G&TV: Arthur Smith Sings Andy Williams Quickies Posted by Ian Symes on 30th September 2020, 15:57 One of the many, many good things about Rob Grant, Paul Jackson and Ed Bye's regular Sunday afternoon quarantine commentaries is that their meandering conversations about comedy and their careers can sometimes dredge up intriguing lesser-known projects from the past. When Arthur Smith was a guest on the Backwards commentary, he mentioned one of his old Edinburgh shows, Arthur Smith Sings Andy Williams, which also featured fellow Backwards guest and perennial fifth Dwarfer Tony Hawks. A truncated TV version was produced by Granada in 1993, which commenter Stilianidiadidatees suggested would make a good candidate for G&TV. Don't say we never give you anything. It's on YouTube, and it's pretty great. Read more →
G&TV: Just A Minute (20/01/94) Quickies Posted by Ian Symes on 29th January 2020, 20:57 Following the sad news that the brilliant Nicholas Parsons has passed away at the grand old age of 96, I saw a tweet summarising the various short-lived attempts to bring his seminal Just A Minute to television. Despite it obviously being a BBC show, there were two series produced by Carlton for ITV in the mid-90s, and just one glimpse of that garish, neon-adorned set triggered a vivid childhood memory of watching an episode starring none other than Craig Charles. I looked it up and it turns out that memory is indeed accurate; he appeared once, alongside team captain and fellow Dwarf alumnus Tony Slattery, on 21st July 1995. And that episode is... seemingly not online anywhere. Bah. Still, a handful of editions are on YouTube, including one from the first series that features not only the aforementioned Slattery, but also one time pub manager Arthur Smith, alongside a very young Graham Norton and Ann Bryson. Sod it, two guest stars is enough of a Red Dwarf connection to justify us featuring this, in tribute to its wonderful chairman. Read more →
The Very Best Of Have I Got News For You? Reviews Posted by Ian Symes on 4th January 2003, 00:00 Just to even the balance, I thought I'd provide a positive review of a vaguely Red Dwarf-related product. The Very Best of Have I Got News For You features Red Dwarf alumni such as Tony Slattery, Arthur Smith, Craig Ferguson, Tony Hawks, and of course Hattie Hayridge and Craig Charles. Read more →
