Carry On Christmas Specials

[moonvisage]

Did anybody ever see these Carry On Christmas Specials? I never knew they existed until a few months ago.The ones i have managed to see,are brilliant.I think a few can be bought on DVD now.Here is a clip of the 1973 Christmas Special.

YouTube - Carry On Christmas (pt-1/6)

[HG]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I've got the 1973 one, the dvd came free with the newspaper a couple of christmasses ago.

[Marine Boy]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I really don't remember these at all! Thanks for the link.

[Richard1978]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I've never seen any of these, but knew about them.

Supposedly Charles Hawtry dropped out of the Carry Ons after being promised a bigger part then normal, only to find his role was kept to the sidelines.

Do they all survive in original condition? many TV companies (not just the BBC) were purge-happy in their archives at this time.

[kazboot]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

Supposedly Charles Hawtry dropped out of the Carry Ons after being promised a bigger part then normal

Ooh I say, Matron! Bigger part!
( Sorry, I couldn't resist )

[HG]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

Ooh I say, Matron! Bigger part!
( Sorry, I couldn't resist )

Good one Kaz, can almost hear Kenneth Williams saying that

[memoman]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I've got the 1973 one, the dvd came free with the newspaper a couple of christmasses ago.

The free issue was a one dvd copy.I have the two disc copy that was not given away free.Not sure what's on the second disc,I've filed it away.

[ayrton]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I have all three Carry On Christmas Specials on DVD. Two of those were free ones from the Daily Mail.

[frame]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I thought these were terribly put together,the originals were very enjoyable and still can be now on a sunday afternoon.
Frame.

[staffslad]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I think I read somewhere that Charles Hawtrey withdrew at last minute from one of the Carry on Christmas episodes. That, and his alcoholism meant that Rogers and Thomas had had enough and dropped him from further involvement with Carry Ons.

[Richard1978]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

I think I read somewhere that Charles Hawtrey withdrew at last minute from one of the Carry on Christmas episodes. That, and his alcoholism meant that Rogers and Thomas had had enough and dropped him from further involvement with Carry Ons.

I'd heard that he was expecting a bigger part than normal because not many of the bigger names were in it, only to find he had been written a smaller part.

He had a sad life from what I've read, having to look after his elderly mum & struggling with money & health problems in his later years.

[staffslad]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

Yes, I think he was expecting Rogers to climb down and give him a larger part (oo-er), but it didn't work and it was curtains for his Carry On career.

I remember the news reports when he was rescued from a fire in his house by the fire brigade. All that drinking took its toll and he was in very poor health in his last years.

[George 1978]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

It's interesting how films are usually the spin-offs of most comedy series, but with the Carry Ons, it was the other way round.

The Christmas specials were before my time, and I understand that Kenneth Williams didn't appear in any of them.

Hawtrey appeared in the News of the World in the mid 1980s being rescued from his burning home by the fire brigade - I believe that it was only a few years before he died.

[staffslad]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

What interested the papers the most about the fire was that he wasn't alone.

[George 1978]

Re: Carry On Christmas Specials

The Doctor sitcoms series were also like the Carry Ons - the sitcoms were the spin offs of the films, and not the other way round.