Blackadder meeting between Richard Curtis and comedian Ben Elton led to the decision to collaborate on a new series of Blackadder. Recognising the main faults of the first series, Curtis and Elton agreed that "Blackadder II" would be a studio-only production (along with the inclusion of a live audience during recording, instead of showing the episodes to an audience after taping). Besides adding a greater comedy focus, Elton suggested a major change in character emphasis: Baldrick would become the stupid sidekick, while Edmund Blackadder evolved into a cunning sycophant. This led to the familiar set-up that was maintained in the following
Blackadder: The Cavalier Years Thus unrecognisable, when Cromwell enters the room he denounces Baldrick as "royalist scum". The episode ends with a hapless Baldrick, still holding the Prince in his arms, being approached by Cromwell, sword drawn. Fry based his interpretation of King Charles on the modern-day Charles, Prince of Wales. In series chronology, this episode takes place between the second and third series of the show, although it was produced after the third series had aired. The kitchen set is a redress of the servants' quarters from the third series. Blackadder: The Cavalier Years Blackadder: The Cavalier Years is a 15-minute one-off edition