The character of Mr. Bean was developed while Atkinson was studying for his master's degree at Oxford University. A sketch featuring the character was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in the early 1980s. A similar character called Robert Box, played by Atkinson, appeared in the one-off 1979 ITV sitcom
Canned Laughter, which also featured routines used in the 1997 film
Bean.
In 1987, one of Mr. Bean's earliest appearances occurred at the Just For Laughs comedy festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
