"That Was the Week That Was" (1962) TV series 1962-1963

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Writers:

John Albery (writer)
John Antrobus (writer)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

24 November 1962 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Satirical sketch show. The first such show in the UK. It ran for two seasons before being pulled just before the 1964 general election.

Plot Keywords:

Sketch Comedy | Variety Show | Satire | Topical Humor

Cast

David Frost	...	Himself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)
Millicent Martin	...	Herself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)
William Rushton	...	Himself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)
Roy Kinnear	...	Himself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)
Lance Percival	...	Himself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)
Kenneth Cope	...	Himself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)
David Kernan	...	Himself (37 episodes, 1962-1963)

Also Known As:

"TW3"

Runtime:

50 min (37 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

John Bird was the host for the first pilot, but was unavailable for the series, so was replaced by David Frost

Movie Connections:

Featured in Filth: The Mary Whitehouse Story (2008) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Calypso

TWTWTW: The most innovative show of its generation.

Hard, actually IMPOSSIBLE to believe that not a solitary person in all these years has had a single acknowledgment or comment to make on this ground-breaking weekly show that made David Frost a household name in three continents back in the early 60's.

Hit British Television like a steam train and nuked the collective public consciousness on its first appearance. The first show to feature stand-up comedy satirising current affairs. Thumbed its finger at traditional news broadcasting and mocked everyone from political figures, sports people, through to Television executives themselves. The ancestor of many many shows worldwide which picked up and copied the format. None either equalled or topped it. In Australia the first cab off the rank was THE MAVIS BRAMSTON SHOW which tried to hide its Brit origins and wound up a very limp imitation despite its subsequently being remembered so fondly. FAST FORWARD follows in TWTWTW's steps but lacks the depth of talent of its English grand-parent.

An ICON of 60's entertainment, and if you are British, then all the more meaningful that statement becomes. Cutting-edge scripting by David Frost and Bernard Levin and Millicent Martin, Kenneth Cope, Lance Percival, William Rushton and Roy Kinnear all went on to develop a stage and film presence....some more successfully than others.