The Nature of Comedy: A Masterclass in Gloriously Unnatural Acts

Let’s take a wild, eye-bulging leap into the wonderfully warped mind of Marty Feldman, the British comic genius whose very face seemed to laugh before he even opened his mouth. A recently resurfaced 1969 BBC documentary, titled No, But Seriously…, shows Feldman dissecting exactly why he does comedy—and let me tell you, it’s more profound than you might expect.

The Setup: Who Was Marty Feldman, Anyway?

Marty Feldman (1934–1982) is widely remembered for his striking, misaligned eyes, a consequence of thyroid issues, and for his career as a comedian, writer, and actor. He first made his mark writing for radio, most notably on Round the Hornewith Barry Took.

He later starred in influential TV sketch shows such as At Last the 1948 Show, where he co-created the now-legendary “Four Yorkshiremen” sketch that would later be revived by members of Monty Python.

Hollywood eventually welcomed him, and Feldman became iconic as Igor—pronounced “Eye-gor”—in Mel Brooks’s Young Frankenstein.

Comedy as Neurosis: Feldman’s Philosophy in the 1969 Doc

In the BBC documentary No, But Seriously…, Feldman gets deeply introspective about his craft. He explains that comedy began for him as a need for approval, but over time became tangled with pressure:

“With the pressure of having to be funny all the time, I find that I enjoy it less and less.”

He goes on to describe comedy as “a kind of neurosis which I exploit,” elaborating:

“You plagiarise your inadequacies, your hangups, and you make comic capital out of them. After all, it's not normal to parade yourself in front of other people and invite them to laugh at you.”

For Feldman, the very things that made him feel out of place became the engine of his humor.

Social Freaks, Laughing Freaks

One of the most striking observations he makes in the documentary is his claim that virtually all comedians feel like “social freaks” in some way—whether due to their upbringing, appearance, or personality. This wasn’t self-pity; it was a diagnosis of what drives people to comedy.

Feldman didn’t just accept his oddness—he weaponized it. He turned what the world saw as strange into something joyful, universal, and cathartic. He transformed discomfort into laughter, and in doing so, made millions feel a little less strange themselves.

The Unnatural Act: Comedy According to Feldman

If you want a single line that summarizes Feldman’s comedic worldview, it’s one of his most famous quotes:

“Comedy, like sodomy, is an unnatural act.”

Shocking? Yes. But Feldman wasn’t merely reaching for provocation. He believed that comedy is something deliberately constructed. It breaks patterns, violates expectations, and plays with the taboo.

Calling comedy “unnatural” was his way of celebrating its rebellion—its refusal to follow the polite rules of human interaction.

Beyond the Laughs: The Heart in the Absurd

Feldman wasn’t simply concerned with laughs. He saw comedy as a reflection of the absurdity of life. While promoting his film The Last Remake of Beau Geste, he remarked that there is always a serious element at the heart of humor, and that the great silent comedians like Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin understood this intuitively.

He believed deeply that within absurdity lies dignity—and that comedy’s power comes from telling the truth about the ridiculousness of being human.

Legacy: Why Feldman Still Matters

So why revisit a black-and-white BBC documentary from more than 50 years ago? Because Feldman’s ideas about comedy feel remarkably contemporary.

His willingness to expose his insecurities, turn his perceived flaws into art, and build humor on vulnerability set a template modern comedians still follow. He showed that comedy isn’t necessarily rooted in confidence—it often comes from the exact opposite.

For Feldman, comedy wasn’t just a performance. It was a lens, a way to turn chaos into connection.

A Final Feldman Zinger

Before we wrap up, here's one more classic piece of Feldman wit:

“The pen is mightier than the sword, and considerably easier to write with.”

Dry. Precise. And undeniably him.