Summary
"The Black Adder" is a BBC sitcom set in 1485 at the end of the Middle Ages. It begins with the cowardly Edmund Plantagenat (Rowan Atkinson) arriving late for the battle of Bosworth Field and accidently beheading his uncle, King Richard III. This leads to Edmund's father, Richard IV (Brian Blessed), becoming the king. In a bid to toughen up his image, the now Prince Edmund adopts a new title, the Black Adder. He is aided by his sidekicks Lord Percy Percy (Tim McInnerny) and Baldrick (Tony Robinson). Written by Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson, "The Black Adder" is the first series of "Blackadder", the collective name given to the four series of the period sitcom (the others being "Blackadder II", "Black Adder the Third" and "Blackadder Goes Forth") and various one-off editions, including "Blackadder Back and Forth". It premiered on BBC One in 1983.
