Script for fourth episode of 1955 show catalogued along with those for and by the likes of Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers
When Tony Hancock failed to turn up for three episodes of his radio show in 1955, producers simply replaced him with Harry Secombe as if nothing had happened. The fourth episode followed Hancock and Sid James as they travelled to Swansea to thank him – where they found him singing down a coalmine.
The recorded episode was wiped and continues to be lost, but the script – along with a host of others – has now emerged. They have been catalogued by the actor turned rare books dealer, Neil Pearson.
It is a true treasure trove, featuring scripts by and for comedy stars such as Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Frankie Howerd and Kenneth Williams. "It is a rather extraordinary and rather moving collection of material that reminds us of how we used to...
When Tony Hancock failed to turn up for three episodes of his radio show in 1955, producers simply replaced him with Harry Secombe as if nothing had happened. The fourth episode followed Hancock and Sid James as they travelled to Swansea to thank him – where they found him singing down a coalmine.
The recorded episode was wiped and continues to be lost, but the script – along with a host of others – has now emerged. They have been catalogued by the actor turned rare books dealer, Neil Pearson.
It is a true treasure trove, featuring scripts by and for comedy stars such as Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Frankie Howerd and Kenneth Williams. "It is a rather extraordinary and rather moving collection of material that reminds us of how we used to...
- 12/3/2012
- by Mark Brown
- The Guardian - Film News
A resurgence in the popularity of the ukulele could rekindle our bizarre affection for the oddball singer-comedian
Britain has apparently gone mad for ukuleles. An extraordinary resurgence in the popularity of the instrument must surely revive memories of that extraordinary figure in British pop history, George Formby. (To be exact, Formby played the banjo-ukulele.) It's easy to assume that Formby was a marginal comedy figure comparable to, say, Peter Glaze on the BBC children's TV show Crackerjack. Actually, Formby was massive, the highest-earning comedian in British cinema from the mid-30s to the mid-40s, and just before the war, the biggest British star in any genre. How did he do it?
He just looked so weird. Something in the posture required to play the ukulele – shoulders hunched, elbows akimbo – probably encouraged a perky grinning manner: it's probably impossible to play the ukukele in any other way. Maybe if Jimi Hendrix had played the ukulele,...
Britain has apparently gone mad for ukuleles. An extraordinary resurgence in the popularity of the instrument must surely revive memories of that extraordinary figure in British pop history, George Formby. (To be exact, Formby played the banjo-ukulele.) It's easy to assume that Formby was a marginal comedy figure comparable to, say, Peter Glaze on the BBC children's TV show Crackerjack. Actually, Formby was massive, the highest-earning comedian in British cinema from the mid-30s to the mid-40s, and just before the war, the biggest British star in any genre. How did he do it?
He just looked so weird. Something in the posture required to play the ukulele – shoulders hunched, elbows akimbo – probably encouraged a perky grinning manner: it's probably impossible to play the ukukele in any other way. Maybe if Jimi Hendrix had played the ukulele,...
- 6/2/2011
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
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