Product Details

• Actors: Rowan Atkinson, Angus Deayton
• Directors: Thomas Schlamme
• Writers: Rowan Atkinson, Ben Elton, Richard Curtis
• Producers: Jason Harper
• Format: Color, Original recording reissued, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Universal Studios
• VHS Release Date: April 17, 2001
• Run Time: 55 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00000K32C
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #208,516 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Contains All the Skits US & UK!, August 14, 2007

By 

Michelle R. Parker (Houston, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rowan Atkinson Live! (DVD)

Some may be wondering, I know I was. This edition contains the US version, which ends with the drum skit which is not in the UK version, But the DVD also contains as Bonus Features the skits that were in the UK version but not on the US. So it's the best of both worlds!

I'd seen the US version long ago on television, then managed to aquire a copy of the UK version, not knowing they were different, and I've thought I've been dreaming the drum skit all this time. It's nice to finally have everyting in a nice DVD presentation. This is one of my favorite comedy DVDs.

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-have for students of stage comedy, February 10, 2001

By 

tropic_of_criticism - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rowan Atkinson Live [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Though a concert video, this is much more than a stand-up routine.

It's a series of discrete sketches much more akin to Gilda Radner's 1980 GILDA concert than, say, an evening with Bill Cosby or Chris Rock. Unlike GILDA, however, which largely recycled familiar characters from another medium, the material here is entirely original. Indeed, it's so unexpectedly novel that you'll be glad you bought this video, whether you're a rabid Atkinson fan or you've never heard of him.

Perhaps more than any other single work of his, this concert video showcases all of Rowan Atkinson's nuanced talents. From the sublime "Welcome to Hell" sketch in which Atkinson has the duty of being a sort of genteel maitre d'-cum-camp-counselor for recently-arrived souls, to the encore sketch in which he wordlessly and near-proplessly makes you believe he's playing an elaborate drum set plagued by a rambunctious cat, Atkinson's range is put fully on display here.

A concern for non-Britons is whether they'll really understand the humor. On this score, Atkinson triumphs again, because he's deliberately chosen universal events to build his sketches around. Of the bits on offer, only two might wade in unfamiliar waters. One centers around the nature of being a headmaster at a British public (private) school, and the other deals with the difficulty of staying awake during a church service and may not be fully funny to non-Christians.

These possible difficulties aside, Atkinson is far easier to add to your video collection than most comedians, because he deliberately avoids topical humor. Instead, he crafts timeless sketches that will be just as funny 50 years from now as they are today.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Needs to be released on DVD!, September 4, 2004

By 

D. Singh - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rowan Atkinson Live [VHS] (VHS Tape)

My family owned the VHS version of 'Rowan Atkinson Live' several years ago, and it is singularly the best comic act I have ever seen.

This is genuinely one of those tapes you can watch over and over and over, and never ever get sick of. I remember how I'd almost memorized a few of the sketches having watched them so many times! (Yeah, it sounds lame, but if you watch this work of art, you'll see just what I'm talking about.)

My personal favorite acts are 'Pink Tights and Plenty of Props', 'A Warm Welcome', the Indian restaurant one (I forget the name) and the priest/bestman/father-in-law one (again, I can't remember the name). But really, not one of these acts won't make you fall off your seat laughing; they're all absolute and pure genius. If you still have a VHS tape player in these days of high-end digital media, make it a point to buy this right now.

Incidentally, the reason I don't remember the names of so many acts is that I haven't seen this tape in years! Literally about five or six years, since it got lost and VHS became relatively obsolete.

People of Amazon, please please PLEASE bring this title out on DVD, for the sake of the general community at large. The reviews for this product are phenomenal, as they should be, and I have no doubt that the DVDs will sell like hotcakes. I for one am in love with Atkinson's genius acts that I haven't seen in years, and will lap it up straightaway.

Buy this product.