The Two Ronnies: The Encyclopaedia Salesman

The Two Ronnies
Series Four (1975)
I do not own the contents of this video. No copyright infringement intended.

[@johnparton2209]

Best double act by a million miles, absolute genius. Most comedy is dated but the 2 Ronnies still as funny now as it was 40 years ago

[@joe1205]

This aged well. What I'd call a family show. Everyone can enjoy it at all ages!

[@supremefandom6970]

Yep I'm 20 and love them

[@Ash-zw6ch]

I'm 31 i too like

[@neilangus4401]

I think it's fantastic that people are still listening and commenting In 2022 Great comedy is for everyone and for ever

[@kennymorrison8639]

2024 BOOM LOL.

[@johnsmith-rs2vk]

CHECK OUT THE RYHMING SLANG SERMON AND THE DRUNK WEDDING SPEECH !

[@cdl0]

@@kennymorrison8639 Five days later than you! 🙂

[@user-zr1is1ke9y]

And Your point?

[@vitamins-and-iron]

@@user-zr1is1ke9y they just said their point lol

[@yogibear284]

Absolute genius' in their day, when you can still have a laugh 40 years later!

[@Nigelfarij]

50 years actually.

[@orionstar7015]

When comedy was worth watching, what an entertainment that was.

[@itsnotrightyouknow]

Yes indeed before woke arrived

[@Tangaroa775]

Yes now it’s all about Profanities

[@shereekendall1003]

Thats right...theres nothing i watch on tele these days...oh to invent a time machine to go back to them wonderful funny comedies we loved to watch so very much lol 😂😂😂

[@andersliljevall2946]

English language seems to be made for comedy and makes it quite hard to translate

[@Hellomynameis93]

@@itsnotrightyouknowwomp womp

[@georgetempest9627]

British comedy at it's finest - something I never grow tired of watching. They were among the best back then, bless.

[@PatrickMcAsey]

*its*

[@deldridg]

@@PatrickMcAsey Damn, you beat me to it. I'm only 3 years late

[@PatrickMcAsey]

@@deldridg It's embarrassing when people display their ignorance of the the difference between "its" and "it's". We learn this at primary school.

[@hendrikhardeman9832]

@@PatrickMcAsey the the -> the (one will do) 🙂

[@SuperMikado282]

@@hendrikhardeman9832 hahaha.

[@jeffreygan3455]

So difficult to get good jokes nowdays as good as The Two Ronnies...entertaining yet highly intellectual in standards.

[@juans6639]

The British are without a doubt, the best in comedy.

[@Robylazarus]

I have to agree with you on that --- Mind your Language, Allo Allo, Keeping up appearances, Mr. Bean.

[@TheRealElsaJean]

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

[@juans6639]

@@allangilchrist5938 Thank you for your response. Lucky for me, I visit my British video comedy library watch, laugh and reminisce with friends.

[@Aasn9]

Sadly, it became foreign policy.

[@planecrazyish]

Agreed 😂👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@terrytk9398]

Well written, well performed, well directed, well presented... well everything ... marvellous little sketch without swearing, aggression or spite. Joy.

[@shaun5944]

Well said Terry Tk. They don't make em like this anymore, the good old days, before idiot trolls 😂💥👍🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🎭😄

[@SuperMikado282]

Yes, you are both spot on.

[@pressureworks]

Throwing object at cleaner, knocking off ladder, proper violent that ! Right our Elsie ? Right, that wor proper violent like.

[@pachy444]

Nonsense, Corbett fluffed the first question about the Lake & tearing pages & losing it with the window cleaner was aggressive

[@terrytk9398]

@@pachy444 who cares about a fluffed line! Trying to tear something and partially succeeding is comical. The cleaner was tame. We’ll have to agree to disagree here sir.

[@geofftefl]

I was fortunate to see The Two Ronnies in their live theatre show, Sydney Australia circa 1980, where they performed their hilarious routines, including the brilliant 'Fork Handles' sketch. I still have a good laugh watching their genius and, after all these years, their brilliance still shines. RIP Messrs Barker and Corbett.

[@bobwallacejnr6852]

they didnt do sydney in 1980

[@geofftefl]

@@bobwallacejnr6852 your cataracts may have prevented you from seeing the word "circa".

[@bruceevans3476]

I grew up with this stuff. Thanks Mum and Dad. 👍

[@isabelserrano6018]

Me too, watched all British comedy greats. My late father was a great fan of dad's army and the two Ronnies.

[@charlesforeman9438]

Like the microphone comes in above her head at 1:26. I just loved watching these guys, they were so funny and up to date with things at that time. They were a rare talent that went to heaven & so greatly missed.

[@npr1300A8]

So good! I thought I'd seen all the Two Ronnies' sketches. Thank you for sharing this masterpiece.

[@castelodeossos3947]

The whole idea is inspired, and when you think it couldn't be more inspired, the ending makes it out of this world. Am new to the two Ronnies and must say it's of a truly extraordinary standard.

[@chris-rfs]

Brilliant comedy,there is nothing like this around now. One of my favourites is the drunken father wedding speech sketch and of course,Four Candles!

[@chrismoule7242]

The Tortoise...

[@treblesix8730]

Wonderful tv. The pinnacle years of British Saturday evening entertainment .

[@michaelcastro6731]

I have not seen this sketch before. Thank you for cheering me up on a dull day. Had me in stitches.

[@maryjane1085]

The moral of your tail - never get distracted whilst dicing vegetables...

[@shaun5944]

Brilliant, when comedy was great. Ronnie Barker, the guvnor. Thank you for all the laughs ❤️

[@keithterry2169]

A brilliant sketch. The Pythons simply threw the unsuccessful encyclopaedia salesman out of a top-floor window.

[@jackledger7132]

Proper wholesome entertainment - so much more depth than the rubbish that is spewing out in today’s world.....

[@grahamstephens9931]

Couldn’t agree more. This is when comedians sat down and had a long, hard think about what others would find funny, without delving into the obscene. This was the golden age of comedy, and British comedy at that.

[@maxsoon1097]

Classic comedy from UK. No obscene words. Only normal funny conversation 🤣

[@juans6639]

Love it, love it. I used to watch ALL of these British comedies in the 1970's on our local PBS TV Station.

[@heathy120]

This has to be my favorite skit of all time 🤣😂

[@RabbiHerschel]

For those of you who are curious, the highest mountain in South America, and indeed the highest mountain anywhere outside Asia, is indeed Mount Aconcagua, which stands at 22,837 feet. And "Many a good hanging prevents a bad marriage" was Shakespeare.

[@SNK1995]

What is 5x2?

[@sayonroychoudhury8785]

Saved me some furious googling.

[@Gottenhimfella]

@Bercilak de hautdesert Your answer is right by definition. So is mine. Today, everyone is entitled to their own truth. It's all about freedom, and experts are never to be trusted under *any* circumstances. (sigh)

[@karinberryman2009]

@@SNK1995 😂😂😂

[@kr1886]

Isn't it Cotopaxi?

[@tortysoft]

I used to work at BBC TVC and saw some of these recordings being made. If there was no audience, before the recordings started, they would both be utterly silent waiting for the red light - then they ignited !

[@MultiOpolis]

What's hilarious about this is that everyone in Lancashire is absolutely convinced they're that clever 😂 (my wife is from there)

[@DieFlabbergast]

We are.

[@peterdavies2960]

Pretty sure they’re Yorkshire 😂

[@EagleOneM1953]

🤣🤣 your comment was funnier than the sketch...it had me in stitches...

[@DieFlabbergast]

@@peterdavies2960 Aye -- I don't think we say "Eccy thump" in Lancashire.

[@pavlekodak2147]

Funny you mention that... my wife is also convinced she knows everything and she is not from Lancashire...

[@crispinaske8293]

With all the present doom and gloom, i watched this to cheer myself up a bit.

[@simongee8928]

Ronnie Barker was a master with regional accents, something Ronnie Corbett just couldn't get to grips with.

[@dreamforfreedom]

So did they end on bad terms?

[@ezrazonable4992]

Ronnie Barker always carried the whole thing. Ronnie Corbett was integral, because Barker needed a character to bounce his jokes off. The show could have survived without Corbett, but it wouldn't have had a spark without Barker.

[@dnakatomiuk]

@@dreamforfreedom No they didn't end in bad terms they were the best of friends for years. All the way to the end when Barker died he didn't see Corbett or anyone he died in private which Corbett respected

[@robertblackburn752]

Brilliant! And you can bet that all the answers they gave were spot on. The Ronnies were masters of comic wordplay and timing.

[@raymondvaughan6262]

Classic comedy brilliant nothing like this anymore great writing and talent both great together rip both 👍

[@63bplumb]

When the bird in the clock came out to answer the question I almost fell out of the chair laughing!

[@margaretroselle8610]

63bplumb Oh,so did I!! Just hilarious!!🤣🤣

[@orcokiwo6703]

🤣😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣I can barely type 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@oddforestcritter]

Me too 😆

[@zulkiflijamil4033]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@63bplumb]

@Jon Collins Bless you!! Jon Collins! This gave me a chance to watch this again. Almost (vulgar remark coming) pissed myself again laughing! This is MY kind of humor! So incredibly smart and creative!

[@NeidalRuekk]

Utterly brilliant!

[@colinmiles1052]

Not seen this one...absolutely brilliant! Thanks for finding it.

[@beatlesnut2947]

They don't do comedy like this anymore. So sad.

[@TheMightsparrow]

Kids are too stupid to understand them nowadays even with all the Technology around them.

[@CycolacFan]

Because sadly they’re both dead.

[@colleenhenry8022]

Loved them!! They were hilarious!

[@innovativeinnovation6629]

Absolutely brilliantly written, tis probably why John Sullivan knew he had to step up the mark with OFAH.

[@johnDukemaster]

Lovely! I'll never forget "A day at the beach". Super!

[@geneva760]

BRILLIANT stuff. Have a nice day all. CHEERS from AUSTRALIA.

[@markharris5771]

Thanks for the asthma attack from laughing, totally worth it.

[@themask706]

Thought he was going to say, " your the 14th encyclopedia sales man we've had this week "

[@craig1538]

Very funny, well written and well acted. Unlike the tripe that passes for comedy nowadays.

[@xCarlsburgx]

This has to be one of their best ever.

[@David-lb4te]

so is this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/r2GmZmymfsSsprM

[@xMakeMeFeelItx]

David that one is hilarious

[@paulg687]

Not even close. Watch this one. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eX-3fmyfgpaYjNk

[@m.s.8996]

I don't need encyclopaedias - turns out the missus knows everything.

[@roadie3124]

Ha! That is so true 😂

[@joshhodkinson9305]

For the same reason, I don’t need Google.

[@Hrodn]

The lovely Carol Hawkins, I had my first schoolboy crush on her when she was in Please Sir.

[@Regi869]

Bob Clark a real stunner and hot body

[@BeatleBeat1]

@@Regi869 How do you know Bob Clarks a "real stunner with a hot body" ???? ...........now THAT'S comedy gold ! four candles....

[@jazzman1626]

At first when he was asking the questions and Ronnie B said “yes”, I thought Ronnie C was going to say “how do you know these things?”. I thought Ronnie B was going to say “because you’ve just told me”.

[@anthonycoleman1909]

I thought he was going to say, because I wrote the books

[@mohamedal-ganzoury3699]

@@anthonycoleman1909 or "because every day, for the last 3 years, your friends have been making the same pitch"

[@tonyjedioftheforest1364]

I thought the same.

[@z.t1459]

The comedy at it's best,RIP Ronnies

[@Woodland26]

"Did you know that Ronnie Corbett was a great cook?"

[@SuperMikado282]

@@Woodland26 That has made my day learning that fact.

[@EagleOneM1953]

There's nothing like British comedy... of the past, they don't write it like that anymore. Even though you knew the guy in the back cleaning the window was going to give the correct answer to the question about the monkey in South America it was still funny... Irreplaceable, the Two Ronnies... Best part was the cuckoo answering the question about I even had a hard time understanding them, let alone remember them... Pure comedy brilliance...

[@MrDaiseymay]

Great stuff---and look at the detail in the set, so convincing. Nobody takes that trouble today

[@WoolyBuggerPicker]

That working iron got me!

[@EagleOneM1953]

I grew up in Belgium and as a kid accompanied my grandmother to visit her sister many times. Her sister's son repaired cars for a hobby and sometimes even had a car engine in the living room on wooden blocks he was working on like Ronnie had the bike inside... I'm not kidding... there was a tank with gas/petrol with a hose feeding it.... it was so funny when she wold bitched at him to take his stinking crap outside and he always said it was too cold out there...

[@MrDaiseymay]

@@EagleOneM1953 Reminds me of a Cartoon I saw, in the Daily Express, but the guy was sat up in bed, with black engine oil all over the eiderdown, engine parts shrewn around him, with tools everywhere, AND, a lovely touch, a Engineers VICE clamped on his Bed Head board, one on each side. Reminds me me of my old dad.

[@h.j.teunissen378]

I would love to see this redone for the Wikipedia-era.

[@commonroadjunction4047]

How can anyone dislike the two Ronnie’s

[@moirawatson-pickering7228]

Brilliant 👏👏👏 Never judge, a book by it's cover🤔👍

[@wertherquartett]

Absolutely brilliant. I hadn’t seen that one before.

[@obviouslytwo4u]

I think the moral of the story is never judge a book by its cover

[@Momojobo]

Dont think never

[@BadRavenFPV]

I'd forgotten that one! Great, thanks.!!

[@johnnoonan5802]

brilliant people we had many a laugh from the folk here while watching TV as children back in the early 1970s

[@golden.lights.twinkle2329]

My parents actually bought a set of encyclopedias from a salesman like this. The thing I remember about them is they had an intoxicating smell. I used to open them just to get a whiff of the smell.

[@treblesix8730]

I remember one coming to our house when I was a kid. Dad came home and saw him off in no time!

[@keithalderson100]

​@@treblesix8730 With the current rewriting of history especially here in The UK, I have just taken custody of our late parents' Encyclopedia Britanica set... I suggest you comb the secondhand stores for books that have words and pictures that verify historical events. There might be some truth in the idea that, "history is written by the victors", but there is also truth behind the phrase, "Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it"...

[@johnlavery6116]

The brilliant Barbara New,.also in the sketch..went on to play Mable in YOU RANG MY LORD.

[@martinjay3570]

When comedy was funny.

[@BubblesPothowari]

Beautiful Yarns, spun for us to ENJOY !!!

[@percyfree9831]

So much joy an laughter, ta u pair love

[@rocketeerPM2500]

Classic Ronnies humour. Hell they made us laugh.

[@gracebrougham5572]

pp

[@gracebrougham5572]

mcloughlin

[@aranerem3767]

The two ronnies were brilliant

[@hermosafish]

Freaking Excellent Production!! I wish I had discovered this decades ago!!!

[@Robylazarus]

Fantastic entertainment---Good clean humour.

[@funkydozer]

Up until the 90s, the encyclopaedia was the internet

[@moyadapne968]

I thought Ronnie was gonna say 'We've got a set already,' at the end. (That's how they know e/thing.)

[@1916jamesconnolly]

The Window cleaner bit was straight out of a Monty Python sketch. Hysterical.

[@southernmike3265]

These two are a few of the very best!

[@gerrystapleton1965]

When comedy worked brightened up my day thanks

[@scotty193]

Here in 2020 the rapore between this two was second to none.............Never my number one comedians but ohhh so close. No swearing of course just a hint of innuendo and laughs a plenty pure classic brilliance.

[@DieFlabbergast]

*rapport And, actually, the Two Ronnies' shows were absolutely loaded with sexual innuendo. If you didn't notice, you must be a bit slow.

[@tortysoft]

A HINT?? You are missing quite a lot there ! OK, not in this sketch though.

[@darongardner4294]

Very good,I like the sound of this,and the humor.

[@rafathalam5245]

The best of their series... Awesome

[@kelvinsparks4651]

Class. This takes me back to my childhood days 😂

[@cricketbat09]

Great comedy. There are many highly educated academics who know nothing about the practicalities of 'real life'.

[@fuzzyscarfandmittens4772]

John Cleese has gone on record saying that Ronnie Corbett had the greatest comic timing of anybody anywhere.

[@stevenkoehler6018]

Fuzzyscarfandmittens I would agree. A tremendous talent.

[@ElvarMasson]

If John Cleese says Ronnie Corbett had the greatest comic timing of anybody anywhere, Ronnie Corbett had the greatest comic timing of anybody anywhere. Simple

[@martinworld7214]

@@ElvarMasson I'm not buying it. ...... incredibly funny definitely , best comic timing ....nah

[@ElvarMasson]

I wouldn´t know. This is not my profession

[@chotahazri]

Elvar Masson "

[@408Magenta]

Priceless.

[@tonymarlowe1302]

Still the best after all these year.

[@petergibson2318]

Neptune's diameter, 2024 estimate : 30,600 miles. He was only out by 400 miles.

[@DarkHelixia]

Pretty much everybody nowadays at the pub when you say 'Did you know ...'

[@Sjmby95]

I can relate to this I once worked as a teacher of music and one chap was fiddling with his motor bike in the hall

[@resnonverba137]

Not seen this sketch before. Thanks for upload.

[@rogerswift1983]

2021 ''I can just google it on my phone, goodbye''

[@1339LARS]

This is about the funniest thing to be seen !!!!

[@colettejackson4168]

We had a set just like that one. Red, and a blue set that was really interesting but I don’t remember what they were about. My dad used to read the blue set to us. The encyclopaedias I used for school work. I loved them. Wish I had them now.

[@majorlaff8682]

The blue set may have been the Columbia Encyclopaedia. Red ones were either Britannica (advanced but difficult) or New World (much easier for youth to comprehend). I started off with the Junior World Encyclopaedia as a young fella in primary school then progressed to more comprehensive encyclopaedias. Still have a one-volume Chambers that I refer to now and then. Happy learning.

[@keithalderson100]

I've just taken custody of our late parents' back Encyclopaedia Britanicas. With the Internet being so full of official mis and dis information, I might need to grasp reality every now and again :-)

[@littleballof_crazy9834]

I wish they still made comedy like this today

[@golden.lights.twinkle2329]

I wish they still made encyclopedias like that.

[@BillyBullshitter]

I was friends with these 2. I helped them both write a lot of material. We used to sit at the table, drink brandy and write till 4 or 5am. It was hilarious. They were really funny guys. Right bundle of laughs I tells you

[@tortysoft]

Oh, I hope so, but your name implies otherwise 🙂

[@BillyBullshitter]

@@tortysoft honest Simon. It's the proper truth. Otherwise how I know they were a right bundle of laughs.?

[@Cygnus0lor]

That cuckoo call was priceless...

[@techtipsuk]

Never seen this before, brilliant

[@paulpaintshop103]

Absolutely Brilliant family entertainment, probably too clever for today's audience.

[@susanbarker2525]

Hadn't seen this sketch before. What a treat!!

[@SueDunMc-]

Brilliant!

[@garywallace5602]

Even the Cuckoo clock mugged him off! 😂

[@iisabelleross4804]

This is brilliant TV show, they always make me laugh, I love it 💙

[@markitsche987]

Love it. I should collect those encyclopedias someday. The hardcopy books.

[@eileenlocke7877]

I luv it thank u

[@Turrican60]

Have to laugh at little Ron tearing pages out of the book in frustration!

[@chrishickman3694]

Up the mighty wanderers

[@thedoomslayer4327]

this sketch was genius quite literally

[@thomaselliott573]

simplicity can also demonstrate great work, especially if it has a deft touch.

[@tortysoft]

Remarkably foresighted as well as very funny !

[@martingoldfire]

Never seen that show, seems brilliant! 👍😆