When did you last meet your hero?'
We were rehearsing 'When Did You Lat See Your Trousers' in some red brick rehearsal complex in south London. The name escapes me but I remembered having visited the venue before to see a final run through of a panto I was lighting starring Russ Abbott. A production of Babes in the Wood based on all of the music from 'Pippin' with a really avant garde design by Tim Goodchild, re-created by his then assistant David Shields who is now an amazing designer in his own right.... I'm getting off the point!
A couple of days into rehearsal we got a visit from the author Ray Galton. For anyone who doesn't know,Ray is one half of Galton & Simpson. Google 'Hancock's Half-hour' and 'Steptoe & Son' if you need to find out who this comedy genius is.
For me, meeting Ray Galton is the equivalent to a life-long Man United supporter meeting Alec Fegusson, except a hundred times bigger. This man was half of the biggest and most successful comedy writing partnership of the 60's and 70's. The lineage doesn't bear thinking about, Tony Hancock, Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Hattie Jaques....the list goes on.
He attended rehearsals for a few days and sat at the production desk tutting at lines and scribbling notes and then, one morning, as I was sitting at the desk drafting the fit-up schedule for the first venue, Ray asked me I could go to the canteen with him and type up a few re-writes? Fair enough. I had my 1980's Mac-Book Pro which I was very proud of at the time so I accompanied him to the deserted canteen.
We both got our teas and I got down to typing up passages of the script to incorporate Ray's latest updates. At one point, Ray Galton read a line and then stopped and looked at me. He gave me two alternative lines and asked me "Which is funnier?".
It doesn't matter what the line was, nor does it matter if he actually cared what my answer was. I was sitting with the guy who made Tony Hancock funny and he was asking MY opinion on what was the funniest line!. I gave my opinion and that's the version we used. Basking in reflected glory?...you bet your life!
A couple of days into rehearsal we got a visit from the author Ray Galton. For anyone who doesn't know,Ray is one half of Galton & Simpson. Google 'Hancock's Half-hour' and 'Steptoe & Son' if you need to find out who this comedy genius is.
For me, meeting Ray Galton is the equivalent to a life-long Man United supporter meeting Alec Fegusson, except a hundred times bigger. This man was half of the biggest and most successful comedy writing partnership of the 60's and 70's. The lineage doesn't bear thinking about, Tony Hancock, Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Hattie Jaques....the list goes on.
He attended rehearsals for a few days and sat at the production desk tutting at lines and scribbling notes and then, one morning, as I was sitting at the desk drafting the fit-up schedule for the first venue, Ray asked me I could go to the canteen with him and type up a few re-writes? Fair enough. I had my 1980's Mac-Book Pro which I was very proud of at the time so I accompanied him to the deserted canteen.
We both got our teas and I got down to typing up passages of the script to incorporate Ray's latest updates. At one point, Ray Galton read a line and then stopped and looked at me. He gave me two alternative lines and asked me "Which is funnier?".
It doesn't matter what the line was, nor does it matter if he actually cared what my answer was. I was sitting with the guy who made Tony Hancock funny and he was asking MY opinion on what was the funniest line!. I gave my opinion and that's the version we used. Basking in reflected glory?...you bet your life!
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