Willie Rushton - Top Hat, White Tie and Tails. One of the greatest punchlines ever?

[@paulklee5790]

Willie Rushton... even as a boy back when the world was young, I knew he set the standard for what being an Englishman was in essence; urbane but without conceit, classy but without swank, and funny as f*uk... he’s a tough example to follow and I still miss him....

[@richardcochrane1966]

4:21 "This is it, is it? Not a word about trousers?" Has me in stitches EVERY TIME......

[@spazkong]

"I'm going to tell you how it's going to be" and "rerecord not fade away" yeah. One our very best and it's our job as fans to keep this stuff going, What a legacy though. This man was brilliant!

[@lakesbiker7286]

"Just my sort of audience....deviant & pissed" 🤣 at 50 appreciating the humour my parents once enjoyed. " this is it is it? Not a word about trousers?" 🤣

[@minicle426]

He'd have made a great incarnation of the Doctor I feel.

[@anton1990]

Oh yeah, he would have been wonderful!

[@AngelicusImmortus]

An underestimated genius, who has become overlooked in the histories of comedy, yet he was one of the best comedy writers of all time. This is one of his few performances on stage.

[@Annagramma-u7x]

Thanks for putting this on. The loss of Barry Cryer prompted me to look. Their performance of Two Old Farts holds very happy memories. Still extremely funny today

[@lakesbiker7286]

🙏👍

[@popitinpete]

Superb! I've been looking for this since ...... the internet. ;-)

[@robnewman6101]

R.I.P Willie Rushton.

[@deejannemeiurffnicht1791]

As a teen in the 1980's my friends and I would head down King's Road, Chelsea, and deliberately seat 💺 urselves across the street from a well known pub. The name escapes me right now. We'd chomp on crisps and cheap beers waiting for the high point of our afternoon. Namely, Willie Rushton, and best mate Ollie Reid getting kicked out for being too pissed and fighting pretentious posh tossers. Class! He was working class Scotland's favourite posh dude! Hardly surprising he was buddies with Ollie.

[@paultreneary]

Bloody brilliant!

[@stevehale1357]

Thank you soooo much. Waited years to find this. Why it was cut, I can't imagine. One of the best sketches ever.

[@DanielGomez-gw4kt]

Even though this guy had made up our childhoods, by narrating the later books of the Railway Series written by the original author himself the Rev W Awdry. Willie Rushton also was involved of telling some of the stories of another favorite character as part of our childhoods, who also originated from a series of British children's books. Who were written by AA milne, of course I'm talking about Winnie the Pooh. Willie Rushton also was involved of telling the stories of Winnie The Pooh, I believe only from the second book written and published by AA Milne. Which is entitled Winnie the Pooh. I think he had the perfect voice of narrating those classic stories as well

[@paultreneary]

I ripped it from my VHS, but here's someone who's uploaded it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oYK0mIKhmr2Jg8k

[@StuffPeterLikes]

Thank you very much. I've been trying to find this for several years.

[@ianoliver3879]

Bloody brilliant bloke. Thank you.

[@velobob4299]

Sometimes getting older can be a good thing.Going over all this old stuff and finding out why all those grown ups were laughing.

[@trublgrl]

Thanks for uploading, you are much appreciated!

[@Cchogan]

I had forgotten this - I just roared with laughter.

[@MidnightCarp]

Brilliant - so glad you saved it.

[@grumpyoldman3458]

I've got a VHS of "Two Farts in the Night", a show he did with Barry Cryer. There's a picture of this on the box art but it's not on the tape. Thanks for posting.

[@ilikecheese775]

Me too.

[@FlyingForFunTrecanair]

Superb!

[@kellyatkinson683]

What an incredible voice 😊

[@ryanbarth6691]

BEEEEERRRRRRRK

[@mikeyb0121]

Berk from trap door

[@Steeyuv]

And all the other characters too, but not as recognisable. Brilliant show wasn’t it?

[@fredbiscuit...413]

He is 'Class' indeed .... :)

[@wfcoaker1398]

He sounds like some delightfully eccentric aristocratic Victorian. The kind with a waxed moustache and a really entertaining pov on things.

[@lefrinj]

You might like Flanders and Swann (of I'm a Gnu/Hippopotamus Song fame) who are from a little longer ago but I think are brilliant. Look up the show!/album At The Drop Of A Hat.

[@schizoidman1016]

His ommision must have been some legal issue upon his death in1997. Why else would he not be there? I watched this when it was on Comedy Central and it continues to be one of the funniest things ever presented.

[@schizoidman1016]

Talking of that, is that Richard Vranch at the piano? He was on Whose Line is it, Anyway for so long, i figued it had to be.

[@paultreneary]

@@schizoidman1016 Yup, that's Richard Vranch. Interesting idea about legal issues though - I'm still bemused as to the omission to this day.

[@moogthedog2816]

It's far more likely that they couldn't get the music rights. There's *so much* great TV stuck in DVD/Bluray limbo because they used a track that they no longer have the rights to, even if it's only playing in the background in a restaurant or whatever. The semi-recent release of the Kenny Everett shows are chopped to all hells because of it.

[@philb4462]

It took me a while to work out the pianist is Richard Vranch.

[@tombaker8417]

The national theatre of Brent sketch is also missing from both VHS and DVD.

[@paultreneary]

I've just been digging around to se if I can find that VHS tape again but I've had no joy as yet.I doubt very much that I binned it given that I'm a bit of a hoarder. If I come across it then I'll upload that sketch too.

[@tombaker8417]

That would be amazing, thanks mate.

[@paultreneary]

@@tombaker8417 Just uploaded it here kzbin.info/www/bejne/hYnVqYejYr1ob7c - was this the missing sketch? (my DVD is packed away at the moment)

[@andrewjfulker]

And is that Richard Vranch on the piano?

[@paultreneary]

It is

[@insanimal2]

@@paultreneary I bloody knew it

[@vicblox25]

Nice

[@rylengrabler1765]

What if Willie Rushton Was Still Alive And Then He Would Not Been Died In December 11, 1996

[@MrKaywyn]

I don't understand why this is missing from the DVD.

[@paultreneary]

Me too. I bought the boxset years ago with the intention of ditching more of my old VHS TV recordings and I was stumped as to why, what was probably my favourite sketch of all of the gigs, seemed to be missing. I went back over the DVDs a few times and the recorded broadcast trying to figure what was up. I'm still baffled to this day.

[@zzvonschnerque8291]

@@paultreneary It must have been because he referred to 'trousers'. It couldn't possibly be the reference to Picasso's p***k, now could it? Nah!

[@FizzyChimp]

@@zzvonschnerque8291 He says cock, referring to the cockerel on his t-shirt.

[@juliesedgman4697]

[@thedarkdisguise8093]

was that richard vranch

[@paultreneary]

It was indeed.

[@anglaismoyen]

What was the soiree/1992 joke about?

[@paultreneary]

I guess it was referencing the Maastricht Treaty (creation of the EU)

[@anglaismoyen]

@@paultreneary Ah yes, I thought it was something EU related. Thanks

[@TaSwavo]

Another great - how many "stage comics" now will be remembered in 30-40 years. A lot less. Some but a lot less. Some comics are so bland but funny (mcIntire will be massive but 10 year he's gone, forgotten I think) We have too much and not therefore not the depth. We had thousands filling small venues - seems now we have only few filling arenas. The small venue people will replace them and there may be a rebellion against politics as many are fed up with comics being described as "right wing comic" or "comic" (meaning left wing) - try to take politics out of it else you halve you audience BUT ONLY IF YOU CAN - most comics don't have the skill to be apolitical