VHS : Comedy Greats: Peter Cook And Dudley Moore

Rating: - The "best of what's left" is pretty terrific.
After the tremendous Broadway success of their satiric revue Beyond the Fringe--and their special Tony Awards in 1963--Peter Cook and Dudley Moore performed for three seasons with their own BBC show called Not Only...But Also, which continued their satiric romps, ad libs, and zany, irreverent humor. With long-faced Cook playing straight man and Moore as the funny innocent, they range widely and intelligently in this compilation, considering serious literature, music, drama, and even art from their off-beat and hilarious perspectives. Cook's frequent wild departures from whatever passes for a script, as he throws himself into his roles, often leave Moore gasping to keep from cracking up completely, the audience having as much fun with these ad libs as Cook and Moore obviously do.

Watching this video forty years later, one is struck also by the exceptionally fine production values. The sets and costumes are fully realized. A satiric version of a serious play like Murder in the Cathedral, for example, looks like a real BBC production, until one listens to the words and discovers that the mournful dialogue being acted consists entirely of lyrics from popular songs, with the ecclesiastical characters talking about being "all shook up" and wanting to "twist again." In the famous "Bo Dudley" sketch, Moore puts his musical talent on display as he sings and rocks, while deconstructing the meaning of "Mama's Got A Brand New Bag."

Additional sketches feature the story of "Bargo," a predatory actress under contract to Louis B. Maybe. A stuffy British father gives a lecture on the facts of life to his 18-year-old son. A classic scene of "can you top this" involves Cook claiming that Betty Grable called him in the middle of the night, but he turned her down.

Fully choreographed and sometimes employing a full orchestra, "The Best of What's Left Of..." showcases Dudley Moore and Peter Cook when they dominated sixties satire. Though this video may not include the best sketches they ever produced in Not Only, but Also, most of which have been destroyed, what's left is pretty darn good. Mary Whipple

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Rating: - A comic genius who inspired a generation of performers
This video contains many of the hilarious sketches that made up the Not Only...But Also show broadcasted by the BBC (and consequently destroyed but salvaged from foreign television companies). The show contained such gems as 'Superthunderstingcar', their spoof of the Thunderbirds, and the now legendary Pet and Dud characters. Also making guest appearences are Peter Sellers and John Lennon.

For many people, including the majority of contemporary comedians (including Billy Connolly), Peter Cook was quite simply the funniest man they'd ever met. A fine comedian who had conquered Broadway, the West End and British television by the time he was twenty eight.

This video gathers together the treasures of Cook and Moore's comic career. A must have for any fan of comedy, satire or plain good writing. If Cook had been less funny, he may well of been the Pinter of his day

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Rating: - The genius that inspried a generation of comedians
This video contains many of the hilarious sketches that made up the Not Only...But Also show broadcasted by the BBC (and consequently destroyed but salvaged from foreign television companies). The show contained such gems as 'Superthunderstingcar', their spoof of the Thunderbirds, and the now legendary Pet and Dud characters. Also making guest appearences are Peter Sellers and John Lennon.

For many people, including the majority of contemporary comedians (including Billy Connolly), Peter Cook was quite simply the funniest man they'd ever met. A fine comedian who had conquered Broadway, the West End and British television by the time he was twenty eight.

This video gathers together the treasures of Cook and Moore's comic career. A must have for any fan of comedy, satire or plain good writing. If Cook had been less funny, he may well of been the Pinter of his day.

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Rating: - Fantastic timeless comedy
This classic show is as funny today as it was thirty years ago. It is a tragedy that so little of it survives. Someone at the BBC should be shot for wiping all the tape. This isn't Doctor Who we're talking about here!