SPIKE – a show celebrating the work of Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Peter Sellers and their Goon Show personnas. John Henty introduced us to some classic extracts of Goon humour including the Ying tong Song on a 78 record.
The highlight of the evening however were the daughters of three commedians, Sarah Sellers, Jane Milligan and Jenny Secombe, interviewed by John Henty, they were happy to share anecdotes about their famous fathers.
I thought the evening was to have included Sarah reciting some of her father’s zany poetry but although this was not the case, she sang a touching song her dad had written called ‘Alice in Wonderland’. She also told us amusing tales about her dad and described her visit to the statue in Finchley recently erected in his honour.
Peter Sellar’s daughter told us about her childhood when her father was an actor in Hollywood and the parties they had at the Dorchester Hotel in London. I could not help remembering that my dad had entertained her dad at these events with our show ‘Ron and Joan’s Fields Marionettes’, which had included ‘The Puppet Circus’ and the ‘Teddy Bear’s Picnic’. I asked her if she remembered them by any chance. Regrettably not, but she was only five at the time. I was a lot older and helped with the show.
Jenny Secombe was lovely woman full of enthusiasm and happy memories of her famous dad.
John Rapesh from The Goon Show Preservation Society was in the audience as was Mark Cousins from The Peter Sellers Appreciation Society. I happen to know an awful lot of work goes into keeping the memory of these famous people alive so I do hope both fan clubs will both continue to attract new members. It’s worth checking their web sites always lively and finding new stories.
The Goon Show Preservation Society is still producing a paper magazine, but The Peter Sellers Appreciation Society will soon be completely online. Both organisations are seeking IT support for further web development.
All in all a happy innovative evening including a raffle for the charities Paws and The Samaritans included in the ticket price.
We won a huge box of chocolates an added bonus!
We won a huge box of chocolates an added bonus!
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Two items from Ron and Joan Field’s marionette show at The Dorchester in the early 60s
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