I’d like to see them try that on television
By September 1956 the UK had experienced about a year of two television channels, ending the BBC’s post-war monopoly of the nascent...
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The Seagoon Memoirs
Chronicling a 21st century idiot's obsession with a 1950s radio comedy masterpiece.
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time capsule
Welcome, dear reader - pull up a bollard.
UPDATE: JUNE 2024
I am in the process of transferring this blog to Substack. You'll find me at theseagoonmemoirs.substack.com, where you can read for free and sign up to receive new posts (twice a week) direct to your email.
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On 28 May 1951, four young men took to the airwaves on the BBC's Home Service to launch their unique brand of comedy on an unsuspecting world.
In the mid-1990s, an even younger idiot was introduced to recordings of their broadcasts - and there began a strange obsession crossing decades and generations.
The Seagoon Memoirs is an attempt to channel this obsession into something creative, chronicle the show's history, development and legacy, and in some small way contribute to preserving this masterpiece of British radio comedy.
Listen to me waffle on about the Goons on the excellent Goon Pod here. Alternatively, listen to more interesting people on other episodes of Goon Pod, including Jane Milligan, Al Murray, Dirk Maggs, and the cast of 'Spike!', the new Milligan/Goon-themed play by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman.
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Gormenghast
Exactly 21 years ago (well, give or take a day) the BBC broadcast the first episode of Gormenghast, a four-part TV adaptation of Mervyn...
Confessions of a Secret Senna Pod Drinker
Seagoon: Help me. Help me. I'll make a clean breast of it. I'm an addict. I take three cups of senna-pod tea a day. Grytpype: Senna-pods...
Happy birthday, Norma Farnes
A happy birthday to the late Norma Farnes, born on this day in 1934. Norma played a crucial role for decades in preserving the work of...
‘The funniest show we’ve ever done’
A few days ago we explored the series five collaboration between Eric Sykes and Spike Milligan, which produced some of the best Goon Show...
Spike and Eric
Eric Sykes first met Spike Milligan briefly at the Grafton Arms, where everybody in entertainment met, seemingly. However, it wasn’t...
The dreaded Lurgy
Okay all you Covid-19 conspiracy nuts, this one’s for you. I’ve been looking forward to writing about this episode. Many readers will...
Paradise Street and other distractions
Writing the Goon Show couldn’t pay the bills on its own, as Spike Milligan was often to lament. So what else could an emerging talent get...
More YouTube gems
For your viewing pleasure, An Evening With Spike Milligan. And as if that wasn't enough, here's a tribute to his regular co-writer, the...
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