Page 109 - The Language of Humour

96 SPOKEN HUMOUR—TELEVISION AND RADIO
He mentions small details, which are innappropriate to the gravity of the
situation that he is describing:

young woman—with specs
I hung him—or is it hanged? I never know which.
She can serve drinks, but not peanuts at the same time.

These features tend to parody upper-class speech for humorous effect,
but there is also a cutting edge of satire, exposing the corruptness of the
judge’s power.
A further type of humour comes from parody of existing formats. In
1997 there were a number of parodies of the chat show format and their
hosts: Alan Partridge, Mrs Merton. Occasionally the spoof is so close to
the original that the participants are not aware that they are being used
for humour, as in the apparent investigative/documentary programme
Brass Eye. There are game shows that have lighthearted topics and use
celebrity guests, but a recent development is the parody of the game
show format itself: Shooting Stars hosted by Vic Reeves and Bob
Mortimer.

Extension
Collect an example of humour from television or radio, and transcribe
enough to provide data for your own analysis.