Sense and Senility
| "Sense and Senility" | |
|---|---|
| Blackadder episode | |
Title card, illustrating the theatrical theme of the episode.
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| Episode no. |
Series 3 (Blackadder the Third) Episode 4 |
| Written by | Ben Elton, Richard Curtis |
| Original air date | 8 October 1987 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
"Sense and Senility" is the fourth episode of the third series of the BBC sitcom Blackadder.
The episode opens with Blackadder ruefully preparing to attend the theatre with Prince George, who Blackadder says has no grasp of the concept of fiction; for example, at a performance of Julius Caesar, the Prince shouted, "Look behind you, Mr. Caesar!" during the assassination scene. At the play, an anarchist (played by Ben Elton) makes an attempt on George's life. The Prince is shocked by Blackadder's revelation that he is unpopular and ignorant of the living conditions of the working classes: "Disease and Deprivation stalk our land like two giant stalking things." Following this event, Prince George becomes paranoid about anarchist attacks. Whenever the Prince encounters Baldrick cleaning, he accuses Baldrick of being an anarchist and attempts to strangle him.
Blackadder suggests that the Prince should improve his public image and writes a speech for the Prince to deliver at his father's birthday celebrations. The Prince then suggests that the two actors that they saw at the theatre (David Keanrick and Enoch Mossop, played by Hugh Paddick and Kenneth Connor) be hired to give him elocution lessons. Blackadder has little respect for actors in the first place, often ridiculing them for their over-the-top, flamboyant acting style, and saying, "You mean they actually rehearse? I thought they just got drunk, stuck on silly hats and trusted their luck." Blackadder torments the actors by having them repeatedly perform the painful Macbeth ritual (which comically consists of them playing pattycake and chanting "Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends!" before squeezing each other's nose). He says "Macbeth" six times in a row, making the actors repeat their ritual. Soon, he takes an extra dislike to the pair when they laugh at the speech he wrote, calling it "drivel," and himself, so he plans to quit being a servant and become King of Sardinia. However, he is distracted when, on the way out, Baldrick insults him, saying "Goodbye, you lazy, big nosed, rubber-faced bastard." Uncharacteristically, he does not touch Baldrick, but instead scathingly tells him "I wouldn't bet you a single groat that you could last five minutes here without me."
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