Cambridge graduates Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie first
collaborated as members of the BBC radio sketch comedy I'm Sorry I'll Read That
Again (1964-73). Brooke-Taylor and Garden then created the fast-paced sketch
show Broaden Your Mind (BBC, 1968-69) for the small screen. Oddie became a
regular in the second series, after which, in the wake of Monty Python's Flying
Circus (BBC, 1969-74), the trio abandoned sketch comedy for the anarchic
situation comedy The Goodies (BBC, 1970-80; ITV 1981-82), in which Buster Keaton
met Tom and Jerry head on.
With the motto 'We do anything, anytime' the trio - Tim (royalist), Graeme
(boffin) and Bill (anarchist) - set out on their 'trandem' from their
Cricklewood office to diverse assignments. The series showcased their flair for
combining satire, cartoon violence, slapstick and film trickery (especially in
'Movies' (tx. 10/2/1975), their tribute to silent film comedies). As each
episode became more surreal, the props, explosions and special effects became
more elaborate, culminating in a giant Dougal from the Magic Roundabout in
'Goodies Rule Ok?' (tx. 21/12/1975).
Twice winners of the Silver Rose of Montreux - for 'Kitten Kong' (tx.
9/4/1972) and 'Movies' - The Goodies excelled with their parodies of adverts,
contemporary films ('Saturday Night Grease', tx. 21/1/1980) and popular fads
('Kung Fu Kapers', tx. 24/3/1975, which highlighted the deadly ancient Northern
art of 'Ecky Thump', complete with lethal black puddings). Never shy of taking
risks, the series tackled such contentious issues as feminism and South African
apartheid. Predominant throughout were Oddie's songs, which briefly made The
Goodies into pop icons with five hit singles, including the sublime 'Funky
Gibbon'.
Seen as family entertainment, The Goodies regularly ran into trouble with
their BBC bosses for their use of the word 'bloody'. They also fell foul of
clean-up campaigner and moral custodian Mary Whitehouse; The Goodies' riposte
was to parody her as Desiree Carthorse in 'Gender Education' (tx. 31/12/1971).
With a young fan base, their comedy was labelled puerile and juvenile and denied
the cerebral plaudits that greeted Monty Python. They answered their critics
with a cameo by John Cleese as a genie uttering the words 'Kid's programme' in
'The Goodies and the Beanstalk' (tx. 24/12/1973). After a lack of commitment
from the BBC, they cycled over to ITV for a short-lived series before finally
closing the doors of their Cricklewood office forever.
Graham Rinaldi
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