Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2021 October 2

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October 2

Father Ted - A Black Comedy?

Was Father Ted a black comedy? 86.132.10.44 (talk) 21:36, 2 October 2021 (UTC)

That would be (an ecumenical matter) a matter for individual judgement. It doesn't seem to be widely described as such, presumably because it doesn't actually depict any dark or tragic events (though the backstory hints at one), but someone who (unlike myself) takes the Catholic Church very seriously and views any mockery of it to be blasphemous might take a different stance. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 90.193.131.207 (talk) 23:51, 2 October 2021 (UTC)

What's the hint in the backstory that you refer to? I've seen every episode several times and I don't recall one. The synopsis in our article only mentions "different incidents in their past: Ted for alleged financial impropriety (apparently involving some money 'resting' in his account and a child being deprived of a visit to Lourdes so that Ted could go to Las Vegas), Dougal for something only referred to as the "Blackrock Incident" (resulting in many nuns' "lives [being] irreparably damaged"), and Jack for his alcoholism and womanising". None of these sound dark or tragic to me. --Viennese Waltz 07:28, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

Perhaps (if one believes in miracles), the child (possibly very ill or dying) would have been healed at Lourdes. As I said, it's only a hint, to be interpreted by each viewer in their own idiosycratic way. {The poster formerly known as 897.81.230.195} 90.193.131.207 (talk) 13:37, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

While the humour was extremely irreverent and grotesque, bordering on the surreal, it was not morbid. Religion does not really play a role in the story lines other than by the contrast between Father Ted being a man of the frock and his habitual cheating. The gags derive from the bumbling of the characters, not their views on religion. I think very few people who have watched the sitcom, and definitely not its Irish viewers (who take the Catholic Church very seriously while having considerable tolerance of some mockery of its clergymen), would describe it using the term "black comedy".  --Lambiam 14:11, 3 October 2021 (UTC)

There are incidents involving death, though: the dancing priest, who drops dead after Ted's visit; the bishop (Bishop Jordan, I believe) who, hit by a toilet flush, leaves the parochial house in a coffin; and I don't know how many of Ted's phone calls Father Larry Duff actually survives. It seems fair to say that Father Ted contains elements of black comedy; shoeboxing the entire series like that is less useful. --Wrongfilter (talk) 07:48, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

Well, the series is rated 15 or 12 and the hints I noticed were... Good Luck, Father Ted - Tom says he has killed a man, though Ted tells him that he is too busy to speak to him about it. The Passion of Saint Tibulus - Pat's wife died a few hours, but despite his grief, goes to the cinema. Competition Time - Henry Sellers goes into a drunken rage, destroying the living room and jumping out the window (but nobody gets injured). Grant Unto Him Eternal Rest - Jack dies, but Ted and Dougal don't express grief or any emotion. Also, Dougal says his uncle died, but says that with a smirk. Think Fast, Father Ted - The dancing priest dies, but Ted and Dougal don't express grief or any strong emotion. Tentacles of Doom - A bishop dies, but Ted looks uninterested with his hands in pockets. A Song for Europe - Dougal says a band died in a plane crash, but with a smile. 86.132.10.44 (talk) 21:55, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

Old Grey Whistle Theft - Benson's grandfather was being executed by the British by shooting but the bullets hit the whistle in his pocket and bounced off him. However, they reloaded and shot him again. Are You Right There Father Ted? - Ted unintentionally offends the Chinese community when he does a Chinaman impression and then everyone thinks he's a racist. Also, Father Seamus Fitzpatrick owns a collection of German war memorabilia which looks like a shrine to the Nazis and the Third Reich. Going to America - Father Kevin attempted suicide and was cured of depression by the "Theme From Shaft" by Ted but subsequently plunged back into the depths of it after overhearing a Radiohead song ("Exit Music (For a Film)") on a bus. 86.129.30.147 (talk) 19:36, 5 October 2021 (UTC)