A funny thing happened to humour

Humour changes. What made our parents laugh might leave us scratching our heads, while a joke that has us crying with laughter might have our grandchildren staring at us as though we have just arrived from another planet.

Every generation develops its own comedic language. The references change, the taboos shift and the things we find acceptable to joke about evolve with society.

That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it is one of the reasons comedy remains such a fascinating reflection of the world around us.

But there is a tendency to turn this into a lament: “You can’t say anything anymore”.

And that’s not strictly the case. It’s more a matter of thinking before going for the cheap shot at somebody else’s expense.

What has changed is that comedians, like the rest of us, have to understand their audience. Some jokes that were considered harmless decades ago now seem cruel or simply dated. Others have survived perfectly well because, underneath the cultural references, they are based on something universally recognisable: embarrassment, vanity, marriage, ageing, family, money, work, getting caught doing something stupid.

A person slipping on a banana peel has been funny for generations. So has someone confidently walking into the wrong room. We laugh because we recognise ourselves in the ridiculousness of being human.

Good comedians understand this. They don’t need to complain that the world has become too sensitive. They listen and adapt; they find new ways to explore uncomfortable subjects without simply making the most vulnerable person in the room the punchline.

That doesn’t mean comedy should become polite, bland or terrified of offending anyone. Sometimes the best jokes are provocative. Sometimes they make us squirm before we laugh. Comedy has always tested boundaries.

But there is a difference between punching up and simply punching down.

You can make fun of politicians, celebrities, corporations, bureaucracies, social conventions and even yourself without needing to make somebody else’s disadvantage the joke.

And some of the most satisfying comedy does something even better: it makes us feel good.

There is tremendous humour in the absurdity of everyday life. The older we get, the more material we acquire. Forgetfulness. Technology. Grandchildren. Retirement. Our attempts to remain fashionable. The strange things our bodies begin doing without consulting us.

Perhaps that’s the secret to comedy across generations. The references may change, but human beings remain gloriously ridiculous.

We are still capable of saying the wrong thing, falling over, misunderstanding the obvious and pretending everything is under control when it very clearly isn’t.

And, hopefully, that will never stop being funny.

If you like this kind of thing, feel free to buy me a coffee.