Review of Carry On Christmas Special (Box Set)

Introduction

Ho! Ho! Ho! Or should I say `Yak! Yak` Yak!` in tribute to Sid?

Whilst the Santa outfits are out, and there`s clearly been a little bit of sherry doing the rounds on the set, this is standard TV fare from the Carry-On team. Well, most of them. Kenneth Williams is noticeably absent, despite being involved in the majority of the movies shot at around the same time as each of these recordings.

This release will come as a blessed relief for obsessive and completist fans as only two of the four specials included here have ever been available before. (The 1973 / 1974 shows).

I`m a long time fan and proud owner of all 32 movie-outings, but as all fans will know, not all Carry-Ons are created equal. Some movies are better than others. Some are classics and others just plain awful (`Carry on Emmanuelle` or `Carry on England` for example). And as a general rule, the television outings were the worst of the lot.

(I can say this with some authority having waded through a number of the splendid `special editions` of the later movies which include TV episodes amongst the extras.)

Having said that, there are certainly moments here that are a cut above the low standards generally set. In general terms, it`s Sid and Babs who are the star turns, ably abetted by a half-sozzled Charles Hawtry. Most the remainder are the standard supporting team, headed up by Kenneth Connor.

The DVD contains four TV specials on Disc 1, all accessed via a colourful (and seasonal) animated menu. (Class stuff!)

CARRY ON CHRISTMAS (1969) (Approx. 50 Minutes)
This came as something of a pleasant surprise as it`s a full colour outing where some effort has gone into production values. Although it`s nothing more than a Carry-On panto, it`s still amusing to see Sid James (Playing Ebenezer Scrooge) and Barbara Windsor at the very height of their powers, as well as half-cut Charles Hawtry camply slurring his way through his few brief appearances. Frankie Howerd is also very good - especially in his role as a fairy godmother, a part he was born for, and he`s clearly enjoying himself here. Hattie Jacques makes a few appearances too, most comically as a nun ad Bernard Bresslaw is ever present too playing parts as varied as Frankenstein`s monster, a convent girl and little Bob Cratchit. Also present and correct are Peter Butterworth and Terry Scott.

CARRY ON CHRISTMAS: CARRY ON LONG-JOHN (1970) (Approx. 50 Minutes)
This time Sid leads the cast as Long John Silver, with Babs, Charles Hawtry, Terry Scott, Kenneth Connor and Bernard Bresslaw in tow. There`s also a nice appearance from Wendy Richard who is interviewed about here recollections on Disc 2.
Surprisingly, this was shot in black and white and is loosely based on `Treasure Island`. One of the highlights is Babs as young Jim Hawkins. It`s easy to forget just how easy she made it all look, and how important her role was to the dynamic of the team.


CARRY ON CHRISTMAS: CARRY ON STUFFING (1972) (Approx. 50 Minutes)
Sadly the worst of the lot. No Sid James and no Charles Hawtry this time, having fallen out with Peter Rogers over billing. (He never appeared in a Carry-On again).
So Kenneth Connor returns to centre stage (as he was in the very early film outings for the team), supported by Joan Sims, Hattie Jacques, Barbara Winsdor, Jack Douglas and Peter Butterworth. Despite some brave attempts to make the most out of some pretty tired sketches, this fails to raise even a hint of a titter. Sketches include `The Garden of Eden` (use your imagination!); `The Last Outpost` British colonials enjoy a final meal as the house is blown apart around them. (A good idea and one that had been previously enjoyed in `Carry on Up the Khyber` four years earlier), The Musician`s Story` where the team sing an Elizabethan song, `The Sailor`s Story` with two spinsters inviting some sailors home for Christmas, and `Aladdin` where all pretence of doing anything other than pantomime is dropped.


CARRY ON CHRISTMAS (1974) (Approx. 50 Minutes)
Sid James is back in various roles, and is ably abetted by Joan Sims, Terry Scott, Bernard Bresslaw, Kenneth Connor, Jack Douglas, Barbara Windsor and Peter Butterworth. I`ve seen this one once or twice before (having bought the `Cinema Club` VHS some years ago) and it`s actually rather good. Sid is great as the cynical store Santa who gets little Virginia sitting on his knee (Babs) and knows exactly what he`d like to give her for Christmas. (Nothing PC about this outing…). Once the store closes he ruminates on how Christmas has been celebrated over the centuries. It`s a great excuse to go back to cave-men days, Elizabethan days, WW1, and Sherwood Forest amongst other sketches. It`s all great fun and there`s a party atmosphere that`s contagious here. A welcome return to form - and the last Christmas outing for the team.

Each of the features is introduced in an emotionless monotone by an aged Peter Rogers who, strangely, has a photo of an Alsatian dog over one shoulder. Reading from a prompter is not his forte and a harder-minded Director would almost certainly dropped these takes to the cutting room floor but I guess, having shot them, felt compelled to use them. Mercifully, they only last a few seconds each. (It`s worth noting that a much more animated Peter Rogers is featured in the extras…).

Video

The real revelation here is the `lost-in-the-archives` 1969 special which is not only in colour but also in fantastic condition! It`s not often that videotaped studio-based television from this era looks so good. I don`t know whether Network have invested in a clean-up operation or not but whatever the case, they must be applauded. Brilliant stuff.

The condition of the other episodes and the extra features are variable but all perfectly acceptable.

Audio

Whilst there is clearly nothing remarkable about the audio (why would there be?), it`s all perfectly acceptable with no irritating flaws to ruin your enjoyment. Despite being archived video-recorded television from the best part of 35 years ago, it still stands up just fine.

Features

Disc 2 is full of extra features that really bring some context to the features. But you`d need to be a pretty ardent fan to endure most of them. I am so I did.

It kicks off with `An Evening with Peter Rogers` - a 45-minute interview shot at a `Carry On` gathering at Pinewood Studios. It`s all a bit folksy, looking like a school-assembly room, though is interesting enough for those with a thirst for such information. Peter Rogers talks lucidly and candidly about his time on the Carry-Ons.

A series of specially shot interviews make up the rest of the disc. The first is a twenty-minute interview with Peter Rogers who talks specifically about the Christmas Carry-On TV specials.

Next up is a ten-minute interview with Wendy Richard who talks about her time in the Carry On TV specials as well as the films. She talks candidly about cast and crew.

Finally, Jack Douglas talks specifically about the TV Carry-Ons taking us on a tour of Teddington studios, which is where they were shot in front of a live audience.

All three interviews are full of fascinating anecdotes, though it would have been nice to have heard form more central characters. Alas - apart from dear old Babs, they`ve all departed to that giant film lot in the sky.

There are also a few text based production notes and trivia in DVD-Rom format to round off the features.

Conclusion

For ardent fans, this release has been a long wait. Only two of the four Carry-On Christmas specials have been officially released before (and then on VHS). The most exciting find (the 1969 broadcast) has never officially seen the light of day since. So was it worth it? In a word - yes.


The quality of the recordings far surpasses expectations and Network have once again done the decent thing and given fans a package to delight.

Of course, for everyone else this might just be an impulse seasonal purchase and I suppose I should counter my waxed lyricism by adding that, despite some laugh aloud moments, there are a few toe-curling moments too - more than worthy of a Vic Reeves tumbleweed sound effect.

Kenneth Williams, perhaps the most popular Carry-On star along with Sid, is conspicuous in his absence, though most the others are in attendance at some point on this lengthy disc.

The extras may be of interest but probably best left to the hardcore fans. I`m slightly abashed to say that I certainly count myself amongst them.