The Missing Hancocks: The Complete BBC Radio Series
New Recordings of Classic ‘Lost’ Scripts
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The Missing Hancocks: The Complete BBC Radio Series
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About this listen
Kevin McNally and Andy Secombe star in new recordings of original Hancock's Half Hour scripts by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.
Between 1954 and 1959, BBC Radio recorded 102 episodes of the hugely popular comedy classic, Hancock's Half Hour. The first modern sitcom, Hancock's Half Hour made stars of Tony Hancock, Sid James and Kenneth Williams, and launched Ray Galton and Alan Simpson as one of the most successful comedy-writing partnerships in history.
Sadly, 22 episodes of the show went missing from the BBC archives and have not been heard since their original transmission nearly 60 years ago - until Radio 4 lovingly recreated them over four highly-acclaimed series between 2014 and 2020. In a special treat for Hancock fans, Series 4 also premiered one episode - The Counterfeiter - that was never recorded by the original team.
Complete with the classic score performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, these hilarious episodes were recorded at the BBC Radio Theatre in front of a live audience. Kevin McNally stars as The Lad Himself, with Andy Secombe playing the role of his father Harry and a stellar cast including Simon Greenall, Kevin Eldon, Robin Sebastian, Margaret Cabourn-Smith and Susy Kane.
Also featured is a bonus director's commentary for The Matador, in which Andy Hamilton chats to Kevin McNally and co-producer Neil Pearson about the joys and challenges of recreating a 1950s sitcom. In addition, we hear Kevin McNally and Robin Sebastian's riotous performance of 'The Test Pilot' sketch at the 2018 RAF centenary gala at the Royal Albert Hall and the interview they gave afterwards.
The episodes included in this collection are:
The Matador
The Newspaper
The Hancock Festival
The Breakfast Cereal
The New Neighbour
How Hancock Won the War
The Red Planet
The Marriage Bureau
A Visit to Russia
The Trial of Father Christmas
A Holiday in France
The Crown Jewels
The Racehorse
A Visit to Swansea
The Three Sons
The Winter Holiday
Department Store Santa
The Diamond Ring
Prime Minister Hancock
Christmas at Aldershot
The Counterfeiter
The Christmas Eve Party
The New Year Resolutions
Written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. Produced by Ed Morrish, Neil Pearson, Paul Sheehan and Hayley Sterling. Music composed by Wally Stott and performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Levon Parikian. Thanks to Tessa Le Bars. A BBC Studios Production. Originally broadcast on the BBC Light Programme between 1954 and 1959.
Recreated for broadcast by BBC Radio Comedy for BBC Radio 4, 31st October - 28th November 2014 (Series 1), 23rd November - 21st December 2015 (Series 2), 14th March - 11th April 2017 (Series 3), 6th December 2018 - 31st December 2020 (Series 4).
Cast:
Tony Hancock - Kevin McNally
Bill Kerr - Kevin Eldon
Sid James - Simon Greenall
Kenneth Williams - Robin Sebastian
Andree Melly - Susy Kane
Moira Lister - Margaret Cabourn-Smith
Harry Secombe - Andy Secombe
Director's Commentary
Featuring Andy Hamilton, Kevin McNally and Neil Pearson.
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution LtdListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about The Missing Hancocks: The Complete BBC Radio Series
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- SieDen
- 12-07-21
Stone me Hancock’s Back
Great recreation of these classic show. The only voice that is not that good is the recreation of Sid James. They should have used James Hurn, who’s Sid James impersonation is amazing. However Kevin McNally as Hancock is spot on. Shame that the audible download is in mono when they were broadcast in stereo.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- ian
- 06-06-21
Excellent listen
Play characters so well, they should try and update a script too, think they'd pull it off
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Alison
- 21-05-22
Brilliant reconstruction of Hancock
So much like the original and many episodes I never heard before
The characters are very accurate except for Sid James who doesn’t sound right
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tracy randall
- 13-08-21
The missing Hancock
Love it anyone a fan of Tony Hancock will love it to give it a try very very funny
😂😂😂😂
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bobby
- 26-04-21
if you're a fan of the lad it's a must,
the missing Hancock's is a perfect reworking of the lost episodes, hours of entertainment and worth every penny, 5 stars
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- MarkLeedsUK
- 30-04-23
Mostly great
At the end there’s a discussion section when they pat each other on the back and make a special note about the wonderful representation of Sid James’ voice which is ‘really difficult to do’.
I partially agree, it’s a very distinctive voice and very hard to do. Where I disagree is that the chap who does it here is dreadful. Every-time he speaks it jars, all the others are wonderful but the Sid James voice is absolutely rubbish and it spoils each and every episode.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- son of cherve
- 10-02-22
Hancock is back baby!!!!!
What a tour de force this listening experience was. So wonderful to hear the missing episodes from such fantastic writers. Cast was incredible. Very very enjoyable.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Shoshone11
- 16-05-21
Classic Comedy
I have to admit I was not keen on the idea of listening to a Hancocks' Half Hour without the voice of the man himself and when I first heard episodes of this broadcast on Radio I was initially dubious. However, I was soon changing my view by the performances of all concerned. You cannot replicate the brilliant chemistry of Hancock, Kerr, James, Williams and Shearer but Kevin McNally and the cast do a fantastic job in delivering the brilliant scripts of Galton and Simpson. On several occasions I forgot that I was not listening to Hancock and Co. It may not be to the liking of the die hard Hancock fans but the whole cast and production team should be roundly applauded for their work. Listen and enjoy.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Robert Hall
- 08-11-21
Fabulous
Kevin MacNally captures the spirit of Hancock perfectly. The ensemble cast also channel the original cast superbly. This is not an attempt to impersonate the original cast and works superbly as an addition to the half hour oeuvre. That said, the actor playing Kenneth Williams parts had me convinced that it was the man himself. Sheer bliss to finally hear the missing episodes after more than 40 years of Hancock worship. I managed to get my ears on quite a few episodes that were not released in the box sets while a member of the Tony Hancock appreciation society, but the quality was poor, unfortunately. Huge thanks to Neil for getting this wonderful addition together.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Lee T.
- 22-03-21
Avoid
Very poor, impersonating characters and no humour, waste of my credit, avoid at all costs
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3 people found this helpful