Picture the scene... BBC Radio 1, 1980-something - well before the big 1989/1990 shake-up which turned it from the most popular station in the country to something a little more youth-orientated. These are the times of Simon Bates, Steve Wright, Gary Davies, and of course DLT - Dave Lee Travis. The relief DJ at the time was Adrian Juste, who also did a comedy clips show every Saturday. Saturdays for me would start with Saturday Superstore or Going Live on BBC1 before switching over to Adrian Juste's Radio 1 show.
Now this was the 80s... the comedy which reached the primetime airwaves wasn't exactly cutting edge - if you were lucky, you'd get some Jack Dee, but it was mainly '50s/'60s/'70s vintage, such as Kenneth Williams and Les Dawson. But come Christmas, Adrian Juste also had a four-hour graveyard slot Christmas and New Years Eve, I think running from 10pm to 2am.
Well after the watershed.
I don't remember if it was live (probably not), but the extended show allowed for some original sketches to be written and performed, leading to material which was a little edgier. Edgier for a teenager, that is - this stuff leaned more towards early The Mary Whitehouse Experience rather than anything sharper, but teenaged me loved it.
Fast-forward a decade or two and suddenly the sharper comedy is the mainstream, and Radio 4's comedy line-up contains a good cross-section of what's available. Listen Again on the BBC website is a wonderful invention. Ironically, it's the longest-running show which is pushing the primetime boundaries - "I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue" has some very rude (and sometimes quite graphic!) jokes, especially the tales of their scorer, Samantha. Then, in 2003, they did a Christmas extended special, their take on A Christmas Carol. It featured comics from the current scene, plus the four stalwarts who date back to the '60s. The mix of current material and legendary performers was a hit with me - give it a whirl...
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