Galton and Simpson
Encyclopedia
Ray Galton OBE
(born 17 July 1930), and Alan Simpson OBE (born 27 November 1929), are British
scriptwriters who met in 1948 at a tuberculosis
sanatorium
, the Surrey county sanatorium near Godalming, on which the sitcom Get Well Soon
was based. They are best known for their work with comedian Tony Hancock
on radio and television between 1954 and 1961, and their long-running television situation comedy, Steptoe and Son
, eight series of which were aired between 1962 and 1974.
In 1955, Galton and Simpson, along with Eric Sykes
, Johnny Speight
and Spike Milligan
formed the cooperative, Associated London Scripts, originally based above a greengrocer's in Shepherd's Bush
, West London
. The company was purchased by Robert Stigwood
in 1967.
The partnership's break in comedy writing came with the Derek Roy
vehicle Happy Go Lucky, although this was not a success. The Hancock connection began with their involvement with later radio variety series, and from November 1954 continued with Hancock's Half Hour
on radio; a series featuring their scripts for Hancock ran on television between 1956 and 1961. In October that year Hancock ended his professional relationship with the writers.
After Hancock, they wrote a series of Comedy Playhouse
(1961–62), ten one-off half-hour plays for the BBC
. One play in the series, The Offer, was well received, and from this emerged Steptoe and Son
(1962–74), about two rag and bone men
, father and son, who live together in a squalid house in West London
. This was the basis for the American series Sanford and Son
and the Swedish series Albert & Herbert
.
Their comedy is characterised by a bleak and somewhat fatalistic tone. Steptoe and Son in particular is, at times, extremely black comedy
, and close in tone to social realist drama. Both the character played by Tony Hancock in Hancock's Half Hour and Harold Steptoe (Harry H. Corbett
) are pretentious, would-be intellectuals who find themselves trapped by the squalor of their lives. This theme had been expanded upon in their script for Tony Hancock's film The Rebel
(1961), about a civil servant who moves to Paris to become an artist. Gabriel Chevallier's
novel Clochemerle
(1934) was adapted by Galton and Simpson as a BBC/West German co-production in 1972. They contributed the book to Jacob's Journey, a musical accompaniment to a 1973 production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
, which was however soon dropped.
While both writers continued to work solidly after Steptoe and Son ceased broadcasting, including several projects with Frankie Howerd
, they had no further high-profile successes. Duncan Wood
, the former Hancock and Steptoe producer now at Yorkshire Television
, commissioned The Galton & Simpson Playhouse, a seven-part series broadcast in 1977, featuring leading actors of the time such as Leonard Rossiter
and Arthur Lowe
. None of these shows led to another series. Simpson formally retired from scriptwriting in 1978, concentrating on his business interests, and Galton collaborated in several projects with Johnny Speight
.
In 1996 and 1997, comedian Paul Merton
revived several Hancock's Half Hour and other Galton and Simpson scripts for ITV
to a mixed reception. Also in 1997, Ray Galton's Get Well Soon, based on his and Simpson's early sanatorium experiences, was broadcast by the BBC.
In October 2005 Galton and John Antrobus
premiered their play Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane
at the Theatre Royal, York. The play is set in the present day and relates the events that lead to Harold killing his father, and their eventual meeting thirty years later (Albert appearing as a ghost).
Both Galton and Simpson were awarded OBEs
in the 2000 Honours list
for their contribution to British television
.
The successful Scandinavian television series Fleksnes Fataliteter
was based on stories written by Galton and Simpson.
A series of old plays updated for modern times, entitled Galton and Simpson's Half Hour, was broadcast on BBC Radio 2
in 2009. The series of four episodes was made to celebrate the duo's 60 year anniversary, and the cast consists of Frank Skinner
, Mitchell and Webb
, Rik Mayall
, June Whitfield
and Paul Merton
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 17 July 1930), and Alan Simpson OBE (born 27 November 1929), are British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
scriptwriters who met in 1948 at a tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
, the Surrey county sanatorium near Godalming, on which the sitcom Get Well Soon
Get Well Soon (TV series)
Get Well Soon was a short-lived 1997 BBC television comedy series starring Matthew Cottle and Eddie Marsan. Lasting only 6 episodes, it was about the everyday lives of a group of patients, doctors, nurses and other staff at a National Health Service hospital during the post-World War II period. The...
was based. They are best known for their work with comedian Tony Hancock
Tony Hancock
Anthony John "Tony" Hancock was an English actor and comedian.-Early life and career:Hancock was born in Southam Road, Hall Green, Birmingham, England, but from the age of three was brought up in Bournemouth, where his father, John Hancock, who ran the Railway Hotel in...
on radio and television between 1954 and 1961, and their long-running television situation comedy, Steptoe and Son
Steptoe and Son
Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were broadcast by the BBC from 1962 to 1965, followed by a second run from 1970 to 1974. Its theme tune, "Old...
, eight series of which were aired between 1962 and 1974.
In 1955, Galton and Simpson, along with Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...
, Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight , was a British television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms.He emerged in the mid 1950s. He wrote for the radio comics; Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey, and Cyril Fletcher. For television he wrote for the Arthur Haynes Show, Morecambe & Wise, and Peter Sellers...
and Spike Milligan
Spike Milligan
Terence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the...
formed the cooperative, Associated London Scripts, originally based above a greengrocer's in Shepherd's Bush
Shepherd's Bush
-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....
, West London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The company was purchased by Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
in 1967.
The partnership's break in comedy writing came with the Derek Roy
Derek Roy (comedian)
Derek Roy was a British comedian famous in the late 1940s and early 1950s.His BBC Radio show 'Hip Hip Hoo Roy" was written by amongst others Spike Milligan, and was the show where Milligan's Goon Show character Eccles first appeared...
vehicle Happy Go Lucky, although this was not a success. The Hancock connection began with their involvement with later radio variety series, and from November 1954 continued with Hancock's Half Hour
Hancock's Half Hour
Hancock's Half Hour was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy, series of the 1950s and 60s written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock, with Sid James; the radio version also co-starred, at various times, Moira Lister, Andrée Melly, Hattie Jacques, Bill Kerr...
on radio; a series featuring their scripts for Hancock ran on television between 1956 and 1961. In October that year Hancock ended his professional relationship with the writers.
After Hancock, they wrote a series of Comedy Playhouse
Comedy Playhouse
Comedy Playhouse was a long-running British anthology series of one-off unrelated sitcoms that aired for 120 episodes from 1961 to 1975. Many episodes later graduated to their own series, including Steptoe and Son, Till Death Us Do Part, All Gas and Gaiters, The Liver Birds, Are You Being Served?...
(1961–62), ten one-off half-hour plays for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. One play in the series, The Offer, was well received, and from this emerged Steptoe and Son
Steptoe and Son
Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were broadcast by the BBC from 1962 to 1965, followed by a second run from 1970 to 1974. Its theme tune, "Old...
(1962–74), about two rag and bone men
Rag and bone man
Rag and bone man is a British phrase for a junk dealer. Historically the phrase referred to an individual who would travel the streets of a city with a horsedrawn cart, and would collect old rags for making fabric and paper, bones for making glue, scrap iron for recycling, and assorted miscellany...
, father and son, who live together in a squalid house in West London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. This was the basis for the American series Sanford and Son
Sanford and Son
Sanford and Son is an American sitcom, based on the BBC's Steptoe and Son, that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977....
and the Swedish series Albert & Herbert
Albert & Herbert
Albert & Herbert was a Swedish comedy series that ran in 1974, 1976–1979, 1981–1982, an advent series and a theatre play titled Mordet på Skolgatan 15, and had a spin-off series in 1995...
.
Their comedy is characterised by a bleak and somewhat fatalistic tone. Steptoe and Son in particular is, at times, extremely black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
, and close in tone to social realist drama. Both the character played by Tony Hancock in Hancock's Half Hour and Harold Steptoe (Harry H. Corbett
Harry H. Corbett
Harry H. Corbett OBE was an English actor.Corbett was best known for his starring role in the popular and long-running BBC Television sitcom Steptoe and Son in the 1960s and 70s...
) are pretentious, would-be intellectuals who find themselves trapped by the squalor of their lives. This theme had been expanded upon in their script for Tony Hancock's film The Rebel
The Rebel (1961 film)
The film The Rebel is a satirical comedy starring the British comedian Tony Hancock, and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.-Plot:...
(1961), about a civil servant who moves to Paris to become an artist. Gabriel Chevallier's
Gabriel Chevallier
Gabriel Chevallier was a French novelist widely known as the author of the satire Clochemerle.Born in Lyon in 1895, Gabriel Chevallier was educated in various schools before entering Lyon École des Beaux-Arts in 1911...
novel Clochemerle
Clochemerle
Clochemerle is a 1934 French satirical novel by Gabriel Chevallier. It is set in a French village in Beaujolais inspired by Vaux-en-Beaujolais and deals with the ramifications over plans to install a new urinal in the village square.-Adaptation:...
(1934) was adapted by Galton and Simpson as a BBC/West German co-production in 1972. They contributed the book to Jacob's Journey, a musical accompaniment to a 1973 production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the "coat of many colors" story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly...
, which was however soon dropped.
While both writers continued to work solidly after Steptoe and Son ceased broadcasting, including several projects with Frankie Howerd
Frankie Howerd
Francis Alick "Frankie" Howerd OBE was an English comedian and comic actor whose career, described by fellow comedian Barry Cryer as "a series of comebacks", spanned six decades.-Early career:...
, they had no further high-profile successes. Duncan Wood
Duncan Wood
Duncan Wood was a British comedy producer, director and writer. His best known achievements were to produce all of Tony Hancock's Half Hours for BBC TV during the late 1950s and early 1960s, and later, also with Hancock's former writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, the classic British sitcom...
, the former Hancock and Steptoe producer now at Yorkshire Television
Yorkshire Television
Yorkshire Television, now officially known as ITV Yorkshire and sometimes unofficially abbreviated to YTV, is a British television broadcaster and the contractor for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV network...
, commissioned The Galton & Simpson Playhouse, a seven-part series broadcast in 1977, featuring leading actors of the time such as Leonard Rossiter
Leonard Rossiter
Leonard Rossiter was an English actor known for his roles as Rupert Rigsby, in the British comedy television series Rising Damp , and Reginald Iolanthe Perrin, in The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin...
and Arthur Lowe
Arthur Lowe
Arthur Lowe was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. He was best known for playing Captain George Mainwaring in the popular British sitcom Dad's Army from 1968 until 1977.-Early life:...
. None of these shows led to another series. Simpson formally retired from scriptwriting in 1978, concentrating on his business interests, and Galton collaborated in several projects with Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight
Johnny Speight , was a British television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms.He emerged in the mid 1950s. He wrote for the radio comics; Frankie Howerd, Vic Oliver, Arthur Askey, and Cyril Fletcher. For television he wrote for the Arthur Haynes Show, Morecambe & Wise, and Peter Sellers...
.
In 1996 and 1997, comedian Paul Merton
Paul Merton
Paul Merton is a British comedian, writer, actor and television presenter. Known for his improvisation skill, his humour is rooted in deadpan, surreal and sometimes dark comedy...
revived several Hancock's Half Hour and other Galton and Simpson scripts for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
to a mixed reception. Also in 1997, Ray Galton's Get Well Soon, based on his and Simpson's early sanatorium experiences, was broadcast by the BBC.
In October 2005 Galton and John Antrobus
John Antrobus
John Antrobus is an English playwright and script writer. He has written extensively for stage, screen, TV and radio, including the epic World War II play, Crete and Sergeant Pepper at the Royal Court...
premiered their play Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane
Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane
Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane is a play written by Ray Galton and John Antrobus that brought the Steptoe and Son saga to an end...
at the Theatre Royal, York. The play is set in the present day and relates the events that lead to Harold killing his father, and their eventual meeting thirty years later (Albert appearing as a ghost).
Both Galton and Simpson were awarded OBEs
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in the 2000 Honours list
British honours system
The British honours system is a means of rewarding individuals' personal bravery, achievement, or service to the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories...
for their contribution to British television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
.
The successful Scandinavian television series Fleksnes Fataliteter
Fleksnes Fataliteter
Fleksnes Fataliteter, better known by its shortened title Fleksnes, was a Norwegian television comedy series produced between 1972 and 2002, based on Galton and Simpson's scripts for the British series Hancock's Half Hour.-History:...
was based on stories written by Galton and Simpson.
A series of old plays updated for modern times, entitled Galton and Simpson's Half Hour, was broadcast on BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
in 2009. The series of four episodes was made to celebrate the duo's 60 year anniversary, and the cast consists of Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner is a British writer, comedian and actor. He is best known for his television presenting, often alongside David Baddiel, with whom he also collaborated for the football song "Three Lions."He is a radio presenter on the Saturday morning slot on Absolute Radio.-Youth and early career...
, Mitchell and Webb
Mitchell and Webb
Mitchell and Webb are a British comedy double act, comprising David Mitchell and Robert Webb . They are best known for starring in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show....
, Rik Mayall
Rik Mayall
Richard Michael "Rik" Mayall is an English comedian, writer, and actor. He is known for his comedy partnership with Ade Edmondson, his over-the-top, energetic portrayal of characters, and as a pioneer of alternative comedy in the early 1980s...
, June Whitfield
June Whitfield
June Rosemary Whitfield, CBE is an English actress, well known in the United Kingdom since the 1950s for roles in radio and television comedy series....
and Paul Merton
Paul Merton
Paul Merton is a British comedian, writer, actor and television presenter. Known for his improvisation skill, his humour is rooted in deadpan, surreal and sometimes dark comedy...