Morcambe, Wise and Mr Preview

Rerun: Oscar-winning conductor André Previn was an unlikely choice of celebrity guest for the Christmas special of ‘The Morcambe and Wise Show’ recorded on 7th December, 1971 - but the 13-minute sketch they taped together remains one of Britain’s all-time favourites. The music hall-style caper - which revolves around a comically catastrophic interpretation of Grieg’s Piano Concerto - was actually a reversion of a sketch Eric and Ernie had performed at least twice before, but never with a guest performer. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Mia Farrow helped Previn nail his role in this iconic skit; explore whether the duo’s comic schtick was truly as ‘classless’ as is often claimed; and reflect on whether ‘Mr Preview’ really knew what he was letting himself in for… Further Reading: • André Previn on ‘The Morcambe and Wise Show’ (BBC, 1971): https://www.dailymotion.com/video/xds7am • 'Make any fool of me you like, but I won’t have you make fun of the music’ - André Previn at 80 (Classic FM, 2018): https://www.classicfm.com/artists/andre-previn/guides/andre-previn-80/ • ‘The Prelude of Mr Preview: How André Previn won over Morecambe & Wise’ (British Comedy Guide, 2020): https://www.comedy.co.uk/features/comedy_chronicles/andre-previn-prelude-preview/ ‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’ Every Thursday is 'Throwback Thursday' on Today in History with the Retrospectors: running one repeat per week means we can keep up the quality of our independent podcast. Daily shows like this require a lot of work! But as ever we'll have something new for you tomorrow, so follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors Love the show? Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY! Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast. Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks! The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices