Goodbye Again (TV)

"Goodbye Again" (1968) is a right funny series of four hour-long television programmes made by the British TV network ITV to re-unite Peter Cook and Dudley Moore and recreate their very successful BBC comedy series "Not Only... But Also" (begun 1965).

The head of the network, Lew Grade, offered Cook and Moore a lucrative contract and the opportunity for network exposure in the USA. Whilst earlier attempts by the BBC to make another show with the duo had been turned down, they accepted Grade's offer with its promise of a larger production budget . Four shows were recorded, three in April/May 1968 and the fourth a year later. They were aired in the USA under the "Kraft Music Hall Presents" banner in 1969.

One innovation of the show was the total abandonment of all punchlines, with the sketches flowing into one another in a stream-of-consciousness, surreal method, which predated "Monty Python's Flying Circus" by 18 months. Also of note to Python fans should be the "Senile Delinquency" sketch and the recurring high-voiced old woman, who should be referred to as the 'pre-pepperpots'. John Cleese, prior to "Python" was a guest star on the show.

A 90-minute compilation of material from the four shows was released on DVD in 2005 under the title "The Very Best of Goodbye Again".