mostly david ephgrave

This afternoon, I was lucky enough to attend the recording of the last two remaining lost Hancock's Half Hour episodes for the BBC Radio 4 series The Missing Hancocks (my third time in the audience, man & boy), which was once again performed pitch-perfectly by Kevin McNally and the cast and left me feeling suitably inspired and uplifted as I exited Broadcasting House and made my way back to the tube at Oxford Circus. I must admit visiting the BBC always gives me a bit of a lift, as the child inside still can't help but be excited by the many inspirational ghosts that occupy the building, metaphorically speaking (subject to a proper paranormal assessment); I've only been to Broadcasting House once in a work context - to do a radio interview for the Buddy Holly show I was in - and went to Television Centre once in a non-audience-member capacity - for a meeting with a producer with Glyn - but the part of me that longs to be on the other side of the mic there is always ke...

Today, I listened to the audio of a lost episode of the TV version of Hancock’s Half Hour that I haven’t heard before (the 'Horror Serial') and it’s testament to how good Galton & Simpson’s writing was and how well the cast brought the dialogue to life that it held up brilliantly without pictures and was just as funny as much of their best work. The episode is included as part of volume one of the BBC’s Hancock Collectibles series, which I bought the other day (using a voucher given to me for my birthday no less) and was a treat to hear. I must have seen and heard pretty much all of their surviving work from this period countless times - not to mention a fair few of the lost episodes that were remade for BBC Radio 4’s excellent ‘The Missing Hancocks’ series (which I attended two recordings of, thanks to the kindness of Kevin Eldon) - so it was a definite treat to be confronted with an episode I’d never experienced. It was a bit like dreaming you were listening to an un...

Tonight I was lucky enough to attend another recording of the Radio 4 series 'The Missing Hancocks', thanks to the generosity of the splendid Kevin Eldon, who snuck me and my wife in under his metaphorical jacket once again. I've mentioned here before just how impressed I've been by the series, which manages to capture the tone of the show perfectly, with scary accuracy; even the banter between the cast as they made the odd slip-up during the recording felt much like how you'd imagine Tony, Bill and Sid would respond if they had made the same mistakes first time around. It has just the right amount of fun to it, and the combination of the excellent writing and Kevin McNally's spot-on rendition of The Lad Himself still manages to entertain a live audience despite last being performed sixty-three years ago; proof that good comedy doesn't date.  They were recording two lost Christmas episodes tonight, which were both a lot ...

I had the most glorious, inspiring night tonight, watching a recording of The Missing Hancocks at BBC Broadcasting House.  I was there, thanks to the kindness of Kevin Eldon (AKA Bill Kerr), who snuck me in under his metaphorical jacket. I sent him a text on a whim when I saw they were making another series and he put me and my wife on the guest list. I'm so grateful that he did, as I'm a huge Hancock fan - and often lament to myself that I'd never get the chance to experience the real thing, thanks to being born twenty-four years too late; Damn my parents and their reluctance to procreate.  I can't state enough just how good tonight was. It was inspiring to see such a great cast get their mitts on a fantastic pair of scripts and nail them so perfectly. If it weren't for the half century that's passed, you could be fooled into thinking every member of the original ensemble was performing there before you, though their faces may have changed. It's testament...

I very much enjoyed BBC4’s remake of the Hancock’s Half Hour episode The New Neighbour, which aired as part of their current Lost Sitcoms season tonight. I’ve written here before of how excellent I thought the Kevin McNally-fronted radio series The Missing Hancocks was, thanks largely to McNally’s note-perfect performance as ‘The Lad Himself’. His attention to detail is extraordinary, managing to get Tony’s intonation, timing and mannerisms right, without descending to the point of becoming a one-dimensional impression. It was clearly a labour of love from a huge fan of the man I’m also a huge fan of, and must have been the dream job. Likewise, Kevin Eldon’s reading of Bill Kerr and Robin Sebastian’s of Kenneth Williams in the radio series were eerily spot on. The other huge point that rang throughout tonight’s programme was just how exceptional Galton & Simpson’s writing is. Their choice of language is so vivid and creative, and has barely age...

Yesterday, I listened to the second episode in BBC Radio 4’s current series ‘The Missing Hancocks’, and loved it. I make no secret of the fact that I’m a huge fan of both Galton & Simpson and Tony Hancock. It’s something I’ve discussed here before . Together, they were responsible for some of my favourite comedy of all time. Watching or listening to an episode of Hancock’s Half Hour is a fail-safe for putting me in a good mood. So much so that I’ve started listening to an episode every morning in the bath, to start the day with a positive kick. (Picture it.) When I heard tell of a handful of lost episodes being rerecorded by different actors, I was concerned. How could they make this work? I knew the writing would stand up on its own two feet – Galton & Simpson’s material is faultless – but how could you have a Hancock’s Half Hour without the real Huh…Huh…Huh…Hancock? Not to mention Sid, Bill, Kenneth, Andr é e, Moira, Miss Pugh and the rest. I needn’t have wor...