Editing Bottom (TV series) (section)

== Production ==
=== Development ===
Mayall and Edmondson first met as drama students at [[Manchester University]] in 1975, when Edmondson joined the improvisational comedy troupe [[20th Century Coyote]], of which Mayall was a member.<ref name="bbc2">{{cite web| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/people/rick_mayall_person_page.shtml| title=Rik Mayall |website=BBC Comedy | access-date=23 December 2008}}</ref><ref name=timeout1991/> The act grew in popularity following successful runs at the [[Edinburgh Fringe]] and the Comic Strip in London, which led to the pair starring in the stage and television double act [[The Dangerous Brothers]] and sitcoms ''[[The Young Ones (TV series)|The Young Ones]]'' and ''[[Filthy, Rich & Catflap]]''. After the latter ended in 1987, the pair "drifted away" for a period before reuniting after they caught the attention of producer and executive [[Paul Jackson (producer)|Paul Jackson]], who had also worked on ''The Young Ones'', and pitched initial ideas they had for a new sitcom. Jackson was interested enough, and Mayall and Edmondson proceeded to write a draft script. Episodes were developed around improvisational writing, and Mayall recalled Edmondson "did the typing and he allowed me to go to the off licence to buy all the drinks."<ref name=RT91/>{{sfn|Mayall|2005|pp=159–160}} Upon delivering their scripts, the BBC expressed concern that the show could not sustain itself with two characters alone, to which Mayall and Edmondson used [[Tony Hancock]] and [[Sid James]] as an example, and got their way. Mayall said that the BBC was too focused on the show's content being "morally sound and politically correct", but gave the [[green-light]] on the series.{{sfn|Mayall|2005|p=161}}

The show's original working title was ''Your Bottom'', for the humour of people having to say "I saw 'Your Bottom' on television last night", before it was shortened because Mayall said they "liked the shape of the word."<ref name=RT91>{{cite web|url=https://rikmayallscrapbook.com/2021/03/18/the-youngish-ones-radio-times-1991/|title=The Youngish Ones|first=Richard|last=Johnson|date=14 September 1991|work=Radio Times|access-date=28 September 2022}}</ref> It started as a joke until they learned that [[Alan Yentob]], then head of BBC2, disliked the title which convinced the pair to stick with it. Mayall added that the title was deliberate to make viewers think of "bottom jokes", but that it also reflects on the show's premise of "two guys at the bottom of the heap".<ref name=arena1991>{{Cite journal|journal=Arena|title=Who's Laughing Now?|date=1991|url=https://rikmayallinterviews.wordpress.com/2012/03/18/whos-laughing-now/}}</ref> Mayall and Edmondson were aware of the failures of other sitcoms, and purposely wrote tight scripts. Edmondson said writing ''Bottom'' was liberating "because it's obvious what the idea is – to be as funny as possible."<ref name=TDT91/> The pair based Eddie and Richie on characters that they had improvised with as part of 20th Century Coyote, and on their own friendship.<ref name=TDT91/> They made a conscious effort to avoid any pop culture or contemporary references when writing, as ''The Young Ones'' had been popular with young people and instead wanted to portray characters who had left student life behind and reached their "thirties and forties".<ref name=TDT91/> Instead, the two were interested in more everyday scenarios "that have always been there", such as a gas meter reading.<ref name=RT91/> Eddie and Richie have been compared to their characters on ''The Young Ones'', but 10 years older.<ref name=TP91/> After the first series had been recorded, Mayall ranked ''Bottom'' as their best work and marked "a new chapter" in his relationship with Edmondson.<ref name=timeout1991>{{cite web|title=Bums the Word|first=Steven|last=Grant|work=Time Out|date=25 September 1991|access-date=5 January 2016|url=https://rikmayallinterviews.wordpress.com/2012/03/18/bums-the-word/}}</ref>

In June 1990, a [[pilot episode]] was recorded which was later titled "[[Contest (Bottom)|Contest]]" and broadcast as part of the first series. Problems over content came to light when recording began. Mayall recalled they were allowed three "bloodies" or "bloody hell"s per episode, and arguments were often had with as many as 20 BBC executives who went on the set.{{sfn|Mayall|2005|p=162}} Some executives criticised the series for being sexist, but Mayall pointed out that they would have had more women on the show if they had not cut around twenty "shagging scenes" that were written, and argued that lesbian scenes were also removed.{{sfn|Mayall|2005|p=161, 163}} After the first series was recorded in June and July 1991, ''Bottom'' was first announced in August, when the BBC reported that it had commissioned over 400 hours of new television programming for the upcoming autumn series. This included new productions from comics known as [[the Comic Strip]] in an attempt to attract viewers, with Mayall and Edmondson for ''Bottom'' and [[Dawn French]] for ''[[Murder Most Horrid]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/809150705/|title=Beeb's strip show stoppers!|newspaper=Daily Record|date=22 August 1991|page=23|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=23 September 2022}}</ref>

''Bottom'' ended after three series in February 1995. Edmondson said that one of the reasons for stopping the show was the struggle to come up with new ideas as "we'd already hit each other with everything in the flat".{{cn<!--Dead link to blog removed-->|date=January 2025}} Mayall supported this view, saying they took the show as far as it could go on television while continuing the franchise with stage tours and home video releases, preferring to retain full creative control over the characters.<ref name=TES03>{{cite web|url=https://rikmayallinterviews.wordpress.com/2012/07/17/youve-got-mayall-3/|title=You've Got Mayall|work=The Evening Standard|date=20 November 2003|first=Bruce|last=Dessau|access-date=26 September 2022}}</ref> In 2000, he said that Richie and Eddie had become "bigger than we are".{{cn|date=January 2025}}

=== Recording ===
Each episode was recorded in front of a live audience. The original scripts can be found in the published script books, and several completely removed scenes were included in the [[VHS]] release ''Fluff'' that consisted mostly of [[bloopers]]. Several (but not all) of these scenes, as well as some smaller sections of dialogue also removed for timing reasons, are included in [[DVD]] releases.

The final episode of the second series, {{"-}}[['s Out]]", was set on [[Wimbledon Common]] involving the antics of a [[exhibitionism|flasher]]. It was not broadcast as part of the original series after [[Rachel Nickell]] was murdered on Wimbledon Common, due to which the BBC delayed its broadcast until a rerun of the second series on 10 April 1995.<ref name="Genome95">{{cite web |title=Bottom: 's Out, BBC Two, Mon 10th Apr 1995 |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/3102f834e24b49e6a3131f4941b5fd9a |website=[[BBC Genome]]|date=10 April 1995 }}</ref>