Ominous rumblings
Where it all began. The Goons meet at The Grafton Arms pub, and the word starts to get out that something weird is happening.
The year is 1951. Four young men, all former members of the armed services, are drinking in The Grafton Arms, near Victoria Station in London.
They improvise gags and sketches, invent voices and characters, and generally entertain the clientele.
The landlord, Jimmy Grafton, another ex-serviceman, sees the potential for these mad young would-be entertainers to carve out a niche for themselves on radio. Some of them already have as individuals- but what they have together is special. There is a spark there, a zaniness and surreality to their humour that is unlike anything else on the air.
The Goon Show is about to be created.
The Goons had been trying to get heard by the BBC for some time before they were finally granted a trial recording. This took place in February 1951, and was preserved by the Aberdeen Evening Standard, of all publications.
Inside information: Trial programme has been recorded tentatively called 'Junior Crazy Gang', including Harry Secombe, Peter Sellers, Michael Bentine, Spike Milligan, [the] Ray Ellington Quartet, Max Geldray and his Harmonica, and the Stargazers. Producer was Pat Dixon. From all accounts a huge success; decision rests with Home Service planners whether it will come on as a series.
(Taken from the Aberdeen Evening Standard, 16 February 1951.)
What the papers said
On 17 May 1951, a short article in The Stage gave a glimpse of what was to come:
“The Goons”
One of the happier meetings during the war years was that of four young men of the ‘Stars in Battledress’ show, Harry Secombe, Peter Sellers, Michael Bentine, and Spike Milligan. They discovered that they all had something in common – a rather extravagant form of humour – and decided that after the war, when they had each established themselves in show business, they would try to form a new crazy comedy team. The moment has now arrived, and listeners will hear the first offerings of Milligoon, Sellergoon, Segoon, and Bentigoon in what they fondly refer to as their ‘Goon Show’, a new Home Service series starting on May 28.
Max Geldray, harmonica virtuoso, the Stargazers, the Ray Ellington Quartet, and Stanley Black and the Dance Orchestra will bring listeners down to earth, musically at any rate, during the show. Dennis Main Wilson will be the producer, and the script will be written by a certain Arnold Fringe, known as the spirit of the Goons, whose work is subsequently translated by Spike Milligan.
People say that there is nothing new under the sun, but the Goons’ form of humour may well explode the theory, if only for the reason that they work to a plan in which any situation is developed to its illogical conclusion!
(‘The Goons’ article from page 7 of The Stage, 17 May 1951. I note no mention of fellow scriptwriter Larry Stephens.)
A week later, The Stage flagged one of the musical acts - and gave him ownership of the whole thing!
Ray Ellington Quartet
Now appearing regularly in the BBC Saturday night “Top Score”, the Ray Ellington Quartet start their second radio series next week, when their “Goon” show goes on the air on Monday, May 28. This will be the first of six weekly half-hour programmes to be pre-recorded each Sunday. The Quartet have a week of variety at Blackpool Palace from Monday next, and will listen-in to the radio show in their dressing room...
The new bassist-comedy man, Len Harrison, is settling down well with the Quartet, and full personnel is now Ray Ellington, drums and vocals; Dick Katz, piano; Laurie Deniz, electric guitar; and Len Harrison, bass.
(Article from page 3 of The Stage, 24 May 1951)
Another article from later in the same issue strikes a slightly wary tone, having evidently asked Spike Milligan to explain himself. Note the name of the show in the headline - despite the proliferation of the word ‘Goon’, the bigwigs at the Beeb weren’t having it.
“Crazy People”
Spike Milligan, who is at present with Joe Loss1 (who, incidentally, gave him his first Number One booking at the Shepherds Bush Empire), will be heard on Monday at 6.45 in the Home Service in “Crazy People”.
The Artists in this “gang” include Peter Sellers, Michael Bentine, Harry Secombe and Margaret Lindsay2 (“We Beg to Differ” programme), who prefer to call themselves “The Goons”. The nearest definition Spike Milligan says that he can give to the word “Goon” is “that every one of the gags has an illogical conclusion”. Mr Milligan wrote the script for this programme assisted by Larry Stephen3, an ex-commando.
It will be interesting to know how this show, with a new type of humour, will appeal to listeners.
(Article from page 7 of The Stage, 24 May 1951)
The Dawn of a New Age of Idiocy is nearly upon us.
I believe this reference to Joe Loss means the famous band leader. Spike's initial entertainment successes were through the Bill Hall Trio, a comedy-jazz act for which he played guitar and banjo, leading him to pursue a music career. Spike was also an accomplished trumpet player, which is probably what brought him to the attention of Joe Loss. The Joe Loss Orchestra was founded in the early 1930s and is apparently still going, more than 30 years after Loss's death.
Margaret Lindsay was a comedy actress who had appeared with Harry Secombe, Michael Bentine and Peter Sellers on other radio shows, most notably Third Division, a forerunner of The Goon Show. She was supposed to appear in the first episode of The Goon Show, but for whatever reason did not, and there her association with the cast and the show seems to have ended.
Larry Stephens, who we will come to later, co-wrote many Goon Show scripts before his death in 1959.