''Delve Special'' was a UK

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

starring

Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...

as investigative reporter David Lander. It ran for four series from 1984 to 1987, each series being four 30-minute episodes long. It was written by Tony Sarchet and produced by

Paul Mayhew-Archer Paul William Mayhew-Archer MBE (born 6 January 1953Find The Comp ...

. The first series was

wiped Lost television broadcasts are television programs that were not preserved after their original airing, rendering them permanently unavailable for both public and private screening. Because of this, they are considered a form of lost media, par ...

by the BBC but has since been found and consisted of a four-part investigation into the proposed building of London's third airport in "Shifton", a small village situated 'just to the north east of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

', and the alleged bribery and corruption that accompanied the choice of location and building contractor. David Lander's investigative technique was usually somewhere between the questionable and the illegal - during each episode he also displayed some degree of ineptitude or lack of understanding in the subject matter he was reporting on. As a result, he occasionally found himself being set upon physically by those concerned. The programme heavily spoofed the style of topical radio reporters such as

John Waite John Charles Waite (born 4 July 1952) is an English rock singer and musician. As a solo artist, he has released ten studio albums and is best known for the 1984 hit single "Missing You (John Waite song), Missing You", which reached No. 1 on th ...

of ''

Face the Facts ''Face the Facts'' was a consumer affairs programme on BBC Radio 4, featuring investigative journalism, that ran from the 1986 until 2015. Introduced by John Waite, cousin of the well-known humanitarian and churchman Terry Waite, it usually fo ...

'' and Roger Cook, a Radio 4 presenter who went on to television work such as ''

The Cook Report ''The Cook Report'' was a British current affairs television programme, produced by ITV Central, Central Independent Television for ITV (TV network), ITV. It was presented by Roger Cook (journalist), Roger Cook which was broadcast from 22 July ...

''. Actors appearing in ''Delve Special'' included:

Tony Robinson Sir Anthony Robinson (born 15 August 1946) is an English actor, author, broadcaster, and political activist. He played Baldrick in the BBC television sitcom ''Blackadder'' and has presented many historical documentaries, including the Channel ...

Felicity Montagu Felicity Jane Montagu (born 12 September 1960) is an English actress. She is best known for playing Lynn Benfield, the long-suffering assistant of Alan Partridge. Early life Montagu was born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire. She attended Lou ...

Stephen Frost Stephen Frederick Eustace Frost (born 28 December 1955) is an English actor and comedian, best known for his work on ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' as well as several projects with comedy partner Mark Arden. Early life Frost was born in Redr ...

Mark Arden Mark David Darwin Arden (born 31 July 1956) is a British comedian and actor, best known for his television appearances. During the 1980s, he was one half of comic double act 'The Oblivion Boys', alongside Stephen Frost. Arden was born in Newb ...

Jack Klaff Jack Klaff, born August 6, 1951, is a South African-born actor, writer and academic. He has held professorships at Princeton University and Starlab. Amongst his early screen roles were in ''Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope'' (1977) as Red Four ...

Harry Enfield Henry Richard Enfield (born 30 May 1961) is an English comedian. He is known in particular for his television work, including '' Harry Enfield's Television Programme'', '' Harry Enfield & Chums'' and '' Harry & Paul'', across which he created ...

Dawn French Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957) is a British actress, comedian and writer. She is known for writing and starring on the BBC sketch comedy series '' French and Saunders'' (1987–2007) with her best friend and comedy partner Jennifer Sa ...

Brenda Blethyn Brenda Blethyn ( Bottle; born 20 February 1946) is an English actress. Known for her character work and versatility, she is the recipient of various accolades, including a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, and a Cannes Film Festival Award, as well as n ...

, Arthur Smith,

Janine Duvitski Janine Duvitski (born Christine Janine Drzewicki; 28 June 1952) is a British actress, known for her roles in the BBC television sitcom series '' Waiting for God'', ''One Foot in the Grave'' and ''Benidorm''. Duvitski first came to national atte ...

Philip Pope Philip R. J. Pope is a British composer and actor. Education He was educated at Downside School and New College, Oxford. Performer Pope appeared in the Oxford Revue in Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1978 and 1979, both with Angus Deayton. He ...

Robert Bathurst Robert Guy Bathurst (born 22 February 1957) is a British actor. Bathurst was born in The Gold Coast (British colony), The Gold Coast (now Ghana) in 1957, where his father was working as a management consultant. In 1959, his family moved to Ball ...

and

Andrew Sachs Andreas Siegfried Sachs (7 April 1930 – 23 November 2016), known professionally as Andrew Sachs, was a German-born British actor. He made his name on British television and found his greatest fame for his portrayal of the comical Spanish waite ...

. The theme music to the programme was ''Crunch'' by

Soft Machine Soft Machine are an English Rock music, rock band from Canterbury, Kent. The band were formed in 1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. Soft Machine were central in the Canterbury scene; they became o ...

. A follow-up

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

version ran for two series: '' This is David Lander'' (starring Stephen Fry) in 1988, and '' This is David Harper'' (starring

Tony Slattery Tony Declan James Slattery (9 November 1959 – 14 January 2025) was a British actor and comedian. He appeared on British television regularly from the mid-1980s, including as a regular on the Channel 4 improvisation show ''Whose Line Is It Anyw ...

) in 1990 - Fry being unavailable for the second series due to other commitments.

Episodes

Series 1

Series 2

Series 3

Series 4

External links

Delve Special
on

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is an Over-the-top media service, over-the-top audio streaming media, streaming and download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, Streaming media, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide ...

BBC Radio comedy programmes Radio programs adapted into television shows 1984 radio programme debuts 1987 radio programme endings {{BBC-radio-stub