Camp-archy in the U.K.

It's no surprise that hit sketch show Little Britain has a gay following, The bigger surprise is that its straight following is so huge, at least in the United Kingdom. The show, which is the brainchild of talented comics Matt Lucas, who is gay, and David Walliams, who is not, is also picking up steam here. The third season of Little Britain recently aired on BBC America, and the second season was just released on DVD.

Lucas and Walliams, speaking backstage at their touring U.K. stage show, are stunned at how many straight men lap up the antics of Dafydd, 'the only gay in the village"; Sebastian, the amorous assistant to the prime minister; and Emily Howard, an unconvincing transvestite who insists she's "a lady."

While Dafydd's homosexuality seems to be theoretical at this point, Lucas promises, "We are currently working on our Christmas special, and we're thinking of having him wake up next to a man."

Walliams thinks the show has been so widely embraced by the mainstream population in the United Kingdom because it follows a long-standing tradition of camp in British comedy, dating back at least to the Mr. Humphries character in the sitcom Are You Being Served? which debuted in 1972. "When we were growing up, it was just hinted that Mr. Humphries was gay. The joke was in guessing if he was or wasn't. If you are a kid today watching Little Britain, Dafydd is definitely identified as a gay man."

Little Britain may never catch on in the United States to the extent that it has in the U.K.--where one fifth of the population tunes in each week--but it has a healthy underground following.

But don't count on seeing Little Britain on a major network with characters like obese naked socialite Bubbles De Vere or adult breast-feeder Harvey Pincher. "We try to stay on the right side of funny," says Walliams, "but we look for that watercooler moment when people say, 'I can't believe they did that.' "--Mike Goodridge