Product Description

Peter Cook and Dudley Moore were a major part of the new comedy era in the '60s and '70s. When the pair wrote and conceived Not Only... But Also a great partnership developed. They would talk into a microphone and then record and review their impromptu speech developing parts that had promise and discarding the rest. The scripts were not written in stone and half of the charm of the show is the pair's ad-libs and the laughter they were trying to hold back. Six episodes have been compiled from what remains in the BBC Archive of this classic comedy. Guests include John Lennon and Barry Humphries.System Requirements:Running Time: 170 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/BBC UPC: 883929024131 Manufacturer No: 1000039478

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18948 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2008-09-09
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, Color, DVD, Original recording remastered, Restored, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 173 minutes

Features

• Peter Cook and Dudley Moore were a major part of the new comedy era in the '60s and '70s. When the pair wrote and conceived Not Only. But Also, a great partnership developed. They would talk into a microphone, and then record and review their impromptu speech, developing parts that had promise and discarding the rest. The scripts were not written in stone, and half of the charm of the show is the

Amazon.com
Fans of Monty Python or Frye & Laurie should run to get The Best of... What's Left of... Not Only... But Also..., the godfather of an entire branch of British comedy. Peter Cook and Dudley Moore revel in freewheeling conversations that range from whimsical to downright surreal, as well as visual lunacy like playing a piano underwater or a flabbergasting parody of Thunderbirds-style marionette shows. Most of their most famous sketches are here: Cook as Mother Superior of an order of leaping nuns; Moore as soul man Bo Dudley; and the Dagenham Dialogues, in which Cook unrolls preposterous verbal flights while Moore tries, usually unsuccessfully, to keep a straight face. (Eddie Izzard would sell his best frock to have come up with some of Cook's freewheeling ideas.) Other memorable sketches include a domestic squabble between a leprechaun and a fairy; a stuffy father explaining sex to his uncomfortable son; and a retrospective of a Garbo-esque movie star (played by Cook), with Moore narrating in a fetching blonde wig. Cook and Moore laid the groundwork for all that came after them, but their comedy isn't musty or primitive; the best of Not Only... But Also... is more fresh and vital than 99% of what's being churned out today. This is essential viewing; along with six episodes of the show, there's a half-hour retrospective that includes a bit of their classic sketch about a one-legged man auditioning to play Tarzan. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Not Only...But Darn it!
I loved Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, especially together. This DVD showcases the beautiful black and white [and some color] program they were well known for, not so much here in America back in the mid 1960's, but mostly in England. Being a John Lennon fan since 1964 it is wonderful to see a near mint copy of the visualization of the poem from his first book, In His Own Write, that being, Def Ted,Danoota and Me.
For fans, old and new alike, it breaks your heart when you read in the enclosed booklet that the BBC erased [wiped is the technical term] the master video tapes in the early 1970's due to some silly notion that they, the BBC, couldn't afford new reels of videotape and Peter Cook himself offered to BUY NEW REELS in order to keep the BBC from wiping the tapes, hence, the program, Not Only..But Also, would be eliminated like it never had been in the first place.
I don't really know how the material on this DVD survived, it must have hidden itself in a warehouse somewhere under the title "BBC Documentary:
How To Tell When It's Raining".
Shame on them for destroying the masters of this funny, funny, series.
Now, with both men gone forever, if you enjoyed their unique humor as I have, buy this DVD and enjoy what once was. We'll never see their likes again. Darn it!

A Nice Chunk of Pete & Dud
In the early 90s the BBC released a ninety minute videotape called 'The Best Of ... What's Left Of ... Not Only ... But Also'. It was a greatest hits compilation of the few sketches that remained of the show. This DVD takes a different approach and re-creates six episodes.

Working from memory it looks as if all the material from the videotape has been included here EXCEPT for the Pete & Dud reunion sketch they recorded for the release of the video. The sketch is short, not terribly great, but it was nice to see the two of them together again. That's the reason for my four star review instead of five; that sketch should have been included here.

Having said that what's here is quite good. All of their most famous sketches from the series are here (nuns on trampolines, a handful of Pete & Dud sketches, Superthunderstingcar, Peter as Garbo, teaching ravens to fly underwater, Peter as a dad having a sex talk with his boy Dudley) and it's a lot of fun. A bit less fun are the jazz trio pieces and the female singers that occasionally perform with them. There's also a somewhat interesting bonus feature entitled 'Success Story' that includes some nice clips (One Leg Too Few) and an interview with the boys from the 1970s.

All in all it's great slice of mid-60s British sketch comedy. Although Monty Python would come along in a few short years and destroy this format, there's something very sweet, silly and ultimately quite satisfying about Peter Cook and Dudley Moore.

Don't hesitate to pick up this DVD and if you enjoy it then immediately head for the 'Beyond The Fringe' disc as well. You won't be disappointed.

Wonderful satires - comic masterpieces !
Great comics have said that without Peter Cook, there wouldn't have been Monty Phython.
John Cleese called him a genius.
And Pete and Dud were great, great at work !
And their corpsing (particularly Duddley's) during shows is also very funny !