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Brief But Memorable - Barry Took

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BobbyJan 25, 2010
 

 
Barry Took really sticks out the most in my mind when I think of individuals who were on JAM very briefly, but managed to make their presence felt.

Which is very odd that i should mention Barry Took, because in his first two appearances, he seemed to have a hard time even starting on a subject.

I think as he appeared more often, he started to get a feel for the show as a whole and just threw caution to the wind and didn't care about trying to stick within the rules and said, 'To hell with it'.

His voice was very distinctive, and he certainly had a great ear for anecdotes as well for some very surreal comments and had a great taste for comedy. This is certainly true as on his first appearance he manages to elicite laughter from the audience on his first challenge just by saying 'Good evening'.

I think his last two appearances in the early 80's alongside Tim Brooke-Taylor are, I feel, the apex of Barry Took's tenure on the show, as both shows were exceptionally funny thanks in large part to all the panelists contributing all kinds of crazy comments and challenges.

This is especially true as on both shows there was at least one occasion when Nicholas made a verbal slip and called Barry Took 'Barry Cryer'.

Barry Took was a very prolific comedy writer and presenter. One of the shows he presented apparently was 'Point of View' in which letters from radio listeners were read on the air, which usually praised or criticized programmes on the BBC.

Another show he presented was apparently 'The News Quiz', at least until Alan Coren took over in 1995.

His influence in the realms of comedy can be felt across the decades, as he was one of the co-writers on 'Beyond Our Ken' for two seasons in the late 50's, and also co-created and co-wrote 'Round the Horne' with Marty Feldman in the mid 60's. He was also involved in bringing 'The Goodies' to the air, and was also responsible for bringing together the performers who would become 'Monty Python's Flying Circus'.

What surprised me the most was that he briefly worked on 'Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In' here in the states before returning to the UK to take up the position of Head of Light Entertainment on London Weekend Television.

He passed away in 2002 at the age of 73 from cancer, but God bless him, cuz he certainly left his mark on comedy.

 
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