"Do Not Adjust Your Set" (1967) TV series 1967-1969

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Writers:

Terry Gilliam (writer)
John Gould (additional material)

Seasons:

1 | 2 | unknown

Release Date:

26 December 1967 (UK)

Genre:

Family | Comedy

Plot:

The Bonzo Dog Dooh Dah Band, an eccentric English group featuring Neil Innes was fronted by the late Vivian Stanshall.

Plot Keywords:

Kids And Family

Cast

Eric Idle	...	Various (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Michael Palin	...	Various (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Terry Jones	...	Various (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
David Jason	...	Various / ... (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Denise Coffey	...	Various (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Neil Innes	...	Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Vivian Stanshall	...	Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
'Legs' Larry Smith	...	Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Roger Ruskin Spear	...	Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (21 episodes, 1967-1969)
Rodney Slater	...	Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (19 episodes, 1968-1969)

Runtime:

UK:30 min (28 episodes) | UK:50 min (1 episode)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:K-3 (2006)

Company:

Associated-Rediffusion Television

Trivia:

Elton John was a fan and named his album “Captain Fantastic” after the character in the series.

Quotes:

Eric: Don't forget, when you stir the Christmas pudding, make a wish.
Denise: I wish I didn't have to stir this pudding.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Life of Python (1990) (TV)

pre-Python by a whisker ...

Along with the 1948 Show (which featured Pythons-to-be John Cleese and Graham Chapman), DNAYS is revered and sought-after as a missing piece of the puzzle of pre-Python lunacy. Bringing together the other four Pythons (Michael Palin, Terry Jones, Eric Idle - all looking impossibly young - and cartoonist Terry Gilliam) it was an anarchic and silly series, aimed (supposedly) at kids but with much to offer everyone else.

Alongside Palin & co. there was David Jason (now a huge favourite of British TV with Only Fools and Horses, A Touch of Frost, and much more), Denise Coffey (now whatever happened to her?) and the musical antics of the wonderful Bonzo Dog (Doo Dah) Band. Basically a dozen or so twenty-something guys (and a girl) letting their hair down and having a laugh would sum up DNAYS perfectly.

Although the series has rarely been re-run - I think two episodes have been on TV in the last twenty years as part of retrospective telly nights, including the Christmas special Do Not Adjust Your Stocking - the good news is that over half the episodes as filmed have survived the ravages of time and the mass wiping of tapes that went on in the 1960s and 1970s. Occasionally liberated from archives for the odd screening, the series holds up well and is extremely off-the-wall and funny. It would be wonderful to see it out on DVD.