When Ray Galton and Alan Simpson created Hancock's Half Hour--their first big hit before Steptoe and Son--they needed a supporting cast, and their choices were inspired. Sid James became the quintessential shifty crook, Bill Kerr played Tony Hancock's best friend while Moira Lister became his girlfriend, and as Kenneth Williams intoned a variety of authority-voices--police, magistrates, etc.--another comic star was born. Out of the 16 original programmes from the period under review, the BBC managed to lose six--culpable carelessness--but among the extant 10 there are outright gems, some of which will be unfamiliar even to fans, and many of which would today be banned as hopelessly un-PC. Viz Hancock's cheery greeting: "Morning Charlie. Working? Oh, of course you don't need to, with 28 children!" Or his observation--of some sluggish British workmen building a house--that he's glad they've been provided with shovels complete with arm-rests. Asked for his own address, he replies "I've just moved. They pulled down my house to build a slum". Relayed cold, such comments may not even raise a smile: Hancock's magic was all in the telling, and in the momentum he built up, as in his Monte Carlo rally programme, in which signposts were turned round and bridges blown up. One of the nicest sketches evolves out of him being left to do the housework like Cinderella, while everyone else troops off to the ball. When he died, a victim of depression, in Australia in 1968, Britain lost something irreplaceable: this five-CD set, with its accompanying booklet, makes a splendid memento. The next batch of releases is eagerly awaited. --Betty Tadman

2007-08-28 Hancock's Half Hour - The Collector's Edition - Series 1,2,3 & 5

I was introduced to Hancock by my Grandparents many years ago when I the first heard The Blood Donor, being the most famous (but not in my opinion the best) show - from there on I was hooked and the collector's edition box sets that were eventually released were a dream come true!

Supporting Hancock throughout the first series were Sid James, Bill Kerr, Kenneth Williams & Moira Lista.

16 episodes were recorded by the BBC for the first series, broadcast between November 1954 & February 1955, however, only 10 survived at the time the box set was produced. 5 CD's in individual sleeves include two shows per CD, and contain the following episodes in chronological order:

The First Night Party
The Idol
The Boxing Champion
The New Car
Cinderella Hancock
A Trip To France
The Monte Carlo Rally
A House On The Cliff
The Sheikh
The End Of The Series

Standout episodes for me are The First Night Party, A Trip To France & The End Of the Series, but all are thoroughly enjoyable and the whole package is well worthy of a 5 star rating.

Supporting Hancock throughout the second series were Sid James, Bill Kerr, Kenneth Williams & Andree Melly.

12 episodes were recorded by the BBC for the second series, broadcast between April 1955 & July 1955, however, only 5 survived at the time the box set was produced. 3 CD's in individual sleeves include two shows per CD, and contain the following episodes in chronological order:

The Holiday Camp
The Chef That Dies of Shame
The Rail Strike
The Television Set
The Marrow Contest

Only The Rail Strike really stands out for me, and interestingly the first 4 lost episodes starred Harry Secombe in Hancock's lead role, as Hancock `disappeared' with what apparently was diagnosed as a minor nervous breakdown.

Supporting Hancock throughout the third series, were Sid James, Bill Kerr, Kenneth Williams & Andree Melly.

20 episodes were recorded by the BBC for the third series, broadcast between October 1955 & February 1956, and only 8 survive. 10 CD's in individual sleeves include two shows per CD, and contain the following episodes in chronological order:

The Pet Dog
The Jewel Robbery
The Bequest
Hancock's Hair
The Student Prince
The Greyhound Track
The Conjuror
The Test Match

The shows improved considerably from the second series, and The Jewel Robbery, The Bequest, Hancock's Hair, The Student Prince & The Conjuror are all standout episodes.

Supporting Hancock throughout the fifth series, were Sid James, Bill Kerr, Kenneth Williams & Hattie Jacques.

20 episodes were recorded by the BBC for the fifth series, broadcast between January 1958 & June 1958, and all 20 survive. 10 CD's in individual sleeves include two shows per CD, and contain the following episodes in chronological order:

The New Radio series
The Scandal Magazine
The Male Suffragettes
The Insurance Policy
The Publicity Photograph
The Unexploded Bomb
Hancock's School
Around The World In Eighty Days
The Americans Hit Town
The Election Candidate
Hancock's Car
The East Cheam Drama Festival
The Foreign Legion
Sunday Afternoon At Home
The Grappling Game
The Junk Man
Hancock's War
The Prize Money
The Threatening Letters
The Sleepless Night

There are some top drawer episodes in this series, notably The Scandal Magazine, The Publicity Photograph, The Unexploded Bomb, The Americans Hit Town, The East Cheam Drama Festival, Sunday Afternoon At Home, The Grappling Game, Hancock's War, The Threatening Letters & The Sleepless Night.

Each set includes a CD sized 15 page booklet, which includes a synopsis of each episode, and biographies of the stars & writers.

I also recommend the book `Fifty Years of Hancock's Half Hour' by Richard Webber, ISBN 1-8441-3389-3, which tells the story of how the show was conceived, with detailed synopsis & information of every show produced.