Secombe & Friends - ARTV 1966 Goon Reunion - Fully Restored

The Restoration process was quite difficult as the DVD I had to work with which was rather low bit-rate, not only that, It was at least 3 or 4 VHS Gens down from the print, So very soft, very hard to try to coax much detail into it, But Ive manged to make it much more 'watchable'. The Audio in it's raw state was layered with 50hz hum from the optical print, plus much Hi-Fi 'flickers' Ive managed to smooth things out, but again not perfect.
How does this exist if only 17mins were ever aired? Well the story goes that Peter Sellers wanted a copy of the entire Goon bit, and got it! It was luckily spared his 1980 bonfires which destroyed much of his film disc and tapes. I also have it on good authority that some time in the 70's Peter was having one of his 'moods' and had to get rid of everything he had that was associated with Spike, and got rid of an enormous amount of goon type recordings, who knows what at one stage he had, going by some of the cine footage that was spared, it looks like he had one of the 10th series shows on film, well at the very least some of the rehearsals anyway. Ive been trying to get ALL of that material for years, Might be easy to synch up to the actual show, regardless that it's not the 'proper' Audio.
Of course anyone who can access any of this or indeed any more material in this vain PLEASE contact me.
When the Video tape of this reunion was viewed by the producer of Harry's ATV show, It was decided that the Tape was visually uninteresting so interviews with Harry and Ray Ellington were cut in to the reunion and in the end only 17mins and 15 seconds was seen by viewers on ARTV in October 1966.
The show itself? Well to be honest Its not very good, a bit of a let down after wanting to see it for the last 28 years, But then again It's nice to see all the same, Peter has sort of forgotten how to do some of the 'voices' His Blubottle harks back to the whinny 4th series version which is not a patch on the later 'voice'. Herny Crun also sounds a bit odd. When interviewed around the 1972 'Last Goon Show' Sellers mentioned that it was difficult getting all the voices 'right' and had to listen to a few LP's to remind himself!
I take it peter didn't do the same research for this one. Plus Spike or should i say Norma selected a script that spike had very little to do with but to sit and give 'orders' directing every single line almost (which is what He did in the Heyday of the show, but we never heard much of it to the credit of the people on the mixing desk John Browell, Bobby Jay and Brian Willey)
In addition to this there doesn't seem to be the iron rod of a producer knocking them into shape, Listen to the 5th series show and you'll know what I mean, Peter Eaton who Produced the pivotal 5th and 6th Series didn't let them get carried away with themselves very much.
I could Write about this all day, and now realize that instead of the small 5 line description I had planned its now too long.
Now Read on....

[@barbaragordon4363]

I had the extraordinary good fortune to be in the audience when this was filmed. Spike Milligan did a 5 minute warm up after which the rest of them could have read the phone directory and we would have died laughing. It was one of the best times of my life.

[@paulscrimgour4769]

Hello from nz you are trully blessed

[@iancurtis1152]

@@paulscrimgour4769 Haar low😁

[@reggietelly]

You lucky person

[@scottnapier943]

Peter Sellers said 'The Goons' was the high point of his career. You can see why, the chaos of their comedic chemistry is just magical.

[@jrgboy]

You can see why Spike had a mental breakdown having to write around 30 episodes a year ...

[@notbloodylikely4817]

Many people think Monty Python was the birth of British alternative comedy, but the Pythons were inspired by the Goon Show.

[@stevefox2295]

Who were inspired by Beachcomber (JB Morton).

[@nicosogrecos]

I will never forget the Neddy "I am as sane as the next man" then Eccles " I am the next man" comic geniuses in action.

[@ianplowman4886]

or Eccles sings: I talk to the trees - thats why they put me away.

[@plunder1956]

People who attended the original radio recordings describe an entire visual layer that you don't get from the audio alone. How the atmosphere crackles with energy. A comedy resting on the edge of going crazy; yet it's always tight as a drum and never slides into chaos. Peters amazing voices just blow me away; and here you see how much Ray played a live part of the performance. It's superb. The sound effects are split second perfect. and you see Harry suddenly discovering another layer in the joke. What an amazing find. I have rescued enough 3rd generation material with a VHS dub in the chain; to appreciate how difficult this was. So thanks for the effort involved.

[@dingopisscreek]

better quality than i was expecting - Milligan was a genius, these 3 were hilarious together. The absurdity of the humour was unique, and only monty python has come near, but the goons are still way ahead. the ad libbing and mistakes make these shows even funniers, and they were having fun and enjoying each other's craziness.

[@davidpowell6098]

Monty Python's team attribute their comedy to the Goons, John Cleese said they shaped the whole show. What an amazing team the Goons, and Python were.

[@alanwareham7391]

"BRILLIANT" many thanks for putting some genuine British comedy on where everyone can enjoy it . It's a pity that with all their wealth and power the overlords at the BBC couldn't do the same .Surely one slot late at night wouldn't hurt anyone ,and it would do wonders for their ratings as well as costing very little to put on some of our old classic comedies

[@RWBHere]

BBC Radio 4 Extra have been repeating maybe as many as 144 of the episodes (the ones which were rediscovered behind a wall; the tapes having been used for soundproofing for a number of years) pretty well continuously as a weekly programme for a number of years.

[@liquidsonly]

When Milligan just "becomes" Eccles. Spooky.

[@66PHILB]

I awlays thought Spike Milligan was Eccles' version of Clark Kent.

[@plunder1956]

The visual performance, especially with Spike Harry & Peter was so crisp. Yet the radio audience never got that.

[@ProjectFlashlight612]

Superb job. God, imagine what priceless gems went into Sellers' bonfire in 1980. A before and after comparison split-screen of a sample moment would have made you look even more of a wizard, Mr Gregg.

[@dougboblas]

The Goons were one of the reasons why a little girl, on being told how wonderful the the new-fangled thing called 'television' was, compared to radio, replied "No, the pictures are better."

[@Deepthought-42]

As schoolboy Goons fans in days prior to tape recorders and instant access media days we would avidly listen to the Goon shows and regurgitate the jokes at school the next day. Our poor teachers would have to put up with us talking in Goon voices ( especially Eccles) and twanging rulers to imitate the sound effects. Raspberry sounds would generally be responded to with Bloodnock impersonations and “No more curried eggs for me” and the threat of detention if we didn’t “settle down”. The humour would keep us going until another show came along the following week.

[@JohnLeeming23]

Wonderful. The original radio version of this show is one of my favourites. If the actual radio recordings were as chaotic as this, I'm glad I didn't have the job of editing them for broadcast!

[@bugutwo]

On the piano is Dick Katz, who escaped his native Austria in the 1930s just prior to WW2. He was the regular pianist on the Goon shows and a member of the Ray Ellington Band. In 1961 Dick married Valerie Masters a well known British singer in the 1950s and 60s. Later Dick Katz become one of the most prominent theatrical agents in Britain. He died at the Savoy hotel, London in 1981 after suffering a massive stroke.

[@jrgboy]

Dick was also the singer Lulu's first agent.

[@mattthornton5216]

Oh watching these three in live action has absolutely made my day! So many thanks for uploading. You silly twisted boy ...

[@christopherfisher6293]

To think all this came from a question " Duu! Can we have our gun back?" Insanity of the best order!!

[@RonWylie-gk5lc]

You did great, this looks fresh and detailed, well do for preserving this wonderful snapshot of brilliant comedy for all us fans

[@RonWylie-gk5lc]

Like all great acts, rock groups and great tv shows the chances of these very special talents all meeting up in the same lifetime is remarkable. The genius of Milligan could only be brought out properly by these wonderful people. It simply does not age and I always laugh out loud {something I dont do to python} Not until Father Ted was there anything else with that power, bless you Spike, Harry and Peter

[@gracebennion2000]

The sound effects ... the strange voices .... the written humour and fill-ins .... too good. Just love it.

[@lezzman]

Considering the source, this restoration is immaculate!

[@orchardist1965]

Comedy's version of modern art, lots of irregular patterns that gel into a masterpiece.

[@beagle7622]

Sheer craziness, I was sick one Saturday night , my parents bought on old radio in . I could not have been more than 9 ,& laughed my head off.Eccles was always my favourite character!

[@brianneale2006]

they were great used to listen to them nearly every week on the home service of the BBC, folks ying tong pidle i po

[@Johnny-sj9sj]

You silly twisted fool Neale.

[@semajttam]

I didn't realise that Peter and Spike weren't ever not friends. Mental health is no joke, bless him

[@malcolmdale]

Thank you so much. Brings back happy memories of listening to the Goons in bed on my transistor radio. I went to bed early in those days.

[@philjamieson5572]

Malcolm Dale: Snap! Warm memories.

[@blackthrashattack333]

i listen to them on my ipod almost every night and even while driving in the car. never ever gets less funny :)

[@Kyp15]

Thanks for your hard work getting this up on you tube! Throughly enjoyed!

[@countistvan]

Thank you very much for your efforts and for sharing this with us. I must add that I have to feel sorry for the 20 pathetic persons that felt compelled to give this a thumbs-down.

[@neilbain8736]

I was listening to this on Radio 4 Extra only a couple of nights ago!

[@ade425mxy]

@pythongoon Im currently working on a new restoraion from a much higher quality print. Still sady soursed from DVD and not Digicam, but a great improvement none the less. Plus my techniques for restoration have improved somewhat too

[@leemendham4788]

Based on "The Whistling Spy Enigma" as originally broadcast on the BBC Home Service in September 1954. The original episode is one of many released on CD if anyone's interested. The announcer is Ray Ellington, who sang musical interludes and played politically-incorrect roles in the original.

[@johndickson9628]

grill lwant more

[@jrgboy]

Wallace died in 1961 aged just 45 from a massive heart attack..

[@Johnny-sj9sj]

“Black rod!“ “Yes massah?

[@keithhead7696]

Yes the great bandleader. The original announcer was Christopher Timothy if I remember correctly. He did not last long.

[@keithhead7696]

Whoops. I meant Andrew Timothy, the father of Christopher

[@johnharpdalton4092]

A small taste, much appreciated, and how we wish there was more! Thanks

[@petejones879]

Absolutely brilliant.. Zany British humour at its best and it's simplest.. Good clean insanity... Without the Goons we most likely would not have had Monty Python and many other madcap comedies

[@MrJaybee53]

Brilliant and thank you for the restore so that we can enjoy these classics some more!!

[@OAK77uk]

Brilliant - Thank you for all the hard work prepping this.

[@greygoose6]

Goons Rock!! I was lucky enough to get to record all of the vinyl records from a friends collection. More video please!!! More Goonery!! Ying Tong Iddle I Poe!! Needle Nardle Noo!!

[@saturdayplayer2492]

Just brilliant.

[@jongadsby1623]

Mad !!!!! Mad !!!!! and Mad but Genius!! They clearly had so much fun!!! I have reel to reel tapes of the Goons and records and they were some of the best the BBC ever did period!!!!!!! Listened to then in the late 1950's and 60's on our radio!!!! Also the telegoons!!!! Like Prince Charles , with whom I am the same age, I was captivated!!!

[@cardznbeadz]

I have an LP of this, bought just after I watched on tv in front of my parents. I was six, and I remember this vividly.

[@zerotoleranceforsataniceli4794]

I recently found The last Goon Show which was excellent for a few reasons, one of which I didn't expect and that was the visual enjoyment of a radio studio setting and the naturalness of how it flowed because it wasn't a film set. The live audience enjoyed that side of it too. There was an ad-lib to all their movements and when not performing, there was informal chats going on everywhere but no-one missed a que. We even see the sound makers ! The Royals don't appear too royal or too remote. Great atmosphere. I felt as if I was there. It's mentioned in the description that Spike didn't get his voices right in this clip but in the later 1972 Last Goon Show, he definitely does. This clip has the same feel to it and again I enjoy the informal arrangements of where everyone stands and their untutored interactions with each other and again a live audience to enjoy it with. How sad it was seen as visually uninteresting at the time. But how could they have seen the level of falsity and unreality that we see today which makes this type of setting so real and engaging. I loved this clip and am not disappointed in spite of no voices really from Spike. Will we see any more ?

[@kcrossleKMC]

Oh! This ends at the Eccles moment!! I do hope that there is more. This clip is just great... Thanks.

[@barbarakirk3064]

'If I Had To Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You' - also a Caravan album title.

[@MirlitronOne]

And where, pray, do you think Caravan got it from? "Come in! Please excuse my filthy hands - I've just been washing my face."

[@Mortthemoose]

​@@MirlitronOne😂😂

[@junkyarddog4411]

Priceless, from the days when people were able and allowed to make their own fun.

[@TheTheoldgit]

Excellent Job Mr Gregg, Simply Excellent,

[@biggerthanacadillac]

MAGIC! Wet eyes from manic Goon type laughter. Totally original despite being 'old' format. Goons RULED.

[@MartinGraham-xb3lq]

Pure nostalgic genius memories

[@laurencegladwell529]

Unbeatable comedy, absolutely classic 😂😂

[@stuartrankin4851]

Brilliant!!! Thank you for this. It made my day 😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@DavidDieckfoss]

Thanks...so good to see the video from the audio I know so well

[@allancurrie8088]

Your got to go out, you got to go out, cough, cough, FORWARD 2021

[@1PaddyMurray]

Fantastic. Anyone who can't see this will find that their hair turns green with envy and their knees will fall off.

[@hughvane]

I hope I can join your ranks (as Private First Class Twit). I have some 60 cassette tapes of Goon Shows, some bought from the BBC, the rest inherited from a guy who recorded the shows on to reel-to-reel tapes! I transferred them to cassettes. The differences in the series were quite marked, with producers various stamping their mark on proceedings. Too much to discuss in this small space, but much kudos to you for presenting both this video, and your thoughts on TGS. Thank you.

[@sr.b8002]

hughvane Any chance some of them could be uploaded?

[@vzd963]

OH, WELL DONE FOR PUTTING THIS UP. SO THAT'S WHAT RECORDING A GOON SHOW REALLY LOOKED LIKE - I'VE ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT THE GUYS IN "LAST GOON SHOW" FILM LOOKED A BIT SELF-CONSCIOUS, SO THIS IS AS CLOSE AS WE'LL GET TO THE REAL THING. THANK YOU!

[@gentsw13]

By this time 'Associated' had been dropped from the ITV Contractors name. So we had to announce 'This is Rediffusion - Londons Television'.

[@BillFroog]

Great job. Fabulous.. Many many thanks.

[@LloydysLambrettas]

Great work, this is genius! Thank you.

[@SocietyPages]

Thank you. Great quality. So good in fact that I feel compelled to say "Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes!"

[@SocietyPages]

Please don't.

[@windyworm]

Brilliant, thank you.

[@Quadrant14]

bloody brilliant, I have played this on record,cassette and have the CD, NOW I can see them , thanks for this, genius at work

[@mervynsands3501]

Time less classic Goon funnery.

[@jeanmyers1787]

Surely the masters of comedy

[@entruchiomarchubar4963]

I'm hurting from laughing so much. Thank you for your great efforts. Part of me understand that Sellers wanted it to be ephemeral. Part of me calls him a vandal of the highest calibre. You have done a great job in saving this.

[@semajttam]

There will never be anyone like him. What a shame he refused what would've been life saving heart surgery.

[@MLaak86]

They're having so much fun

[@markmeade2937]

There’s great comedy, and there’s the legend that is the GOONS, what,what,what what...........🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@martincawthraymc]

Only 4 Watts? you're not very bright are you?

[@markmeade2937]

@@martincawthraymc 4 Watts makes an amp, that’s bright

[@martincawthraymc]

@@markmeade2937 V x I = W.

[@markmeade2937]

@@martincawthraymc 👍

[@markmeade2937]

@@martincawthraymc 220 watts = 1 amp, what, what,what.................😉

[@alinemerrow]

oh this is most wonderful. Thank you for your work, I adore this show.

[@rael1999]

Ade thanks so much for this and the wonderful job you've done on it !

[@Ohverture]

I could watch hours of that.

[@Hansthatjudicious]

Brilliant. Many many thanks. Keep them coming please

[@steveharrison76]

Very well done indeed!

[@akbarkamdar4906]

Thank you so much for this.

[@obsidiandwarf]

Damn fine job. Many thanks.

[@bikerbisht110]

Pretty good work Ade ... thanks

[@dolfyn73]

Thanks for posting this up. I grew up on tapes of the Goons. :o)

[@trevorkeyes6067]

Excellent

[@RatelHBadger]

This is the greatest thing ever!!!

[@StephenRBeet]

You did a great job

[@chrishodgson6302]

Simply brilliant.

[@anniemay4547]

Immortal

[@ade425mxy]

@MrMarchick No probs, if you have any questions about the show, feel free to shoot me some questions, there's not many alive who know the thing as I.

[@theblackboxclub]

Hmm tell me more about Peter's 1980 destruction of thousands of his tapes and home movie footage.... this was lovely though! Thank you.

[@royhepper6215]

comedy genius.......oh how i wish i had a time machine.

[@JJMMWGDuPree]

Fear not! You're going to invent one next year.

[@MrJoedanmx]

great job thanks.

[@glennjohnson8170]

Glenn Johnson How great to see this again.Put the film on again,Min.It doesn`t fit me Henry!!

[@theduckofevil]

Fantastic!

[@GSP21]

Though's were the days!

[@MattRobertsFTW]

I wish there was more ;(

[@jonginder5494]

Gold

[@goodiesguy]

you gotta go owww..... a good restoration,

[@weissdraconis9316]

I have seen the complete version of this on KZbin in the past, back around 2008 or so, but it was since pulled down. I don't know why or when. One thing I DO know, however, is that there's more details you've omitted here. First off, this was meant as more of a 'performance' for a special of Harry Secombe, and it was made a lot more ad-lib because of the fact that the segments would be televised. The Crun you hear is actually heard a lot, and was one of two variations that matched with Sellers' vocal range, the other being a lot more higher-pitched in sound to sound like a more alert and crotchety old man (as can be heard in the episode 'The Phantom Head-Shaver of Brighton' and here, which is a version also heard in episodes like 'The Lost Year' - part of this being a change in Sellers' vocals during the late 50s as he began to become more prominently known. The Bluebottle voice was always rather whiny, and it is possible that it has only become more-so due to the deterioration you mentioned earlier. Having a lot of the original Goons stuff on tape, and Sellers' insistence on how the voice came about being modelled on a 'Brown Owl' Scout Troop Leader he knew, it's still notably similar, though not entirely the same. As to the scripts, it's why a lot of the rehearsals were never actually taped or filmed. Milligan was a manic depressive, as is well-known to the Goon Show fans of the world, but he also was a chronic ad-libber and rewriter. In fact, he frequently ad-libbed his own lines into a show, as he did here. Secombe and Sellers would also ad-lib, and Milligan would pull them up since he had a vision of what he wanted. Here, they were told in all likelihood not all of this would be used even though it was filmed - and so they decided 'what the hell - let's just have fun with it'. Part of this was that Elington, in spite of his brilliant performance as the announcer here, wasn't as much of a 'straight-man' to play off as was the then-late at the time Wallace Greenslade. There are a LOT of points which could be argued on this, but it was one of only three big occasions I know of where the Goons reunited to perform a show together after 1960. The most prominent of these is the well-known 'Last Goon Show of All' in 1972, but they also had John Cleese as an announcer when they did 'Tales of Men's Shirts' again at some point, though I think it might've been the late 60s...

[@bencobbett2819]

Thanks for the detail .. but I'm thinking Spike would have something to add to the notion of 'the then-late at the time' Wallace Greenslade. (I'm still trying to work it out).

[@semajttam]

I don't think that any of them (including Bentine) were ever not friends. I've read that Secombe made a concerted effort to be there for Milligan as much as was possible in his depressive times. Theres also a telegram from Sellers (and footage from a Parkinson) begging Spike to do another Goon show but a year later the man was dead.

[@eedrelisdufrayne15]

What does Milligan say when Secombe says "i'll step on your foot boy!" at 2.42 This is fantastic. Thank you so much for the effort of restoring it and putting it online.

[@semajttam]

Something like "wait I've got my flies undone."

[@The_Joker_]

More more more!!!

[@bonzothebrown7603]

@Ade Gregg. I saw you mention somewhere that you had restored the video for the goons whistling spy enigma TV broadcast. I'd love to see it, if possible.

[@ade425mxy]

@MrMarchick Blimey, ahhh well. All of em, Ive read every book written on the subject as well as every Biog written on em (even Max Geldrays, which is a good read) Ahh umm, 'The goon show companion' Is a good one to start, Alfred Drapers 'The Goons' even though its a quick 'lets cash in on the 1972 "last Goon Show Of All" Reunion' thing, Although it has a wonderful piece of what went on on the Sunday it was recorded, Take those 3 times daily and see me if unrecovered

[@glenscott1]

this is the best of british comedy

[@leehalloran]

Somebody open a window!! :---)

[@DogOfKrondor]

Just plain bloody funny!

[@christopherfisher6293]

Radio Anarchy!!

[@terrywilliams9782]

Goons at their best

[@YouVadar]

"Report at once to MI faaaiiievae"

[@exessex3522]

Great to actually see them performing. Got any more?