[Steve in Pudsey]

I also like to point out, that back in the early years of Red Nose Day, quite a lot of the night was filled with clips from classic BBC comedies of the 1960s and 1970s, such as the 1991 event which I read and saw they were airing clips from Monty Python, Dad's Army, Morecambe and Wise and the Two Ronnies.

But a different era then, before the days of UK Gold and other outlets for archive comedy, so a premium rate phone vote to choose which archive clip was shown was genuinely of interest to people. Nowadays you can see the parrot sketch whenever you want.

On the first Red Nose Day they showed a full Dad's Army at 10pm - albeit with a special introduction from Jimmy Perry - and a Steptoe and Son at 1am.

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But it's interesting to look at the list of pepole involved: all of the big comics of the day but also some of the all time greats: Ronnie Corbett, Ernie Wise, the Pythons.

You don't get too many of the old guard getting involed these days - arguably French and Saunders are about it in terms of people who don't seem to have other shows/projects at the moment? (I assume they were involved this year, I know they were in last year's Traitors sketch)

I hadn't realised the origins of Comic Relief was more like Stand Up To Cancer, being a stand up gig in a theatre
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[Brekkie]

Yes - they've kind of got three 40th anniversaries coming up with the charity founded in 1985, first event in 1986 and first Red Nose Day in 1988.

I do wonder if they're not going to run the telethon past the news whether staging a stand up event prior then airing that in the slot might be a good way around it.

[tellyblues]

They could maybe mark all three anniversaries but keep two low-key (I'd suggest the first two) as it would get a bit of a mess trying to big up all of them and viewers would get tired of the constant "... years since..." patter.

[Brekkie]

Didn't realise that it actually launched on Christmas Day 1985 during Noel's Live Live Christmas Breakfast Show broadcast.

youtu.be 

(ftom 2:10 - courtesy of Greg Scott)

[James2001]

The same show with Feargal Sharkey infamously refusing to mime.

[Steve in Pudsey]

Was he refusing? I thought the failed so he couldn't hear the backing track

[James2001]

The band seem to be able to hear it though!