The final edition of 'Six Dates With Barker' was a rare excursion by Ronnie Barker ( he wrote it under his 'Gerald Wiley' alias ) into science fiction.
It is 2774 A.D. A head of state lays dying. A physician arrives to tend to his final needs. He makes his entrance by jumping through a circus-style hoop, before executing a Billy Dainty-style funny dance. The viewing masses roar with laughter.
Yes, we are in a bizarre future where comedy has become the new religion. Instead of The Father, The Son & The Holy Ghost, it is Chaplin, Keaton, and W.C. Fields. No-one is allowed to be serious anymore. People greet one another by thumbing their noses. A banana skin graces the national flag. When Prince Boffo ( Ronnie Barker ) weeps for his dead father, the viewers at home are mystified. When he questions the status quo, his wife reports him to the authorities, who decree he be re-indoctrinated to regain his sense of humour. He must face the Arch Funster...
If you went to the cinema in the early '70's to see a science fiction film, chances were you would be confronted with the likes of 'A Clockwork Orange', 'No Blade Of Grass', 'The Final Programme', 'Soylent Green' and 'Zardoz', all of which predicted doomy futures for the Human Race. It is a little surprising to see a half-hour sitcom on the same theme. 'Stooge' depicts a nightmarish world, with everyone constantly cracking jokes, and an air of forced joviality in place at all times.
Michael Hordern makes a guest appearance as the 'Arch Funster', a cross between Bob Monkhouse and Groucho Marx. The actor had previously worked with Barker on the silent film comedy 'Futtock's End'.
Lesley-Anne Down, who plays Prince Boffo's daughter 'Cheeky', went on to the period drama 'Upstairs, Downstairs' as the annoying 'Georgina Worsley'.
The author's message is obvious; only by being serious can we ever hope to measure the joy of laughter.
Like the 'Galton & Simpson Playhouse' episode 'Variations On A Theme', this should be regarded as a piece of experimental comedy, an attempt to do something other than what was the norm for I.T.V. comedy at the time. I cannot say for sure but my guess is that it probably baffled audiences. It makes its point fairly quickly, and then has nowhere to go. Perhaps the idea would have worked more effectively in sketch form. A similar premise appeared on 'Dr.Who' in 1988 - 'The Happiness Patrol' starring Sylvester McCoy.
Funniest moment - Prince Boffo's re-indoctrination, in which he has to supply the punchlines to the Arch Funster's incredibly corny jokes. If it failed to offend anyone of a certain religious faith at the time, then I would be most surprised.
Of course when this was written old school comedy was still around. Just imagine an updated version, featuring a world in which people worshipped 'The Mighty Boosh'. Doesn't bear thinking about, does it?
It is 2774 A.D. A head of state lays dying. A physician arrives to tend to his final needs. He makes his entrance by jumping through a circus-style hoop, before executing a Billy Dainty-style funny dance. The viewing masses roar with laughter.
Yes, we are in a bizarre future where comedy has become the new religion. Instead of The Father, The Son & The Holy Ghost, it is Chaplin, Keaton, and W.C. Fields. No-one is allowed to be serious anymore. People greet one another by thumbing their noses. A banana skin graces the national flag. When Prince Boffo ( Ronnie Barker ) weeps for his dead father, the viewers at home are mystified. When he questions the status quo, his wife reports him to the authorities, who decree he be re-indoctrinated to regain his sense of humour. He must face the Arch Funster...
If you went to the cinema in the early '70's to see a science fiction film, chances were you would be confronted with the likes of 'A Clockwork Orange', 'No Blade Of Grass', 'The Final Programme', 'Soylent Green' and 'Zardoz', all of which predicted doomy futures for the Human Race. It is a little surprising to see a half-hour sitcom on the same theme. 'Stooge' depicts a nightmarish world, with everyone constantly cracking jokes, and an air of forced joviality in place at all times.
Michael Hordern makes a guest appearance as the 'Arch Funster', a cross between Bob Monkhouse and Groucho Marx. The actor had previously worked with Barker on the silent film comedy 'Futtock's End'.
Lesley-Anne Down, who plays Prince Boffo's daughter 'Cheeky', went on to the period drama 'Upstairs, Downstairs' as the annoying 'Georgina Worsley'.
The author's message is obvious; only by being serious can we ever hope to measure the joy of laughter.
Like the 'Galton & Simpson Playhouse' episode 'Variations On A Theme', this should be regarded as a piece of experimental comedy, an attempt to do something other than what was the norm for I.T.V. comedy at the time. I cannot say for sure but my guess is that it probably baffled audiences. It makes its point fairly quickly, and then has nowhere to go. Perhaps the idea would have worked more effectively in sketch form. A similar premise appeared on 'Dr.Who' in 1988 - 'The Happiness Patrol' starring Sylvester McCoy.
Funniest moment - Prince Boffo's re-indoctrination, in which he has to supply the punchlines to the Arch Funster's incredibly corny jokes. If it failed to offend anyone of a certain religious faith at the time, then I would be most surprised.
Of course when this was written old school comedy was still around. Just imagine an updated version, featuring a world in which people worshipped 'The Mighty Boosh'. Doesn't bear thinking about, does it?