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Amazon.co.uk Review
Les Dawson was one of the last practitioners of a comedy tradition that had its roots in variety, pantomime and the hard knocks school of Northern working-men's clubs. Right up until his death in 1993, he saw no need to revise or modernise his material in the face of the "alternative" comedy revolution--"I'm not saying she was fat, but they used her knickers for hang-gliding", "the mother-in-law got on a chair and sang all the songs she'd learnt as a stormtrooper"--because the enduring charm of his performances depended less on the material than his delivery. Dawson was the master of the deadpan and, coupled with a flexible face that lent itself to hilarious gurning, he could transform the longest shaggy-dog story with the weakest punchline into a comedic masterpiece. On this video a selection of his monologues, sketches (including, of course, several doses of double entendre queens "Cissie and Ada" with fellow drag artist Roy Barraclough) and notorious attempts to play the piano are interspersed with some variety performances and--arguably his finest hour--his stint as host of Blankety Blank ("This is the first time I've hosted a quiz show and I feel about as comfortable as a lame turkey sat on a pile of paxo listening to Christmas carols"). Taking over from genial but bland Terry Wogan, Dawson transformed this trivial BBC quiz show into a sublime send-up of the format. Excerpted here are a handful of his set-piece jokes, but some of the most priceless moments were his ad-libs to the minor celebs on the panel or his sarcastic reflections on the show's prizes. If the selection here seems haphazard, it's probably because there is no such thing as a "classic" Les Dawson sketch: his very presence was the essence of his comedy. --Mark Walker
DVD Description
Les Dawson’s career spanned over 25 years and made him one of Britain’s best loved comedians. This collection captures classic moments from the Les Dawson show, Blankety Blank and Dawson’s hilarious drag pairing with Roy Barraclough as the gossiping housewives, Cissy and Ada. All Dawson’s trademark performances are here - his brilliantly poor piano playing, the mother-in-law jokes and hilarious rambling monologues.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
122 of 122 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Les Dawson was an integral part of TV when I was growing up, first with his own shows and later as presenter of 'Blankety Blank'. To my mind, he sits alongside Spike Milligan as one of the funniest people ever to grace this planet and Dawson was, without a doubt, the master of the deadpan delivery.
This DVD is basically a compilation of bits and pieces from Les Dawson's various TV shows, including the odd excerpt from 'Opportunity Knocks' and 'Blankety Blank'. All the usual staples are here: Cissy and Ada, his hilarious double act with Roy Barraclough of 'Coronation Street' fame, Zebediah Twine the magician as well as the monologues (how did he manage to keep a straight face?), the near legendary mother-in-law jokes and, lest we forget, his superbly off-kilter piano playing (Les Dawson was, in fact, an extremely talented pianist)
The quality of some of the BBC's DVD releases leaves a lot to be desired, and this is no exception - there are no extras to speak of and the subtitling is rather poor although given the age of some of the material included, the mono soundtrack can just about be forgiven.
These faults aside, it's a fitting tribute to a British comedy legend.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
one of the funniest dvds of LES I have seen for a long time it brought back memories of how funny he was
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
In my view Les Dawson was never the same after he moved from Yorkshire TV. The "Sez Les" programmes gave free rein to his down-to-earth vulgarity. His BBC work was still funny, but somehow more restrained and refined - the roughness had been smoothed down. This DVD has its fair share of funny moments but it lacks any overall style or continuity, it's just a rag-bag of clips and doesn't do its subject justice.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Les Dawson
Used to watch Les Dawson as a kid but you forget how funny he was.Probably would not get away with his style of humour today.Which is best but at the time was funny.Sorry
Published 2 months ago by Martin Hilton
A good evenings entertainment
What you would expect from Les Dawson; his various characters are funny and his sketches are hysterical (or is that historical?).
Published 5 months ago by J. F. Truscott
Christmas pressie
Can't really review this fairly as it is for a christmas pressie, but it arrived quickly and was well packaged
Published 6 months ago by Gail
what a funny man
i got this dvd for my old man whos a massive fan.i remember watching les on tv when i was a kid,but particuly cisse and ada. Read more
Published 6 months ago by ROD
Not his best.
I actually bought this for the missus not being a huge fan of Les Dawson, but we both agreed after lees than 15 minutes to turn it off. It is rubbish. Not funny at all. Read more
Published 15 months ago by M. Nicoll
Not the best bits
Had I seen this before I bought it, I would not have purchased. I do not think it is best bits at all, quite disappointing.
Published 17 months ago by R. Darlow
damaged disc
unfortunately the dvd was damaged and I had to return it. The seller was efficient in that they did an instant refund.
Published on 26 Mar 2010 by K. Assman
Doesn't do Les Dawson any justice
Sorry this was a massive disappointment. Got this for christmas and we were bored silly at times.
No chapters on the dvd, went on a bit too long and most of all the... Read more
No chapters on the dvd, went on a bit too long and most of all the... Read more
Published on 23 Jan 2009 by The Dodger
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