Morecambe & Wise (1961)

Top Cast

• Eric Morecambe as Self
• Ernie Wise as Self
• John Lennon as Self
• Paul McCartney as Self
• George Harrison as Self
• Ringo Starr as Self
• Elton John as Self - Musical Guest
• Arthur Lowe as Capt. George Mainwaring
• John Laurie as Pte. James Frazer
• John Le Mesurier as Sgt. Arthur Wilson

Seasons

Specials

No overview available for this season.

Episodes:

• Ep. 1: Christmas Show (1969)

  The musical guests are Kenny Ball and His Jazzmen, The Pattersons, Nina van Pallandt and Frankie Vaughan. Ernie starts the show dressed as a hippy. Eric and Ernie visit Fenella Fielding who is to star in Ernie's play about Lord Nelson.

• Ep. 2: Christmas Show (1970) (1970-12-25)

  The second seasonal offering saw the return of recurring guest star Peter Cushing who still hadn't been paid (a joke that was to continue well into their Thames Television days); also starring was William Franklyn who, at the time, fronted an advertising campaign for Schweppes lemonade with his "Shhh, You Know Who..." tagline. Much comedy was drawn from this, especially in light of the fact that the BBC was forbidden to advertise products. He appears in one of the duo's legendary plays at the end of the show in which the Three Musketeers are parodied. Well-known actor Edward Woodward also sang The Way You Look Tonight rather than appearing within a sketch has he had done in previous appearances.

• Ep. 3: Christmas Show (1971) (1971-12-25)
  

  Considered by many to be their finest hour, the festive edition for 1971 contains several all-time classics such as Shirley Bassey singing Smoke Gets in Your Eyes whilst the boys re-arrange the scenery, with Bassey memorably ending with Eric's boots on, the Hollywood Melody with Glenda Jackson and the BBC newsreaders and, of course, André Previn conducting Eric's rendition of Greig's Piano Concerto (by Grieg!). The BBC's other headlining star Dick Emery also makes a brief but memorable cameo appearance in the opening spot of the show. Bassey also sang Diamonds Are Forever which of course had been the titular song to the James Bond film of the same years' release.

• Ep. 4: Christmas Show (1972) (1972-12-25)
  

  No series was produced in 1972 with the duo concentrating on a high-quality spectacular for Christmas Night, by this time their show had become a staple part of festive viewing and the pressure was on to deliver the goods. Braben had suffered a breakdown and was not producing material for some time, but they bounced back with another successful show. This show is a curious mix, showing that the by now established formula worked. For instance, the ridiculing of a guest singer by providing backing vocals and/or dancers is featured twice here, once with Vera Lynn and once with Jack Jones in what are basically similar routines. Also, there are two "plays", one with Pete Murray in the Great War epic Dawn Patrol and of course, the Prince Albert spoof at the conclusion of the show.

• Ep. 5: Christmas Show (1973) (1973-12-25)

  By this time, an established running gag was the fact that our intrepid duo could not get stars to work with them, and this show features four cameo appearances from Yehudi Menuhin, Rudolf Nureyev, Laurence Olivier and André Previn all making excuses not to appear. Perhaps the most memorable is Lord Olivier who pretends to be a Chinese Laundry attendant over the telephone! Vanessa Redgrave joins in the Latin American Extravaganza, and the Napoleon & Josephine play, with music (suitably interrupted!) by John Hanson. The other memorable scene from this show is Hannah Gordon's effort to sing the song The Windmills of Your Mind used in the film The Thomas Crown Affair against a wind generator with "help"...

• Ep. 6: Parkinson Takes A Christmas Look At Morecambe & Wise 1974 (1974-12-25)

  This was the only year that the duo were with the BBC that no festive programme was made and there was a decrease in their output after this time. Instead of a brand new show the pair were instead interviewed by Michael Parkinson who also introduced some of their most memorable clips from previous shows. Again, the programme was broadcast on the evening on 25 December but, other than the interview, there was no new footage available. Their slot was filled by the Mike Yarwood Show and the interview shown at 11.20pm.

• Ep. 7: Christmas Show (1975 ) (1975-12-25)

  The musical guests are Diane Solomon, Brenda Arnau, Des O'Connor and Diana Rigg. Eric and Ernie go to the psychiatrist. Des O'Connor has trouble singing. Diana Rigg stars as Nell Gwynne in Ernie's latest play called 'Nell Gwynne'.

• Ep. 8: Christmas Show (1976) (1976-12-25)

  The only BBC show that Eric and Ernie made (save for series one) that wasn't penned exclusively by Eddie Braben. Instead, established writers Barry Cryer and John Junkin (among others) were drafted in to create what became another iconic show, with The Sweeney stars John Thaw and Dennis Waterman in the play, Elton John in the Won't You Play A Simple Melody? routine and, Angela Rippon's legs! The opening credits were a comic strip presentation, whilst closing credits had baby photographs of all the stars.

• Ep. 9: Eric & Ernie's Christmas Show (1977) (1977-12-25)

  The final BBC Christmas Show attracted audience figures of 28.5 million, a record that has still to be broken; this was also the first time that Christian names were used in the opening titles, the "boys" having become something of a national institution by this stage. The following opening sequence features a parody of Starsky and Hutch, in which the comics star as 'Starkers' and 'Krutch', driving through the streets in a red Mini Clubman emblazoned with the same white vector stripe as seen on the TV crimefighters' Ford Torino. Boasting the longest guest list of all their shows, the casts of both Dad's Army (which by that time had finished its run) and The Good Life all appeared, as did Elton John (eventually!), and the classic There Is Nothing Like A Dame routine featuring a host of BBC news presenters. Angela Rippon also reprised her high-kicking role from the previous Christmas show and Angharad Rees struggled against the blizzards to duet with Ernie.

• Ep. 10: The Best of Morecambe & Wise (2001-10-01)

  A collection of some oof your favourite sketches from an irreplaceable comedy partnership, including: Anthony and Cleopatra Monty on the Bounty The meeting of Byron and Keats Eric being well and Truely Laquered The classic Singing in the Rainn sketh.

• Ep. 11: Christmas Show (1981)

  This show marked in some ways the fact that Morecambe & Wise were no longer a prime asset; it was the first time in their television careers that their festive offering had not been broadcast on Christmas Night, the schedulers opting instead for 23 December. This was also because, until 1982, Thames Television only operated from Monday at 9.25am until Friday at 7pm; as Christmas Day fell on a Friday, London Weekend Television (LWT) held the franchise to broadcast that evening. The guest list was nonetheless impressive with Ralph Richardson heading up a stellar list, Suzanne Danielle doing a Razzle Dazzle routine with the boys, a re-hash of the BBC health food shop routine, now featuring Valerie Minfie, and the obligatory play, which was Julius Caesar, a thinly covered remake of the popular BBC sketch Antony & Cleopatra from ten years earlier. This show saw M&W use technology more to gain laughs with blue screen techniques being used in some sketches.

• Ep. 12: Christmas Show (1982)

  No overview for this episode.

• Ep. 13: Night Train to Murder (1983)

  No overview for this episode.

• Ep. 15: Song and Dance (2012-12-24)

  Penelope Keith throws a spotlight on Eric and Ernie's passion for music with a waltz through the archives, showcasing the most brilliant Morecambe & Wise routines and unearthing the stories behind them.

• Ep. 24: 1970: The Lost Tape (1970-10-08)
  

  As a Christmas treat for comedy fans, this is a complete episode of The Morecambe and Wise Show, that had been considered lost for over 50 years. Eric’s son Gary Morecambe discovered the programme in an unmarked film can last year, and now it has been lovely restored and can be enjoyed in full for the first time since being broadcast on October 8th 1970. This remastered version was broadcast on 25 December 2021. The show, written by the legendary Eddie Braben, was episode one of Eric and Ernie’s first series to appear on BBC1, and was originally watched by over 14 million viewers. As well as some classic sketches from Eric and Ernie, the show also features songs and music from Paul Anka, Patricia Lambert, Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen, and the boys themselves rounding things off with a burst of Bring Me Sunshine.

• Ep. 25: The Lost Tapes Episode 1 (1970-10-09)

  No overview for this episode.

• Ep. 26: The Lost Tapes Episode 2 (1970-10-10)

  No overview for this episode.

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