''The Comedians'' is a British television show of the 1970s (later reprised in the mid-1980s and early 1990s) produced by Johnnie Hamp of

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...

. The show gave a stage to nightclub and

working men's club Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, Midlands, Scotland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for working class m ...

comedians of the era, including Russ Abbot, Jim Bowen and Bernard Manning. Filmed before a live audience in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

, comics each performed 20-minute sets, which were then edited together into half-hour shows featuring up to ten stand-up comics.

Working men's club Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, Midlands, Scotland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for working class m ...

s were numerous in Britain, especially in the North of England and have been a useful training ground for artists, especially comedians. Most of these clubs are affiliated to the CIU (

Working Men's Club and Institute Union The Working Men's Club and Institute Union (CIU or C&IU) is a voluntary association of private members' clubs in Great Britain & Northern Ireland, with about 1,800 associate clubs. One club in the Republic of Ireland, the City of Dublin Workin ...

) founded in 1862 by the Rev. Henry Solly. There are also political clubs, as well as Servicemen's Clubs affiliated to the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants, as well as all others in n ...

. ''The Comedians'' began as an experiment for Granada TV and was popular during the earlier series, with an LP recording of the show reaching the best-seller charts, and several sell-out national tours following, including a season at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 a ...

. The programme won the Critics' Circle Award. The comedy frequently took the form of anecdotes or jokes and often involved

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonis ...

or sexist stereotypes. Like other British comedy successes of the day, notably, '' Love Thy Neighbour'', this kind of entertainment was acceptable on British television during this period but would not be so today. Viewing the series in retrospect it stands as a major social document of the times. The original series was first broadcast on 12 June 1971, a Saturday and live on-air, unusually at lunchtime on

. It was repeated on the now-defunct British satellite television channel Plus.

Cast

Comedians appearing on the show included Russ Abbot (as Russ Roberts), Lennie Bennett,

Stan Boardman Stanley Boardman (born 7 December 1937) is an English comedian. Early life and career Boardman was evacuated with his family to Wrexham during the Second World War, and after the family returned to their Merseyside home mistakenly thinking the ...

, Jim Bowen, Jimmy Bright, Duggie Brown, Mike Burton, Dave Butler, Brian Carroll,

Frank Carson Hugh Francis Carson KSG (6 November 1926 – 22 February 2012) was a Northern Irish comedian and actor from Belfast. He was best known for being a regular face on television for many years from the 1970s onwards, appearing in series su ...

, Johnnie Casson, Eddie Colinton, Mike Coyne,

Jimmy Cricket James Mulgrew (born 17 October 1945), known professionally as Jimmy Cricket, is an Irish comedian. He first came to prominence as a comedian in the 1970s and has had his own shows on television and radio. Early life and career Cricket was bor ...

, Colin Crompton, Bob Curtiss, Pauline Daniels, Charlie Daze,

Les Dennis Leslie Dennis Heseltine (born 12 October 1953) is an English television presenter, actor, and comedian. He presented '' Family Fortunes'' from 1987 until 2002. Early life Dennis was born Leslie Dennis Heseltine on 12 October 1953 in the Liverpo ...

, Vince Earl, Steve Faye, Ray Fell, Eddie Flanagan, Stu Francis, Mike Goddard (known as Mike Goodwin in the early years of the show), Ken Goodwin,

Jackie Hamilton Jackie Hamilton (born John Kearns, 12 July 1937 – 12 August 2003) was a British stand-up comedian, nicknamed the "Pele of Comedy". His problems with alcohol, idiosyncratic delivery and strong Liverpudlian accent were factors in his missing ...

, Jerry Harris, Jimmy Jones, Mike Kelly, George King, Bobby Knutt, Bernard Manning, Jimmy Marshall, Mike McCabe,

Paul Melba Paul Melba (born Francis Staunton; 1936 – 11 August 2020) was an English comedian and impressionist, perhaps best known as a star of the ITV impressions show ''Who Do You Do?'' and as one of the first comics to appear on '' The Comedians.''Lewi ...

, Mick Miller,

Pat Mooney Pat Roy Mooney, for more than thirty years, has worked with civil society organizations on international trade and development issues related to agriculture, biodiversity and emerging technologies. He was born and lived on the Canadian prairies ...

, Hal Nolan, Tom O'Connor, Tom Pepper, Bryn Phillips, Don Reid, Mike Reid, George Roper, Harry Scott, Paul Shane,

Phil Silvers Phil Silvers (born Phillip Silver; May 11, 1911 – November 1, 1985) was an American entertainer and comedic actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah". His career as a professional entertainer spanned nearly sixty years. Silvers achieved major popu ...

, Pat Tansey, Sammy Thomas, Johnny Wager, Roy Walker, Jos White, Charlie Williams, Lee Wilson and Lenny Windsor. Also featured on the series were

Shep's Banjo Boys Shep's Banjo Boys were a British musical act who appeared weekly on '' The Comedians'', a British television show of the 1970s (later reprised in the mid-1980s and early 1990s), produced by Johnnie Hamp of Granada Television. They were a 7-piece b ...

, a seven-piece band comprising (for the first five series) Charlie Bentley (tenor banjo), John Drury (sousaphone), Andy Holdorf (trombone), John Orchard (piano), John Rollings (drums), Graham Shepherd (banjo) and Howard Shepherd (lead banjo). In 1973, the line-up was Mike Dexter (banjo), Tony "Tosh" Kennedy (sousaphone), Ged Martin (drums), Tony Pritchard (trombone), Graham Shepherd (banjo) and Howard "Shep" Shepherd (lead banjo).

DVD releases

The first seven series including a DVD set (containing the first seven series broadcast 1971–74) have been released on DVD by Network.

Transmissions

Specials

References

External links