Guest House Paradiso

Ade Edmiston and Rik Mayall were there at the forefront of alternative comedy. They both starred as Vivian and Rick in the Young Ones, which along with Not the Nine o’clock news was to become one of the most influential series of the Eighties.

After Mayalls marvelous turn as Alan B’stard in the New Statesman the pair got together again in the Nineties when they created two new characters, Richie and Eddie, for the series Bottom.

Bottom ran for three series of slapstick fights, toilet humor and the occasional funny one liner. There was a certain appeal to the half hour antics of the two desperate flat mates and their live appearances helped sustain a cult following.

It was only a matter of time before Mayall and Edmiston tried the transition to the big screen. There is a saying that the optimum length of a British sitcom is 25 minutes. Guest House Paradiso goes some way to help prove this theory. If the film manages to hold your attention for longer than this then perhaps you will wonder how come Eddie and Ritchie are managing a hotel in what appears to be a remote cliff-top castle. A few seconds later you will probably find that you don’t care.

The plot, such as it is, is really an excuse for lots of "sick" jokes. Stick with it and you’ll see what I mean.

If I can save just one reader’s twenty quid then my time spent here has not been wasted.