Stephen Fry

Was it madness or arrogance that persuaded the volunteers on Pete And Dud: The Lost Sketches that they could sketch in the shadow of genius? The idea of the likes of Angus Deayton and Adrian Edmondson attempting to emulate the comedy chemistry of Peter Cook and Dudley Moore seemed like the product of a lock-in after the Baftas. In other words, it should never have survived the cold light of day.

Yet, though it was light on belly laughs and clearly in thrall to its source material, Pete And Dud: The Lost Sketches was oddly entertaining. Introduced by lifelong Pete and Dud fan Jonathan Ross (and for once he seemed genuine), the set of sketches performed - 'lost' in the sense that the BBC unbelievably wiped the original TV tapes, so they only survive in audio or script form - at least served as a priceless reminder of one of the truly great comedy pairings.

It was like watching a rock tribute band who know all the words and get the notes in the right place. You could sing along but inevitably there was a spark missing. It was the brief clips of the real Pete And Dud that were worth sticking around for, the mix of surreal allusion, schoolboy smut and lady frocks making it clear how much the duo influenced everyone from The Fast Show to Little Britain.

There was a missed opportunity in the mix: Stephen Fry and David Mitchell, only featured as talking heads, would have made a perfect Pete and Dud.

Instead the originals were lovingly, though palely, imitated, new boy Jonny Sweet coming closest to catching the anarchic 1960s spirit that Pete and Dud encapsulated.

Now what we need is a series that rounds up every clip that still exists.

It's one of the tragedies of 1960s TV that so many episodes coveted by posterity were wiped at the time, either because it was assumed they'd be of no further interest or simply to reuse the tapes. Peter Cook and Dudley Moore's Not Only... But Also fell foul of this folly. However, sketches have survived in script form and here Jonathan Ross assembles a contemporary cast including Angus Deayton, Ade Edmondson and Simon Day to recreate them, while Stephen Fry and David Mitchell among others consider Pete and Dud's legacy.

Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie reunite on GOLD

Comedy stars Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie are to be reunited on TV for the first time in 15 years. The pair will appear on GOLD to mark the 30 years since they first teamed up.

Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie make TV comeback

Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie are to reunite for a TV special to mark the 30th anniversary of their partnership.

Stephen Fry: Doctor Who is a children's programme

QI host hits out at the 'infantilism' of British TV, saying many programmes are like 'chicken nuggets'.

The Best Bits of QI

A list of the best bits from the first 7 series of QI, the intellectual and fun panel show hosted by Stephen Fry.

Video - Tonight's TV preview: QI

The underlying 'homo-erotic' tension between Stephen Fry and Alan Davies shoots to a new level tonight in this fabulous show.

My journey with Stephen Fry and Wagner

I'm approaching the end of a journey which began nearly three years ago. In summer 2007, my company, Wavelength Films, was lucky enough to be working with Stephen Fry on a film for BBC Four about Johannes Gutenberg - the man who invented printing.

As we travelled through Germany in quest of that elusive medieval genius we found ourselves on a twisting road which ran alongside of the river Rhine. In the backseat of the crew vehicle Stephen was plugged into his iPod when a mysterious sound filled the van.

Stephen Fry to judge Hay festival's Twitter competition

This year's Guardian Hay festival will include an award, judged by Stephen Fry, for 'the most beautiful tweet' ever written.

Stephen Fry ad to promote radio 'scrappage' scheme

Month-long part-exchange offer to aid digital radio switchover to be backed with campaign involving commercial radio and BBC.