Hancock's Half Hour
- TV sitcom
- BBC One
- 1956 - 1961
- 63 episodes (7 series)
Tony Hancock stars in Galton & Simpson's comic masterpiece, with his delusions of grandeur and acquaintances at the root of his every downfall. Also features Sid James, Kenneth Williams, James Bulloch, Johnny Vyvyan, Alec Bregonzi and more.
Streaming rank this week: 4,393
Hancock's Half Hour - Selected TV Soundtracks & More
Over 30 brilliant BBC recordings, including TV shows, radio highlights and a wealth of previously unreleased material.
Tony Hancock was one of Britain's best-loved and most influential post-war comedians. Collected here are some of the very best radio and TV episodes from Hancock's Half Hour, plus celebrations, compilations, interviews, original dramas and documentaries - many of which have never before been available on audio.
There's the debut show from the radio series, The First Night Party, introduced by writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson; and the last ever BBC television show, The Succession - Son And Heir. Also included are four new-to-audio TV episodes - The Oak Tree, The Train Journey, The Tycoon and The Lift - as well as many other television favourites: The Flight Of The Red Shadow, The Wrong Man, The Economy Drive, Lord Byron Lived Here, The Cold, The Emigrant, The Baby Sitters, The Poison Pen Letters, The Bedsitter, The Bowmans, The Radio Ham and The Blood Donor.
Two programmes introduced by Galton & Simpson], The Best Of Hancock's Half Hour (Radio) and The Best Of Hancock's Half Hour (TV) showcase the show's finest moments, and more classic clips can be found in Unique Hancock, an extended version of the vintage 1973 vinyl LP complete with commentary and linking narration. And in Steve Punt's Hancock Cuttings, included here for the first time on audio, the comedian and Tony Hancock fan presents a host of oddities and rarities featuring the lad himself.
The life and wonderful work of Hancock, his writers, and fellow radio actor Kenneth Williams are commemorated in three never-before-released documentaries - The New Elizabethans: Tony Hancock, Celebration: Galton & Simpson and Great Lives: Kenneth Williams. Also making their audio debut are two poignant radio dramas, Hancock's Last Half Hour (starring Richard Briers as Hancock) and Hancock's Ashes (starring Ewan Bailey as Willie Rushton).
Finally, we go behind-the scenes with Galton and Simpson in a trio of insightful interviews - a fascinating 30-minute discussion, specially recorded for BBC Audio in 2003, and the radio programmes In Conversation With Galton And Simpson and The Complete And Utter History Of Hancock's Half Hour, in which the duo chat to Paul Jackson and Paul Merton, respectively.
First released: Thursday 20th January 2022
- Distributor: BBC Digital Audio
- Minutes: 1,046
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