Peter Cook, Yes, lots to say there, but this is a 1980 incarnation, and the show is full of other talent. Don't know how bad Cook's drinking was at this time, but he holds up really well, especially as Mr Hainault in the plumber sketch with Beryl Reid and Paula Wilcox, which has to be the absolute highlight.
There is some filler, and weirdly, the sketches featuring a pre-Blackadder Rowan Atkinson are some of the weakest (This is just my opinion). As a historical record of other acts, it's great to see Reid hamming it up so splendidly, dressed as a bee and demanding marijuana. The Hainault's toilet is blocked, and the plumber (Reid as Mzz Elke Starr-Borgling), arrives to repeatedly distract and bamboozle them with comic gems: In trying to determine who was responsible for the blockage, Mzz Starr-Borgling suggests 'assailant unknown'. I admit I wept with laughter at this sketch, but this is only my opinion.
3 Reviews
''He listened to his daddy's dying words!''
Rabical-9119 June 2018
Warning: Spoilers
After Peter Cook and Dudley Moore parted company, Peter Cook appeared in this one off special for London Weekend Television. It was quite a departure from his usual humour. Whilst 'Not Only...But Also' was relatively safe, 'Peter Cook & Co' was more nearer the knuckle, no bad thing I must admit.
With no Dud, Pete needed someone else to bounce off of. John Cleese, fresh from 'Fawlty Towers', proved the perfect equivalent. Also appearing as support were post 'Man About The House' Paula Wilcox, Beryl Reid, a pre 'Blackadder' Rowan Atkinson, Robert Longden and Cleese's 'Monty Python' co-star Terry Jones.
Being the start of a new era, public tastes had changed so Pete's stuff had to move with the times, meaning the language had to be more colourful and comedy had to be broader. Among the best sketches were a 'Tales Of The Unexpected' spoof entitled 'Tales Of The As Much As Expected' in which Roald Dahl, too caught up in his story, fails to notice the flames from his coal fire getting out of hand and 'My Daddy's Dying Words', a spoof of Kenny Rodgers' 'Coward Of The County' which had the memorable lyric: ''I was through with all his trashy advice so I shot the bastard!''.
'Peter Cook & Co' would have made a fine series but as it is it never got past being a stand alone show. It has not been seen since its original broadcast and, apart from a poor quality bootleg copy online, it has never been made available officially. A pity as well as a mystery given the talent involved behind it.
With no Dud, Pete needed someone else to bounce off of. John Cleese, fresh from 'Fawlty Towers', proved the perfect equivalent. Also appearing as support were post 'Man About The House' Paula Wilcox, Beryl Reid, a pre 'Blackadder' Rowan Atkinson, Robert Longden and Cleese's 'Monty Python' co-star Terry Jones.
Being the start of a new era, public tastes had changed so Pete's stuff had to move with the times, meaning the language had to be more colourful and comedy had to be broader. Among the best sketches were a 'Tales Of The Unexpected' spoof entitled 'Tales Of The As Much As Expected' in which Roald Dahl, too caught up in his story, fails to notice the flames from his coal fire getting out of hand and 'My Daddy's Dying Words', a spoof of Kenny Rodgers' 'Coward Of The County' which had the memorable lyric: ''I was through with all his trashy advice so I shot the bastard!''.
'Peter Cook & Co' would have made a fine series but as it is it never got past being a stand alone show. It has not been seen since its original broadcast and, apart from a poor quality bootleg copy online, it has never been made available officially. A pity as well as a mystery given the talent involved behind it.
Very good special
gregquinn9912 October 2004
Wish they would re-show this sometime - this was a genuinely very good special from Peter Cook, including some excellent guest appearances. My recollection was that the best bit was the parody song "My Daddies Dying Words", in which a dying Peter Cook reeled off useless, non-sensual pearls of wisdom on his death bed. Saw Cook recently on TV in the Jerry Lee Lewis Biopic "Great Balls of Fire", and he was excellent in it (in contrast to some of his featherweight performances when he was much younger). Now that he's no longer here, kinda wish he had been more prolific - there's very little now available from his work on TV/Film. Hopefully LWT (or whoever produced this special) will release it on DVD.
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