Hancock's Half Hour

Hancock was the first of a line of humorous but whingeing British males, a tradition that continues into the present. The Hancock persona is recognisable in, for example, Richard in 'One Foot in the Grave' and Basil in 'Fawlty Towers'.

It is a style of humour strictly for British and Commonwealth audiences. It does not export to the US although the US has tried to copy the genre, not particularly consistently or well (q.v. Archie Bunker).

By the time Hancock made the television series he had fallen out with the stalwarts of the radio show, Sid James, Kenneth Williams, and Hattie Jacques. He felt they were more loved by the audience than he was -- and perhaps the audience was right. They were missed and the TV series suffers from their absence. Hugh Lloyd and Patrick Cargill, although well-known light comedy actors, just weren't of the same calibre or popularity. Hattie Jacques was irreplaceable.

However, the scripts of Ray Galton and Alan Simpson and Hancock's own undoubted talent almost save the day. The episode 'The Blood Donor' is still rated one of the top 10 comedy sketches of the century (in Britain) and deservedly so.

After the TV series Hancock's star waned rapidly -- he should have stuck to Sid James and crew -- but he was too much the egotistical star. He toured Australia and was booed off the stage -- staggeringly drunk -- at the Dendy Theatre, Brighton (Melbourne), Vic. The following week he suicided in his hotel room in Sydney (must be something about Sydney!)

This 1950s series remains an affectionate milestone in television comedy, in its entertaining snippets of the life of egomaniac and resident moaner of Cheam, Anthony Aloysius Hancock. The very fact that Galton and Simpson wrote a character for Tony Hancock with more or less his own name (and perhaps, more or less his own personality) is key to the show's success. In the early episodes – which were much the best of them all – Hancock was usually supported by Sid James, and often people like Kenneth Williams, Hugh Lloyd and June Whitfield, but these collaborators were slowly weeded out until the series reached its often-quoted pinnacle with 'The Blood Donor'.

The best episodes were those which were both beautifully written and performed – 'The Missing Page'; 'Lord Byron Lived Here'; 'Twelve Angry Men'. Even in clunky black and white and as old as they are, what are left of the half-hours are superb. Tony Hancock's deadpan voice and hangdog looks gave the character and the situations an everyday quality that viewers could, and can, appreciate. Long may these episodes continue to be shown and made available to future generations.

I first came across Hancock's half hour, when I listened to my Mother's LP's with some of the episodes on. The radio and television series were before my time. I can't quite explain why this series caught my imagination at such a young age. Maybe it was the brilliant characters, created by the masters of comedy Galton and Simpson. Maybe it was the hugely talented comedy legends, that lent their voices to the proceedings. Ironically it was in 2019, that I purchased the surviving episodes of the television series, they are as enjoyable today as when they were first broadcast. Some of the episodes were better on radio than the television, you were able to use your imagination. But it is great to see these comedy legends at the height of their careers.

"Hancock's Half Hour" is a milestone in British comedy television in being one of the first British situation comedies to be presented for the small screen. Of course, there followed a whole gallery of sitcoms on British television, some of them classics. Yes, the production values of the above series are a bit dated but listen to the marvellous dialogue and the genius that is Tony Hancock. Hancock had had a good deal of success with his own BBC radio series when the decision was made to create his own series for television. The producer Duncan Wood stated in an interview many years later, what a challenge it was going to be. After all, the public had only heard Hancock for the past few years and the comedian hadn't performed in front of the cameras before. The format with regards to Hancock's character were unchanged which was vital. Equally of importance, was the inclusion of his comic foil Sid James. Strictly speaking, the two men weren't a double act but they certainly knew how to play off each other and their on-screen chemistry is undeniable. Regarding the regular cast from the radio series, Bill Kerr was written out altogether and Hattie Jacques and Kenneth Williams would only make sporadic appearances. "Hancock's Half Hour" was the first television sitcom from Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. They are still the best comedy television writers in the business in my opinion. Their work here and in "Steptoe and Son" is still unsurpassed. It is a bit hard to judge the early episodes of "Hancock's Half Hour" as the episodes from the first and second series are mainly missing. However, the ones that do exist are simply brilliant. The comedy results from character and from situations, rather than from any jokes. If any gags or jokes were included, Duncan Wood would instruct them to be removed. I feel this makes the comedy more natural. Hancock of 23 Railway Cuttings, always had grand aspirations toward bettering himself in different episodes. It never occurred to him that he had neither the talent or the acumen in making his plans bear fruition. He would put on false airs, claim to be something he wasn't and could never be. Then Sid would find some way of bursting Hancock's pomposity with hilarious results. The comedian never strived to make his character one of pathos, as Hancock hated that approach. His comedy was on a slightly deeper level. There are too many great episodes to list but the following ones I would name every time on my list of vintage Hancock: "The Missing Page," "Sid in Love," "Twelve Angry Men," "The Cold," "The Two Murderers," "Football Pools," "Competitions: How to Win Money and Influence People," "The Photographer," "The Train Journey," "The Reunion," "The Big Night," "The Immigrant," "The Economist," "The Poison Pen Letters," "The Set That Failed," "The Cruise," "The New Nose" and others. Hancock was blessed with a wonderfully expressive face for television comedy which complimented his terrific voice. The way he could convey feelings of anger, happiness, disappointment, bewilderment, indignation, his timing and control are almost without equal. The series ran from 1956 til 1960 and lasted over 50 episodes. Then in 1961, Hancock made one last series for the BBC which contains his last moments of comic genius. I still rate "Hancock's Half Hour" as one of the defining British comedies in history.

The programs may appear extremely dated now but the influence of Hancock on British comedy is still considerable. As is so common in good comedy his character is a self deluding loser who places himself far higher up the social ladder than anyone else ever will (Steptoe, Rigsby, Fawlty, Blackadder and Partridge to name a few would later carry on this tradition)

So don't let the grainy pictures put you off, and there are plenty of the excellent radio shows availble, it's been nearly half a century, but they're definately still a worthwhile half hour.