From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Private Plane" is the fourth episode of Blackadder Goes Forth, the fourth season of the BBC sitcom Blackadder.
[edit] Summary
German machine guns in front, British firing squads behind. The only way out is up-tiddly-up-up....
Though repulsed by the brash and egocentric Squadron Commander, Lord Flashheart (Rik Mayall reprising his role as "Flash" from the Elizabethan series), Blackadder joins the Royal Flying Corps (with the hope of getting very little work done). With Baldrick as his navigator however, he is soon shot down and captured by Baron von Richthofen (Adrian Edmondson), who is very much interested in learning the subtleties of British humour (such as the toilet being the basis of British culture as opposed to being a mundane and functional item for the Germans; note that Von Richthofen really did say this in early 1918). He informs them of their fate ("worse than death"), which entails teaching home economics to young German girls in a convent outside Heidelberg, something that bothers neither Blackadder or Baldrick. George, in the meantime, attempts to rescue Blackadder with the help of Darling and Melchett, but is informed that it would be pointless (bearing in mind that in the course of battle the British have recaptured an 'astonishing' 17 square feet of land!). He is more successful in recruiting Lord Flashheart, who swiftly rescues Blackadder and Baldrick (and shoots Baron von Richthofen before declaring him "a poof") before helping Blackadder enact revenge on Captain Darling for not rescuing him sooner.
[edit] Trivia
- According to the original script for this episode, Blackadder's response to Flashheart and Bob's "woofs" was to be, "It's like Battersea Dogs' Home in here." However, Atkinson found himself unable to say the line due to his stutter, and so "Crufts" was substituted for "Battersea Dogs' Home" in the final version.[citation needed]
- This was the first re-appearance of the Lord Flashheart character, since the second season premier Bells. While he did not reappear under that name, Rik Mayall used the same characterization in his portrayal of Robin Hood in Blackadder Back and Forth.
