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Re: Humphrey Lyttelton: A Celebration

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Clitheroe KidMay 2, 2008
 

 
In many ways Humphrey Lyttelton took over the mantle of that other
wonderfully urbane straight man of BBC radio, Kenneth Horne.

'Clue' began in 1972, four years after Kenneth Horne's death. Humph
fulfilled essentially the same role in 'Clue' that Kenneth Horne had had in
the Sixties, in the comedies 'Round the Horne' and the earlier 'Beyond Our
Ken'. In panel games, it was a role that the urbane and eminently
respectable Robert Robinson also fulfilled, whilst surrounded by comedians
on the show 'Call My Bluff'.

Perhaps there are one or two urbane straight men around today, who might be
up to carrying on the role if 'Clue' was to continue. Possibly Martin
Jarvis, perhaps even Gyles Brandreth. Maybe Stephen Fry - though he is not
perhaps well suited to playing the eternal straight man.

Humph's was a role which also required a subversive wit. Would that the late
Frank Muir was still with us! Indeed, what price now Denis Norden?

Regards,
Stephen

----- Original Message -----
From: lapsedcat <lapsedcat@...>
To: <just-a-minute@...>
Sent: Friday, May 02, 2008 8:24 AM
Subject: [just-a-minute] Re: Humphrey Lyttleton: A Celebration (R4 April 30
2008)


> While I think it would be unwise to carry on, not least because Barry
> himself is in his mid-seventies, and to end on fifty series seems a
> logical thing to do, I guess that Graham's sporadic appearances on
> Holby City, Tim's occasional forays into short-lived forgetable
> sitcoms and the pair's lack of repeat fees for the Goodies, means
> that they need the money. Barry presumably needs beer money as well.
>
> That said, if they chose a particularly good replacement for Humph -
> so far the names Jack Dee, Stephen Fry, Denise Van Outen and Kit
> Hesketh-Hardy spring to mind (alright, I was kidding about Denise) -
> and possibly changed the rounds around a bit to freshen up the
> format, then it might just work. And if they could persuade Merton to
> return occasionally as a guest, along with Phill Jupitus (his handful
> of shows were, in my mind, standouts) then who's to say they couldn't
> be good?
>
> Of course, they'd never quite recapture the same magic, but then, JAM
> itself isn't the same as it was since the deaths of Nimmo and Jones,
> and Freud's increasing dodderiness.
>
>
>
>
> --- In just-a-minute@..., Dean Bedford <dbedford@...>
> wrote:
> >
> >
> > On Thursday, May 1, 2008, at 09:33 PM, Paul Wimsett wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > It's strange to see Denise Coffrey and Bill Tidy as guest stars on
> > > Clue, we associate it so much with Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme
> Garden,
> > > Barry Cryer and Willie Rushton, even though I knew that Bill
> Oddie and
> > > Jo Kendall were on the panel to start with-maybe the first
> episode. Of
> > > course they still had guest stars later on.
> > >
> > > There it is. The past tense.
> > >
> >
> > In this story both Graeme and Barry say they want the show to
> continue.
> >
> > http://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2008/04/30/6713/humphrey_lyttelton_day
> >
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>

 
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