Line #15 Radio/HancocksHalfHour


1	[[quoteright:275:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hancocks_half_hour_300.jpg]]
2
3	''Hancock's Half Hour'' was a [[Creator/TheBBC BBC]] radio and later television comedy series of the 1950s. It was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, who also created ''Series/SteptoeAndSon''.
4
5	The main character, a pompous self-important fool, was played by Creator/TonyHancock. His boorish offsider, whose chief task it is to bring Tony back to reality, was played by Creator/SidneyJames. Bill Kerr also featured as Hancock's dim Australian boarder. (Hancock, James and Kerr's characters all used variations on their real names.) Moira Lister and then Creator/AndreeMelly played Tony's girlfriends. Later, Creator/HattieJacques played Hancock's secretary, the rather prim Miss Pugh. Creator/KennethWilliams featured as a number of characters, most notably one nicknamed 'Snide'.
6
7	In the TV version the regular cast was pared down to Hancock and James, although Williams and Jacques made a couple of guest appearances in early episodes.
8
9	Both versions were smash hits. Previously, comedy had centred around music hall-style slapstick, rather than situation comedy, and ''Hancock's Half Hour'' could be said to be the first British situation comedy. The BBC received a string of complaint letters from pub owners because so many of their patrons went home to watch or listen to the show. In any voting contest of great British comedies, ''Hancock'' always comes in with a high ranking, even though many of its fans were not even born when it was made.
10
11	Not to be confused with ''Film/{{Hancock}}'' (although the title was abbreviated to this for the final TV series).
12	----
13	!!This show demonstrates examples of:
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15	* ABNegative: Tony is found to be AB Negative in 'The Blood Donor'. He is quite pleased about it, considering himself "one of nature's aristocrats".
16	* ActorAllusion: "The Student Prince" mentions Bill Kerr's appearance in Film/TheDamBusters the year before.
17	* AffectionateNickname: Bill often addresses Tony as "Tub".
18	* ArtisticLicenseMedicine: The BrickJoke in 'The Blood Donor' turns on the idea that Tony, whose blood type is AB negative, can only be given blood that is also AB negative. But actually he could be given blood of any type, as long as it's rhesus negative. [[note]]People with blood type O negative are the only people who can ''only'' receive blood of their own type, but they're also "universal donors" in that blood type O negative is the only blood type that can be given to everyone. (Conversely, people with blood type AB positive are the only people who AB positive can be given to, but they're the only "universal recipients" in that they can also receive every other blood type as well.) It's easier to understand with [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_type#ABO_blood_group_system a diagram.]][[/note]]
19	** The doctor tells Tony his blood group is AB Negative, rhesus positive. There is no such group. The word 'Positive' or 'Negative' that follows the blood group letter is itself the indicator of rhesus status.
20	** First-time blood donors are not told their blood group on the day, as their group cannot be discerned from the pinprick test. Their group only becomes known when the blood is tested in the laboratory days later.
21	* BackupTwin: Parodied in 'The Bowmans'.
22	* BagsOfLetters: In the episode 'The Bowmans' Hancock finds himself bombarded by mail the day after his radio SoapOpera character is killed off.
23	* BigEater: Tony would needle Miss Pugh for her immense appetite and ability to put away huge quantities of food in the time it takes to blink an eye.
24	* BlandNameProduct: Tony stars in 'The Bowmans', a take on the venerable ''Radio/TheArchers'' complete with a suspiciously similar theme tune.
25	* BlatantLies: Tony's inflated sense of pride means he often tells face-saving lies to people who witnessed the event or conversation that prompted the lie. For example, in "The Espresso Bar", he calls his agent and, after spending an inordinately long time jogging his memory as to who he actually is, is reduced to begging for whatever work is available, even the back half of a pantomime horse. When he hangs up, he claims to Bill that his agent had a long list of offers, but he didn't find them interesting enough. (Bill, who has been listening to the entire conversation, isn't fooled for a second.)
26	* BottleEpisode: 'The Bedsitter'
27	* BreakingTheFourthWall:
28	** If a member of the audience was particularly raucous, Hancock would take a moment to ask the person to calm down.
29	** In "The 13th Episode", Hancock interrupts the announcer at the start of the episode to announce that since it is the thirteenth episode of that season, he refused to do it. Filler music starts up, making the listener wonder if there will be no episode, but then the episode continues with him finding out that the BBC will cancel the series if he refuses, and him trying to find around his superstitions.
30	** In "The New Radio Series", Hancock decides to retire, while at the same time the BBC is trying to kick him out. Bill and Sid are already there when Hancock arrives at the BBC - the BBC has commissioned a new series, presenting "Bill Kerr, Sid James, Hattie Jacques, and Kenneth Williams" in "Kerr's Half Hour". Bill and Sid's characters were named after themselves, Jacques' character was named "Grizelda Pugh", while Williams played many characters, normally unnamed.
31	** The early television episodes sometimes ended with Hancock breaking the fourth wall to make some comment about the situation then ask the credits to come along. This was phased out later on but came back for "Sid in Love".
32	* BrickJoke: In 'The Blood Donor', Tony decides to give blood and discovers that he's got the rare blood type AB Negative. When he finds out that he has to give a whole pint ("That's very nearly an armful") he tries to back out, but in the end he gives in. At home afterwards, he feels hungry and decides to make a sandwich. He cuts himself on the breadknife and is taken back to the same hospital where, as luck would have it, they have a single pint of AB Negative blood. Which ''could'' be seen as AllForNothing, except that ([[LampshadeHanging as he points out]]) if he hadn't given blood in the first place he'd be in real trouble.
33	* BritCom: Arguably the first one.
34	* ButtMonkey: Tony is usually the victim of Sid's various schemes and gets his funds milked dry throughout the course of most episodes. In a twist, Sid is the butt-monkey in "The Student Prince", falling victim to numerous assassination attempts that Tony was meant to be the target of.
35	* CanisMajor: Tony buys a puppy for Andrée which grows. And grows. And grows. Eventually Tony has to turn his house into a doghouse the dog has grown so big.
36	* CatchPhrase:
37	** Tony's preferred expression of frustration at the world around him was 'Stone me, what a life!'
38	** Kenneth Williams' Snide character had two phrases trotted out with some regularity: 'No, don't be like that!' if someone (usually Tony) was losing their temper with him, and 'Stop messing about!' if someone was, well, messing about and wasting time. The latter was used in [[TheSeventies the '70s]] as the title of a Kenneth Williams comedy series on BBC Radio 4.
39	* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Bill was originally a much savvier character before he gradually turned into a ManChild.
40	* TheCon: In "Agricultural 'Ancock", Sid sells Lord's Cricket Ground to Tony, and Bill mentions that a someone tried to sell him Sydney Cricket ground but, at the time, he had no money left after buying Sydney Harbour Bridge. Bill goes on to mention that he was still having a fight against Sydney Borough Council about who owns the bridge.
41	* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Sid in his white-collar schemes, such as in "Sid's Mystery Tours," where he uses dual-class stocks and double-dealing to make a profit while leaving Tony with all the liability.
42	* CorruptPolitician: Some episodes have Sid and his gang obtaining political positions and then taking advantage of Tony to line their pockets.
43	* CourtroomEpisode: "12 Angry Men".
44	* CutLexLuthorACheck: Lampshaded in one episode, where Sid realises it's easier to go to the bank for an overdraft rather than come up with one of his usual over-complicated schemes.
45	* DeskSweepOfRage: At the end of "the Radio Ham", just as Tony realises that he's been beaten at chess by his radio opponent, he furiously sweeps all the pieces off the board.
46	* DiedDuringProduction: "The Missing Page" features an in-universe example. After spending the episode frantically trying to track down the missing last page of Darcy Sarto's murder mystery ''Lady Don't Fall Backwards'', Tony and Sid visit the British Library, which has copies of all books ever published in England, and discover that the manuscript ends literally ''one word'' before the murderer is identified, as Sarto died while writing the book and his publishers decided fans of his detective, Johnny Oxford, would like to read the book anyway.
47	* DroppedABridgeOnHim: Played for laughs InUniverse in "The Bowmans". After Hancock's character has been unceremoniously killed off from a radio soap opera, popular pressure forces the producers to bring him back. Tony Hancock insists that if he comes back, he be allowed to write his own scripts. The next episode features the rest of the cast walking across a field before falling down an abandoned mineshaft.
48	* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Tony's middle names are Aloysius St John.[[note]] Tony the actor's middle name was simply John (no Aloysius, no Saint).[[/note]]
49	* EveryoneLooksSexierIfFrench: Andrée Melly put on a French accent, because Tony Hancock was a Francophile in real life.
50	* TheFifties: Being a British show, though, it's quite realistic rather than a Stepford suburban nightmare.
51	* FinalSeasonCasting: The final TV series (retitled to ''Hancock'') saw Creator/SidJames dropped due to Creator/TonyHancock's fears of only being seen as a double act.
52	* {{Flanderization}}:
53	** Averted with Sid James, who goes from being an HonestJohn in the radio series to a DeadpanSnarker on TV.
54	** The plots themselves became less flanderized as the series progressed; changing from the complicated schemes of the radio series to simple character studies in the TV series (Sid & Tony take a train, Sid & Tony take bus ride, Tony goes to give blood).
55	** Played straight in the radio series with Bill Kerr, who became more simple-minded and childlike with each series.
56	* FunnyForeigner: Bill Kerr "lately of Wagga Wagga", and the (fake) French girl Andrée Melly.
57	%% * Getting Crap Past The Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.
58	* {{Gonk}}: Miss Pugh is described as being extremely large and unattractive.
59	* HaveAGayOldTime: In 'A Sunday Afternoon At Home', Tony compares the excitement of a Sunday afternoon 'on the Continent' with a boring old English Sunday afternoon, where everything's shut. Naturally, this leads him to describe continental Europe in the most positive terms, where 'everything's gay! Not over here [Britain].'
60	* HonestJohnsDealership: Sid James in the radio version - he is introduced in the first episode by the moniker "Smooth Talk Sidney"
61	* InsaneTrollLogic: Tony teaching himself the meaning of "bicuspid":
62	--> '''Tony''': It must be from the Latin: "bi" meaning two, one on each side; "cus" meaning to swear, "pid"... meaning plinth. Greek, probably, Greek for teeth. So biscupid: two swearing teeth.
63	* InSeriesNickname: Bill calls Tony 'Tub', though no-one else does.
64	* IronButtMonkey: Bill is on the receiving end of all sorts of slapstick abuse in the radio series, and yet is always back for more with an innocent smile on his face in the next episode.
65	* KilledOffForReal: 'The Bowmans' again.
66	* KnowNothingKnowItAll: Tony loves the sound of his own voice and often speaks with great authority on almost any subject you'd care to name... and, in so doing, displays an almost complete lack of knowledge of said subject.
67	* LampshadeHanging:
68	-->'''Gangster:''' One false move and the girl's dead!\
69	'''Moira:''' Might as well be, I've had nothing to say for the last few minutes.
70	* LethalChef: Miss Pugh, at least according to Tony:
71	--> '''Tony:''' I thought my mother was a bad cook, but at least 'er gravy moved about a bit!
72	* LockedInARoom: 'The Lift' - of course, it's all Tony's fault as usual.
73	* LostInTransmission: 'The Radio Ham'.
74	* ManChild: Bill is treated as a young child by the rest of the cast, with Tony, Miss Pugh, and Sid even going out of their way to arrange a visit from Santa for him.
75	* MaximumCapacityOverload: In "The Lift", Hancock is the ninth passenger in a lift designed to carry eight. When the lift sticks between floors and stays there all night, his attempts to cheer everybody up are not appreciated.
76	* NegativeContinuity: Several radio episodes ended with Tony (and sometimes Sid and / or Bill) being killed or sentenced to a long stint in prison, or with Tony's house razed to the ground. By the next episode, everything was back to "normal".
77	* NewJobAsThePlotDemands:
78	** Although the various characters for whom Kenneth Williams used the "Snide" voice in the radio series were never explicitly said to be the same person, Tony tended to react as though he had had unpleasant previous encounters with them in other jobs.
79	** Sid is a more straightforward example, overlapping with HonestJohnsDealership. In most episodes, his job is whatever allows him to "help" Tony's latest ZanyScheme by conning him out of the contents of his bank account or duping him into helping his other shady enterprises.
80	** Tony as well, playing a defense lawyer in an episode of the third TV series, and an air steward in another.
81	* OddCouple: Lord knows why Tony puts up with Sid. Lord knows why Sid puts up with Tony. Probably only because sharing the rent is cheaper and nobody else would put up with either of them.
82	* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: In 'The Reunion', all of Hancock's World War II army chums all have forties-style nicknames ('Chalky' White etc.).
83	* OohMeAccentsSlipping: In the radio version of "The Emigrant", Tony shows up at Australia House to ask about emigrating, and introduces himself to the desk clerk with a speech packed with Aussie slang and cultural references (most of which he misuses for comic effect). He tries to affect an accent to match, but he ends up sounding far more Brummy than Aussie, and eventually breaks character and laughs, "Straight from Birmingham!"
84	* OverlyLongGag: The first radio episode opens with very slow typing sounds, followed by:
85	-->'''Tony''': Might help if you took the gloves off...
86	-->'''Bill''': My hands are cold. Anyway, what's wrong with typing in gloves? I like typing in gloves. Lots of people type in gloves.
87	-->'''Hancock''': Not in boxing gloves.
88	* PhonyVeteran: Tony tells clearly false and conflicting stories about his wartime experiences in an attempt to make himself look impressive.
89	* PressureSensitiveInterface: In "The Lift", nine passengers of a lift get stuck in-between floors due to the machine's maximum capacity having been surpassed --it supports up to eight people. When they realize this, one of them scrambles to hammer the lift's buttons frantically in the hopes of restarting it.
90	* QuirkyHousehold
91	* RogueJuror: Thanks to Sid finding out that they'll get paid by the day and Tony thinking the accused has a nice face. The episode is even called "Film/TwelveAngryMen".
92	* RunningGag: A number of episodes featured scripts with running gags built into them. For example, in the radio version of "The Emigrant", Tony presents himself at each embassy he visits with a speech packed with slang terms from and references to the country to which he hopes to emigrate, delivered in an attempt at the appropriate accent - to desk clerks who invariably turn out to be British. His conversations with them, which go from investigating his "references" (Bill's family, who are all wanted criminals) to just saying his name to not even getting as far as his name, always end with the desk clerks asking "Have you tried [other country]?" until they name a country he hasn't tried.
93	* RunningTimeInTheTitle: It was indeed half an hour. There was also a TV special called "Hancock's Forty-Three Minutes". The last season was reduced to 25 minutes and renamed ''Hancock'' (as we said, [[Film/{{Hancock}} not to be confused with...]]).
94	* {{Sampling}}: ''VideoGame/JetSetRadio'', of all things. The "Will you stop playing with that radio of yours? I'm trying to get to sleep!" in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ya8Srg9ngoU Let Mom Sleep]] is from ''Hancock's Half Hour''. It was in a Creator/GeorgeMichael song, too.
95	* SitcomCharacterArchetypes: Tony is The Dork and Sid is The Wisecracker.
96	* SomethingThatBeginsWithBoring: 'The Train Journey'. Tony and Sid's fellow passengers are not amused...
97	* SoundToScreenAdaptation: The radio show started in 1954, and the TV series in 1956. From 1956 to 1959 the two versions ran simultaneously. Also screen to sound, since four of the TV episodes were adapted for LP records and recorded in front of audiences, just like the radio episodes except without the BBC's involvement.
98	* StudioAudience
99	* SundayIsBoring in the episode "Sunday Afternoon at Home".
100	* SurpriseCheckmate: In "The Radio Ham", Tony is playing chess with an opponent over the radio. When his opponent wins, Tony furiously sweeps all the pieces on to the floor.
101	* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: "The Marrow Contest" centres on Tony trying to grow a marrow for the titular contest, contested by the council who want to take away his garden to widen the road. The debate is taken to court, where the judge decides a bridge must be built over Tony's garden to preserve the marrow. Not only does the bridge block out the sunlight and kill the marrow, but the cost leaves the council with no money left to hold the competition!
102	* TakeThat: "A Visit to Swansea" has the supporting cast tell Tony how much they liked having Harry Secombe around as a pointed jab against the real Tony Hancock[[note]]The writers and producers were angered that Tony Hancock had left them in the lurch by flying to Rome to get away from arguments about his stage and radio commitments. Harry Secombe graciously agreed to step in at the last minute and impressed everyone so much that they were ready to make the replacement permanent if Hancock didn't come back[[/note]].
103	* VinylShatters: After his ultimately unsuccessful search for the last page of ''Lady Don't Fall Backwards'' in "The Missing Page", Tony forsakes books and decides to listen to a nice gramophone record instead, sending Sid out in search of Music/LudwigVanBeethoven's Fifth Symphony. Sid returns to say he couldn't find it, and instead picked up a copy of Music/FranzSchubert's "Unfinished" Symphony. The unamused Tony says "I know how ''this'' one's going to end!" and smashes the record over Sid's head.
104	* WithFriendsLikeThese:
105	** In the radio series and some of the early television series, Sid would frequently exploit or manipulate Tony for personal gain, such as by tricking him into stealing valuable goods, selling him (and Bill) into the French Foreign Legion, or conspiring to have his house knocked down to build a used car lot on the land.
106	** For his part, Tony was often comically cruel to Bill, making him do such dangerous tasks as lying in the road to prevent his car from being towed or acting as a human shield in case an unexploded bomb should go off. Nevertheless, Bill still considered "Tub" a friend.
107	* YouSayTomato:
108	** In one episode where Tony was planning to emigrate, he was continually mispronouncing Canada as Ca-NAH-da despite everyone's attempts to correct him.
109	** In another episode when Hancock is complaining to a policeman (Williams) about kids vandalising his car, the following exchance occurs:
110	--->'''Policeman''' Why don't you put it in a garage? ''(GA-rij)''\
111	'''Hancock''' I have not got... a ''garage''. ''(guh-RAHJ)''
112	** In fact Hancock is constantly affecting a higher-class accent and associated pronunciations than his native one, then dropping back into the vernacular, as his pomposity ebbs and flows. Often evident when asked to spell his name - "Haytch-hay-hen, cee-ho, cee-kay".
113	* ZanyScheme: Sid was a fount of them, usually employing Tony as his unwitting accomplice. Among other schemes, Sid has:
114	** Robbed a jewelry store and used Tony's newly-bought Rolls-Royce as a getaway car, tricking Tony, Bill, and Andrée into (almost literally) holding the bag when the Bobbies are closing in;
115	** Sold Tony a stolen police car (Tony [[TooDumbToLive really should have noticed the alarm bell on the front and the police-spec radio...]]);
116	** "Rented" Tony a ritzy apartment to use as venue for a reception for the debut of his radio series (he just forgot to mention one minor detail... the apartment wasn't his and belonged to a duke);
117	** Hijacked gasoline shipments during the Suez-Crisis-era gas rationing in Britain and had unwitting dupe Tony fence them on the pretext that he had come up with a perfect synthetic gasoline.

Context Radio / HancocksHalfHour