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Entertainment Pure & SimpleA showcase of productions from The Bright Thoughts Catalogue set-out by genre provides description, cast list, other relevant data and further research. Staging and choreography by Neil Anthony, director Bryan Izzard. All productions devised and produced by Neil Anthony and Bryan Izzard.
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Featured shows |
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Shows which celebrate the world of Operetta & Musical Comedy became known as Top C's & Tiaras™. First a pilot one-hour special, followed by a spectacular Top C's & Tiaras 2 shot on location for a prime-time slot on a bank holiday. The main Sunday night series was recorded at a Downton Abbey-like stately home. A follow-on series recorded at Limehouse Studios.
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The Monologues capture a number of rare performances of star artists with compere and host, the now legendary Barry Cryer. Unseen for 40 years, transmitted as a mini-series titled The Green Tie on the Little Yellow Dog the name is a parody of another monologue 'The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God'. The parody is performed by Cilla Black.
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About a famous person in theatrical history and therefore a virtuoso renown acting performance. Most shows are theatre-based plays. Macready! wrritten and played by Frank Barrie, a play which toured 65 countries; a risqué comedy Max Miller, Here's a Funny Thing played by the late John Bardon; also a play based on the life of Groucho Marx, Jon Rumney as Groucho.
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And all that jazz ... |
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Often 'niche' programmes for specialist, minority audiences, Hoarded Dreams performed at the Bracknell Jazz Festival; Crossing Bridges rare footage of esteemed guitarists renowned for experimentation; The Art Ensemble of Chicago once thought to have been lost.
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Comedic talent made for Channel 4 on a 'shoe-string budget' largely from the 'alternative' style at that time made popular by The Comedy Store. Based on ideas where comedians made political and topical (weekly) comment, Interference and Book Em' & Risk It, all on location.
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Theatre-based shows adapted for TV including Hollywood Hits Chiswick, W.C.Fields, a silverscreen legend; a stylised production of some classic Molière farces played by the American Repertory Theatre; Ron Moody performing vignettes about the villainous characters of old London.
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Sample tracks |
Three sample tracks from Bright Thoughts productions which are not in the shows selected in this online Catalogue:
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Odd but true |
INSPIRED BY THE VIDEODISC
The concept of Top C's & Tiaras™ was devised originally for Interactive VideoDisc (also known as LaserDisc) in the early 1980s because the data capacity would take a large amount of the extensive repertoire of operetta allowing the viewer to select a playlist of their choice (from 100s of pre-recorded items from the repertoire) and with optional information/text overlays plus other interactive elements.
We were in negotiation with Philips Laservision and ThornEMI. The idea was for a TV broadcast to be a secondary exploitation (not primary) although the TV exposer would serve as a marketing tool to help promote the Videodisc as an emerging technology for educative as well as entertainment purposes.
This new technology was not a commercial success, it literally bombed! Whilst the technology itself was not a failure, the market did not respond well, it did not gain mass-appeal and therefore later found applications largely in science and industry.
By this time Channel 4 were interested in commissioning one show however, with an option on making a series. And along the way, we had discovered new innovative and fun ways of making a good show. Having had numerous meetings with video disc companies and visits to their laboratories, the style of interactive formatting was later used on a number of our productions.
We were in negotiation with Philips Laservision and ThornEMI. The idea was for a TV broadcast to be a secondary exploitation (not primary) although the TV exposer would serve as a marketing tool to help promote the Videodisc as an emerging technology for educative as well as entertainment purposes.
This new technology was not a commercial success, it literally bombed! Whilst the technology itself was not a failure, the market did not respond well, it did not gain mass-appeal and therefore later found applications largely in science and industry.
By this time Channel 4 were interested in commissioning one show however, with an option on making a series. And along the way, we had discovered new innovative and fun ways of making a good show. Having had numerous meetings with video disc companies and visits to their laboratories, the style of interactive formatting was later used on a number of our productions.
A UNIQUE PLAYLIST
When Channel 4 first came to air, they commissioned a mini-series of short 'filler' items each lasting between 3 and 5 minutes in order to plug the scheduling gaps (because, at the time, other programmes were not going to adhere to the standard 1 hour or half hour slots).
The idea was that these 'filler' items would be played many times, and would never actually be edited together to form a single piece of programming but be more of a 'Playlist' idea (which, at the time had not been done before).
Star performers were invited to participate - Cilla, Julie Walters, Leonard Rossiter, Maureen Lipman, Barry Cryerand many others - with the prestige of being a special part of the new station's output as an incentive, performing classic British comic songs and monologues, in the tradition of the music hall. Each vignette was shot on location, filmed around the dining table of a grand eighteenth-century London townhouse.
By the time the footage was 'in-the-can' the winds at C4 had changed, and it was latterly decided that the production would be broadcast in three parts, to air during July 1983 as The Green Tie On the Little Yellow Dog (a parody of another monologue called The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God).
This late decision meant as producers we had to scramble to re-edit the performances into this longer form in order to meet the transmission deadline.
In its own, very obscure, way it is a landmark piece of television history, a moment in time when the most unlikely group of comedy greats came together and made some 'vignettes' of TV gold.
The idea was that these 'filler' items would be played many times, and would never actually be edited together to form a single piece of programming but be more of a 'Playlist' idea (which, at the time had not been done before).
Star performers were invited to participate - Cilla, Julie Walters, Leonard Rossiter, Maureen Lipman, Barry Cryerand many others - with the prestige of being a special part of the new station's output as an incentive, performing classic British comic songs and monologues, in the tradition of the music hall. Each vignette was shot on location, filmed around the dining table of a grand eighteenth-century London townhouse.
By the time the footage was 'in-the-can' the winds at C4 had changed, and it was latterly decided that the production would be broadcast in three parts, to air during July 1983 as The Green Tie On the Little Yellow Dog (a parody of another monologue called The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God).
This late decision meant as producers we had to scramble to re-edit the performances into this longer form in order to meet the transmission deadline.
In its own, very obscure, way it is a landmark piece of television history, a moment in time when the most unlikely group of comedy greats came together and made some 'vignettes' of TV gold.
COULD SOMEONE TELL THE PRODUCERS ?
When we were at the Channel 4 press-launch of new autumn scheduling it was announced that a new comedy show with emerging talent from the Comedy Store and Edinburgh Fringe would be coming to our screens in a few weeks time produced by the Bright Thoughts Company.
Exciting though this was, it was the first time we had actually heard the news and we were at a public event with press asking us questions about the new show. Apparently, the commissioning department, it would seem, had forgotten to tell us. No budget had been agreed and yet a transmission date had been announced. Quite an embarrassment.
Literally making it up as we went along, we had to invent a concept of 'pirate TV' (Station 'S') whereby the comics would pop-up in different locations each week (we couldn't get a studio or regular location in such short time) and therefore make the show largely topical about the politics and events of that same week. We would then rapidly edit for the show to go out that same week.
If we had have been commissioned to do make the series with some lead-up time, the outcome would no doubt have been quite different rather than flying by the seat of our pants. Finding out at a press-launch was not ideal!
Whilst Interference may not have been our finest hour, it was still great fun to do.
Exciting though this was, it was the first time we had actually heard the news and we were at a public event with press asking us questions about the new show. Apparently, the commissioning department, it would seem, had forgotten to tell us. No budget had been agreed and yet a transmission date had been announced. Quite an embarrassment.
Literally making it up as we went along, we had to invent a concept of 'pirate TV' (Station 'S') whereby the comics would pop-up in different locations each week (we couldn't get a studio or regular location in such short time) and therefore make the show largely topical about the politics and events of that same week. We would then rapidly edit for the show to go out that same week.
If we had have been commissioned to do make the series with some lead-up time, the outcome would no doubt have been quite different rather than flying by the seat of our pants. Finding out at a press-launch was not ideal!
Whilst Interference may not have been our finest hour, it was still great fun to do.
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BroadcastEx-head of now defunct Southern Television, Bryan Izzard, has teamed up with dancer and choreographer, Neil Anthony, to form Bright Thoughts, a production company which will concentrate on entertainment, the first fruit of their partnership is a pair of one man shows - 'Here's a Funny Thing' starring John Bardon, on the life and work of Max Miller, and 'Macready' starring Frank Barrie as the famous 19th century actor.
Whilst this Channel 4 production has brought the two together, both will continue to pursue their respective careers ... Broadcast, 12 April 1982
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Credits
Acknowledgements to the BFI Replay for making 7 titles publicly available as part of their Visual History - Heritage 22 project. Other short teaser clips of rare footage on many artists from shows listed in this Catalogue can be viewed in the appropriate page title and also on YouTube.
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The Bright Thoughts Collection:
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Agent in all Channel 4 TV programme contracts, Roger Hancock Ltd.
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Find out more on the Bright Thoughts Company productions listings, the casts and crews and on producer Neil Anthony on IMDb.
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