I am quite sure he is....I saw him a few years ago, in Sense and Sensibility, with Emma Thompson, and Hugh Grant....he had a small role, but it was the first time I had actually ever seen him, and even in his small role, I found his presence on the screen to be quite memorable...
Then a few weeks ago, I saw a clip from an old comedy series, something to do with the military...this was on the BBC channel, and it was a British series...and there was a young Hugh Laurie...he was very funny....so he can both comedy and tragedy...I just think he is an amazing actor...
I've loved Hugh Laurie since the Jeeves and Wooster series on BBC, with Stephen Fry.
If anyone hasn't seen these yet, they are just hysterical, and worth looking for in video stores:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098833/
Are you thinking of Blackadder? That was a hilarious series. There were several seasons of it, each taking place in a different historical era, with the same actors each time.
We've know of Hugh Laurie for many years. He actually reminds us of my husband, SirKit's, best friend from high school, though Abe doesn't have a British accent. ;o)
He was a great character in Sense and Sensibility. He was so acerbic to his wife and mother-in-law because they were such twits, but when the need was truly great, he came through for the Margaret (Emma Thompson) and her sister (Kate Winslett). If you ever get the chance, try to see "Jeeves and Wooster". Hugh Laurie plays Bertie Wooster, a young British man living on his family's wealth in the late 20's or early 30's in London. His indomitable, elderly Aunt believes he needs looking after, so she engages a 'valet' for him, played by Stephen Fry. Bertie is truly stupid, and Jeeves is always having to get his behind out of a sling. Netflix has the shows on DVD.
This thread is so long so my apologies if someone already answered your question...I believe the answer is: Blackadder Goes Fourth
Personally, my all-time favorite series for Hugh Laurie was Blackadder The 3rd where Hugh plays the utterly dim-witted Prince Regent. I think this is his funniest work ever.
Hugh Laurie is great; both in Black Adder and in Jeeves and Wooster, based on the P.G. Wodehouse stories. Stephen Fry is also another talented comic who also appears in both the Black Adder series and he played the butler Jeeves in Jeeves and Wooster.