Thesecond series ofComedy Playhouse, the long-runningBBC series, aired from 1 March 1963 to 12 April 1963. All the episodes were written byRay Galton andAlan Simpson.
The second series, which was inblack and white, consisted of six episodes, each of which had a different cast and storyline. None of the episodes made it to its own series. All episodes were aired on Friday;Our Man in Moscow at 8.45pm,And Here, All The Way From... andA Clerical Error at 8.50pm,Impasse at 8pm,Have You Read This Notice at 8.20pm andThe Handyman at 7.50pm.Have You Read This Notice is the only episode of this second series which is listed as beinglost.[1]
| Title | Airdate | Duration | Overview | IMDb link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our Man in Moscow | 1 March 1963 | 30 mins | Robert Morley played Sir William Hunter, theBritish Ambassador to Russia, who faces a problem when Nicolai (played byPatrick Wymark), a Russiantuba player, applies for asylum. Hunter's secretary Mortimer is played byFrank Thornton while the Russian Culture Minister Kulkinoff is played byAnthony Newlands. | [1] |
| And Here, All The Way From... | 8 March 1963 | 25 mins | District Commissioner Donald Lawrence (played byEric Barker) goes all the way toShepherd's Bush fromBorneo to meet his brother Rodney (not seen) who is being honoured with aThis Is Your Life show. However, when Donald finally gets there he discovers it has been called off because his brother disapproved. Also starringErica Rogers as Pamela Lawrence,Terence Alexander as Robin Ampleforth,Roger Delgado andRoger Avon. | [2] |
| Impasse | 15 March 1963 | 25 mins | Two drivers, one in aBentley the other in a small, rundown car, meet each other halfway down a narrow country lane. Both refuse to give way, and the situation becomes worse when both theAA andRAC arrive and begin to defend their respective members.Bernard Cribbins plays Mr Spooner,Yootha Joyce plays his wife,Leslie Phillips plays Mr Ferris,Georgina Cookson plays Mrs Ferris,Harry Locke plays the AA man,Duncan Macrae plays the RAC man andCampbell Singer plays the Police Constable. This was remade as thePride segment in the anthology filmThe Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins, and again forPaul Merton In Galton & Simpson's... in 1996. | [3] |
| Have You Read This Notice? | 29 March 1963 | 25 mins | Frankie Howerd plays Norman Fox, who is coming back from a holiday inSwitzerland and is plagued by conscience when going through Customs due to thewatch he bought there. Also starringBill Kerr as the first Customs officer,Edwin Apps as the aeroplane passenger andGraham Ashley. | [4] |
| A Clerical Error | 5 April 1963 | 25 mins | John Le Mesurier plays a con man recently released fromWormwood Scrubs called Caleb Bullrush. Bullrush dresses up as a vicar and goes to apub to try and collect money for charity. Also starringRussell Napier as the Police Inspector,Yootha Joyce as Rita,Blake Butler,Andy Devine andJohn Caesar.A Clerical Error was remade forThe Galton & Simpson Radio Playhouse and broadcast on 12 January 1999 onBBC Radio 4 and starredKeith Barron as Bullrush andJune Whitfield as Rita. | [5] |
| The Handyman | 12 April 1963 | 25 mins | Lionel Hogg (played byAlfred Marks) is an unemployed, but highly qualified machine minder who is given a temporary job ashandyman at a health clinic. Also starringAnthony Sharp as Dr Dennison,Damaris Hayman as Matron,Frank Williams as the Labour Exchange clerk,Edwin Apps as the first card player,Julian Orchard as the second card player andJohn Harvey. | [6] |