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TONY HANCOCK

'Hancock's Half Hour, the Very Best Episodes: v. 1 CD'
Hancock's Half Hour, the Very Best Episodes: v. 1

Tragic Tony Hancock was possibly Britain's greatest-ever comic genius. Magical, droll performances, ably supported by the likes of Sid James and wonderful Ray Galton and Alan Simpson scripts.

Tony Hancock was born in Hall Green, Birmingham, England, on May 12th, 1924, and by the time he was 35 was the most highly regarded comedy performer in Britain.

First appearing on British TV in 1950 in 'Flotsam's Follies', by the end of the 1950s, Tony Hancock was a household name for his radio show, which then became a TV series - 'Hancock's Half Hour'.

Starring in too few films for his talent, Tony Hancock was outstanding in the 1960 comedy, 'The Rebel', where he plays a hopeless artist, who exploits the talents of a friend for hie own ends, and soon believes he's a genius.

Sadly, Tony Hancock's lugubrious persona on screen was all too real, as he was the epitome of the sad clown, and took his own life in Sydney, Australia, on June 25th, 1968.

- Paul Rance/booksmusicfilmstv.com.



Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com

Tony Hancock DVDs available from booksmusicfilmstv.com - in association with Amazon.co.uk

'The Tony Hancock BBC Collection (8 Disc DVD Box Set)' The Tony Hancock BBC Collection (8 Disc Box Set) ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James
'The Punch And Judy Man/The Rebel DVD' Tony Hancock Collection: The Punch And Judy Man / The Rebel ~ Tony Hancock, Sylvia Syms
'Hancock: The Best Of Hancock DVD' Hancock: The Best Of Hancock ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James
B0002CH8YW Hancock's Half Hour - Vol. 1 [1961] ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James
B000FS9SHI Hancock's Half Hour - Vol. 4 [1960] ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James
B0009WT578 Hancock's Half Hour - Vol. 2 - The Best Of ~ Tony Hancock
B000EMI5GK Hancock's Half Hour - Vol. 3 ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James
B00008IARR Tony Hancock: The Rebel / The Punch And Judy Man [1960] ~ Tony Hancock, George Sanders
B000VDLY4C The Very Best of Hancock
B00004CJ6P Hancock: The Blood Donor / The Missing Page / Twelve Angry Men [1961] ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James
'Tony Hancock - The Radio Ham DVD' Hancock: The Radio Ham ~ Tony Hancock, Sid James

Watch 'Tony Hancock' videos free at classicbritishsitcomvideos

Tony Hancock Videos available from booksmusicfilmstv.com - in association with Amazon.co.uk

Hancock's Half Hour - The Cruise / The Tycoon / The Baby-Sitters [1959]
Hancock's Half Hour: The Train Journey /The Photographer / Sid In Love / The Ladies Man
Hancock: The Poison Pen Letters
Hancock: The Very Best Of Hancock

Tony Hancock CDs available from booksmusicfilmstv.com - in association with Amazon.co.uk


Hancock: The Economy Drive, The Emigrant and Two Other TV Episodes

056353513X Hancock's Happy Christmas: Four Original BBC Radio Episodes (BBC Radio Collection)


'Tony Hancock - The Blood Donor And The Radio Ham CD'

The Blood Donor and The Radio Ham ~ Tony Hancock June Whitfield Patrick Cargill Hugh Lloyd John Bluthal Clive Dunn Derek Guyler Annie Leake Frank Thornton

'Hancock's Half Hour Series 3 CD' Hancock's Half Hour: Collector's Edition (Series Three)
'Hancock's Half Hour: Collector's Edition CD (Series Two: April 1955 - July 1955)' Hancock's Half Hour: Collector's Edition (Series Two: April 1955 - July 1955)
0563406275 Hancock's Half Hour: The Americans Hit Town/The Unexploded Bomb/The Poetry Society/Sid's Mystery Tour No.1 (BBC Radio Collection)
0563406305 Hancock's Half Hour: The Diary/The Old School Reunion/Hancock in the Police/The East Cheam Drama Festival No.4 (BBC Radio Collection)
0563528923 Hancock's Half Hour: Collector's Edition (Series Five: January - June 1958)
0563389044 Hancock's Half Hour: The Bequest/The Conjurer/The Publicity Photograph/The Grappling Game No.8 (BBC Radio Collection)
0563381493 Hancock's Half Hour: The 13th of the Series/The Wild Man of the Woods/The Junk Man/Bill and Father Christmas No.9 (BBC Radio Collection)


Tony Hancock: The Rebel / The Punch And Judy Man [1960]

Warner Home Video
DVD - April 14, 2003
The Rebel booksmusicfilmstv.com review

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Rebel (1961) and The Punch and Judy Man (1963) are the only two feature films made expressly as star vehicles for the great television comic Tony Hancock. The Rebel is by far the more ambitious, being in colour with Parisian locations, a large cast, and not least a supporting role for international star George Sanders. The opening rebellion against office life surely inspired The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, while references follow to Look Back in Anger (1958) and Billy Wilder's The Apartment (1960) and Some Like It Hot (1959). Hancock goes to Paris to follow his artistic muse and as he rises through the art world his naivety is taken for genius, allowing for some very funny moments and spot-on satire, which are just as relevant today as 40 years ago. Filmed in black-and-white in Bognor Regis, The Punch and Judy Man is a more modest yet evocative portrait of life in a small coastal resort. Hancock is the titular beach entertainer who is happy to live from day to day with the affable companionship of John Le Mesurier and Hugh Lloyd. The problem is he's burdened with a socially ambitious wife, Sylvia Syms. Gentle humour comes from Hancock's frustrations as a proto-Basil Fawlty, and the film, packed with familiar British character actors, has an old-fashioned charm. It makes for an enjoyable supporting feature to The Rebel, which is undoubtedly a minor classic. On the DVD: Tony Hancock Double Feature presents both films at 4:3 ratio. The earlier film looks decidedly cropped in several scenes, though the latter survives the reformatting largely unscathed. The Rebel's colour is faded and the image grainy, while The Punch and Judy Man generally has a much stronger black and white image. Even so, there is some flickering and print damage. The music is distorted in The Rebel but the mono sound is fine during The Punch and Judy Man. There are no extras. --Gary S Dalkin

Synopsis
In 'The Rebel' a bored city clerk has ambitions of becoming an artist in France. 'The Punch And Judy Man' tells the story of a melancholy man who is trying to establish himself as an important citizen in the seaside town where he works. When his snobbish wife is taught a lesson at an important social event it looks like he may just get the new lease of life he's always dreamed of.

 

 

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