Top 10 British Rom-Coms

Top 10 British Rom-Coms

The UK is well known for its romantic comedies, and with very good reason. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’ll be counting down the Top 10 British Rom Coms.

For this list, we’ll be taking a look at Britain’s best romantic comedies. To be eligible, they have to have a predominantly British cast and crew, concern British topics with a sense of humour, or be a British-funded production.

#10: “About Time” (2013)

First on the list, and we’re already on a film by Britain’s rom-com specialist Richard Curtis. Domhnall Gleeson plays a young man who discovers he has the ability to time travel and uses it to pursue a relationship with romance film favourite, Rachel McAdams. The sci-fi twist gives the typical rom-com routine a little extra flavour, but also allows for some particularly emotional moments, and trademark scenes from the genre-defining director.

#9: “Man Up” (2015)

We’ve all ended up on dates gone wrong, but this one is both the best date ever and the worst. Lake Bell plays a hopeless romantic who is accidentally mistaken for a blind date by Simon Pegg, leading to a long night of misunderstandings and beguiling across London. Bell and Pegg make for an adorably mismatched couple. Along with some solid gags and supporting performances from Rory Kinnear and Ken Stott, this movie is a modern rom-com treat.

#8: “Bend It Like Beckham” (2002)

Though not an out and out rom-com, Gurinder Chadha’s breakout film about a young Sikh woman who becomes a footballer is as beloved in the UK as any of its peers. Highlighting gender and race issues within both the sport and the country, as well as taking good advantage of the Man United player’s fame at the time with a sweet cameo, “Bend It Like Beckham” was also a milestone film for stars Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley, who find themselves in a love triangle with their coach, played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

#7: “Shakespeare in Love” (1998)

Yes, this film is far from historically accurate on many counts, but as a story on its own “Shakespeare in Love” is a charming romance, exploring the life of the Bard for entertainment rather than education. The film makes clever use of Shakespearean tropes and iconography, helped by the screenplay being co-authored by Tom Stoppard, famed for “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead”, and fantastic performances by the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow and Judi Dench. All of which helped to justify the film’s controversial Best Picture Win at the 71st Academy Awards.

#6: “About a Boy” (2002)

Nick Hornby’s books often rival Richard Curtis for perennial Brit flick favourites, and this 2002 film is yet another standout for the genre. Attending a single parents’ support group without having a child in an effort to pick up women, the ever-lovable Hugh Grant ends up a precarious father-figure for Marcus, the breakout performance of a young Nicholas Hoult. Supported by strong turns from Toni Collette and Rachel Weisz, “About a Boy” is a charming tale about extended families and arrested development, sure to delight audiences for years to come.

#5: Mamma Mia! (2008)

What could make a rom-com even better? ABBA! Based on the hit jukebox musical, “Mamma Mia!” has a star-studded cast that gets everyone from Meryl Streep to Pierce Brosnan crooning a tune; whether they actually can or not is another question. Regardless of your taste for ABBA songs, the film’s tremendous box office success proves its extreme popularity, and a sequel planned for 2018 may only extend its influence on modern pop culture.

#4: Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)

The film that crowned both Hugh Grant and writer Richard Curtis as icons of the genre, “Four Weddings and a Funeral” practically wrote the book on the modern British romantic comedy. Telling the complicated love story between Grant and Andie MacDowell over the course of its titular grand occasions, this 1994 smash hit broke all critical and box office expectations, going on to receive Oscar nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture. Not bad for a dinky British film.

#3: Notting Hill (1999)

With “Four Weddings” already under their belt, Grant and Curtis reunited for this ‘99 comedy with the help of America’s sweetheart Julia Roberts. Telling the mismatched love story between the owner of a bookstore in London and a celebrated Hollywood actress, “Notting Hill” drew on all of its audience’s favourite rom-com tropes, with recognisable characters and loved-up, climactic scenes. And it’s still considered a classic. Especially for giving us that now legendary line.

#2: Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)

Based on the book by Helen Fielding, which itself is loosely inspired by “Pride & Prejudice”, “Bridget Jones’s Diary” has become the bible of many a hopeless romantic. Renee Zellweger taps into the life of a 30-something British girl, who finds herself going from being perpetually single to caught in a love triangle with Hugh Grant and Colin Firth. It’s an awkward situation, but not unenviable either. Spawning two sequels and an upcoming musical, it seems the world’s love for Bridget Jones may never come to an end.

#1: Love Actually (2003)

In what is essentially the “Avengers” of its genre, Richard Curtis assembles a gargantuan cast of British talent to create what the promo poster itself declares as “the ultimate romantic comedy”. Telling ten stories of love over Christmas, “Love Actually” reignited the world’s affection for British rom coms, inspiring countless immitations and launching the careers of many of its then-unknown cast members. The film’s festive setting has made it a seasonal favourite ever since, and the 2017 Red Nose Day follow-up only proves how everlasting this movie’s spirit is.