Are You Being Served? creators and writers Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 26 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, semi serious, double entendre, campy
Similar in 81%
The Brittas Empire (1991)
Plot Summary:
The Brittas Empire is a British sitcom created and originally written by Andrew Norriss and Richard Fegen. Chris Barrie plays Gordon Brittas, the well-meaning but incompetent manager of Whitbury New Town Leisure Centre. The show ran for seven series and 53 episodes — including two Christmas specials — from 1991 to 1997 on BBC1. Norriss and Fegen wrote the first five series, after which they left the show. The Brittas Empire enjoyed a long and successful run throughout the 1990s, and gained itself large mainstream audiences. In 2004 the show came 47th on the BBC's Britain's Best Sitcom poll, and all series have been released on DVD. The creators Andrew Norriss and Richard Fegen often combine farce with either surreal or dramatic elements in episodes. For example in the first series, the leisure centre prepares for a royal visit, only for the doors to seal, the boiler room to flood and a visitor to become electrocuted. Unlike the traditional sitcom, deaths were quite common in The Brittas Empire.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, surprise ending, humorous, realistic, not serious, fun
Similar in 77%
FM (2009)
Plot Summary:
FM is a British sitcom which aired on ITV2, starring Chris O'Dowd, Kevin Bishop and Nina Sosanya. The series followed the lives of two DJs and their producer on their FM radio programme, "Skin 86.5 FM". The show also featured music from real-life artists and guest stars from the music industry. The first episode aired on 25 February 2009 and the series ran for 6 episodes. It broadcast on Wednesdays at 22:30. The series launched with 213,000 viewers. The whole series was re-run on Friday 3 April from 22:00 until 01:00. On 13 April 2009 the series was released on DVD with a BBFC rating of 15. ITV Studios began searching for funding from record companies and radio stations to produce a second series for the show.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 485
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, not serious, sitcom, dark comedy
Similar in 87%
Cuckoo (2012)
Plot Summary:
Cuckoo is every parent's worst nightmare - a slacker full of outlandish, New Age ideas. Ken is the over-protective father of a girl who's impulsively married an American hippie on her gap year.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, not serious, light, feel good, funny, dark comedy, realistic
Similar in 75%
Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (1973)
Plot Summary:
Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em is a BBC situation comedy, written by Raymond Allen and starring Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice. It was first broadcast in 1973 and ran for three series, ending in 1978. The series follows the accident-prone Frank Spencer and his tolerant, if long-suffering, wife, Betty, through Frank's various attempts to hold down a job, which frequently end in disaster. Noted for its stuntwork, performed by Michael Crawford himself as well as featuring various well-remembered catchphrases, the series was voted #22 in the BBC's poll "Britain's Best Sitcom".
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, not serious, humorous, realistic, melancholic, touching, captivating, atmospheric, offbeat, slapstick
Similar in 85%
Ideal (2005)
Plot Summary:
Ideal is a British dark comedy sit-com, originally broadcast on digital channel BBC Three, created by Graham Duff and produced by BBC Comedy North and Baby Cow Productions. It stars Johnny Vegas as small-time cannabis dealer Moz. It is set in Salford, Greater Manchester, chosen because Duff was familiar with the area having done many stand-up gigs there during his youth. Most of the series takes place in Moz's flat and revolves around the eclectic array of characters who visit Moz to buy cannabis, socialise or both. The closing theme is "Song of the Oss" from the album Nuada: Music Inspired By the Film the Wicker Man composed by British band Candidate. The series also features a number of tracks by Californian hip hop group Ugly Duckling. It was broadcast on BBC Three in the UK, on entertainment channel 3e in Ireland and on ABC2 in Australia. First broadcast in 2005, seven series have been shown; the most recent ended on 30 June 2011. After the seventh series aired, Ideal was cancelled by the BBC. Following the announcement, writer and creator Graham Duff wrote to fans: "As some of you may have heard, the BBC have decided against commissioning an 8th series of Ideal. The reason given was that the new channel controller wanted to make a clean sweep. It is a source of both pride and frustration that, at the point of cancellation, Ideal was attracting its biggest ever audiences, its highest profile guest stars and its best ever reviews. And the show is now being screened in more countries than ever before - from America to Finland and beyond." Fans have launched a petition dedicated to saving the show.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, not serious, surreal, humorous, realistic, dark comedy, offbeat, funny, fun
Similar in 85%
The Day Today (1994)
Plot Summary:
The Day Today is a surreal British parody of television current affairs programmes, broadcast in 1994, and created by the comedians Armando Iannucci and Chris Morris. It is an adaptation of the radio programme On the Hour, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 1991 and 1992. On the Hour was written by Morris, Iannucci, Steven Wells, Andrew Glover, Stewart Lee, Richard Herring, David Quantick, and the cast. For The Day Today, Peter Baynham joined the writing team, and Lee and Herring were replaced by Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews. The principal cast of On the Hour was retained for The Day Today. The Day Today is composed of six half-hour episodes and a selection of shorter, five-minute slots recorded as promotion trailers for the longer segments. The six half-hour episodes were originally broadcast from 19 January to 23 February 1994 on BBC2. The Day Today has won many awards, including Morris winning the 1994 British Comedy Award for Best Newcomer. All six episodes are available on BBC DVD, having previously been issued on VHS.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: parody, humorous, political, sketch comedy, sitcom, surreal, offbeat, realistic, cynical, not serious
Similar in 76%
Spitting Image (1984)
Plot Summary:
Spitting Image is an award winning British satirical puppet show, created by Peter Fluck, Roger Law and Martin Lambie-Nairn. The series was produced by Spitting Image Productions for Central Independent Television over 18 series which aired on the ITV from 1984 to 1996. The series was nominated and won numerous awards during its run including 10 BAFTA Awards, including one for editing in 1989, and even won two Emmy Awards in 1985 and 1986 in the Popular Arts Category. The series featured puppet caricatures of celebrities famous during the 1980s and 1990s, including British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and fellow Tory politicians, American president Ronald Reagan, and the British Royal Family. The Series was the first to caricature the Queen mother.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 25 min
Plot tags: sketch comedy, humorous, sitcom, political, absurd, controversial, surreal, parody, clever, realistic
Similar in 87%
The Fast Show (1994)
Plot Summary:
The Fast Show is a multi BAFTA award winning sketch comedy show written and produced by Paul Whitehouse and Charlie Higson.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sketch comedy, sitcom, hilarious, humorous, realistic, witty, cynical, not serious, fast, offbeat
Similar in 83%
The Benny Hill Show (1969)
Plot Summary:
The Benny Hill Show is a British comedy television show that starred Benny Hill and aired in various incarnations between 15 January 1955 and 30 May 1991 in over 140 countries. The show focused on sketches that were full of slapstick, mime, parody, and double-entendre. Thames Television cancelled production of the show in 1989 due to declining ratings and large production costs at £450,000 per show.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: parody, sketch comedy, sitcom, offbeat, controversial, slapstick, double entendre, naughty, sexy, humorous
Similar in 82%
The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret (2009)
Plot Summary:
Comedy about an inept American placed in charge of sales at his company's London branch. He has no experience with British culture, knows nothing about sales, and has only one employee, Dave. Each episode begins with a scene of Margaret appearing in dire circumstances.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 25 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, not serious, realistic, feel good, entertaining, light, sincere, captivating, funny
Similar in 76%
Big Train (1998)
Plot Summary:
Big Train is a surreal British television comedy sketch show created by Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan, writers of the successful sitcom Father Ted. The first series was broadcast on BBC Two in 1998, while the second, in which Linehan was not involved, aired in 2002.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sketch comedy, sitcom, surreal, absurd, clever, offbeat, humorous, realistic, witty, not serious
Similar in 86%
Getting On (2009)
Plot Summary:
Darkly comic series about life on a hospital ward and a nursing team who have to get on with the job despite challenges thrown up by the modern NHS.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, not serious, realistic, witty, dark comedy, light, feel good, offbeat, mockumentary
Similar in 87%
Siblings (2014)
Plot Summary:
Each week, through their own selfishness and idiocy, we see Hannah and Dan — the worst brother and sister in the world — spectacularly wreck the lives of those around them — old friends, love interests, family members, and the unlucky individuals who just happen to cross their paths.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration:
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, not serious, entertaining, captivating, hilarious, realistic
Similar in 89%
Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy (2012)
Plot Summary:
The Adventures Of Noel And His Friends Smooth, Andy Warhol And Dolly.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, experimental, surreal, not serious, stylized, parody, absurd, offbeat, avant garde, spoof
Similar in 85%
Jam (2000)
Plot Summary:
A collection of bleakly dark comedy sketches pushing the boundaries of taste, decency and television in general, shot using new and different techniques and fading slowly in and out of each other against a slow musical soundtrack. Regular themes include death, insanity and, most often of all, the medical profession.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 24 min
Plot tags: surreal, postmodern, atmospheric, humorous, cynical, not serious, sketch comedy, dark comedy, controversial, absurd
Similar in 81%
Good God (2012)
Plot Summary:
Good God is a Canadian television comedy-drama series which premiered in April 2012 on HBO Canada. The show follows the life of character George Findlay, a role that Ken Finkleman reprised from The Newsroom and subsequent television projects. The series was originally slated to be the second season of Finkleman's previous HBO Canada project Good Dog, but was retitled in accordance with a change in the show's setting. The show was described in early media coverage as having been inspired in part by the launch of Sun News Network. In the show's first episode, for example, Findlay is forced to respond to allegations that his new venture is aspiring to be "Fox News North", an epithet which the real Sun News Network also faced both before and after its launch. The series was nominated for several awards at the 2013 Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Comedy Series, Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for Jason Weinberg and Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series nods for both Samantha Bee and Jud Tylor.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 293
Genere: Comedy
Country: Canada
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, not serious, cynical, biting
Similar in 75%
Crims (2015)
Plot Summary:
Straight-laced Luke inadvertently finds himself sentenced to two years in Young Offender Institution Sunnybank View after becoming a bank robber’s getaway driver, along with the bank robber in question, his girlfriend’s brother and so-called friend - Jason. To make matters worse he has to share a cell with Jason. Luke will have to rely on Jason’s street smarts to get him through. Unfortunately, Jason is a massive idiot.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 280
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, not serious
Similar in 83%
High Strung (1992)
Plot Summary:
Thane Furrows, an extremely cynical but unintentionally hilarious children's book writer, wakes up one morning, and, since pretty much everyone and everything annoys him, begins another day of complaining to himself. However, the day proves to be much different than normal when Thane begins to recieve strange phone calls, letters, and voices in his head, all indicating that something will happen at 8 o'clock. As the day goes on, Thane rants and raves about the things that annoy him, as the clock slowly ticks closer and closer to his destiny.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, not serious, captivating, cult classic, independent film, black comedy
Similar in 75%
Twenty Twelve (2011)
Plot Summary:
Twenty Twelve is a BBC television comedy series written and directed by John Morton. Starring Hugh Bonneville, Jessica Hynes and Amelia Bullmore, the programme is a spoof on-location documentary following the organisation of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. It was first broadcast on UK television station BBC Four in March 2011 to coincide with the 500 day countdown to the opening ceremony. Twenty Twelve gained mainly positive reviews from critics, and a four-part second series was announced on 15 April 2011, which began airing on 30 March 2012 on BBC Two. A further three episodes of series 2 began airing from 10 July 2012. The series' last episode was broadcast on 24 July 2012, three days before the opening ceremony of the London Olympic Games.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, mockumentary, humorous, semi serious, realistic, talky, fake documentary
Similar in 87%
Nathan Barley (2005)
Plot Summary:
Nathan Barley is a Channel 4 sitcom written by Charlie Brooker and Chris Morris, starring Nicholas Burns, Julian Barratt, Charlie Condou and Claire Keelan. The series of six weekly episodes began broadcasting on 11 February 2005 on Channel 4. Described by his creator as a "meaningless strutting cadaver-in-waiting", the character originated on Brooker's TVGoHome – a website parodying television listings – as the focus of a fly-on-the-wall documentary called Cunt.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 26 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, parody, not serious, realistic, biting, suspense
Similar in 85%
Black Books (2000)
Plot Summary:
Black Books centres around the foul tempered and wildly eccentric bookshop owner Bernard Black. Bernard’s devotion to the twin pleasures of drunkenness and wilful antagonism deepens and enriches both his life and that of Manny, his assistant. Bearded, sweet and good, Manny is everything that Bernard isn’t and is punished by Bernard relentlessly just for the crime of existing. They depend on each other for meaning as Fran, their oldest friend, depends on them for distraction. Black Books is a haven of books, wine and conversation, the only threat to the group’s peace and prosperity is their own limitless stupidity.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 61000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 25 min
Plot tags: humorous, sitcom, talky, not serious, offbeat, witty, surreal, realistic, funny, hilarious