The Secret Policeman’s Ball – The Complete Edition (DVD)

PAL Region 2.  4 disks.

Amnesty International – DVD 2254

Released October 13, 2003.  581 minutes

A box set featuring all the Secret Policeman's Balls (the live comedy and music shows in aid of Amnesty International).  The Goodies appear in Pleasure At Her Majesty's, the 1976 show, in which they sing a live version of Funky Gibbon.   

Tim also appears in a sketch in The Secret Policeman's Other Ball (from 1981).

These shows had previous been available separately on VHS tape.  They are also available in other DVD collections (I’ll try to add some of these selections in a future update).

At Last The 1948 Show (DVD)

US Release (pictured)

NTSC Region 0.   2 disks.

Tango Entertainment – TE1006                       

Released 26 July 2005.   172 minutes (including bonus features)

UK Release

PAL Region 0.   2 disks.

Boulevard Entertainment – BLVDD0041

Released 25 July 2005.   157 minutes

Australian Release

PAL Region 4.  2 disks.

Roadshow Entertainment

Released 1 Dece 2005.   172 minutes (including bonus features)

This set contains five episodes from the 1967 sketch comedy series which starred Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Marty Feldman, and Aimi Macdonald.  Bonus features include an interview with Tim Brooke-Taylor.  An interview with Terry Jones (of Monty Python) is also included but that one is primarily about the “Do Not Adjust Your Set” DVD which was released simultaneously with this one (the same two interviews appear as bonus features on that set).

The DVD case comes packaged inside a cardboard sleeve.  I have provided a scan of the back of the inner case, which gives a detailed listing of the sketches in each episode.

The At Last The 1948 Show DVD was originally prepared for release in the US by Tango Entertainment and then licensed to distributors in the UK and Australia.  The US set is pictured – artwork for the UK and Australian releases is largely the same, with minor country-specific changes (such as the ratings symbols, distributor logos, etc.)  While the UK and Australian sets are listed as PAL my understanding is that the disks are identical to the US release and were not converted from the US NTSC version (although I haven’t heard of anyone experiencing difficulties playing the DVDs in the UK or Australia). 

There were originally 13 episodes of At Last The 1948 Show.  Like a lot of other British programming of its era, the original shows were believed to be lost when British broadcasters wiped tapes of old series.  A few years ago five compilation episodes of At Last The 1948 Show were found in Sweden – sketches and Aimi’s linking pieces from various episodes had been put together to create these new shows.  While additional complete episodes have been found since that time this release only contains the five compilation episodes.  There was also some criticism about the fact that the material for the DVD was not digitally restored (a good review of the set can be found on the DVD Times website at http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=57897).

Despite these shortcomings, it’s great to finally have this material on DVD.

Do Not Adjust Your Set (DVD)

US Release (pictured)

NTSC Region 0.   2 disks.

Tango Entertainment – TE1005                     

Released 26 July 2005.   280 minutes (including bonus features)

UK Release

PAL Region 0.   2 disks.

Boulevard Entertainment – BLVDD0047

Released 25 July 2005.   280 minutes (including bonus features)

Australian Release

PAL Region 4.  2 disks.

Roadshow Entertainment

Released 1 December 2005.   280 minutes (including bonus features)

This set was released simultaneously with the At Last the 1948 Show DVD listed above.  It is included in this guide because of Tim Brooke-Taylor’s contributions – he appears in one episode (filling in for an ailing Michael Palin) and a recent interview with him is included as a bonus feature (this is the same interview that appears on the 1948 Show set).

This release contains nine episodes from the late 1960’s series that featured future Monty Python members Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin, along with castmates David Jason and Denise Coffee.  Neil Innes’ Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band also appears in multiple episodes.  My understanding is that none of the episodes in this set contain Terry Gilliam’s animations (even though the front cover  claims they are included).

The DVD case comes packaged inside a cardboard sleeve.  I have provided a scan of the back of the inner case, which gives a detailed listing of the contents of each episode.

The Do Not Adjust Your Set DVD was originally prepared for release in the US by Tango Entertainment and was then licensed to distributors in the UK and Australia.  The US set is pictured – artwork for the UK and Australian releases is largely the same, with minor country specific changes (such as the ratings symbols, distributor logos, etc.)  While the UK and Australian sets are listed as PAL my understanding is that the disks were not converted from the US NTSC release (although I haven’t heard of anyone experiencing difficulties playing the DVDs in the UK or Australia). 

A detailed review of the set can be found on the DVD Times website at http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=57899.