I live in the US, but I've watched several British TV shows. Mostly my experience has been with what PBS would buy from the BBC (Doctor Who, Fawlty Towers, Monty Python), but lately I've been exposed to BBC America, etc.

I've noticed a lot of "idea sharing" nowadays. This has given me some insights into how different British shows are, and why most adaptations fall short.

British TV tends to be more subtle at times when it comes to dramas and reality shows. This fall, Gordon Ramsey will be doing an FOX version of Kitchen Nightmares. Now I've watched the BBC American reruns, and I'm already dreading this. From what I've seen, they're focused on his "mean-ness", the same persona he shows as the FOX "Hell's Kitchen". It will be interesting to see the differences in style--the BBC show gave me a better appreciation of Ramsey, he's not just an explosive ass, he really cares about the business and making people successful.

While I've not watched either version, from what I've read, the "Queer as Folk" UK and US versions are almost completely different. The UK version deals with very three-dimensional characters, while QAF US is basically a campy American soap featuring gay characters with sex scenes. I have a feeling America likes to punch up the drama--they deal with bright colors where the Island Kingdoms deal with much more nuanced earth tones.

And it's sort of the opposite with the comedy. Comedy in the UK tends to be loud and "anti-pc", and a bit dark. You have the outrageous nature of Python, the dripping sacrasm of Black Adder, and the class warfare and snobish buffonery of "Keeping Up Apperances".

Sometimes, you can get the germ of an idea translated--The Office US is different in details but similar in tone to the UK version. I don't know how different "Steptoe and Son" was but "All in the Family" was a big hit. Then you have stuff that makes you wonder why. Cosby apparently liked "One Foot in the Grave" so much, it was adapted as "Cosby". Yet despite the similar first episodes and the desire to make Cosby's character a "displayed old person", it was just--Americans really have to see the original to see how complete different it was and what you're missing.

Another thing I like about British TV is that they know not to "push things". America wants to keep shows even after the magic or spark has faded. With British TV--6 or 13 episodes a season. They emphasize quality over quantity.

What do you guys overseas like about American TV?

American TV is innovative. It's also full of crap.

British TV is more conservative, but more consistently high quality. There are no British King of Queens because the British know better; but there are also no British Heroes, because the British don't bet their money on uncertain ideas and formats as often.

However, British TV wins by default due to Oprah.

The main gripe I have with American TV is that America basically never imports shows; it buys them, and remakes them with American actors in American locations eg. Queer As Folk. It's one of the ways that the standard middle-American is insulated from the rest of the world.

I also disagree with the policy American networks use for -selling- their shows overseas. A single episode of some awesome show (take Heroes, which I've never seen) might cost five million dollars to make (example!). An American network essentially makes that back in showing the episode, and after maybe one sale to a Western European network or the UK. After that, American shows are sold to countries at a sliding scale, dependent on the GDP of the country - so while the UK might pay $500,000 (still so cheap it doesn't make economic sense to film your own shows) for one episode of The Simpsons, India will pay $100,000 and Ethiopia will pay $5 for that same multimillion dollar episode.

Well, we do technically import, but it's PBS and digital cable. As far as I know, no "pure" imports have ever been on network TV, just adaptations. Thankfully, "the long tail" is helping to break that cycle.

(I also honestly think the rise of Anime in the US is helping people appreciate not getting water-down versions of content).

What US shows are big hits right now in the UK?

Why do you dislike price discrimination?

I haven't watched TV in years; the only thing that's broken me out of that pattern is Heroes. Obviously I alone don't count towards it being a big hit so much, but I still think it's relevant. I haven't even heard of any other shows than sitcoms like Friends and Sabrina the Teenage Witch (I think they're both American, the actors all sounded it) in years. On the other hand, I have been tracing down some hilarious British comedies like the Vicar of Dibley, Yes Minister, and Father Ted recently. Good stuff.

Most of what I watch is pretty much just anime though. Starting on Madlax and El Cazador De La Bruja now.

And btw, Okin, I'm not seeing your complaint there. Other than the price discrimination, why do you care if the TV companies sell themselves short to other countries? Does it affect you or anyone you would normally care about in any way? I don't get it.

EDIT: And the fact people completely alter/recast shows to be more American-centric is incredibly annoying to me for some reason. I guess it's just from having watched a few viciously censored anime dubs. I'd hate to see what you people would do to the British shows I just mentioned up there.

Eh, I saw an episode of Father Ted and saw it similar to the way Verithrax sees King of Queens.

Friends was the number one show here for several years in the 90s. Sabrina was real popular with Teens.

Vicar of Dilbey is on PBS in Boston on Saturday nights. Has an off-on again schedule. (For some reason, Are You Being Served is ALWAYS on Saturday even though it's over twenty-freaking-years old). I wish One Foot in The Grave was on, but it's now being released on DVD in America.

I can in some cases see re-developing the concept because of the wide variety of culture if the concept is sound. I doubt US audiences would appreciate the UK version of the Office because our corporate cultures are a bit different. But in that case I think Ricky Gervais was working closely with the US version and Steve Carell is a breakout comedic actor.

The shows you mentioned Shiri would probably not work at all "americanized".

Do you guys "dub" (or otherwise alter) Vicar of Dibley, or watch it as it was shown here?

No, PBS shows them as is, without commercials or edits. We don't change content like it's done for Harry Potter books. I think PBS even allows swearing. Black Adder showed the fake breasts from an episode which would be verboden on network shows.

But then again, PBS is doing direct imports, not trying to take a concept and develop it into an American hit.

I'd like to see a major US network just grab a UK show. BBC America showed Robin Hood and I think that would work well on a US network as a summer replacement.

On the other hand, I don't get what was so great about Hex...they call it the "British Buffy" but it's kinda blah.

ETA: I also wish my local PBS station would show Black Adder again, simply because I love Hugh Laurie in House and I want to see him do the funny stuff I barely remember from this show.

Phred, it's more a question of what US shows -aren't- big here, at the moment. Taking this evening, for example, let's look at the line-up for Channel Ten, the most popular free-to-air channel where I live. This is a random Wednesday night, mind you.

6:00 - The Simpsons (repeat)
6:30 - Neighbours (Australian programming)
7:00 - Big Brother
8:00 - The Simpsons (repeat)
8:30 - House
9:30 - Medium
10:30 - Late News

3/4.5 hours is US programming, and the Big Brother concept is foreign. All of our most popular shows are all of your most popular shows.

Vaerhon, I dislike it because US companies are selling their products to foriegn markets at far below production cost - 'dumping' - which makes our markets uncompetitive. Why should an Australian network spend five million dollars producing our own quality programs when we can pay $250,000 for a US one? If other Western countries feel that their culture is threatened, how much chance do less-developed countries have of maintaining national film, TV and music industries?

EDIT: To qualify, it's more an ideological gripe with the aggressive economic practices of American companies on weaken markets in general than a personal gripe with this particular practice.

The US can't help if it has the entertainment capital of the world. What would you propose? That Hollywood stops caring about making money and just starts producing entertainment for the hell of it? Get real.

Keep in mind that ten does not have news, it has alarmist programming designed to appeal to sydney female yuppies. Also dresses. Sound sexist, but it's true.

I love British comedy. Red Dwarf FTW!

The only solution is for the people of Earth to quit being so stupid and easily entertained, and for producers worldwide to start making more appealing shows with better creative content and higher production values.

Unfortunately, people will continue to love mass-produced crap, and America excels at that.

British tv bores the hell out of me.

TV: yet another reason the US is better

I like watching both versions. Did anyone see the 'America/Britain's Got Talent' shows? =D Also that Gordan Ramsey guy is scary.

We have more in the way of that "subtlety" thing.

Sometimes.

Anyways, you asked about dubbed shows. General rules of thumb are:

1) Nothing British is dubbed. It might be wrong, but it's still intelligible.
2) British TV shows are typically completely remade. The only feature that stays is the general premise. The notable exception is public-sponsored, advertising-free television stations. (This is the PBS that Tully was talking about.)
3) British movies are normally taken as-is and suffer no bias or benefit for being British.

Coincidence, thar. I was just reading Bill Bryson's "Notes from a Big Country", specifically the chapter wherein he laments the American propensity for selecting things that are familiar over things that are exciting or innovative, citing an example of a restaurant in his own town being forced to close down because of a nearby McDonald's opening, and a subsequent conversation with his neighbour ("Well, at least you know what you're getting with McDonalds"). That's pretty much how I view American television. There isn't much of it that I watch, to be honest. (Excepting the obvious: Family Guy and the Simpsons.)

Plus, the advert breaks are atrociously long.

I dunno.. as an American, the new Doctor Who is one of my absolute favorite shows. One thing is though, that BBC seems to give a lot more leeway for what shows they consider a success, which means good shows without gigantic audiences seem to last longer.

Torchwood, for example, a spin-off from Doctor Who, would probably not have gotten a second season in America, where as even great shows like Firefly and Rome and such get dropped on this side of the pond, even with ratings that put the highest rated BBC shows to shame. Torchwood is considered to have been hugely successful with a PREMIERE of 2.5 million viewer. Studio 60 which has been canceled here in the states, is considered a failure with a weekly live viewership of 4 and a half million even after they shifted its timeslot. Was over 6 million before that.

So yeah, there are definitely things I prefer in British television over ours.