Gold to celebrate Tony Hancock with colourised episodes & documentary
![Hancock's Half Hour. Image shows from L to R: Anthony Aloysius St John Hancock (Tony Hancock), Donor (Frank Thornton), Nurse (June Whitfield). Copyright: BBC Hancock's Half Hour. Image shows from L to R: Anthony Aloysius St John Hancock (Tony Hancock), Donor (Frank Thornton), Nurse (June Whitfield). Copyright: BBC](https://cdn.comedy.co.uk/images/library/comedies/900x450_eps/h/hancocks_half_hour_tv_0705.jpg)
- Gold is to air newly colourised episodes of Tony Hancock's Twelve Angry Men and The Blood Donor
- The channel has also ordered the documentary Tony Hancock: Very Nearly An Armful, presented by Jack Dee and featuring unseen personal artefacts of Hancock's
- "As a fan myself, to view items so personal to him was such an experience" said Dee. "I hope Gold viewers get as much out of this as I did."
Gold is to celebrate Tony Hancock, airing two newly colourised classic episodes from his BBC series, British Comedy Guide can exclusively reveal.
Airing in 2023, a year ahead of Hancock's centenary, the two colourised programmes are the acclaimed Hancock's Half Hour episodes Twelve Angry Men and The Blood Donor, written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, originally seen on television in 1959 and 1961 respectively.
British Comedy Guide understands they have also been comprehensively restored from new transfers of the surviving film prints.
The two episodes will be accompanied by a documentary fronted by Jack Dee, featuring never-before-seen scripts and other personal items belonging to the late comedy legend.
A two-hour retrospective taking its title from The Blood Donor episode, Tony Hancock: Very Nearly An Armful features previously unseen scripts, scrapbooks and production files belonging to the lad himself, as well as personal items such as photos and letters.
Very Nearly An Armful also features clips from the Hancock ATV series, made after he split with Galton & Simpson, colourised and shown on television for the first time since their broadcast in 1963. The series was released complete and uncut on DVD in August.
![Tony Hancock: Very Nearly An Armful. Jack Dee Tony Hancock: Very Nearly An Armful. Jack Dee](https://cdn.comedy.co.uk/images/library/comedies/900x450/v/very_nearly_an_armful.jpg)
"The life and career of Tony Hancock is truly fascinating" said Dee, whose deadpan style has been likened to that of Hancock. "As a fan myself, to view items so personal to him was such an experience. I hope Gold viewers get as much out of this as I did."
BCG understands that Hancock's family and The Tony Hancock Appreciation Society have been closely involved in making the documentary.
Produced and directed by Victoria Thomas (The Fast Show: Just A Load Of Blooming Catchphrases, Britain's Greatest Comedy Character) for Studio Crook (Morecambe & Wise: 30 Funniest Moments, Les Dawson's Funniest Moments), the Hancock mini-season was commissioned for UKTV by Iain Coyle, and ordered by Gerald Casey, channel director for Gold.
"Two comedy icons in one show. I'm so delighted to be working with Jack" said Coyle. "The legend of Hancock still has a huge influence on comedy and sitcom today and the team at Crook have done a fantastic job and unearthed some incredible artefacts. I can't wait to see these two classic episodes in full glorious colour."
Casey added: "This new commission is one of the biggest comedy archive finds in years. The life and career of Tony Hancock is truly fascinating. Viewers will get a new insight into one of British comedy's most prominent influences. We're thrilled to have this come to Gold next year."
Matt Crook, executive producer and managing director of Studio Crook, said: "It's an absolute treat and a pleasure to be working on a programme about one of my comedy idols, Tony Hancock. To get access to such treasures from the Hancock estate and to work with UKTV on such an engaging project has been incredibly exciting.
"We have loved adding a splash of colour to classic Hancock, it's been an absolute dream project."
![Hancock. Tony Hancock (Tony Hancock) Hancock. Tony Hancock (Tony Hancock)](https://cdn.comedy.co.uk/images/library/comedies/900x450/h/hancock_1963_eye_witness.jpg)
An enormous book of previously unseen Hancock material was brought together for a book published last month, containing many of the paper artefacts to be exhibited in the documentary.
Compiled by the comedian's great-niece, Lucy, with co-authors Martin Gibbons and Tim Elms of the appreciation society, the 750-page read, subtitled Inside His Life In Words & Pictures, was published by Kaleidoscope and features unproduced scripts, theatre programmes and correspondence, including contracts and telegram exchanges with other stars such as Peter Sellers, Hattie Jacques and John Le Mesurier.
The memorabilia was amassed by Hancock's brother, Roger, and has been combined with material held by The Tony Hancock Appreciation Society. Kevin McNally, who played Hancock on Radio 4's reconstructions of The Missing Hancocks, wrote the foreword.
Tony Hancock: Inside His Life In Words And Pictures
![Tony Hancock: Inside His Life In Words And Pictures](https://cdn.comedy.co.uk/images/library/products/tony_hancock_inside_his_life_in_words_and_pictures.jpg)
Tony Hancock was one of our best loved comics and his legendary Hancock's Half Hour series for the BBC was the inspiration for many comedy shows that were to follow. With radio episodes regularly repeated on the BBC, it remains as popular today as ever.
Now, for the first time, readers are able to look behind Hancock the comedian and tell his life story through the phenomenal archive amassed by his brother, Roger, combined with material held by the Tony Hancock Appreciation Society (THAS).
Lucy Hancock (Hancock's great niece) and THAS's Martin Gibbons and Tim Elms tell the story of the celebrated comic's life through pictures, correspondence and much more, most of it never published before, and featuring a foreword from Kevin McNally. The book also includes a complete chronological timeline of Hancock's life featuring stage shows and broadcasts previously unpublished.
This amazing collection of archive material is a must for all Hancock fans.
First published: Thursday 18th August 2022
- Publisher: Kaleidoscope
- Pages: 642
- Catalogue: KPMG
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The Tony Hancock Collection
![The Tony Hancock Collection](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41kO+pqVQcL._SL325_.jpg)
This collection contains all 37 surviving episodes, from 1956 to 1961, of the classic TV sitcom written by Galton and Simpson, featuring East Cheam's most famous resident, Tony Hancock, alongside supporting stars including Sid James and Kenneth Williams.
Sadly, 17 episodes from the series are missing believed wiped, but their scripts are included in PDF form amongst the set's extras.
First released: Monday 22nd October 2007
- Distributor: 2 Entertain
- Region: 2
- Discs: 8
- Minutes: 1,083
- Subtitles: English
- Catalogue: BBCDVD2168
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Hancock - The Complete ATV Series
![Hancock - The Complete ATV Series](https://cdn.comedy.co.uk/images/library/products/hancock_atv_series.jpg)
Following the conclusion of Hancock's Half Hour on BBC radio and television, Tony Hancock began a new series in 1963 with ITV broadcaster ATV.
Airing for just one series of 13 episodes, the series - simply titled Hancock - saw the star in a new series of sitcom mishaps.
Now, complete and uncut, it is available on DVD for the very first time.
First released: Thursday 18th August 2022
- Distributor: Kaleidoscope
- Discs: 3
- Minutes: 323
- Catalogue: KPU1963
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