Comedy: Mixed Media

Loving comedy in all its many forms, from the written page, to live Edinburgh previews

The fact that I like comedy in all its forms is no secret, so it feels rather symmetrical that at a time when BBC3 is being moved to an online-only platform a book of scripts from the 1960s of a classic TV comedy ‘All Gas And Gaiters’ comes my way.
‘All Gas And Gaiters’ was a contemporary of ‘Dad’s Army’ and ‘Steptoe & Son’, actually exceeding these classics’ viewing figures but caught in the great video cull of the BBC often cited in stories of ‘lost’ episodes of ‘Here’s The Way To The Holy Grail – No, Really’ and ‘The Truth About What All Men And Women Really Want, In A Nutshell’ (possibly these may have never been found but you get the gist).

As well as the sweetly entertaining scripts of clerical shenanigans, that give you an idea of what could very feasibly be some of the inspirations for ‘Father Ted’, what is really engaging are the intros to each episode. The writers, Pauline Devaney and Edwin Apps, were a couple at the time, as well as jobbing actors. No longer together, their emails and contextualising touch on the good – and the bad – of working for the good old Beeb in the good old days.
They got six months to write six episodes! Whoa! And Devaney had to give some of her directions through Apps, because older male actors didn’t really take well to instructions from a lady. Hmm.
Fast forward to now and it has just been announced that the channel that was becoming the first stop for innovative breakthrough comedy on mainstream TV is moving to a strictly web-based format. I’m talking about BBC3. Champion of Nick Helm, Pappy’s, Funz And Gamez, Gavin & Stacey… loads!

Perhaps we are going backwards. Angela Barnes has just announced that she has a brand new BBC Radio show of her very own, and every year the hits of the Edinburgh Fringe find their way to Radio 4, from Tom Wrigglesworth’s letter to Richard Branson to Mark Thomas’ ‘Bravo Figaro’ memoire to his father. Perhaps the revolution has come back to the airwaves where it started with The Goons and Round The Horne.
Two current stars of radio comedy – Mark Steel and Nathan Caton – will be found at the Caroline Of Brunswick next Tuesday with a double header of Edinburgh previews. With a ticket price of just £8, know that you can simply tune into iplayer on your way home and listen to more comedy gold from these two. It’s all there. Until they decide they need the tape, of course, and it drifts into legend.
All Gas & Gaiters – www.durpey-allen.co.uk
www.carolineofbrunswick.co.uk