by PETER TATCHELL (reprinted from THE GOODIES FACT FILE, 1997)
Cambridge University’s Footlights Club opened the door for many budding performers over the years … Richard Murdoch, Jimmy Edwards, Peter Cook and Jonathan Miller to name but four.
In 1963, Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie and (behind the scenes) Humphrey Barclay took their first steps in the world of show business when the 1963 revue A Clump Of Plinths transferred to London’s West End for a season (under the title Cambridge Circus).
The show’s success resulted in the B.B.C. putting together 30 minutes of highlights (with another Cambridge Footlighter Graham Chapman now in the cast) for broadcast later that year, and three follow-up editions aired in April 1964. Thus began the first series of what would become one of radio’s favourite comedy programmes, I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again.
Before a second season could be recorded, the cast were signed for a stage tour of the original show in far off New Zealand and another university performer, Jonathan Lynn (who later went on to co-write Yes Minister), joined the troupe for the journey. While there, the group did a further four broadcasts, this time for the N.Z.B.C.
In October 1964, the show moved to the bright lights of Broadway for a brief run, before relocating downtown to Greenwich Village until the end of the year. They also performed a couple of sketches on the popular Ed Sullivan Show.
Most of the cast then retumed to England, although Oddie and Brooke-Taylor joined a touring version of That Was The Week That Was and Cleese won a part in the musical Half A Sixpence, which kept him in the U.S. until the end of 1965.
Back in Britain, the B.B.C. commissioned a new series of I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again without Chapman (who had returned to his medical studies), Lynn or Cleese. Added to the cast was another Footlights player at Cambridge, Graeme Garden.
Scripts for the nine-episode run came from most of the cast plus additional contributions from writers such as Johnny Mortimer and Brian Cooke (later responsible for Father, Dear Father and Man About The House), John Esmonde and Bob Larbey (en route to Please Sir and The Good Life), Peter Vincent and David McKellar, Clive James and Eric Idle. Audience reaction to the programme was so encouraging that a third season was on air a brief four months later.
John Cleese had returned from America, and the writing talent continued to be a who’s-about-to-be-who of British comedy. For thirteen weeks the B.B.C.’s Light Programme was awash with ferrets, rhubarb tarts, obnoxious babies, a mysterious gentleman named Angus Prune and a maritally challenged couple named John and Mary (who had originally appeared in Cambridge Circus).
A midwifery course in Plymouth prevented Graham Garden taking part in the fourth series (at the end of 1966) but he was able to make contributions to the script. Apart from material supplied by Eric Idle (and occasionally Graham Chapman) this had by now become the realm of the show’s cast members.
A regular feature of this season was an adventure serial called The Curse Of The Flying Wombat which introduced Oddie’s wretched servant Grimbling and Brooke-Taylor’s man-chasing Lady Constance de Coverlet (vocally based on Edith Evans).
Song and sketch highlights from series 3 and 4 (including an abridged version of the Wombat serial) were released as a Parlophone LP soon after and Oddie also recorded a selection of his favourite songs from the show for Polydor (under the title Distinctly Oddie).
By the sixth season (in mid-1968) Garden was back and Hatch had taken on the additional task of becoming the programme’s co- producer (with Peter Titherage), in place of Humphrey Barclay who had transferred to a career in commercial television.
The programme had by now become far more cohesive than the collection of unrelated sketches of earlier days, and Oddie and Garden had developed into a creative scriptwriting team responsible for supplying much of the show’s material.
In addition to the thirteen episodes for I.S.I.R.T.A.’s sixth series, the team produced an hour long Christmas special lampooning the traditional British pantomime (broadcast on Boxing Day 1968) which led to further seasonal offerings in 1969 and 1970.
Series 7 featured another serial (called Professor Prune And The Electric Time Trousers) very much in the Doctor Who mould, and a year later, the team decided to send up the medium of radio itself with the creation of Radio Prune as an ongoing theme. A second commercial LP, this time on the B.B.C.’S own label, features a montage of extracts from these 1970 programmes.
By now, television had lured most of the cast to better (or, at least, more highly paid) projects. Cleese had helped launch the Monty Python cult and Brooke-Taylor, Garden and Oddie had formed The Goodies. It was not until late 1973 when producer Hatch (having deserted performing for a job as a B.B.C. backroom boy) managed to get the team back for a final season, and then only because breaks in their schedules happened to coincide.
The Wonder Show of B.B.C. wireless had finally run its course, except for one final encore for a 25th anniversary reunion in 1989. The sixty-minute broadcast brought back old favourites, poked fun at John Cleese’s international success (with digs at funny walks and fishes called Wanda) and culminated in a performance of the show’s unofficial anthem, The Ferret Song.
EPISODE GUIDE
by MARK McKAY (reprinted from THE GOODIES FACT FILE, 1997)
(segments in italics are musical items)
CAMBRIDGE CIRCUS
BBC Home Service, 30 December 1963
With Jo Kendall, Humphrey Barclay, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, David Hatch. Bill Oddie
Feel Like Taking In A Show? / BBCBC / Sing Sing / Great Moments ln The British Theatre / Those Were The Days / Jazz Song / Swap A Jest / Football Results / John And Mary In Malaya / OHMS. / Judge Not
SERIES 1
BBC Home Service: 3 April to 17 April 1964 (3 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Tavlor, Anthony Buffery, John Cleese, David Hatch, Jo Kendall. Bill Oddie
1/1 Top Of The Form / Jack Of The Beanstalk / Inward Bound / Cricket Commentators /Jim / News /
Performing Hamsters / Wine Tasting / Butterworth Lads / Horrible Hairy Spiders / Bank Manager / London Bus
1/2 Racing At Newmarket / English For Beginners / Monitor: Pop Music (incl. That’s How I Feel About You) / Hugo, Basil And Fred / I Whistle A Happy Tune / Directions To Munich / Support The Meek / Perry Como / Genesis / On A Traffic Island / German Satirist / Scrapheap For Nineteen Thirty Foot
1/3 Secret Service / Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off (You Say Tomato) / Race Commentary / Travellin’ Man / Putting Husband Down / The Iceberg Question / Farmyard Impersonations / Headmaster / Safari Time / The Student Prince
SERIES 2
BBC Light Programme, 4 October to 6 December 1965 (9 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden, David Hatch. Jo Kendall. Bill Oddie
2/1 Weather Forecast / Ins And Outs / Howling Country And Western Song / RAF Briefing 1942 / Mother-In-Law On Bus / She’s Gone / TV Complaint / Giant At Marriage Bureau / The Critics
2/2 Universal Challenge / Masochistic Monks / Stately House / I Ain’t Got Rhythm / Ug’s Fashions / Louis Armstrong / Artistic Specimens / Cricket Spectators / The House Of The Rising Sun / Swan Lake Commentary
2/3 Audible Road Signs / Reach For The Sky / 2nd Lt. Fellow-Smith / High Spot / Black Magician / Dwarf Warning / We re Gonna Knit / The Stolen Banana / Yokels / BLIMPHT / The Singular Case Of The Workington Shillelagh
2/4 Radio Crossword / Brother’s Act / Alien Invasion / Father And Son: Guests / Spot The Difference / Rent-A-Pet / Lordalump And The Dirty Knights (incl. Folk Singers) / Grave Digger / The Old Busker (incl. Work Song) / The Battle Of Whispering Mouse
2/5 Poodle Symphony / Fogey Magazine / Father And Son: Letter / Pickpocket / Army Recruiting (incl. Square Bashing Dance) / The Adventures Of Little Martin Copperwick
2/6 The Inventors / Customs / Lover Of Things / Movie-Go-Sound (incl. After The Fall) / Lord Clumpwit’s Appeal / The Wind / An Old Evening’s Entertainment / The Freedom Day / Mike Spanner – Private Eye
2/7 Interlude / Smurtot Yach Proxl? / Insurance Policy / Don’t Let It Rain On My Baby / News With Audience / Prehistoric Flight / The London Bus / England Our England
2/8 Long Range Weather Forecast / Nature Study / Let There Be Love / Prehistoric Woo-man / HMS Dreadful (incl. Down At The Bottom In A Submarine) / Dr. Why And The Thing
2/9 History Of Radio (incl. Mrs Dale’s Diary / Family Favourites / The Archers / Censorship / Wilfred Pickles / Come Into The Garden Maude / The Late Late Late Show
SERIES 3
BBC Light Programme, 14 March to 6 June 1966 (13 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
3/1 Relaxation / BBC Statements / Rat Exterminator / Hypothetical Plane Crash / Eastern Chant / Off His Food / Sensitive Hearing / Old Boutique / Ireland
3/2 Round Britain Quiz / Friendly Inn / I Love You / Drown All Your Troubles Away / Biology For Schools / Train Robbers In The Sky / Moll Flounders
3/3 Consult The Diary / Zookeeper / Secular Religious Pop Song / Small Airlines Inflight Entertainment / Reincarnation Of Genghis Khan / Just One Of Those Things / Ali Baba
3/4 The Archers / Pregnant Man / Radio Strip Club / Musical Journey / Fairy / Pride And Joy / Lord Nelson
3/5 Big B / Listening Index / State Visit Of The Tsar / Clint Ponsbury-Crump (incl. Eve Of Election) / Table Tennis / Ship’s Captain And Perkins / The Rhubarb Tart Song / Dr. Heckyl And Mr. Jibe
3/6 Stereo Sound / Human Traffic Inspector / Stop It – I Like It / Jerusalem / Do You Love Me? / These Foolish Things / Angus Prune – Soccer Legend
3/7 Auctioneer / Archbishop Of Canterbury / Animal Question Time / A Man ‘s Best Friend / Housemaster / Isn’t Nature Wonderful? / Opportunity Flops / Flat Inspection / Tomorrow / Rogue Budgie / Five Little Emergent Nationals
3/8 Soldiers / BBC Animal Service / Red Sea Safari / Don’t Laugh At Me / 3 Babies / Museum Attendant / Day Trippers (incl. My Old Age Pension) / World Of Sport
3/9 Rat Catchers Strike / Compulsive Knitter / Traffic Warden / Promenade Concert (incl. There Was A Ship That Put To Sea) / The Doctor / The Lawman / Marriage Guidance Bureau / Julius Caesar
3/10 Radio Quiz Game / Police Message / Old Dark House / Rhubarb Tart Blues / The Supernatural, The Occult And The Unexplained (incl. Meet Me In The Churchyard, Nellie)
3/11 Defusing A Bomb / Dwarf Olympics / Play Little Piccolo Man / Girls School Address / Show Jumping / My Baby ‘s Become A Folksinger / Robin Hood
3/12 Beethoven’s Audition / John And Mary Alone In The Country / Identikit Gal / Kosher Hamlet / End Of The World / Take It Off / Tim Brown’s Schooldays
3/13 It Is Liverpool special (incl. Ferry Cross The Mersey and Liverpool)
SERIES 4
BBC Light Programme, 3 October 1966 to 2 January 1967 (14 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, David Hatch, Jo Kendall. Bill Oddie
(the serial The Curse Of The Flying Wombat is featured as the latter half of all but the last edition)
4/1 What Do You Know’? / Cricket Commentary / Italian Letter / Vet / The Good News From Ghent To Aix / The Ferret Song / 3 Babies *2
4/2 Sitar Player / Bonnie Scotland / Business Marriage / I’m Small / Bird and Animal Impressions / Honeymoon On A Sloop / Making Horse Racing More Attractive / My Mum Had Lost My Dad
4/3 John Cleese’s Bath Night / Children’s Tour Of Art Gallery / Film Actor Specialising In Military Roles / Alice Through The Looking Glass / We Like Working For The BBC / John And Mary In Bed / Great Big Waterproof Boots / The Minister Of Fuel / My Smile
4/4 Glasses Of Water / East German Trade Exhibit / Beethoven ‘s Fifth / The Family ‘s On The Rocks / William The Conqueror
4/5 New Show / The Spy With My Cold / Gentlewomen’s Protection Action Group / One For My Baby / Appeal For Distressed Bumblebees / Girl At Boys’ School / P.C. On Traffic Duty / Just To Keep Me Warm
4/6 Colour Radio / Music For Schools / A Welcome In Ireland / Outside Lavatory / Managing Director And Employee / Animal Child
4/7 The Fastest Show On Earth / Movie-Go-Flat (incl. Antibellamlaudidartaarmomuratorum) / John And Mary And The Policeman / Prime Minister’s Speech To French / Are You 21? / De Blues And All Dat Jazz
4/8 Drum Beat Message / The Day After Tomorrow’s World / The Clapham Mystery Trial Of 1960 -Now / The Ferrets Of Old England
4/9 Radio Oscars / International Cabaret / John And Mary And The Burglar / Hush Now Baby / Shakespeare Joke / What Can A Didgeridoo? / Bonzo Angus Prune Experiment
4/10 Air My Grudge / The Royal Navy / Sick Song / Warning
4/11 Bonzo Angus Prune Experiment Results / For Better Or For Worse And Son / A Man’s Best Friend Is His Duck / Blues Song / Beekeeping / Old Time Radio (incl. Benjamin Disraeli)
4/12 Animal Round-Up / The Fawcetts (incl. Elimination Dance) / Driving Test / 3 Babies #3 / Did You Know? / Yodel Song
4/13 Builders / The Rise And Ears Of Cole Hammerstein III (incl. Love A Show) / Petula Clark Sings
4/14 Jack And The Beanstalk Pantomime (incl. songs previously featured in the series)
SERIES 5
BBC Light Programme. 23 April to 23 July 1967 (14 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor. John Cleese, David Hatch, Jo Kendal, Bill Oddie
5/1 John and Mary: Magic / MOTH. / 3 Babies #4 / Are You 6’ 5”? / There’s A Walrus In My Soup / The Knights Of The Round Table
5/2 Spring (incl. Spring, Spring, Spring) / John and Mary: Humpty Dumpty / Curse Of The Flying Wombat Characters / Champion The Wonder Mouse
5/3 Concert Of Modern Music / Crime Prevention / Faith Healer / I‘ve Forgotten The Words / Estate Agent / What Will Be Will Be / William Tell
5/4 Calypso / Greyhounds / If I Were The Only Girl In The World / John and Mary: The Car / The Rabbits And Land Hour / Work Song / Dr. Clubfoot In The Antarctic
5/5 Tips For Motorists / Drilling For Moles / Garden Club / The First Of May / Toy Shop / I Like Singing In The Bath Tub / The British Army
5/6 Did You Miss It? / Bank Manager / Underground Underwear / Folk Dancing / John and Mary: Tibbles / Drinking Song / The Decline And Fall Of The Entire Roman Empire Including Cleopatra
5/7 The Vulture Song (No, John, No) / Horrible Hairy Spiders / Russian Eurovision Song / Gas Meter Reader / Late Cricket News / Garcon, Garcon / Princess Goldilocks And The Perverted Goblins
5/8 Club El Caraway / The Pill / Wales Travelogue / A Very Sad Case / I’m Gonna Live! / The Operating Theatre / Spit / All Hands On Venus
5/9 (* Jean Hart fills in for Jo Kendall) The British Courts Of Justice / 25 Guinea Tour Of Britain / John and Mary: Moles / William Grimbling / 3 Babies #5 / Cricket / Tales Of The Old Wild And Woolly Peter West
5/10 Your Radio Could Explode / Film Censorship / I Can Hear The Wombats Dancing / The Dentist / Portuguese Love Song / The Ghost Of Objectionable Manor
5/11 Osteopath / Round The World Query / Buying A Stocking / No, No, But Seriously Though / Othello
5/12 (* Graeme Garden fills in for John Cleese) Memory Lane / Zoo Time (incl. Animal Noises) / House On Fire / I Am A Carnivore / The Inimitable Grimbling
5/13 Radio Circus / Record Spin / Directory (Dial 999) / John and Mary: Jumbo / I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside / Ulysses
5/14 The Sound Of My Fair Seven Brides For Calamity Poppins And I On The Roof (special)
SERIES 6
BBC Radio 2, 14 April to 7 July 1968 (13 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
6/1 Dave’s Diary / I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again (Magical Mystery Ball) / Firm Of Solicitors / Bunnie And Claude
6/2 Listen With Mother: The Rabbit Family / Going For A Burton / Sport / Taking My Oyster For Walkies / Blackmail (Or Fishpaste) / Jack Mulberry / Rock With A Policeman / Dentisti
6/3 Army Sense Of Humour Drilling / Pots And Puns / The Good Old Days / The Vikings
6/4 Desert Island Jokes / Report On Schools / You’ll Feel Much Worse / Police Message / Reunion / Ole / Incompetence – The Story Of The Arkwright Family
6/5 Experiments In Sound / Joke Swapping Report / Here Comes The One-Man Band / John Cleese Recipe / Bank Loan / Keep Fit Class (incl. I’m Tougher Than You)/ 10.000 B.C.
6/6 (* without John Cleese) Bits And Pieces From Comedy Shows / Sir Ruddy Shame / The Facts Of Money / I Wish You Love / Let’s Hear About It: Cauliflower / Has Anybody Seen My Teeth? / The Ghost Of McMuckle Manse
6/7 Football Results / Squealbase Motoring Show / Continental Coach Trip / Julie Andrews / Operation Chocolate
6/8 Forgotten Folklore / Theatre Bar / Persecuting Pigeons In Trafalgar Square / John and Mary Have Breakfast In Bed / El Budgerigar / Beau Legs
6/9 G.P.O. Spokesman / The Kevin Mousetrap Show / Louis Armstrong (incl. What A Wonderful World) / Take Your Clothes Off / Melody Farm / Warning To Motorists / Macbeth
6/10 Facetious Patient / Problem Corner / The Doctor: Bad Eyes / Bounce Bounce Bounce / Spot The Joke Competition / Robinson Prunestone
6/11 Puzzle Corner / The Countryside In Spring / Cows Talking / We re Going To A Football Match / Controversy: Pacifism / The Roaring Twenties
6/12 Thirty Second Theatre: Retribution / Oil Riggers In The Desert / The Headmaster’s Daughter / Chartered Accountant / The Doctor: Getting Fat / Lady Godiva
6/13 Tribute To Cinema (incl. Let ‘s Laugh / Censorship by Dubbing / Revival of The Curse Of The Flying Wombat / The Show Must Go On And On And On And On And On And On)
SPECIAL
BBC Radio 2, 26 December 1968 (60 minutes)
With Tim BrookeTaylor. John Cleese. Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
Dick Cinderella Up The Beanstalk … Or Something … And His Cat
(incl. Spring Spring Spring, We re Going To A Football Match, The Music Of the Dawn, I Love You, We’re All Going To Die, Julie Andrews, Hope You ‘ye Had A Very Merry Christmas)
SERIES 7
BBC Radio 1 & 2, 12 January to 6 April 1969 (13 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch. Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
(the serial Professor Prune And The Electric Time Trousers is featured as the final segment of all editions)
7/1 New Rules / Dave’s Diary (incl. Knees) / 3 Babies: Majorca
7/2 Pick Of The Bunch / Army Report / Late Football Result / Hovercraft Ride
7/3 Global Time Check / Population Explosion / Fog Warning / We Love Jimmy Young / The Psychiatrist / On Ilkla’ Moor Baht ‘At / Party Political Message
7/4 Tommy The Tuba / Hobbies / Oliver Cromwell / Reuben The Farm Hand
7/5 Talent Contest / Transport Through The Ages / She‘s Gone / TV Quiz Host At Home / Charles Aznovoice
7/6 The Petticoat Whine / Report On Industry / If Mao Tse-Tung Were A Scotsman
7/7 Dramatised German Lesson / Survey On Money / Baby Samba
7/8 All My Yesterday / Sports Yawn / Marcella’s Lane / John and Mary: Children / Paranormal Message / Here Are The Nudes
7/9 Choice Of Listening / Radio Prune / Listening To The Flowers / The Big Quiz
7/10 Shopping News / Report On Housing / Carry Me Back To Europe
7/11 Great Cities: London / Reptile Joke / Auto Destructive Rag
7/12 Going For A Gong / The Aristocrats / Rock Version Of Henry V
7/13 Love, Sex And Marriage / Denmark Street
SPECIAL
BBC Radio 1 & 2, 25 December 1969 (30 minutes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
Carol Singers / Christmas At The B.B.C. / Christmases Of Yesteryear / John And Yoko / Christmas Round The World (incl. Hari Krishna) / A Christmas Carrot
SERIES 8
BBC Radio 2, 15 February to 10 May 1970 (13 episodes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
8/1 New Look Radio Times / BBC Cutback / Full Frontal Radio / Prune Manifesto / Censorship / The Taming Of The Shrew
8/2 Radio Prune Goes Commercial / Fairy Puff Advert / Home This Afternoon A Go Go / Two For One Swap Advert / Commercial News / Sing Us A Song / Canterbury Tales
8/3 Top Of The Charts / Countrywide / News With Eddie Waring / Fairy Puff Advert / Letters / Soap Opera / El Tarantula Advert / Commercial Trial / Silence / The G.P.O.
8/4 (without John Cleese) Previous Programme Didn’t Exist / Soap Opera #2 / Nudes Room / Forthcoming Programmes / Ironing My Goldfish / Tales Of The Circus
8/5 (without John Cleese) The Stars At Night / Wireless Doctor / Honours List / News In Welsh / Minority Programmes / Musical Football Results / Nigel Carter-Smith’s Society Band / Billy Bunter Of Greyfriar’s School
8/6 (without John Cleese) People We Will Be Offending / Motoring Flash / Complaints / RoIf Harris Dirty Song Book / 3 Babies: NSPCC Inspector / Is This Your Life? / If You Have Seen This Man / Stuffing The Gibbon / The 3.17 To Cleethorpes
8/7 (without John Cleese) Listeners’ Strike / Listeners’ Oath / Little Old Lady Listener / Cooking Segment / Nudes Room / We Are The Lads Of The M.C.C. / Jimmy Savile / Henry VIII
8/8 There ‘s No Business Like Show Business / Common Market Committee / International Music Hall / Tom Jones Censored / Guerres Sans Frontiers / Honours List / Wonderful Noises / Jorrocks
8/9 Critics / Ashamed / Weather Report / Set Up A Sketch Competition / Rearrangement Of Programmes / Dublin Folk Song Dance And Drinking Society Song / Horror Story
8/10 Black And White Minstrels / Radio Prune Awards (incl. Bradford Girls) / The Harder They Fall The More They Hurt Themselves
8/11 Teapot / Review Of The Pops / Julie Andrews Dirty Song Book / The Money Programme / Kenneth Wolstenholme + Andy Pandy / 20,000 Leaks Under The Sea
8/12 Combined Holiday / Night With The Stars / Holiday News / Hogmanay / Brian Rix Farce / Football Chant / Oedipus Rex
8/13 Full Frontal Radio / The Raymond Nostril Story (incl. The Ferret Song / Stuffing The Gibbon / Silence / Nigel Carter-Smith’s Society Band / The Rhubarb Tart Song / Sing Us A Song /I’m Gonna Make It / We Are The Lads Of The M.C.C.) / Radio Prune Close-Down
SPECIAL
BBC Radio4, 31 December 1970 (45 minutes)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
Hijack / Full Frontal Radio In Drag / Catchphrases / Miss World Contest (incl. Les Girls) / Censored Bawdy Christmas Songs / Retrospect Of 1970 / Dr. Zhivago
SERIES NINE
BBC Radio 2, 4 November to 23 December 1973 (8 episodes)
with Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
9/1 All-Purpose Sitcom / BBC Controller Of Programmes / Radio Prune / The Terrapin Song / Lawrence Of The Antarctic – On Ice
9/2 Ask The Family / So You Think You’ve Got A Feed Line / Prune Forum / A Kick In The Arts / Twerp Special / Cactus In My Y-Fronts / Jack The Ripper
9/3 One Channel Stereo / Radio Mindless / Savilie’s Travillies / Fight The Flab / Competition / Square Table / Sick Man Blues / Star Trek
9/4 Audio Porno Fair / What’s My Kink? / Masochist’s Rag / Search For The Nile
9/5 Miss United Prune Finals / Scriptwriter Fired / Festival Of Light / Toy Symphony / The Song Of The South
9/6 By-Election Results / New Programmes / Nappy Love / Oklahoma
9/7 The Royal Family / The Wedding Of The Year / It’s A Cock-Up / Russell Harty Plus / Alice In Wonderland
9/8 Ministerial Broadcast / Childhood Remembered / Radio Terrapin / Just My Bill / David Hatch Down And Out / Chloe / The Colditz Story
SPECIAL
BBC Radio 2, 25 December 1989 (60 minutes, stereo)
With Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall, Bill Oddie
The Name’s Hatch / Emergency Meeting Of B.B.C. Governors / Today Programme (incl. Spring, Spring, Spring) / Recycling I.S.I.R.T.A. / John and Mary: Eleanor & Armadillos / Jack The Ripper / Letters / Silly Walk / B.B.C. Radio Auction / Ferret Duncleese Barbecue / The Ferret Song
All programmes are known to exist
I.S.I.R.T.A. episodes issued by the Transcription Service for overseas airplay
75 of the original 103 programmes were issued on LP discs (usually edited to 27 minute duration). No series 8 shows were included in the package.
TS #1 = 3/1
TS #2 = 3/3
TS #3 = 2/1
TS #4 = 2/3
TS #5 = 2/7
TS #6 = 2/8
TS #7 = 3/2
TS #8 = 3/6
TS #9 = 3/7
TS #10 = 3/9
TS #11 = 3/10
TS #12 = 3/11
TS #13 = 3/12
TS #14 = 3/13
TS #15 to #27 = 5/1 to 5/13
TS #28 to #40 = 6/1 to 6/13
TS #41 to #53 = 4/1 to 4/13
TS #54 = 1969 Christmas special
TS #55 to #67 = 7/1 to 7/13
TS #68 = 1970 Christmas special
TS #69 = 9/1
TS #70 = 9/2
TS #71 = 9/4
TS #72 = 9/7
TS #73 = 9/8
The 1-hour Christmas specials of 1968 and 1989 were also released
COMMERCIAL RECORDINGS
Cambridge Circus (original cast album of the stage show)
Parlophone LP PMC 1208 / PCS 3046
Green Line Bus
Patients For The Use Of
Boring Sexy Song
Great Moments In British Theatre
Pride And Joy
B.B.C.B.C.
Sing Sing
Boring Straight Song
Swap A Jest
Those Were The
Days
OH.M.S.
Judge Not
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again
Parlophone LP PMC 7024, E.M.I. / Axis AX 701433
Features excerpts from series 3 and 4:
The Auctioneer
The Day After Tomorrow’s World
The Doctor
BLIMPHT
John And Mary
Robin Hood
Identikit Gal
Baby Talk
Family Favourites
The Curse Of The Flying Wombat
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again
B.B.C. LP REH 342
features excerpts from series 7 and 8:
Opening Credits
Full Frontal Radio + Prune Manifesto + Buffers
Critics
Motoring Flash
Quiche
Honours List + News In Welsh + Minority Programmes
Home This Afternoon A Go Go
News Flash
Listening To The Flowers
Opening
Talent Contest
Eddie Waring Impersonation
Sick Man Blues
Taming Of The Shrew + Closing Credits
Distinctly Oddie
Polydor LP 583 007
I’m Small
Square Bashing Dance
Old Boutique
The Lawman
A Man’s Best Friend
Rhubarb Tart Blues
The Wind
Recorded Live (incl. One For My Baby & One More For The Road)
Take It Off
Ferrets Of Old England
L.O.V.E.?
Beethoven’s Fifth
Stop It I Like It
Family Favorites
When
You Come To The End
The following singles feature Bill Oddie only:
Nothing Better To Do / Traffic Island
Parlophone single R 5153 (July 1964)
The Knitting Song / Ain’t Got Rhythm
Parlophone single R 5346 (October 1965)
I Can’t Get Through / Because She Is My Love
Parlophone single R 5433 (April 1966)
On Ilkla Moor Baht’at / Harry Krishna
Dandelion single 4786, Epic single EPC 3793 (January 1970)
Superspike (2 parts) with John Cleese
Bradleys single BRAD 7606 (February 1976)
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again
BBC Radio Collection ZBBC 1 100 (double-cassette)
features complete episodes of:
June 9 1968
March 22 1970
April 5 1970
December 23 1973
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again 2
BBC Radio Collection ZBBC 1329 (double-cassette)
features complete episodes of
April 3 1964
May 9 1966
December 25 1989 (60 min)
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again 3
BBC Radio Collection ZBBC 1723 (double-cassette)
features complete episodes of
May 26 1968
February 22 1970
May 3 1970
November 11 1973
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again 4
BBC Radio Collection ZBBC 2005 (double-cassette)
features complete episodes of
March 1 1970
April 19 1970
November 4 l973
December 2 1973
A number of songs originally performed on I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again were re-recorded by Oddie, Garden and Brooke-Taylor for inclusion on several Goodies LPs …
The Goodies Sing Songs From The Goodies
Decca LP SKL 5175, reissued as The World Of The Goodies Decca LP SPA 416
All Things Bright And Beautiful
Ride My Pony
Stuff That Gibbon (from ISIRTA 8/6)
Mummy I Don’t Like My Meat
Show Me The Way
Goodies Theme
Sparrow Song
Taking You Back
Sunny Morning
Winter Sportsman
Spacehopper
Stuff That Gibbon / Goodies Theme
Decca single F 13578
The New Goodies LP
Bradley’s LP BRADL 1010 (Australia: M7 LP MLF-038) (1975)
Goodies Theme
Please Let Us Play
Custard Pie
Cricklewood
Good Ole Country Music
Baby Samba (from ISIRTA 7/7)
Rock With A Policeman (from ISIRTA 6/2)
The Cricklewood Shakedown
Nappy Love (from ISIRTA 9/6)
I’m A Teapot
Working The Line
Funky Gibbon
Wild Thing
The Goodies’ Greatest
Bradley’s LP BRADL 1012 (1976)
Goodies Theme
Funky Gibbon
The Inbetweenies
Nappy Love (from ISIRTA 9/6)
Last Chance Dance
Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me
Black Pudding Bertha
Bounce
Panic
Make A Daft Noise For Christmas
Charles Aznovoice (from ISIRTA 7/5)
Wild Thing
Nappy Love / Wild Thing
Bradley’s single BRAD 7524
Best Of The Goodies (Australia only)
M7 LP MLX-150 (1976)
The Funky Gibbon
Black Pudding Bertha
Charles Aznovoice (from ISIRTA 7/5)
The Inbetweenies
Sick Man Blues (from ISIRTA 9/3)
Good Ol’ Country Music
Panic
Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me
The Goodies Theme
Nothing To Do With Us
Island LP ILPS 9452 (1976) (Australia: Festival LP 36134)
The Policeman’s Opera
Cactus in My Y-Fronts (from ISIRTA 9/2)
Elizabeth Rules – UK
Blowing Off
I Wish I Could Get High
Synthesizer Man
She Wouldn’t Understand
I Wish I Had Something To Say
The Goodies Beastly Record
Columbia LP SCX 9596 (1978)
Melody Farm (from ISIRTA 6/9)
Taking My Oyster For Walkies (from ISIRTA 6/2)
Spring Spring Spring (from ISIRTA 5/2)
Terrapins (from ISIRTA 9/1)
A Man’s Best Friend Is His Duck (from ISIRTA 4/11)
Spank That Hamster
Rastashanty
Ironing My Goldfish (from ISIRTA 8/4)
Funky Farm
There’s A Walrus In My Soup (from ISIRTA 5/1)
Why Doesn’t An Elephant Go Tweet Tweet
I Am A Carnivore (from ISIRTA 5/12)
Elephant Joke Song
A Man’s Best Friend Is His Duck / Taking My Oyster For Walkies / Rastashanty
Columbia single DB 9053
The Goodies’ Greatest lists
E.M.I./Note NTS 233
Funky Gibbon
Black Pudding Bertha
Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me
Nappy Love
Rock With A Policeman
I’m A Teapot
Spring Spring Spring
Good Ole Country Music
Wild Thing
Inbetweenies
Cricklewood
M.I.C.K.E.Y. M.O.U.S.E.
A Man’s Best Friend Is His Duck
Melody Farm
Last Chance Dance
Charles Aznovoice
Taking My Oyster For Walkies
Make A Daft Noise For Christmas
Baby Samba
Rastashanty
The Complete A Poke In The Eye With A Sharp Stick
Castle 2CD ESDCD 153, (Australia: Castle 2CD ACSCD 020)
live versions of …
Funky Gibbon
Cactus In My Y Fronts (from ISIRTA 9/2)
Mummy Mummy Mummy
Sick Man Blues (from ISIRTA 9/3)
Yum Yum – The Very Best Of The Goodies
Music Club CD MCCD 294 (1997)
CD reissue of material from the Bradley’s albums
Goodies Theme
Funky Gibbon
The Inbetweenies
Please Let Us Play
Custard Pie
Black Pudding Bertha
Cricklewood
Good Old Country Music
Nappy Love
Baby Samba
Wild Thing
Rock With A Policeman
The Cricklewood Shakedown
Panic
I’m A Teapot
Working The Line
Sick Man Blues
Last Chance Dance
Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me
Make A Daft Noise For Christmas
Funky Gibbon – The Best Of The Goodies
Castle Pie CD PIESD 243
reissue of the above CD, minus four tracks …
Goodies Theme
Funky Gibbon
The Inbetweenies
Please Let Us Play
Black Pudding Bertha
Cricklewood
Good Old Country Music
Nappy Love
Wild Thing
Rock With A Policeman
Panic
I’m A Teapot
Sick Man Blues
Last Chance Dance
Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me
Make A Daft Noise For Christmas
BOOKS
I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again – The Classic Scripts
by Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie
(Javelin Books, paperback, 1985)
features scripts for episodes of
December 31 1970 (main sketch only)
November 4 1973
November 11 1973
November 18 1973
November 25 1973
One Flew Into the Cuckoo’s Egg – My Autobiography
by Bill Oddie (Hodder & Stoughton, 2008)
Clue Bible – The Fully Authorised History of I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue from Footlights to Mornington Crescent
by Jem Roberts (?. 2009)
Laughterlog.com 