Boring (Young Ones episode)

"Boring" was the third episode of British sitcom "The Young Ones". It was written by Ben Elton, Rik Mayall and Lise Mayer, and directed by Paul Jackson. It was first aired on BBC2 on 23 November 1982.

Characters

As with all episodes of "The Young Ones", the main four characters were student flatmates Mike (Christopher Ryan); Vyvyan (Adrian Edmondson); Rick (Rik Mayall) and Neil (Nigel Planer). Alexei Sayle starred as Billy Balowski, eccentric taxi driver and brother of the students' landlord Jerzei.

Plot

The quartet are very bored with life, despite the fact that there are skating vegetables in the sink and a host of fantasy characters who make themselves at home during the hours when the students are in bed (except for Neil the insomniac, who is obliviously looking out of his window). Even a televised siege in their living room goes unnoticed, and a visit to the local pub, where Vyvyan meets his mother, and a game of Monopoly fails to relieve the boredom. However, going into college, as Neil suggests, is a sign of panic which the others quickly reject. As they drift off to sleep for another night, a spaceship lands on their roof, with Neil still obliviously sitting on his windowsill.

The episode featured a performance from ska band Madness.

Trivia

This episode is rarely aired on television as it has what is now considered racist content, including three uses of the word "sambo", "coon" and one use of "nigger" (ironically, all directed toward a white person).