The League of Gentlemen (comedy)

The League of Gentlemen is a troupe of British comedy performers, and the name of their stage, radio, and latterly television series. The show, which is a cross between a sitcom and sketch show, details the bizarre goings-on in a fictional Northern-English village, which in the radio series was called Spent, and on television Royston Vasey.

Characters

Edward and Tubbs Tattsyrup

Edward and Tubbs, played by Shearsmith and Pemberton respectively, are a married couple (apparently brother and sister) and proprietors of Royston Vasey's local shop, conveniently located on the top of a hill some distance away from the town. Both have distinctly piggy noses (the actors have their noses held up with tape). Despite being complete outsiders to the rest of the action in the show, they have ironically become arguably the most popular and identifiable characters as well.

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Edward has a phobia about outsiders and is likely to emerge from the back of the shop saying "Hello, hello? What's going on? What's all this shouting? We'll have no trouble here!" and challenge people with the question, "Are you local?" and dismiss those who reply "no" with, "This is a local shop, for local people; there's nothing for you here" – one of the show's best-known catchphrases.

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Tubbs, though also scared of newcomers, dreams of visiting the "bright lights" of towns and cities, whose existence Edward has tried to keep from her. She tends to ask "Are you local?" with both hope and fear mixed in her voice, but is afraid that visitors may take her "precious things" from the shelves of the shop (in particular, snow storms/snow globes).

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Edward and Tubbs have a son David who develops a bestial nature after his reunion with his parents at the end of Series 1 (he was, prior to that, a road manager responsible for building a road threatening to link Royston Vasey to the outside world throughout Series 1) and is kept locked up in the attic. During Series 2 they attempt to kidnap a wife for David, in the end the unwitting victim is Barbara (see below).

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The couple are responsible for a large number of murders in the area, some of which probably occurred when trying to find both a friend and a wife for David.

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At the start of Series 3, they are seen to have survived the fire brought about by the inhabitants of Royston Vasey, whom they suspect of starting the nosebleed epidemic, although David was killed and Barbara escaped. They decide to follow "New Road" and contemplate beginning a new life with a new shop. Unfortunately, Tubbs, using one of the snowglobes as a map, has been guiding them along a railway line, and they are both promptly killed by a speeding train. They do also appear in the live show as angels, although this is obscure given that this takes place between Series 2 and 3, as they are not yet dead, although the live show could be set in a "bubble" outside of the main show, much like the film, where they also have important roles.

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In the final shot of series 3 we see a brief glimpse of their grandchildren in Barbara's arms. Though it is only hinted at it is believed from the writers comments that these children are actually Tubbs and Edward reincarnated.

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Barbara Dixon

The transsexual Barbara (voiced by Pemberton) is proprietor of the local taxi firm, Bab's Cabs, and likes to regale passengers with graphic descriptions of her upcoming operation. She has a deep voice and a necklace with her name on it which nestles in amongst her chest hair. We never see her face. At the end of Series 1 the operation is botched by substitute surgeon Mr. Chinnery (see below), with the result that in Series 2 Barbara can't tell what sex she is any more. To further confuse matters, Barbara is seen heavily pregnant in Series 3 (and gives birth to twins, both of whom resemble Tubbs and Edward). Barbara was briefly married to Tubbs and Edward's son, David. Their marriage was short-lived after angry townsfolk set fire to the Local Shop on their wedding night, killing David in the blaze.

Related Topics:
Transsexual - Taxi

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The Dentons

Harvey Denton (Pemberton) and his wife Val (Gatiss) are a bizarre couple whose gaudy house is run in an insanely ordered manner; for example, they have two rolls of toilet paper, labelled "One" and "Two", and towels for every purpose, from hands and spills to pubic hair. They have identical twin daughters, Chloe and Radcliffe. With their long white dresses, a habit of turning up unexpectedly and speaking in unison, they are obvious references to the two girls in The Shining. Harvey's dream in life is to have a self-lowering toilet seat. Val's wish is to have a son.

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Into this formula, their nephew Benjamin (Shearsmith) is interjected. Harvey and Val tell him to make himself at home, but obviously, with their collection of absurd rules, this is seemingly impossible. Harvey and Val also become obsessed with male masturbation, forever accusing Benjamin of masturbating, using an array of comical euphemisms.

Related Topics:
Masturbation - Euphemism

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Harvey in particular is deeply facinated by toads and has had the basement converted into a special chamber for keeping his huge collection. He is not so fond of frogs, refusing to allow the use of "The "F" word" in his home.

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He also owns the toad known to the Mapapa tribe of the shakiti hills as the devil's toad. " If one were to squeeze its little yellow belly, ones heart's desire would be granted." With him and his wife, Val, that turned out to be true. He wished for a self-lowering toilet seat, while Val asked for her nephew, Benjamin, to return. Both wishes came true. Benjamin also made the mistake of killing two of Harvey's favourite toads by frying one and stepping on the other.

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As Series 1 progresses, it becomes clear that the pair, and in particular Val, do not wish for Benjamin to leave. In the first series, they merely used diversionary tactics. However, in Series 2 their plans become more sinister, locking Benjamin in his room, contacting his family and telling them he wishes to stay with the Dentons and constructing a large chamber in the basement where they intend to keep him as a pet. Harvey even goes so far as to publish a pamphlet entitled "My Plan to Keep Benjamin Locked Up as Some Kind of Pet, by Harvey Denton". Benjamin discovers this plan and turns the table on Harvey and Val, trapping them in the chamber and forcing them to confess before Chloe and Radcliffe chase him off with a shotgun. However, rather than free their parents, they lock them in.

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Though never expressly killed off, this is the last we see of Harvey and Val. They were not featured in Series 3 or the film, although one of their previous routines does appear in the live show and in the Christmas Special, Val is seen as head of "Solutions Inc.", though this may not be real, given that it took place in Charlie's dream. A relative identical to Harvey is briefly seen on the streets of Royston Vasey in the Victorian era, shaking a collection tin in a suggestive manner. Their absence is unusual for such important and frequently used characters.

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Benjamin Denton

The first character to be introduced, Benjamin is the only permanent non-local character. To illustrate his normality, Shearsmith wears no makeup of any kind in his portrayal of Benjamin. He is also an important character in some of the major storylines. Originally he came to stay with The Dentons for an overnight stop whilst meeting a friend for a hiking trip. However, his friend is murdered by Tubbs and Edward. Tubbs now permanently wears his walking boots.

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More importantly, at the end of Series 1, he attempts to escape from Royston Vasey, and is last seen entering Tubbs and Edward's shop. After some time missing, he returns at the start of Series 2, dressed bizarrely and utterly confused. He runs screaming through the town, before returning to the Denton's home after Val wished upon a magic toad for him to return, collapsing on the floor and uttering the word "local" before passing out.

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Though he cannot remember where he has been, he has a snow storm taken from the Local Shop. It is implied that Tubbs and Edward had tried to keep Benjamin as a friend for David. After escaping the Denton's home, Benjamin is surprised to find that Royston Vasey has descended into anarchy as a result of the epidemic. At this point, he finds the snow storm in his pocket and remembers his experiences in the Local Shop and leads an angry mob there. However, the rioters wrongly interpret this to mean that Tubbs and Edward are responsible for the epidemic, and only when they begin to burn down the local shop in the final scenes of Series 2 does Benjamin realise his mistake. He does not appear in Series 3, presumably having finally escaped Royston Vasey at the end of Series 2.

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Hilary Briss

Briss, played by Gatiss, is a butcher and proprietor of Hilary Briss and Son, Royston Vasey local butchers. His wares include a secret "special stuff", a highly addictive and mysterious substance, which it is implied, is not only illegal, but hideously immoral. Many authority figures are "in" on Briss' activities, including Police Inspector Cox, Magistrate Maurice Evans (Pemberton) and Councillor Samuel Chignell (Shearsmith), all of whom become hopelessly addicted.

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Though Briss only sells his "special stuff" to a select group of gentlemen (often in cosy fireside gatherings at Briss' home), in Series 2 addiction to the "special stuff" led to a haemorrhagic epidemic, one of the symptoms of which was chronic nose bleeding. This resulted in the death of many local residents, including the Mayor. The "special stuff" had reached a wider market through Evans's wife Eunice, who served it at her sandwich stall. She had gained access to the "special stuff" presumably through Maurice. The pure dose of "special stuff" which Briss served was one thing, but Eunice cut the substance and mixed it with her own paste, making it poisonous.

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Before he could be caught, Briss escaped to a tropical island (where he continued selling his "special stuff") leaving behind his wife, who it turns out is a brown cow. Eunice was arrested along with Inspector Cox, while Sam and Maurice are last seen with nosebleeds, burning evidence of the "special stuff". Maurice appears to survive as he is talked about by Eunice in Series 3, but we do not know if Sam also survived. Briss did not appear in Series 3; all we know of him is a newspaper showing a story of a nosebleed epidemic in the Caribbean, suggesting his antics continued there in much the same way as before. However, in the film, The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse, he returns clad in handcuffs and being chased by the police across the moors. Whereas in the first two series, Briss is a fairly one-dimensional character, in the film, he is fleshed out into the anti-hero of the piece before being killed by Dr Pea, the film's parody of occultist John Dee.

Related Topics:
The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse - John Dee

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Though it is never revealed what "special stuff" consists of, many have assumed that it is human meat. However, the writers have denied that this is the case, stating that they can think of "nothing more mundane than cannibalism", and indicating that it is something much worse. However, the series 1 DVD includes a fragment of brainstorming materials in its bonus section, on which the idea of the butcher selling human appendices obtained from the local hospital is listed. Others suspect it is a highly addictive substance like cocaine, given various clues throughout Series 1 and 2. Even the writers were apparently not sure what the special stuff was at the beginning of the series. The only clue from the original live shows is that it rhymes with "drawstring".

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Mr Chinnery

A cheerful and disarming man, Mr Matthew Chinnery (Gatiss) is the accident-prone local veterinarian (not "Dr Chinnery", as he is a veterinary surgeon). Most of the animals he treats end up dying, including a pregnant cow whose insides were mangled when he attempted to help the calf but put his hand up the wrong passage while a group of schoolchildren looked on, a sheepdog whom he mistakenly put to sleep while the owner was out of the room fetching the actual patient, and a tortoise he blasted out of its shell while attempting to give it oxygen.

Related Topics:
Sheepdog - Put to sleep - Tortoise

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In the Christmas Special, Mr Chinnery told Bernice the story of how his great-grandfather, the foremost vet of his time, was cursed to have any animal he touched "meet a dreadful end" and that his descendants would carry the curse after him. Bernice reassured him that there was no such thing as curses. He does not appear at all in Series 3 (most likely because he was "cured" in the Christmas special), but does make an appearance in the film, The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse, treating a giraffe and having a role in the film's climax.

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Many of Chinnery's disasters are parodies of scenes from the BBC's All Creatures Great and Small. Mark Gatiss's performance is reminiscent of Peter Davison, who played Tristan Farnon on that program. (Gatiss is also a famous fan of Doctor Who, where Davison played the title character for three years. Coincidentally, Christopher Eccleston, the ninth Doctor, appeared in the League of Gentlemen as the owner of a cat cinema, set up in direct competition to Kenny Harris's Dog Cinema - Kenny Harris also played by Mark Gatiss.)

Related Topics:
All Creatures Great and Small - Peter Davison - Doctor Who - Christopher Eccleston

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Pauline, Mickey and Ross

Pauline Campbell-Jones (Pemberton) is a Restart officer, leading mandatory (and exceedingly condescending) Restart courses which the chronically unemployed are compelled to attend. Pauline cannot conceal her contempt for the dole scum who attend her course at Royston Vasey's Jobcentre, and her humiliation at joining their sorry ranks is too much for her to bear. Pauline has an obsession with pens. Her catchphrase is "Hokey-cokey, pig in a pokey". Mickey and Ross are two of the people taking the Restart course. Mickey M Michaels (Gatiss), a simpleton who wants to be a fireman grows increasingly close to Pauline throughout the series. Ross Gaines (Shearsmith) is considerably more intelligent than Pauline and always tries to embarrass her when asked to perform tasks to the rest of the class. However, Pauline usually resorts to violence to secure the upper hand.

Related Topics:
Dole - Jobcentre - Fireman

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At the end of Series 1, Ross reveals that he is in fact an undercover agent who has been inspecting Pauline and, naturally, fires her forcing her to sit the Restart course which, in Series 2, is now being led by Cathy Carter-Smith (Shearsmith), who is just as bad, if not worse, than Pauline. After Mickey stands up for her, she leaves the class and briefly works with him at the Burger Me fast food restaurant, but is fired when she spoils Ross's veggie burger in revenge. In an act of desperation Pauline, with the help of Mickey, takes Ross hostage in the Jobcentre and demands her job back. However, they are not noticed, partly due to the epidemic and partly due to the fact that no one realises Ross is missing. Ross eventually tricks Mickey and escapes, returning later to have Pauline arrested. As an interesting sidenote, moments before she is arrested, Pauline is about to take a bite from a sandwich which she had just bought from Eunice Evans's stall. When she sees Ross with a police officer, she drops the sandwich in surprise. Presumably, had she eaten the sandwich she would have been poisoned.

Related Topics:
Undercover agent - Sandwich

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In Series 3, Pauline is serving time at HM Clitclink Prison alongside Eunice Evans, nicknamed "The Royston Poisoner" and being bullied by her. She is given early release when she strikes a deal with Ross to discover how Mickey's family has been cheating the employment system. However, she feels guilty for her involvement and she and Mickey sleep together and become engaged, cementing their love for each other. Pauline then has sex with Ross to make sure he doesn't tell Mickey about their deal (although it is also implied she has actually been attracted to him all this time), but he decides to tell him anyway. Pauline runs to get to Mickey before Ross does, but is saved from the speeding Legz Akimbo van (driven by Geoff) by Lance, who sacrifices his life to save hers. She and Mickey get married, and even Ross applauds the happy couple.

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Geoff, Mike, and Brian

Geoff Tipps (Shearsmith), Mike Harris (Pemberton), and Brian Morgan (Gatiss) all work at the local plastics injection-moulding company. The three getting together always results in Geoff exploding in a fit of rage, often brandishing a gun and exclaiming "Well you know I've got this gun!". In Series 2, en route to an away day training session they become lost in the woods and turn to barabarism in a parody of Deliverance. The reason Mike and Brian remain friends with Geoff despite his outbursts remains a mystery until Mike's wedding, when it's revealed that Mike once slept with Geoff's wife, whilst Brian is now co-habiting with her.

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In Series 3 Geoff travels to London to become an unsuccessful stand-up comedian after being sacked by Mike - only to be accused of terrorism and having to return to Royston Vasey. On the way back he swerves his stolen van into a garden wall and is horribly disfigured. He is last seen a great deal happier (albeit with his face heavily bandaged) in hospital surrounded by his friends, including Mike and his wife Cheryl.

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Brian is mentioned early in Series 3, where Geoff claims there is a rumour going around that he was "bummed by binmen" - though this is probably not true. He appears in person later, having quit his job to search for his wife Katie, but eventually both him and his wife are imprisoned inside circus animals along with Reenie, Charlie and Bernice by Papa Lazarou. Neither Mike nor Brian appear in The League of Gentlemens Apocalypse, though Geoff is an important character in the film, overcoming his anger and cowardice to emerge as the hero.

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Les McQueen

Les McQueen (Gatiss) is former rhythm guitar player for 70s glam rock band Creme Brulée, now working in the hospital laundry and longing for the old days when he would walk into a Royston Vasey urinal and heads would turn. He constantly bothers other aspiring musicians who he meets, boring them with tales of a now outdated and unfashionable music era. When they politely (or in some cases unpolitely) ask him to leave them alone, he does so, stating sadly "It's a shit business, I'm glad I'm out of it".

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One of the more tragic characters, McQueen evoked genuine sympathy from the audience. However, despite this, he is never given anything close to mercy by the writers, with things getting progressively worse for him. In his final appearance in Series 2 he is conned out of his rendundance package (which he was going to use to open a bar abroad) by the lead singer of Creme Brulée, in the hopes of reuniting the band. He makes a brief cameo appearance in Series 3 as the MC for the Little Miss Elegance Beauty Pageant.

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In the live version of the show, he is introduced as just having had a major resurgence in his career, with a big record contract and a promising solo career. When he walks on stage he dances to the music before approaching the microphone and being electrocuted and killed.

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Rev. Bernice Woodall

The local vicar, Bernice (Shearsmith) does not believe in God or the teachings of the Bible, and constantly berates parishioners for their sins. It seems she takes a perverse pleasure in humiliating people in the confessional booth. In a recent BBC7 League of Gentlemen night Reece Shearsmith revealed that the original incarnation of Bernice was based on This Morning's agony aunt Denise Robertson.

Related Topics:
Vicar - This Morning - Denise Robertson

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In the Christmas Special it emerges that she witnessed her mother being kidnapped when Bernice was a child, perhaps explaining her cynical outlook on the world. She plays in important role in the Christmas Special, hearing the problems of some of the locals, all the while battling with her past. At the end of the episode, her fears are realised when the kidnapper returns for her, revealing himself as Papa Lazarou. He kidnaps her declaring "You're my wife now".

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A picture of her is seen on a missing persons flyer posted on the church noticeboard at the start of the Series 3, and at the end she is briefly spotted in Papa Lazarou's big tent - trapped inside an elephant with Brian, Charlie and various other people.

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Mrs Levinson and Iris Krell

Upper-middle class Judee Levinson (Shearsmith) and her grotesque cleaning lady Iris Krell (Gatiss) who both have troubled private lives, indulge in a regular microcosm of the class struggle. Each taunts the other: Mrs Levinson with tales of her luxury lifestyle, Iris with lurid stories of her sex life in a constant game of one-upmanship (at last count, at the end of Series 2, their score was 3-3). The stories usually turn to personal insults about upsetting events in the others personal lives with increasingly catastrophic revelations.

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At the end of Series 2 the pair reveal that they are mother and daughter. This is taken a step further in the live show, where it is suggested not only that both are cleaners who take it in turns to pretend to be their unseen employer, but that they are father and son.

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In Series 3, Judee has started up a beauty salon with Charlie Hull called "Spit and Polish". The customers believe her to be giving the massages, when it is in fact Charlie. When people start demanding "extras", Charlie struggles with homosexuality, especially with his son-in-law, Tony. When he confesses, Judee fires him and Stella leaves him to jet off to sunnier climates. Iris, meanwhile, appears to have a brief cameo in Pop's strip club, where her body is seen dancing and Pop thanks a woman called Iris for her services.

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Charlie and Stella Hull

Charlie (Pemberton) and Stella (Shearsmith) are a husband and wife with a tempestuous relationship. They have grown to hate each other and quarrel endlessly, using unwilling third parties as mediators. These include their daughter's boyfriend, Tony, a waiter and a baby.

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Generally, as the argument reaches its peak, the third party will voice their displeasure at the situation and leave. At this point, Charlie and Stella usually return to polite conversation.

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In Series 3, Charlie struggles with homosexuality at the "Spit and Polish" before being kidnapped by Keith Drop (aka Papa Lazarou) and imprisoned inside an elephant.

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Charity Shop Workers

Vinnie Wythenshaw and Reenie Calver are two old ladies (Shearsmith and Pemberton) obsessed with the quality of the bags they give out. They are disorganised and skittish and have a particular dislike for the unseen Merill who works on Thursdays and for the "Spastic" charity shop. Reenie has a hearing disorder meaning that she misinterprets practically everything Vinnie or a customer says. They berate customers for being rude, even though their rudeness is often acceptable given the difficulty they have in processing even the simplest task.

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In Series 3, Vinnie is killed when she falls off her motorised wheelchair onto a large spike, in the process of chasing a red plastic bag that flew out of the Charity Shop window. This bag plays an important role in connecting all the storylines in Series 3 and having great significance in the motor accident at the end of each episode. Her replacement turns out to be Keith Drop, whom Reenie befriends after losing her best friend. However, Brian reveals his true identity to be Papa Lazarou. They follow him back to his house, but Reenie is then kidnapped and imprisoned inside a crocodile.

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Query- Who leaves 'Vinnies' clothes outside the Charity Shop after her accident in Series 3? A guess from the L.O.G leading fans is that its Papa Lazarou as he knows of the death.

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Henry Portrait and Ally Welles

Two scruffy teenagers played by Pemberton and Shearsmith, who consider themselves to be film experts, but will only watch a film if it has a sufficient number of "killings". Named after, respectively, "" and Orson Welles.

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Papa Lazarou

Main article Papa Lazarou

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Papa Lazarou (Shearsmith), blackfaced proprietor of a travelling circus and freakshow, The Pandemonium Carnival, with a frighteningly acquisitive nature. In the first episode of Series 2, Lazarou is introduced when he brings his circus to Royston Vasey. The episode also introduces his bizarre pastimes such as selling pegs and collecting wives. In one particularly memorable scene, he breaks into a woman's house, unrelentingly asking for "Dave" (which has since become his catchphrase). He frightens her into giving him her wedding ring, before declaring "you're my wife now". This scene in particular was cited as one of the most macabre and genuinely frightening scenes from the series.

Related Topics:
Papa Lazarou - Blackface - Circus - Freakshow - Peg

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Herr Lipp

Played by Pemberton, Wolf Lipp is a German who leads tour groups in Royston Vasey. A homosexual, he becomes obsessed with Justin, a boy with whom he is staying. He has not quite mastered the English language, so he often makes mistakes which come out as double entendres.

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In the Christmas Special it is revealed that in Germany he used to run a boys choir, and that his wife, Lotti (Gatiss), is a vampire. He does not appear in Series 3.

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In The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse, he rebels against his status as a one-joke character, feeling it better for him to die than to carry on this way and attempting to kill Mark Gatiss.

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Additional characters

• Ernest Foot (Pemberton), a widower, so-called because he tries to be politically correct and puts his foot in it. In Series 3, his brother Peter (Shearsmith) is seen to rehearse his funeral every weekend, to the point of which his family have had enough, and Ernest plans to marry Sheila (Gatiss), Peter's wife.
• Dr Carlton (Pemberton), who refuses to treat his patients and insists that they buy his time by playing party games at his house.
• Owen Fallowfield (Gatiss), a mortician who loves his job, but is fired when certain activities are seen to have gone astray.
• Glen and Barry Baggs (Gatiss and Pemberton), debt collectors who aren't very good at their job, particularly the obese Barry, who is very childish. Their boss is Mr Lisgoe (Shearsmith), who deals with them very violently.
• Legz Akimbo (Oliver Plimsoles, Dave Parkes, Phil Proctor), a particularly earnest travelling theatre troupe. Olly (Shearsmith) is still trying to cope with his discovery of his wife's lesbianism. Phil (Gatiss) is gay and both Dave (Pemberton) and Olly are jealous of his ability to get film and television roles, but both Phil and Dave hate Olly.
• Pop (Pemberton), the world's worst father and its seediest landlord, and his cringing sons Richie and Al. In Series 1 he disowns Richie after some Maverick bars were stolen from Richie's booth he was supposed to be watching, and in Series 2 he ruins AL's chances of a relationship with a nurse.
• Christopher Frost (Shearsmith), store detective.
• Ken Sweeney, blind photographer.
• Lance Longthorne (Gatiss), a joke Shop owner with a very perverse sense of humour. He only has one arm. In Series 3 he gets a bigger role with his own story about being controlled by his new arm. It was him that saved Pauline from Geoff and subsequently dies a hero.
• Little Don (played by Don Estelle), who runs a zoo on a town roundabout. He has a pig, a goat and a chimp. All three are stolen and killed by Edward.
• Kenny Harris (Gatiss), owner of the Dog Cinema.
• Dean Tavalouris (Shearsmith), a hopeless street magician.
• Alvin and Sunny Steele, who run Windemere Guest House. Sunny holds regular bondage parties, at which Alvin (Gatiss), a very plain man interested in gardening, is often left feeling awkward. In Series 3, Sunny is suffocated in a sex guru's sex machine and Alvin has an affair with Judith Buckle, who works at a garden centre.
• Mayor Larry Vaughn (Roy Chubby Brown, Series 2 only).
• Murray Mint (Gatiss), Vaughn's right hand man. He is fired when he hires Legz Akimbo to try and calm the homeless during the epidemic.
• Mick McNamara, the Stump Hole Caverns guide (Gatiss), who believes that he is responsible for the death of a small boy who once took part in his tour.
• Farmer Jed Tinsell (Pemberton), the frighteningly paranoid and jealous farmer. Several of his animals have been killed by Mr. Chinnery.
• Cathy Carter-Smith (Shearsmith), Pauline's rival restart officer.