In this episode Tim, Jon, James and Martin look at the fourth television series episode The New Nose.  The four look at the fantastic supporting cast, many of them regulars on the television series and hear from Anabelle Lee, recorded at a Society event around 1996.The team also discuss how the episode was one of the earliest to be recorded in segments and take a look at the scenes deleted from the video and DVD releases of the episode.Don’t forget to rate and subscribe to the podcast. And,...

In this episode we look at the brilliant fifth radio series episode The Unexploded Bomb.  Tim, James, Jon and Martin consider how brilliant Kenneth Williams is in this episode with his two contrasting voices of the vicar and the bomb disposal expert and also look at the excellent contribution from Hattie Jacques.The Gang of Four discuss the great characters played by Alan Simpson, the edits made to the earlier vinyl and cassette release and their views on the final scene.  The four also...

Tim,  Jon, James and Martin have come out of hibernation and, fortified with lots of black wine gums, have been getting ready to bring you the new series of Very Nearly an Armful.In this trailer the team give details of a special podcast being recorded at London’s Riverside Studios on the 6th April alongside a colourised version of The Blood Donor.

In the final episode of this series of Very Nearly an Armful,  James, Jon, Tim and Martin review Cinderella Hancock from the first radio series of Hancock’s Half Hour.  They review the contribution of the enlarged cast, which included Dora Bryan and Paul Carpenter (as well as a role for the announcer Adrian Waller), and look at the huge number of stars of screen and TV that were name-checked during the episode. The team consider how the episode is more variety and gag based than other...

In this episode of Very Nearly an Armful,  James, Jon, Tim and Martin review The Student Prince from the third radio series of Hancock’s Half Hour.  They consider how this episode is a riotous ride from start to finish and how unusual it is to see Sid get his comeuppance!The team look at the inspiration for the script, consider the three brilliant roles played by Alan Simpson, decipher the reference to Valentine tractors in this original longer version of the episode and finally spend some...

In this episode of Very Nearly an Armful,  James, Jon, Tim and Martin review Fred’s Pie Stall from the final radio series of Hancock’s Half Hour.  They consider how this episode, probably more than any other, provides a cultural commentary on societal changes in the late 1950s.The team review the contribution of the brilliant guest cast, each of which has to play more than one role, discuss, in detail, the extended ‘guess what’ sequence compared to previously available edited versions of the...

In this edition of Very Nearly an Armful, James. Jon, Tim and Martin look at the earliest surviving television episode of Hancock’s Half Hour, The Alpine Holiday, from Series 2. The team look at the amazing supporting cast, including Richard Wattis in his only Hancock’s Half Hour role, John Vere, June Whitfield and, or course, Kenneth Williams in his only surviving televised appearance as Snide. They also consider how different this episode is without Sid James. The four examine the...

In this episode of Very Nearly an Armful, Tim, James, Jon and Martin discuss the Apollo Theatre Company nationwide tour of their Hancock’s Half Hour show and are delighted to welcome John Hewer and Colin Elmer (who play Tony Hancock and Kenneth Williams respectively) to the podcast.The tour features performances of three lost Hancock’s Half Hour episodes from a selection of The Matador, The New Neighbour, The Winter Holiday and The Red Planet. The team discuss how John and Colin each...

In this final episode of the current series, Tim, Jon, James and Martin take a look at the brilliant radio episode Hancock’s Car from the golden fifth radio series.The gang consider how all the cast deliver a masterclass in acting and comic timing and how the opening scene of Hancock, Bill and Sid just cleaning the car is a fantastic example of Galton & Simpson’s uncanny ability to create comedy out of nothing.The team look at the differences between the various edits of this programme...

This episode in the trilogy of three so far this Spring is the third one in the series. In this podcast James, Tim, Jon and Martin look at the brilliant fifth series episode The East Cheam Drama Festival and consider how the episode, being a play within a play, was quite revolutionary at the time.The gang consider how the second playlet is quite Pythonesque in its lack of a punchline, review how the episode would have sounded with cut lines reinstated and look at sections of the show where...

In this episode, the team celebrate the 60th anniversary of The Punch and Judy Man with a detailed look at Hancock’s final film in a starring role.The four consider how the film is deeply biographical not only in its depiction of a failing marriage but also in its link to Tony's childhood days in Bournemouth. They discuss how many of the regular players in Hancock’s Half Hour have roles in the film; most notably Hugh LLoyd, John Le Mesurier and Mario Fabrizi and the mentor from Hancock's...

Welcome back to all our listeners as we start our new series of the podcast with a look at the brilliant fifth television series episode The Economy Drive, which is often quoted as a fan favourite.The team look at the brilliant support played by the East Cheam Repertory Company and consider how the episode provides a brilliant social representation of the period through the self service cafeteria sequence.   They also discuss the recording techniques of the day, with this being the first ever...

In this episode, we continue our festive theme when James, Tom Tim and Martin conclude their review of the radio episode Hancock’s Happy Christmas in the company of a glass of Baileys and a mince pie! This time, the team look at the career of Dorothy Marks, the many cultural references sprinkled throughout the show and, once again, consider the sparkling performances all the cast put in to make this one of the great festive Hancock episodes.   They also look at Snide’s appearance at the...

In this episode, James, Tom Tim and Martin don Christmas jumpers, put on reindeer antlers and start their review of the great festive radio episode Hancock’s Happy Christmas. The team consider how the performance from Hancock is in the very best traditions of Scrooge and are delighted to share memories of making the show received from Michael Anderson Junior, who played the role of orphan Michael in the episode.  They also look at the excellent performances of both Michael and Dorothy and...

In this our longest episode yet, James, Jon, Tim and Martin review the brilliantly surreal radio episode The 13th of the Series and its transcription services remake The 13th of the Month. The team consider how joyous the performances of all the cast are in this episode and how the script sparkles throughout. They also consider Ken’s fantastic performance as Snide (arguably his best appearance in this role) and consider, in detail, the practicalities of taking the Stonehenge stones home each...

In this episode, James, Jon, Tim and Martin review the brilliant television episode Lord Byron Lived Here.  They consider the role the excellent supporting cast play in making this a firm favourite for many Hancock fans, including John Le Mesurier, Hugh Lloyd and Robert Dorning in particular. We catch up again with Julian Dutton and feature a brief extract from an interview with Hugh Lloyd himself. The team look at the Sid penned Lord Byron poems and compare these with the poems in the radio...

In this first episode of series 4, Tim, Jon, James and Martin are privileged to be able to review the recently recovered radio episode The Marriage Bureau.   Not heard since first broadcast in 1955, the episode was discovered on a reel to reel tape by Richard Harrison of The Radio Circle and was rebroadcast by Radio 4 on the 18th October 2022. The episode is the only one to feature Peter Sellers who stepped in at the last minute to replace Kenneth Williams who was unavailable. The team...

Ahead of the start of the fourth series of Very Nearly An Armful, our intrepid four head to Solihull for the annual Tony Hancock Appreciation Society knees up. There we were delighted to meet Mr. Kevin McNally, hear his wonderful Hancock reminisces and, more importantly, we are able to reveal his exact drink count for the evening.  We were also pleased to hear extracts from Julian Dutton’s brilliant one man show ‘Do You Think That’s Wise’ where Julian took on the guise of John Le Mesurier....

In this episode, Tim, Jon, Martin and James continue their review of the brilliant radio episode A Sunday Afternoon at Home.  After discussion on Sykes, outtakes, fluffs and the various Doctors Who. The gang resume the main subject and look at how the cast really brought the words on the page to life with the different vocal styles and tones used throughout the episode and consider the episode to be a masterclass in acting and writing. They also look at how the brilliant Galton and Simpson ...

In this episode, Tim, Jon, Martin and James start their review of the classic radio episode a Sunday Afternoon at home. At approximately 16 minutes into the podcast, the team kick off with the main subject and consider how revolutionary the episode was in its use of pauses and silence and also in the fact that it is a virtually plotless half hour. The team look at sections of the original script that didn’t make it to the final edit, discuss Kenneth Williams’ brilliant characterisation of...

In this episode, Tim, Jon, Martin and Nick (in James’s absence) resume their chat with the brilliant Kevin McNally to review The New Neighbour and The Missing Hancocks more generally. In Part 2 Kevin talks about the wonderful outtakes and adlibs from the radio recordings, some of which made it into the final edits and regales us with the story of taking The Missing Hancocks to the Edinburgh Fringe. He also talks about how a new gag made it into the script of The New Neighbour, the approach...

In this episode, Tim, Jon, Martin and Nick (in James’s absence) are delighted to introduce the brilliant Kevin McNally as our guest to review The New Neighbour and The Missing Hancocks more generally.  Kevin was most generous with his time and our chat with Kevin has been split over two editions of this podcast, so there’s more to come! In Part 1 Kevin talks about how he first discovered Hancock and the first EP he added to his collection.  He recalls how The Missing Hancock’s received the...

And now for something completely different.  In this episode, James, Tim, Jon and Martin review The Death of a Duchess, the final episode in the 1956 ATV Series The Tony Hancock Show and are delighted to welcome Hancock’s great niece, Lucy Hancock to the podcast as our guest; Lucy gave permission for the entire series of the Tony Hancock Show to be released on DVD and this was made available commercially for the first time earlier this year.The team look at  how the programme showcased the...

In this episode, James, Tim, Jon and Martin join the beatnik movement to review the brilliant radio episode The Poetry Society, from the final radio series.The team consider the extra dynamic that using guest actors such as Warren Mitchell and Fenella Fielding bring to the episode and how this episode which is a satire on modern art, the coffee bar culture and Hancock’s own passion of philosophy, paved the way for Hancock’s first film The Rebel.  They also review in detail the avant garde...