Harry Enfield's Television Programme

Harry Enfield's Television Programme was first broadcast on BBC 2 in 1990 in the Thursday 9pm slot that had become the traditional time for alternative comedy. Enfield was already an established name due to his 'Loadsamoney' character but the series gave greater presence to his frequent collaborators Paul Whitehouse and Kathy Burke - so much so that in 1994 the show was retitled "Harry Enfield and Chums".

Related Topics:
1990 - Alternative comedy - Paul Whitehouse - Kathy Burke

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The 1990 series was written solely by Enfield, Whitehouse, Charlie Higson and Geoffrey Perkins. The original series began with Enfield in a black suit walking towards the camera and blowing a raspberry to the music of a brass band. Regular characters included:

Related Topics:
Charlie Higson - Geoffrey Perkins

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• Smashie and Nicey - out-of-date Radio 1 DJs Dave Nice and Mike Smash, a thinly veiled parody of Mike Read and Simon Bates. Each skit would feature the pair's love of "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, seemingly the only record they ever played. The pair would also try to outdo each other with deliberate mentions of charidee (charity) work for which the pair would ostensibly claim to be keeping hush-hush.
• Wayne and Waynetta Slob - (actually derived from one of Burke's stand-up skits), a pair of benefit dependent proto-Chavs arguing over the name of their unborn child - "You can't call it Elvis 'cause its a GIRL" - or pizza.
• Tim Nice-But-Dim - An upper class twit who is usually being ripped off by one of his 'jolly nice' prep-school chums.
• Lee and Lance - Two idiot fruit and veg stall holders opining about current affairs much in the same mode as "Pete and Dud".
• The Old Gits - An obnoxious pair of old men who take great delight in persecuting younger people.
• Annoying Kid Brother - He spends his entire time irritating his family by talking constantly. Later grew up to become Kevin the Teenager.
• Mr You-Don't-Wanna-Do-It-Like-That - An irritating know-it-all father who advised various people with both household tasks and diverse jobs, such as a football pundit.
• The Palace of Righteous Justice - A superhero team who are forced to encounter everyday problems such as opening a bank account.
• Stavros - A revival of Enfield's old character, a Greek kebab-shop owner.
• Loadsamoney - Killed off in the final episode.

After the original series there were a couple of radio appearances and a one-off special for the characters Smashey and Nicey. During the period between series Enfield concentrated on straight acting parts and Whitehouse worked on other projects though through repeats the characters proved popular and, in 1997, BBC2 commissioned a new series, this time called "Harry Enfield and Chums". The format of the opening credits were the same though this time Enfield would be seen taking a quick drag from a cigarette hidden behind his back. This time the series had a pool of writers and is not as sharp as the original.

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