\u201cThere were reservations from the BBC, particularly because it was very edgy comedy. But the audience went nuts and it went really, really well. We thought, \u2018Great. Now we have the confidence.’\u201d<\/p>\n
From small acorns grow mighty oaks and Bottom was no exception, with audiences loving the exploits of sex-starved Richard Richard (Mayall) and violent drunkard Eddie Hitler (Edmondson), living together in a squalid Hammersmith flat and eking out an existence of petty crime and poverty.<\/p>\n
![\"Adrian](\"https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2024\/04\/bottom-adrian-edmondson-rik-mayall-edb6577.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C415\" "\\"Adrian")
\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>The show ran for three series and spawned five sellout live tours and even a feature film spin-off, Guest House Paradiso. More than three decades since that pilot, Bottom\u2019s popularity endures as new fans discover its mix of existential angst and cartoon violence, laced with toilet humour. Bye enjoys the continued affection for the show.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a huge compliment that people still take an interest in it. Things get very popular when they get repeated. Some of those people taking an interest in it aren\u2019t even 30 years old, discovering it through late night repeats and the Talking Bottom podcast<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you\u2019re making something, you hope that it\u2019ll be the best you can make, but I would never have expected it to have such a lasting effect that it has done. Although, it\u2019s never been bettered, as it\u2019s a hard show to copy. It\u2019s got a uniqueness to it which is impossible to replicate.\u201d<\/p>\n Is that uniqueness the key to its longevity, I wonder? Bye agrees.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve got two really brilliant writer-performers there who work together in a unique way that created Bottom and it came out of their brains. It\u2019s that combo; their writing skills that are impossible to repeat.<\/p>\n \u201cThe scripts were always in really good shape. There was very little that we had to do before we started. We tweaked a bit in rehearsals, the odd line change here or there, and nailed the action, which was an important part of the series.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat was great about that show, more than any other, was that we were left to our own devices and we just got on with it. In those days, there was very little interaction with executive producers or commissioners or anyone else. Not so now. But it was perfect for us.\u201d<\/p>\n The memories of making it, from one of the people who wrote it (@AdrianEdmondson<\/a>) and the friendship that created it.