20 Best British TV Comedy Characters Of All Time

Mr Bean is one the greatest character creations of all time and has become an ample part of British pop culture. In fact, he is a global phenomenon and immensely popular, with a TV series, two movies, books, an animated show and even his own website full of merchandise, not to mention being subjected to many internet memes.

So what’s made the oddball so brilliant over the decades?

The decision for Mr Bean to speak very little dialogue is a smart one as he is a much more accessible characters to several different audience ranges – no profanity, just good laugh-out-loud fun which both young and old can enjoy. This also enhances his worldwide phenomena as those who don’t understand much English can still be entertained by the slapstick humour. It would take a very experienced actor to perform the character without words but Rowan Atkinson, who was already greatly renowned for his work on the sitcom Blackadder, knew exactly how to bring Mr Bean to life thanks to his comical facial expressions and over-the-top physicality, which made up for the lack of speech.

What’s left is just to watch Mr Bean go through life. Mr Bean is a low intelligence buffoon, described as “a child in a grown man’s body” which is evident from the ridiculous solutions he has to simple everyday tasks. Whether it’s stuffing a turkey, trying to get past an elderly woman on a staircase or playing crazy golf, Mr Bean will always leave us in fits of laughter.