British humour

Upper-Intermediate Lesson 29 Today we are going to learn:

• Language to describe humour and success • How to tell a personal anecdote Jokes of the week: Q: How do astronomers organize a party? A: They planet. I changed my Ipod name to TITANIC. IT's syncing now. Q: How do you call a deer with one eye? A: No eye deer. Humour collocations: tell a joke LOL = laugh out loud crack a joke laugh at yourself play a joke burst out laughing fall for a joke A good laugh is sunshine in the house. What makes you laugh? Who did you make fun of recently? Is it generally polite in your country?

Do you have a good sense of humour? Do you understand British humour well? What’s your favourite type of humour? Types of humour: • with a dark side: black, dark, grim, macabre, morbid, gallows • crazy: surreal, off-the-wall, qirky, wacky • not obvious: gentle, subtle, tongue-in-cheek • poker face: dry, wry, deadpan • disrespectful: ironic, irreverent, sarcastic, sardonic What type of humour is it?

1. I’m trying to imagine you with a personality. 2. Don’t bother me. I’m living happily ever after. 3. I’m going to have a desease named after me. 4. Knock Knock! Who's there? Al! Al who? Al give you a kiss if you open this door! Answers:

1. sarcastic 2. deadpan 3. morbid 4. wacky Glossary:

Funny Not funny I laughed myself silly. It left me cold. He had me in stitches. I just don’t get it. I nearly died laughing. It didn’t even raise a He makes me crack up. snigger. Which comedy genres make you crack up?

• slapstick: Charlie Chaplin’s silent films • a stand-up: Comedy Club • a mockumentary: BBC on spaghetti harvest • a situation comedy (sitcom): Friends • a farce: A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Shakespeare • satire: newspaper cartoons

What’s the comedy genre?

1. a show based around the same group of characters and location 2. a pretend documentary 3. humour based on simple actions, e.g. falling over 4. comedy arising from a ridiculous situation 5. the use of humour as a form of criticism 6. telling jokes to a live audience Answers: 1. a sitcom 2. a mocumentary 3. slapstick 4. a farce 5. satire 6. a stand-up Today we have learned:

• Language to describe humour and success • How to tell a personal anecdote