Peter Cook and Dudley Moore: The Best Of … What’s Left Of … Not Only … But Also…

BBC/WARNER
Street: Sept. 9
Prebook:
> Classic sketch comedy featuring 'Pete and Dud’ at their finest.

The sharp, influential comedy of Peter Cook and Dudley Moore is showcased in this terrific selection of sketches and filmed segments from their three-season series Not Only … But Also… (1965-70). Tapes of the series were officially wiped by the BBC, but eight of the 22 episodes were saved and boiled down into the six shows included here (which aired on BBC in 1990). The 90-minute VHS release of the collection is augmented on DVD with a host of items, including various lounge-jazz interludes by the Dudley Moore Trio and the further adventures of working-class louts “Pete and Dud.” Of special interest is the inclusion of one of the two appearances John Lennon made on the program, taking part in a visualization of one of his poems. (His second appearance, which has survived, is curiously absent.)

Shelf Talk: Fans of pre-Monty Python British comedy are poised to descend on this collection, which includes material that was never broadcast in the U.S. but has scored tens of thousands of hits on YouTube. A vintage interview of the pair during the 1973 Broadway run of their hit show Good Evening serves to sweeten the deal.