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
Goon Pod kicks off a new series for 2026 by looking back at a film which is unbelievably fifty years old but when released was hailed as a modern masterpiece of comedy cinema, and which lifted Peter Sellers from an extended period of career inertia: The Return of the Pink Panther, directed by Blake Edwards. Sellers plays Inspector Clouseau once again, back on the trail of the mysterious Phantom – aka Sir Charles Litton (Christopher Plummer) – who apparently has stolen the famed Pink Panther diamond again. Along the way the hapless ‘tec nearly gets shot, gets blown up by a bomb, drives into a swimming pool, is outwitted by a parrot, assists a bank robbery, gets squashed in a revolving door and is the victim of countless other indignities. Joining Tyler is Sitcom Club co-host Gary Rodger and the conversation, rather like Clouseau on the waxy museum floor, goes in all directions:How Lew Grade came to the rescueWho might have been cast in the mooted Pink Panther television seriesPrince Charles moistening a lady in MontrealWhat happened to Niven?We love John BluthalZwamm?Douglas Fairbanks Jr as an early casting choiceHow Sellers’ career may have panned out had this film not happenedCheering Lodge & StarkPan & Scan technologyLast of the Summer Wine Catherine Schell corpses, Victor Spinetti fumes, Mike Grady shines and Carole Cleveland makes a splashDid Dreyfuss overreact? And much much more. It’s all here folks! As mentioned, Gary is going to run the London Marathon this year (or kill himself trying) on behalf of Alzheimer's Society – please show your support here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/gary-rodger
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 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.
Our own Richard Usher will be performing rare Goon Show-inspired scripts in York on the 8th of June. He’ll be bringing back to life sketches written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson for Peter Sellers to perform in Midday Music Hall in 1954. Midday Music Hall was a Saturday lunchtime show on the BBC Home Service, and Sellers was the ‘Resident Top of the Bill’ in October of that year.
The evening is part of the York Festival of Ideas, and it’s titled Innit Marvellous? The World of Hancock and Steptoe. The main feature will be Gary Brannan, the Keeper of Archives and Research Collections at the University of York, presenting an illustrated talk on the Galton and Simpson collection which was acquired by the University of York in 2024. The Sellers scripts were found in the collection.
The Borthwick Institute has ambitious plans for the Galton and Simpson archive. They’re fundraising to ensure that they can secure all of the material. If that’s something you can support, click here for more information
Another stage version of the Goon Show appeared in mid-April, down south (well, it was for me). In deepest Cumbria, Penrith Players staged their versions of three classic episodes in one show, The Canal, The Dreaded Batter Pudding Hurler and The Treasure of Loch Lomond.
Why were Penrith Players performing Goon Shows? The director, Tash Binder, explained that she had the power to choose something for this slot in their programme, and she went with the comedy she’d loved since childhood.
This show wasn’t an attempt to recreate the radio studio. The cast had the freedom of the stage, and beyond, to play out the action. There were a couple of microphones on show, but it was only the announcer who used one as part of his act. The set centred on an old sofa, with props placed strategically around, including telephones and a hostess trolley fashioned into a portable gas stove. There was a special effects station with equipment and a laptop for grams on a table to the side. Each character also had a hat, surely helping audience members less familiar with the Goons.
And what of the cast? Ian Baker played Greenslade and Grytpype-Thynne, while sharing the FX duties with director Tash. The penny dropped in a mug effect, for one, was used a lot. For Neddie Seagoon, they had a high-energy little Welsh bubble called Vic Brunetti. You’ll guess which one he is in the photos. Neil Gander played Henry Crun, Bloodnok, Willium, and was a particularly good (though taller than you’ve ever imagined) Bluebottle.
The final member of the cast was (gasp, splutter) a female-type lady actor. Jess Crumback-Nyahoe was Minnie Bannister of course, but also played Eccles, Moriarty and Throat. She took the extra parts of Laird McGool and Valentine Dyall too. Let’s face it, a genuine Man in Black voice was always going to be a step too far. With both those characters having exchanges with Eccles, Jess had a lot of hat stacking and quick swapping to do.
The production boasted live music too. Links and the Bloodnok theme came from the cast playing kazoos. Musical interludes were included, just as in the original broadcasts. A young lady called Raven Kitching sang classics such as Stormy Weather and Paper Moon, accompanied by Mark Stewart on piano. The show finished on a song too, the cast performed I’m Walking Backwards for Christmas.
Was it all worthwhile? Absolutely. The production stayed true to the original scripts, I even caught a couple of lines which are missing from the commonly available versions. There was occasionally a fluffed line or corpse, but that just added to the authenticity. The cast had fun, the audience had fun, my non-Goon Show following companion laughed all the way through. It was great to see these scripts getting an outing, let’s have more of the same.
The Penrith Players production runs until Saturday 19th April. Go seek tickets at penrithplayers.org.uk.
Six Charlies in Search of an Author a review by Richard Usher
There have been four professional UK stage productions of The Goon Show since 2014, and it is rare for amateur dramatic groups to gain permission to perform these classic shows, so it must have been a delightful surprise for the members of the Stockton Heath Methodist Dramatic Society when they got the green light to stage Six Charlies in Search of an Author.
The production was part of a double bill of classic radio shows adapted to stage performance, the first half being Orson Welles’ legendary War of the Worlds. These two shows might seem strange bedfellows at first glance, but as it turned out, they complemented each other rather well.
The stage set was extremely well-made and was a convincing backdrop for a vintage radio theatre, complete with CBS logo. The Goon Show offering made up the second half of the bill and was introduced by director Paul Thompson in a style that slightly echoed the John Browell and Dirk Maggs openings to The Last Goon Show of All and Goon Again. The entrance of a sound operator in a white coat and the request to take us from 1930’s America to Britain in 1956 added a lovely touch of the surreal to the proceedings, especially when he nodded and swapped the CBS logo for a plaque displaying a vintage BBC logo.
If you went along expecting to see a group of actors channel Sellers, Secombe and Milligan you would have been disappointed. What we got instead was the cast taking on the various roles the original Goons played in the show, and it worked a treat! Hazel Bradley bravely took on the Wallace Greenslade role and delivered her lines with true BBC announcer aplomb. Nonagenarian thesp, Bert Rigby, took on the roles of Jim Spriggs, the famous Eccles and Henry Crun and clearly had a lot of fun with the characters. The same can be said of Gill Murphy who gave us her best Grytpype Thynne and Bluebottle, and Alex Clarke erupting on stage as Major Bloodnok and doing his best to convey Moriarty. While Kevin Mottershead may not have had the well built and diminutive stature of Neddy Seagoon, he left you in no doubt that he was an equally energetic Charlie.
Musical contributions were few, and this production definitely owed a lot to the director’s love of the EMI Goon But Not Forgotten album version, and none the worse for it. The big plus was the array of spot FX, brilliantly performed live on stage and ably assisted by some terrific sound design from Mike Rigby.
This show was not a tribute act, nor was it trying to re-imagine the Goon Show of old. It was an enthusiastic, very well directed and energetically performed piece of theatre that proved beyond doubt that the script writing of Spike Milligan and Larry Stephens can transcend its original context and still get the laughs and applause.
Recreating Goon Shows on stage seems to be in fashion these days. News has reached us that there will be a performance of Six Charlies in Search of an Author in Stockton Heath, Warrington on Thursday and Friday of next week (3rd & 4th April).
Stockton Heath Methodist Dramatic Society are re-staging the broadcasts of two classic radio shows, the aforementioned Goon Show, and the Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds which frightened Americans in 1938.
The Goon Show Preservation Society 