UK and Irish Television Comedy Representations of Region, Nation, and Identity

“This is a refreshing and vital book in its wide range of reference and most of all in its recognition that sitcoms remain important, as a way of ‘working through’ identity through their situations and places, and above all, for British and Irish viewers, as a way of understanding ourselves and the culture in which we live.” (Phil Wickham, Critical Studies in Television, Vol. 20 (2), June, 2025)

“The collection will be an essential read for students of the individual comedies examined and for comedy and media scholars with broader interests in negotiations of national identity and shifting patterns in the production and consumption of popular culture.” (Sarah Ilott, Comedy Studies, February 12, 2024)

Dr Mary Irwin is a cultural historian and TV studies specialist, and an honorary research fellow at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, UK. She has published extensively on contemporary and historical television, television genres, and gender.  Her monograph on television romantic comedy  Love Wars: Television Romantic Comedy  is forthcoming.   

Dr Jill Marshall is a lecturer at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, UK, and specialises in textual and popular cultural studies. She has a PhD in the subject of women in comedy and organised the 2017 ‘Value of Comedy’ symposium at which this collection was conceived.