Fuse (Seasons 1–47)

Fitil (1962), or "Fuse," is the legendary Soviet satirical newsreel you can watch online — a running chronicle of popular humour that spanned generations. It first played before features in cinemas, then moved to television. Every issue stitched together a handful of short segments: staged sketches, redubbed documentary clips and animated bits.

The targets were chosen well — bureaucrats, slackers, cheats, shoddy workmen, rudeness behind the shop counter, all the everyday faults the official press preferred to ignore. The talent involved reads like a who's who of Soviet film. Directors ranged from Leonid Gaidai and Georgiy Daneliya to Nikita Mikhalkov and Elem Klimov, while the casts brought in Yevgeny Leonov, Mikhail Pugovkin, Georgy Millyar, Rolan Bykov and Olga Aroseva. The series ran for roughly five hundred issues.

People nicknamed it "anecdotes from the Soviet government" — satire that was permitted yet still sharp and instantly recognisable. It will appeal to anyone who wants to revisit the era's short topical skits and catch beloved actors in unexpected small roles. Stream Fitil online on iFILM.