The BBC are broadcasting a radio play on Friday 4th July which should appeal to students of Goon Show history. 1977, by Sarah Wooley, tells the story of the composer Angela Morley in the years after she transitioned from being the Goon Show’s Wally Stott. In particular, it’s set at the time she was writing of the Watership Down movie score. It was first broadcast in 2015 as part of the Drama on 4 series.
The programme is on BBC Radio 4 Extra, on Friday 4th July at 3.00 pm. It will be available to stream for the following 30 days from the programme’s BBC Sounds webpage or the Sounds app.
Angela Morley (photo from angelamorley.com)
Also worthy of a read is this blog post in which the writer explains the background to the play.
The 2025 annual GSPS member’s meeting is set for Saturday, 13th September. Once again, we’ll be gathering within earshot of the Spike Milligan Memorial Bench and the Lodge House which houses the Spike Milligan Archive. The venue, for the fourth year, is Stephens House and Gardens in Finchley, North London.
The event will run from 10.30am to 4.30pm, with a break for lunch in the Inky’s Café.
As well as our AGM, we are planning to have another quiz, a requested performance (or table read) of Tatter’s Castle (info), the initial Goon Show or Crazy People trial recording, and a chat with an author currently penning a brand new book on The Goon Show!
Oh, and bring along some of that lovely moolah you have stitched inside your mattress as we will be offering a variety of books, tapes and CDs for sale with the proceeds going back to society funds. Jane and Silé will also have new Spike related merchandise available, including the 2026 calendars!
Last year’s Jet Propelled Guided NAAFi reading
It isn’t necessary to book a place at this meeting. However, so we can judge how many teas and biscuits to bring in, it would be helpful to let us know you’re coming by sending a message through the form below.
Stephens House & Gardens 17 East End Rd, London N3 3QE
The venue is accessible for disabled visitors, and there are a few parking places can be reserved for those who might need one.
CAFE ON-SITE for coffee, tea and lunches. BY BUS Buses 13, 125, 143, 460 and 326 stop nearby. BY UNDERGROUND Nearest underground station: Finchley Central on the High Barnet branch of the Northern Line. On leaving the station walk up to Regents Park Road, turn left and, at the A504 junction, turn left again into East End Road. The house is on the left.
The video of the Galton and Simpson Archive talk at the University of York’s Festival of Ideas (we’ve mentioned it more than once) has been uploaded to YouTube. It includes Richard Usher performing one of the scripts which was written for Peter Sellers’ appearances on Midday Music Hall in 1954.
Richard Usher’s performance of ‘Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Two Raised Fingers’:
Don’t miss this week’s edition of Goon Pod. In it, Tyler talks to “the Grand Poobah” of the GSPS, Richard Usher and the University of York archivist Gary Brannan.
As well as discussing the Galton and Simpson archive which Gary is working on, and scripts found in it which were written for Peter Sellers and as performed recently by Richard (more info), the topics ranged from the archives being collected more generally at York, including the GSPS’s, collection, and the strength and future of the GSPS.
The very same day as the podcast was released, the video of Gary’s talk and Richard’s performance was uploaded to YouTube. See it here.
The crowdfunding campaign to help secure the Galton and Simpson archive, as mentioned in the podcast, is here
Listen to Goon Pod on your favourite source of podcasts, or here
Listeners' Top 20 British Sitcoms Of All Time –
Goon Pod
Let's go out with a bang as we count down Listeners’ Top 20 British Sitcoms of All Time – as voted for by you. In total 73 different shows were nominated – some of the very greatest and most popular, others quite obscure or forgotten. But which ones made the final list? In this show we find out, with very special guests Chris Diamond and Donna Rees.Whether your tastes run towards the communal warmth of classic ensemble shows, the brittle awkwardness of suburban frustration, or the fragmented edges of sitcom storytelling, there’s plenty here to argue about. We talk about why some comedies endure, why others divide opinion and how shifting zeitgeists shape what people laugh at. Expect nostalgia, rediscovery and the occasional raised eyebrow or disapproving 'tut' as we move through the list. Will the obvious favourites dominate, or will a few unexpected titles sneak in? Expect a few surprises!
Many members will be aware of The Footage Detectives programme on Talking Pictures TV, the show which features lots of archive clips recovered from days gone by, hosted by Mike Read and Noel Cronin.
Next Sunday, June 15th, they’ll be running a Goon Show Special! Mike and Noel will share some interesting rare lost reels from the Goon Preservation Society, and there will be a special guest!
Who will the guest from the GSPS be? What will they show?
You can watch Talking Pictures TV on Virgin 445, Freesat 306, Freeview or Youview 82 or on the Sky digital satellite platform, channel 328. Schedules are available at talkingpicturestv.co.uk Programmes can also be streamed on catch-up at www.tptvencore.co.uk
On 8th June, Richard Usher will be performing material written for Peter Sellers by Galton and Simpson in Goon Show style. There’s a link to book a (free) ticket in the text below.
Missing Goon Show Sketches Unearthed in Galton and Simpson Archive University of York discovers lost comedy gems tied to Peter Sellers and The Goon Show
Previously unknown Goon Show material has been uncovered in the personal archive of legendary comedy writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, held at the University of York. The sketches were found in a folder marked ‘Peter Sellers Sketches’ and include script titles such as Sherlock Holmes, Cowboy Sketch, and Caine Mutiny. On closer inspection, the material – short, tightly written scripts likely no more than five minutes each – was clearly Goon Show content, written for Sellers to perform at his vocal best. These sketches aired as part of Midday Music Hall, a variety programme on the BBC Home Service between 16th – 30th October 1954. Sellers was billed as ‘resident top of the bill’ for three weeks. The material includes themes and voices typical of Sellers, and one joke even appears three years later in a Goon Show episode. The Midday Music Hall sketches were broadcast in the middle of the Goon Show’s fifth series, at a time when the series was at its creative peak. No episodes of Midday Music Hall are known to exist in the archive. The discovery opens up new avenues of research on collaborative writing practices at Associated London Scripts (ALS), the writers’ agency founded by Spike Milligan, Eric Sykes, Frankie Howerd, and Galton and Simpson. While it’s well known that ALS writers collaborated freely, this is the first tangible evidence suggesting Galton and Simpson may have directly contributed to Goon Show material. To celebrate, the University of York will restage one of the rediscovered sketches – The Case of the Missing Two Fingers, a Sherlock Holmes parody – at the York Festival of Ideas on 8 June. Actor Richard Usher will bring the material to life for the first time in over 70 years to a live audience, complete with period-accurate sound effects: https://yorkfestivalofideas.com/2025/calendar/hancock-steptoe The performance forms part of a wider campaign to secure and preserve the Galton and Simpson archive for future research, enjoyment, and appreciation, and the comedy community can help via donations to a special crowdfunding campaign at https://yustart.hubbub.net/p/galtonandsimpson Gary Brannan, Keeper of Archives and Research Collections at the University of York, said: “As a fan of both Galton and Simpson and the Goons, I can’t wait to share these unknown gems with the comedy community. Who knows what else we’ll find? That’s why it’s really important to make sure we save the archive for future fans to enjoy and to secure the legacy of Ray and Alan.”
There has been sad news in the world of the GSPS this week. Mike Coveney, our founder and honorary vice-president, passed away on 26th May. He was 92 years old.
The story of the society being formed after Mike met other fans in a pub after the recording of The Last Goon Show of All in 1972 is well known. You can read a description of the early days in Mike’s own words here. Many more reports and articles by Mike are spread around this website, our newsletter archive, and the book Goons Show News.
Another long-time member, Mark Cousins, also summed up Mike’s contribution: Mike Coveney was quite simply a legend in the world of The Goon Show Preservation Society. He started the GSPS and ran it with Linton Culver for many years as it got off the ground, and was Chairman and President. We have a lot to thank him for. Most importantly, Mike was a really nice guy and I have many fond memories of him during those early days of the GSPS, including going on the famous GSPS march to the BBC and visiting Spike’s house. They will live with me forever. God bless you Mike. You are still a legend!
The 28th of May is designated National Goon Show Day. This year, it’s the 74th anniversary of the first ever Goon Show being broadcast by the BBC.
Here’s today’s special offer: To receive a quarterly magazine AND be able to buy our exclusive Encyclopaedia Goonicus, JOIN US TODAY, and get a whopping 25% off an e-membership. That’s only £6, it’s less than a single copy of the Radio Times ! Use the codeword: SPON
* Offer only available to new members signing up 28th May – deadline – 4th June 2025. Special offer membership is valid for only one year. This offer is not available to lapsed members or members renewing their subscription.
The June 2025 issue of Goon Show News is being posted out, physically and electronically, this week.
Included in this issue: News of some rare Harry Secombe scripts The Super Secret Service – and other recently recovered movies Some 1950s newspaper articles Looking ahead to the Peter Sellers Centenary at the BFI Reviews of Goon Shows performed on stage A shameless front cover advertisement
and much more.
The newsletter is published quarterly and sent to all of our members. If you’re not getting it, why not join the GSPS. You won’t be disappointed.
The current run of Series 7 Goon Show episodes being played in the Tuesday slot by the BBC has reached another episode which hadn’t previously had an airing in the digital era.
The show scheduled on Radio 4 Extra for this week, Tuesday 27th May, is Africa Ship Canal, which was the 22nd episode of Series 7. It was last broadcast by the BBC on the Home Service in May 1957. The script is a satire on the Suez Crisis of 1956, and so this is, perhaps, one of the most political episodes. Africa Ship Canal was included on Volume 6 of The Goon Show Compendium, so it’s not unknown to fans.
There’s another Series 7 episode which hasn’t been broadcast on any BBC station since its first appearance in 1957. That one’s the 24th of the series, a tale of dynamite and corruption in Birmingham City Council, The Missing Boa Constrictor. Will it be played during this run? We’ll know soon. Update: we know now, it’s on the schedule for 10th June.
Every week, a Goon Show is broadcast four times on a Tuesday on BBC Radio 4 Extra. That episode is then available to stream on BBC Sounds for the following 30 days.
A note for overseas listeners – The BBC had announced that, from Spring 2025, BBC Sounds was going to be geo-blocked outside the United Kingdom. As a replacement, there would be BBC.com/audio and a BBC app for overseas listeners. The content carried on those was to be restricted to Radio 4 and The World Service. However, these changes have now been ‘delayed’ and, at this stage, no one seems to know what’s going to happen. However, the likely outcome is some sort of payment being charged to access the service outside the UK.
The Goon Show Preservation Society 