Bernard McKenna (writer)
Encyclopedia
Bernard McKenna is a Scottish
writer/producer who has written, or co-written, many hours of British television
comedy. He is most noted for his work with Graham Chapman
of Monty Python
fame as well as his collaborations with Peter Cook
and Douglas Adams
. He had several acting roles in Monty Python's Life of Brian
.
He currently teaches creative writing
at the University of Winchester
.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
writer/producer who has written, or co-written, many hours of British television
British television
Public television broadcasting started in the United Kingdom in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are over 480 channelsTaking the base Sky EPG TV Channels. A breakdown is impossible due to a) the number of...
comedy. He is most noted for his work with Graham Chapman
Graham Chapman
Graham Arthur Chapman was a British comedian, physician, writer, actor, and one of the six members of the Monty Python comedy troupe.-Early life and education:...
of Monty Python
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
fame as well as his collaborations with Peter Cook
Peter Cook
Peter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...
and Douglas Adams
Douglas Adams
Douglas Noel Adams was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television...
. He had several acting roles in Monty Python's Life of Brian
Monty Python's Life of Brian
Monty Python's Life of Brian, also known as Life of Brian, is a 1979 British comedy film written, directed and largely performed by the Monty Python comedy team...
.
He currently teaches creative writing
Creative writing
Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems...
at the University of Winchester
University of Winchester
The University of Winchester is a British public university primarily based in Winchester, Hampshire, England. Winchester is a historic cathedral city and the ancient capital of Wessex and the Kingdom of England.-History:...
.
Writing
His writing work includes:- Doctor in the HouseDoctor in the House (TV series)Doctor in the House is the syndicated title given, by the United States, to a British television comedy series , based on a set of books and a movie of the same name by Richard Gordon about the misadventures of a group of medical students — and their later misadventures as doctors.The first...
(1969–1979) - Doctor Down UnderDoctor Down UnderDoctor Down Under is a Australian television comedy series based on a set of books by Richard Gordon about the misadventures of a group of Doctors. The series follows directly from its predecessor Doctor on the Go, and was produced by the Seven Network in association with the Paul Dainty...
(1979) - The Top Secret Life of Edgar BriggsThe Top Secret Life of Edgar BriggsThe Top Secret Life Of Edgar Briggs was a 30-minute British television comedy series created by Bernard McKenna & Richard Laing and produced by Humphrey Barclay for LWT...
(1974) - Out of the TreesOut of the TreesOut of the Trees is a 1975 television sketch show pilot written by Graham Chapman, Douglas Adams and Bernard McKenna that was broadcast on BBC 2 in 1976. The show shared some of the stream-of-consciousness style of Monty Python's Flying Circus, of which Chapman was a member...
(1975) - Robin's NestRobin's NestRobin's Nest is a British sitcom starring Richard O'Sullivan as Robin Tripp, one of the lead characters in the sitcom Man About the House, which had ended in 1976. Robin's Nest aired for six series from 1977 to 1981, and co-starred Tessa Wyatt as Robin's girlfriend and later wife and Tony Britton...
(1977–1981) - The Odd JobThe Odd JobThe Odd Job is a 1978 British comedy film starring Graham Chapman . It tells the story of a man named Arthur Harris who is recently abandoned by his wife. He becomes so depressed that he hires an "odd job man" to kill him...
(1978) - ShelleyShelley (TV series)Shelley is a British sitcom made by Thames Television and originally broadcast on ITV from 1979 to 1984 and from 1988 to 1992, with occasional hiatuses. Hywel Bennett starred as James Shelley, a sardonic, 28-year-old, anti-establishment postgraduate and career income tax dodger...
(1979–1992) - Peter Cook and Company (1980)
- YellowbeardYellowbeardYellowbeard is a 1983 comedy film by Graham Chapman, along with Peter Cook, Bernard McKenna and David Sherlock. It was directed by Mel Damski, and was Marty Feldman's last film appearance.-Plot:...
(1983) - Me and My GirlMe and My Girl (TV series)Me and My Girl was a 1980s British television situation comedy starring Richard O'Sullivanwhich centred on the challenges faced by a widower raising his adolescent daughter. It was broadcast on ITV between 1984 and 1988.-Plot:...
(1984–1988) - Brotherly Love (1999)
- Bad Boys
- Pilgrim's Rest
Production
His production work includes:- The New StatesmanThe New StatesmanThe New Statesman is an award-winning British sitcom of the late 1980s and early 1990s satirising the Conservative government of the time...
(1987–1994) - Get Back (1992)
- Over The Rainbow