Editing Blackadder (section)

==Premise==

Each series comprises six half-hour episodes and is set in a different period of [[History of the British Isles|British history]]. The first series, made in 1983, was titled ''[[The Black Adder]]'' and was set in the fictional reign of "[[Richard IV of England (Blackadder)|Richard IV]]". The second series, ''[[Blackadder II]]'' (1986), was set during the reign of [[Queenie (Blackadder)|Elizabeth I]]. ''[[Blackadder the Third]]'' (1987) was set in the late 18th and early 19th centuries during the reign of [[George III of the United Kingdom|George III]]. ''[[Blackadder Goes Forth]]'' (1989) was set in 1917 in the trenches of the [[World War I|Great War]].<ref name="Bfiba">{{cite web|title=BFI Screenonline: Blackadder (1983-89)|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/500473/index.html|publisher=BFI|accessdate=10 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Comfort Classic: Blackadder - Royal Television Society|url=https://rts.org.uk/article/comfort-classic-blackadder|last1=Clarke|first1=Steve|date=7 October 2020|publisher=RTS|accessdate=10 February 2025}}</ref>

''Blackadder'' follows the misfortunes of [[Edmund Blackadder]] (played by Atkinson). It is implied in each series that the Blackadder character is a descendant of the previous one. The end theme lyrics of the series 2 episode "Head" specify that he is the great-grandson of the previous incarnation, although it is never specified how or when any of the Blackadders (who are usually bachelors) manage to father children.<ref name=bcg>{{British Comedy Guide|sitcom|blackadder}}. Retrieved 25 July 2010</ref>

In series 1, Edmund Blackadder is not particularly bright, and is much the intellectual inferior of his servant, Baldrick (played by [[Tony Robinson]]). However, in subsequent series, the positions are reversed: Blackadder is clever, shrewd, scheming and manipulative while Baldrick is extremely dim.<ref name="Hxba">{{cite web|title=History of the BBC - Blackadder|url=https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/anniversaries/june/blackadder|publisher=BBC|accessdate=10 February 2025}}</ref>

Each incarnation of Blackadder and Baldrick is also saddled with tolerating the presence of a dimwitted [[aristocracy|aristocrat]]. In the first two series, this is [[Lord Percy Percy|Percy]], played by [[Tim McInnerny]]. [[Hugh Laurie]] plays the role in the third and fourth series, as [[George (Blackadder)|George]]. Characters of a higher organisational standing, such as [[Stephen Fry]]'s [[List of Blackadder characters#Melchett|Melchett]] in series 2 and 4, and McInnerny's other character, [[List of Blackadder characters#Darling|Darling]], in series 4, provide antagonistic figures for Blackadder to deal with.<ref>{{cite web|title=Blackadder characters - British Comedy Guide|url=https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/blackadder/characters/|accessdate=10 February 2025}}</ref>