British Comedy Guide
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Graham McCann
Graham McCann

Graham McCann

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Graham McCann features - page 4

Only Fools And Horses. Image shows left to right: Del (David Jason), Rodney (Nicholas Lyndhurst), Uncle Albert (Buster Merryfield). Credit: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: And so this is Christmas... TV's strange reluctance to indulge in seasonal fun

Sunday 25th December 2022

Comedy was once the staple of British television - and particularly so at Christmas. Now it feels a third consideration at best. But how did the present set of events come to pass?

Image shows from L to R: Eric Morecambe, Ernie Wise. Copyright: ITN Features

Comedy Chronicles: Random acts of kindness - Comedians being good to each other

Sunday 18th December 2022

Negative stories always make the biggest press headlines; so much so that positive tales, such as acts of unfaltering kindness, are often left completely untold.

Spike Mullins Features

Comedy Chronicles: The sinuous comic art of Spike Mullins - Before I begin I'd just like to say...

Sunday 4th December 2022

The annals of British comedy are peppered with those who did not seek the limelight, but were happy to simply write and make millions laugh. Spike Mullins is one such genius - a prolific scribe whose name you may not know, but whose material you definitely do.

It's A Square World. Michael Bentine. Copyright: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: Michael Bentine - A Goon who should not be forgotten

Sunday 20th November 2022

In his centenary year, Comedy Chronicles addresses the remarkable and often-overlooked legacy and career of the multi-talented, fascinating Michael Bentine, co-creator of The Goon Show.

Image shows left to right: Bernie Winters, Mike Winters Features

Comedy Chronicles: There's two of 'em! - The Winters and their discontent

Sunday 6th November 2022

Once huge stars, sibling double-act Mike & Bernie Winters are now often remembered far more as the butt of jokes than for their contributions to comedy. Here we look at their career and body of work to find out why, and set straight a few misconceptions.

Mother Riley Meets The Vampire. Image shows left to right: Old Mother Riley (Arthur Lucan), Vampire (Bela Lugosi) Features

Comedy Chronicles: BOO! When Bela Lugosi met Old Mother Riley

Sunday 23rd October 2022

With Halloween approaching, Graham McCann tells of the now obscure early-50s British comedy film that co-starred Hollywood horror legend Bela Lugosi, Mother Riley Meets The Vampire.

The Goon Show. Image shows from L to R: Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Harry Secombe. Copyright: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: In search of lost time - Remembering The Last Goon Show Of All

Sunday 9th October 2022

Itself produced as part of the BBC's own 50th birthday celebrations, The Last Goon Show Of All marks 50 years since its broadcast this month - so, what of comedy reunions?

Oh Brother!. Brother Dominic (Derek Nimmo). Copyright: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: Arrested developments - comedy out of context

Sunday 25th September 2022

Comedy does not always land quite as intended, and some attempts at humour have been known to bring comics to face the law itself.

Are You Being Served?. Image shows from L to R: Mr. Ernest Grainger (Arthur Brough), Miss Shirley Brahms (Wendy Richard), Captain Stephen Peacock (Frank Thornton), Mr. Wilberforce Clayborne Humphries (John Inman), Mr. Harman (Arthur English), Mr. Cuthbert Rumbold (Nicholas Smith), Mrs. Betty Slocombe (Mollie Sugden), Mr. Dick Lucas (Trevor Bannister). Copyright: Anglo-EMI Features

Comedy Chronicles: Closed for the holidays - Why sitcoms seldom screen their summer breaks

Sunday 10th July 2022

Certain sitcoms - Benidorm, Duty Free - make the great British holiday their central focus, but for other domestic-set comedies, the temptation to take characters away from their usual confines for a 'relaxing' break is often a poor idea.

Sid James Features

Comedy Chronicles: The ITV Job - The day when the BBC almost lost British comedy

Sunday 26th June 2022

Graham McCann's column charts a fascinating 'what if' moment in British television comedy history: a fork in the road that had consequences of epic proportions in either direction.

Comedy Legends. Frankie Howerd. Copyright: Shutterstock Features

Comedy Chronicles: An Englishman abroad - Frankie Howerd's Commonwealth comedies

Sunday 12th June 2022

The many ups-and-downs of comedy icon Frankie Howerd's long career are well noted, but his endeavours with home-grown television sitcoms in Canada and Australia are stories less well-told.

Monsewer Eddie Gray Features

Comedy Chronicles: The true Lord of Misrule - 'Monsewer' Eddie Gray

Sunday 29th May 2022

You've heard of 'Pythonesque' and 'Goon-like' comedy - but have you heard of 'Grayesque'? The comedian who influenced dozens of well-remembered comics after him was Eddie Gray, a master of silliness at every level.

Harold Snoad Features

Comedy Chronicles: Harold Snoad - The next generation

Sunday 15th May 2022

After the likes of Sydney Lotterby and Duncan Wood created the grammar of the British television sitcom, producer/directors like David Croft and the under-sung Harold Snoad were part of the next generation who perfected and excelled at it.

Ernest Maxin. Copyright: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: But while there's moonlight... The magic of Ernest Maxin

Sunday 1st May 2022

Intoxicated by the glamour and spectacle of mid-century Hollywood, the outrageously multi-talented Ernest Maxin became one of the BBC's most reliable comedy and light entertainment producers through the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

John Ammonds. Copyright: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: Bring me fun - The brilliance of John Ammonds

Sunday 17th April 2022

If George Martin is the man who made The Beatles, then expert producer/director John Ammonds is the man who made Eric Morecambe, Ernie Wise, Harry Worth, Dave Allen...

Sydney Lotterby. Copyright: BAFTA Features

Comedy Chronicles: The subtle sitcom skills of the one and only Sydney Lotterby

Sunday 3rd April 2022

Sydney Lotterby was producer/director of some of the most esteemed sitcoms of all time - titles such as Last Of The Summer Wine, Porridge, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em and Yes Minister all benefited from his touch - but is all-too-often overlooked for his skill, influence and input. Graham McCann sets that right.

Duncan Wood Features

Comedy Chronicles: Duncan Wood - The maestro

Sunday 20th March 2022

Galton and Simpson are often credited as the writers who created the modern television sitcom; but if they were its scripted progenitors, then the mighty and prolific producer/director Duncan Wood was the parent of its technical language and stylistic form.

Dennis Main Wilson. Copyright: BBC Features

Comedy Chronicles: Dennis Main Wilson - The maverick

Sunday 6th March 2022

Comedy Chronicles turns its spotlight on producer and director Dennis Main Wilson, who brought a range of pioneering, all-time-great comedy programmes to the airwaves across both television and radio during his career.

Michael Mills Features

Comedy Chronicles: Michael Mills - The great enabler

Sunday 20th February 2022

In the first of a new series looking at the producers who made Britain's most celebrated television comedies happen, Graham McCann turns to the remarkable career of the great Michael Mills.

Barry Cryer Features

Comedy Chronicles: Barry Cryer, the Master Craftsman

Sunday 6th February 2022

The UK's premier comedy biographer, Graham McCann pays tribute to the late, great Barry Cryer after his death at the end of January.

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