Round The Horne

THE GREATEST RADIO COMEDY SHOW OF ALL TIME COMES BACK TO LIFE IN A MAJOR NEW UK TOUR

ROUND THE HORNE

CLASSIC COMEDY fans will be in their element in early 2022 as Apollo Theatre Company bring the classic radio comedy show, Round the Horne to life in a new, exciting production.

Now in its fifth UK tour, this production transports the audience back to the late 1960s and the anarchic, boisterous atmosphere of the BBC’s Paris Theatre during the recordings of the programme that defined the genre for decades to come, complete with a live band and live sound effects.

With its infamous movie spoofs and hilarious regular characters such as Julian & Sandy, Rambling Syd Rumpo and J. Peasemold Gruntfuttock, Round the Horne was a cultural phenomenon, regularly drawing up to 15 million listeners per week and making stars of Kenneth Horne, Kenneth Williams, Hugh Paddick and Betty Marsden.

Today, 55 years since its first broadcast, the show is still as popular as ever and audiences at over twenty venues will have the chance to experience live what makes the show so special.

Created with the blessing and support of the estates of the show’s writers, Barry Took and Marty Feldman, director Tim Astley has hand-picked a selection of the greatest sketches and songs from the 67 original episodes.

On Round the Horne’s enduring popularity, Astley says, “I was born twenty years after Round the Horne aired its final episode and discovered it for the first time as a teenager. Even at a young age, I could tell that this show was special. Barry and Marty were so clever in the way they wrote it that it really did have something for everyone. On one level you have the big, over-the-top characters and ridiculous scenarios, one the other, the wonderful wordplay and innuendo. I listen back to the shows now and finally understand some of the cleverer and ruder jokes I missed at first listen. It really is a timeless comedy show and its an absolute joy to be able to perform these brilliant sketches live to fans young and old.”

The tour will open at the new Esher Theatre in Surrey on 19th January and run until 20th February, visiting venues in England, Scotland and Wales.

Brimming with eccentric, laugh-out-loud humour, Round the Horne is an absolute must-see for classic comedy fans.