Beyond the Fringe

Beyond the Fringe was a British comedy stage review written and performed by Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller. It played in Britain's West End and on New York's Broadway in the early 1960s.

Influence

Many see Beyond the Fringe as the forerunner to British television programmes That Was The Week That Was, At Last the 1948 Show and Monty Python's Flying Circus,

Related Topics:
That Was The Week That Was - At Last the 1948 Show - Monty Python's Flying Circus

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As with the established comedy review it was a series of satirical sketches and musical pieces using a minimal set looking at events of the day. It effectively represented the views and disappointments of the first generation of British people to grow up after World War II and gave voice to a sense of the loss of national purpose with the end of the British Empire. Although all the cast contributed material the most often-quoted pieces were those by Cook many of which had appeared before in his Cambridge Footlights revues. The show broke new ground with Peter Cook's impression of then Prime Minister Harold Macmillan.

Related Topics:
Satirical - World War II - British Empire - Footlights - Harold Macmillan

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The show is credited with giving many other performers the courage to be satirical and more improvised in their manner, and broke the conventions of not lampooning the government of the day or the Royal Family. However the show wasn't all that satirical, merely making fun of things ? such as the war films ? however even this was a step forward in comedy. Shakespearean drama was another target of their comedy.

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There were a number of songs in the show, mainly using music by Dudley Moore. Some have credited it with the rise of the Satire Boom of the 1960s. Without it there may not have been any That Was The Week That Was or Private Eye magazine, which originated at the same time, survived partly due to financial support from Peter Cook, and served as partial model for the later American Spy Magazine. Cook and Moore formed a comedy team and appeared in the popular television show Not Only... But Also and the 1966 film Bedazzled. The Establishment Club was also launched around this time. Many of the members of Monty Python recall being inspired by "Beyond the Fringe".

Related Topics:
Satire Boom - That Was The Week That Was - Private Eye - Spy Magazine - Not Only... But Also - Bedazzled - Monty Python

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