Nigel Planer makes a change of comic pace count, most memorably as Neil in The Young Ones. We rate his ability to be funny among noisier performers without making his unhappy characters more agreeable.
Fi1m perspective
Neil’s lugubrious presence in The Young Ones (1982) is a welcome interruption to the shouting. Nigel Planer makes this miserable student funny without asking us to find him appealing. Alongside Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson, he establishes a different comic pace without seeming to belong to another programme. We felt relieved when Neil changed the pace; the others were funny, but their insistence could wear us out. He is one reason we recommend a programme that has no interest in being agreeable company.
His deadpan manner and habit of playing downtrodden characters can sound like a narrow speciality until we consider how useful they are in an ensemble. Planer gives The Young Ones another speed, which matters when the programme is so determined to be unreasonable. His reputation remains closely tied to Neil, but we would not treat one part as a complete account of what he does. The performance holds its place amid considerable competition, and does so without making the company any more attractive. Some jokes are pushed too hard, and his presence cannot make every excess worthwhile.
His work with Peter Richardson in the double act The Outer Limits and as a co-founder of The Comic Strip helps explain that comfort among other comedians. The Comic Strip Presents... (1982) also gave him work as a writer. Brazil (1985) placed him in Terry Gilliam’s satire as Charlie from the Department of Works, while Filthy, Rich & Catflap (1987) brought another leading comedy role, Ralph Filthy. The continuing ensemble work is worth noticing: we value an actor who can make his presence count without demanding that everything stop for him.
Musical theatre was already part of his work before Neil: he was in the original ensemble of Evita (1978). His later stage work includes We Will Rock You and Wicked, a substantial part of a working life that a television catch-all would miss. The satirical actor Nicholas Craig, whom he created and performs, deserves attention too. Start with The Young Ones, but allow a little quiet between episodes.
Biography
Nigel Planer is a British actor, comedian, musician, novelist and playwright. He played Neil in the BBC sitcom The Young Ones (1982–1984).
He was educated at Westminster School and studied at the University of Sussex before training at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Planer began performing in alternative comedy at the Comedy Store in a double act with Peter Richardson.
He has appeared in many West End musicals, including original casts of Evita, Chicago, We Will Rock You, Wicked and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as well as in Hairspray. Other television work includes roles in Filthy Rich & Catflap and Blackadder.
