' Will you please watch the ITMA script a little more closely with regard to dirt? On one or two occasions recently you have been overstepping the bounds. The " stick it up " gag last week was a case in point.'
(BBC INTERNAL MEMO)
Throughout the Second World War. the nation may have laughed at Tommy Handley , ' Mrs Handley 's boy ', and at the other characters of radio's most successful comedy show, but behind the scenes BBC officials agonised over what should and should not be permitted on the air.
Gordon Snell tells the extraordinary story of the 300 editions of ITMA, from 1939 to 1949, based on documents in the BBC Written Archives, together with extracts from the original radio broadcasts. With DOUGLAS BLACKWELL , MARTIN FRIEND, GARARD GREEN, ROGER HAMMOND , GODFREY KENTON , PEGGY PAIGE and EVA STUART Producer ALAN HAYDOCK