M&W Recovery

[Mark]

As revealed on "The One Show" tonight with Phillip Morris, S1E7 from 14/10/68 of "The Morecambe And WIse Show", found in Sierra Leone.

Mention of "Steptoe And Son" and the previously known about edition of "The Basil Brush Show" series 1, and also an episode of "The Rag Trade".

The "One Show" edition is available to see on iplayer.

[Ronco]

There were apparently two editions of M&W recovered and the Steptoe was "My Old Man's A Tory", but now in much better quality.

[Mark]

Yes, episode 5 as well it seems, it just gets better!

More announcements from the Beeb to come, and also at MBW in December, hopefully some lovely ITV stuff.

[The Wooksta!]

I'm holding out for a missing episode or two of Callan turning up - Morris hinted a while back that he'd found one of the extant episodes soe they *may* be out there.

It's fantastic news. More Eric Morecambe (not to mention Ernie Wise also) can only be a good thing.

[Mark]

More "Callan" would be very nice, also "Public Eye" of course..."Sexton Blake", "Orlando"...sooo many!

[Mark]

Old news now, but I thought it worth a mention about the BFI/BBC announcement of the three "Harry Worth" episodes, also the "Citizen James"/"Steptoe"/"Rag Trade" episodes ( one of each) recovered.

NIce finds.

[Nick Cooper 625]

"Citizen James"

Series 3, but - sadly - not The Tube Station. Bah!

[stearn]

Series 3, but - sadly - not The Tube Station. Bah!

There'll be another along in a few minutes, just wait behind the yellow line.

[Mark]

'Mind the Gap'

Yes it's a shame about that one, just file it along side "AAL!" episode "Ticket To Terror".

[ozsat]

BBC are promoting two lost episodes of 'M&W' will be shown this Christmas - I take it S1E7 is one of them - anyone know what the other is?

As revealed on "The One Show" tonight with Phillip Morris, S1E7 from 14/10/68 of "The Morecambe And WIse Show", found in Sierra Leone.

[Mark]

S1E5 is the other one, should be great.

[Spiny Norman]

S1E5 is the other one, should be great.

They've been recolourized, too.

Which just makes me envious, because so many stuff does not get to get its colour back.

[Mark]

Colour recovered, yes...it's always the biggies though.

[Spiny Norman]

Colour recovered, yes...it's always the biggies though.

Yeah but my personal problem is that I can't stand the pair of them. It's the one UK show that I can't bear to watch.

Ironically it's one of the few shows that I've made any small contribution to recovering (namely pointing people towards a (superior) audio track).

[fatcat]

Colour recovered, yes...it's always the biggies though.

Yeah but my personal problem is that I can't stand the pair of them. It's the one UK show that I can't bear to watch.

Ironically it's one of the few shows that I've made any small contribution to recovering (namely pointing people towards a (superior) audio track).

Ha Ha yes I am with the Americans on this...In those days you were either a Benny Hill or M & W household,,my dear old Dad would be rolling over the floor with Benny Hill but would tut and hiss if M&W came on.

Ironically there is a The Benny Hill Show colour master VT PAL episode unseen for 50+ years languishing in the ATV archive, when Lew Grade thought he had got Benny as his prize.

[Spiny Norman]

Colour recovered, yes...it's always the biggies though.

Yeah but my personal problem is that I can't stand the pair of them. It's the one UK show that I can't bear to watch.

Ironically it's one of the few shows that I've made any small contribution to recovering (namely pointing people towards a (superior) audio track).

Ha Ha yes I am with the Americans on this...In those days you were either a Benny Hill or M & W household,,my dear old Dad would be rolling over the floor with Benny Hill but would tut and hiss if M&W came on.

Ironically there is a The Benny Hill Show colour master VT PAL episode unseen for 50+ years languishing in the ATV archive, when Lew Grade thought he had got Benny as his prize.

There's a never-aired episode?

Isn't it so that if you were to line up all of Benny Hill's output, that 1) most of it would still be there but 2) if you watched it from beginning to end, there'd be a lot of reprises/remakes of earlier material?

[Mark]

The ATV special was shown, fatcat just means it hasn't been seen since ( I've seen some of it, on a domestic VT recording, great theme tune).

Benny did recycle some of his material later on, as did Eric and Ernie and many others, it wasn't unusual really.

[Spiny Norman]

The ATV special was shown, fatcat just means it hasn't been seen since ( I've seen some of it, on a domestic VT recording, great theme tune).

Benny did recycle some of his material later on, as did Eric and Ernie and many others, it wasn't unusual really.

No; it's quite usual for most acts that started out in the 1950s (or even later - many "1948 show" sketches exist in later performances by the Pythons and the Ronnies) isn't it?

Only it means that a completely complete Benny Hill collection would be only palatable for the die-hard-core fans.

[stearn]

Only it means that a completely complete Benny Hill collection would be only palatable for the die-hard-core fans.

I think it is fair to say that about any complete collection - there are always some dud bits. I bought the complete Two Ronnies set that was released some while back and found it difficult to get through very quickly as there was a lot of material that made me cringe. With M&W, whilst there is little that actually makes me cringe, there is a lot of repeated material, and that can wear a bit thin after a while. Milligan and Python are, for me at least, either/or comedy - it is either absolutely brilliant, or appalling and 'best of's are usually enough.

[Mark]

True about Milligan and Python, brilliant but could be hit and miss.

Even The Goodies did it though, the famous bun fight episode was born in a "Hark at Barker" sketch.

[Spiny Norman]

Only it means that a completely complete Benny Hill collection would be only palatable for the die-hard-core fans.

I think it is fair to say that about any complete collection - there are always some dud bits. I bought the complete Two Ronnies set that was released some while back and found it difficult to get through very quickly as there was a lot of material that made me cringe. With M&W, whilst there is little that actually makes me cringe, there is a lot of repeated material, and that can wear a bit thin after a while. Milligan and Python are, for me at least, either/or comedy - it is either absolutely brilliant, or appalling and 'best of's are usually enough.

But I meant specifically because of remakes/retakes/reprises of earlier material. (The practice makes perfect sense of course, in an age where there wouldn't be (m)any repeats, and when home video was still 20-30 years away.)