The Genius That is Stephen Fry

I must say that I am a massive fan of Stephen Fry. I've adored his work and Fry himself for years now. I love words, love everything about them. No one person that I've ever seen on television before has had such a unique grasp on the English language as Stephen Fry. To listen to him speak or to read his writings is to immensely enjoy the English language. His manner of speaking and writing is a pleasure to behold.

I was first introduced to Mr. Fry and his work when I bought the UK comedy The Black Adder on VHS many, many years ago. Mr. Fry plays an incarnation of Lord Melchitt in Blackadder the Second, Blackadder the Fourth and Blackadder: Back and Forth. In Blackadder the Third, Mr. Fry makes a greatly memorable appearance as the Duke of Wellington in the final episode of the series. He also appears in several of the Blackadder specials as various characters.

Fans of Mr. Fry probably know him best as the other half of the comedy team Fry & Laurie with Hugh Laurie, of House fame being the second half. Fry & Laurie had their own hugely successful television series in Britain titled "A Bit of Fry & Laurie". Fry & Laurie also worked together in the aforementioned Blackadder series.

Stephen Fry also made a brief, yet hilarious appearance in Rowan Atkinson's British comedy "The Thin Blue Line" playing an over-the-top guide, Brigadier Blaster Sump. The character is truly barking mad and will say anything!

Anyone who has seen the works of Stephen Fry knows for certain that he is bold, daring, funny and absolutely genuine. I honestly believe that when you see Stephen in his documentaries that what you see is what you get: he is a kind, honest, caring and straightforward individual who harnesses his status as a celebrity to help bring attention to issues that need to have attention brought to them.

I firmly believe that no one could watch him in his BBC documentary "The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive" and not be impressed with the man you see on the screen. Mr. Fry shares some of the most deeply personal details of his life with viewers and, in the course of two episodes, helps viewers to better understand manic depression and those who suffer from it. I think every single person, whether you or someone you love deals with depression on a daily basis and especially if you know nothing about it at all should watch this documentary.

In 2009, another Fry documentary aired in the UK, Last Chance to See. In this brilliant work, Stephen Fry and Mark Carwardine traveled the globe in search of 6 animals on the brink of extinction. This documentary set out to education viewers about the perils many species face in the world today and I believe it succeeded brilliantly. For an in-depth review of this documentary I highly recommend visiting the Media Mindset Blog. The blogs author has written a detailed summary of the first part of this 6 part series and intends to review the other five as well.

Another Fry documentary, Stephen Fry in America, will be discussed later on this blog.

As much as I adore him, don't be surprised to see many things about Stephen on this blog as time goes by.