Complete & Unadulterated
The Hill's Angels Years - Set 6

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1. Thames Logo
2. Benny Quickie: Tattooist Mistake (not in the menu)
   The Love Ship
3. Benny Quickie: Fortune-Teller
4. The Bucket
5. Testament Television
6. Hill's Angels: Chez When
7. Benny Hill: Sexist?
8. R. Dibble Handyman
9. Closing Chase (not in the menu)

In The Bucket, we have a silent segment which feature the story of a Bucket purchased at a Flea Martket by Benny. It all starts with Benny washing his car and then the bucket gets passed from one person to the next. It gets passed from Benny washing his car, to Bob Todd's foot, to Benny on a consctruction site. There is one cute gag with the bucket as Benny appears to be relieving himself behind a tree. Also look for Benny as a husband who makes his pregnant wife do all the work around their yard. The bucket is sold back to the Flea Market by Bob Todd to Henry McGee, who paints it. Benny then buys it and gives it to his wife, Lorraine Doyle.

Next, we get an inside look at the creators of TV programs in Testament Television, featuring Benny, Henry McGee, Bob Todd and Jon Jon Keefe brainstorming ideas for TV programs. Anna Dawson is the secretary. They want to make programs that compete with the huge hits at the time like "Dynasty" and "Dallas". They decide to come up with programs based on famous biblical stories. Emma Bryant appears serving drinks. (The version of this sketch shown on this set is an edited version, with a reference to casting Liberace in the epic cut out, as the flamboyant pianist/showman died in 1987. What makes this odd is that Comedy Central ran this sketch uncut when airing the hour-long shows in the 1990's. - William Brown).

Hill's Angels: Chez When begins outside the Chez When Club with Anna Dawson looking for some change from a change machine. She drops a coin in and magically, she changes into Benny in a puff of smoke. Then Benny's voice from in the club announces Hill's Angels. Benny steps into the club to watch them. Unlike earlier Hill's Angels routines, the costumes are pretty conservative with Lorraine Doyle singing "Girls, Girls, Girls". The girls with her wear sailors costumes. While watching, Benny fatasizes about being at a pinic (with Tracy Smith - William Brown). Then Louise English steps out and sings "La Vie En Rose", which for many fans, is a highlight in this episode. She cerainly has a powerful voice and I think this is the only time Louise sang anything like this in the series. (Indeed, Ms. English's rendition of this Edith Piaf classic was a powerful coda to her run with the series, as 1986 was the last year in which she was on. - William Brown). While watching Louise, Benny dreams that he is on his honeymoon with her. Louise even puts on some lingeries for Benny, but its pretty tame. Even a few years earlier in the series, her lingerie would have been much more provocative! All goes well until she poisons him with mushrooms! Look for Louise stepping out in a black dress and Benny taking those first bites. A highlight in this program. Benny is shaken from his reverie by Jon Jon Keefe and Louise finishes singing "La Vie En Rose".

Next, several girls in red dresses sing a song I am not familiar with, (The song was "Last Tango," the lyrics of which can be found at www.louiseenglishfancentre.com - William Brown), while Bob Todd puts the moves on Anna Dawson. Next up is a Tango dance with Benny and an unknown girl with some strange trick photography and sight gags. Finally, Benny goes around to the back entrance of the club waiting for Hill's Angels to leave, but they are all old and ugly! Finally, he puts a coin back into the change machine outside and changes back to Anna Dawson, closing this routine.

Next, Benny steps out in front of the audience and does a monologue in Benny Hill: Sexist?, talking about how some see him as sexist and this is really his way of explaining why he changed his show, but without really coming out and saying so. It's actually pretty funny.

R. Dibble Handyman features Benny as a handyman who is completely near-sighted with thick glasses. (Indeed, throughout the sketch, Benny alternates between wearing his old coke-bottle glasses as he wore from the earliest days of his Thames run, and wearing a newer set of "coke-bottle" glasses which are more distorted and exaggerated, and which he would wear occasionally from here on forth. - William Brown). Bob Todd is the school mum of a school for girls who has hired him to do some work. Its another silent segment with plenty of sight gags throughout. He plays a game of tennis with an unknown girl, (who might be Faye Mertens - William Brown). He also does some archery with Samantha Spencer-Lane and Fiona Baker. Watch Benny put an arrow right in Sue Upton's posterior! Then Benny walks into the ladies room after an unknown girl finisher her shower. He mistakes the shower head for a phone and accidentally sees an unknown girl removing her robe. This program ends with the Closing Chase (not in the menu), with everyone chasing after Benny on a moped. Look for Henry McGee and Jon Jon Keefe as the glass men. (The truck driver with whom Benny collides at the end may be an uncredited Mike Mulloy, who would be Benny's double and stand-in in the show's final years. In addition, this episode also had the distinction of being the first to have the end credits laid out on a one-line crawl, which would be used on all his remaining Thames specials. - William Brown).

This is the first program Benny did in 1986 and it is easy to see that the show was going through many changes. The Hill's Angels skirts seemed to get longer and the jokes were becoming more and more repetitive. Thankfully, this program does feature Louise singing "La Vie En Rose" and Benny's monologue is pretty funny, as well as the Handyman sketch with the lovely Samantha Spencer-Lane making an appearance after such a long time.

1. Thames Logo
2. Benny Quickie: No Bra Underneath (not in the menu)
   Benny's Greatest Hits
3. Living the Dream
4. The Herd
   Come To The Cabaret, (beginning)
   (not in the menu)
5. Come to the Cabaret, (conclusion)
6. Discrimination in the Workplace
7. Benny Hill: Behind the Scenes!
8. European Television
   a. Hott Sexe, Free Loofa und Lust orgie
   b. Cross-Strassen Motel
9. A Day in the Life of Rembrandt
10. Closing Chase (not in the menu)

If I am not mistaken, The Heard is the last time Benny ever did an extended sketch where he would play several characters all at once the way he did in "Hollywood Grates: Chubby Dodds" or "Big Poppa". The Herd is the story of a rich American Cattle family that loses everything when their entire Herd gets Hoof and Mouth disease. At the end there is a funeral with Jon Jon Keefe digging the grave and striking oil. (This sketch also featured a gag involving a split screen that had been previously used by cartoon director Tex Avery, in the 1938 cartoon The Bear's Tale. - William Brown). Look for The Benny Hill Show's own musical associate Ted Taylor singing at the piano. (This could well be Benny the writer poking fun at himself, as Taylor sings a few bars of "The Party's Over" - and back in 1967, Hill was forced to sing that song in a duet with Paul Anka on the TV series Spotlight, which may explain his reaction in this sketch when Taylor sings it. - William Brown). You can also spot Jo Thomas and Louise English in black dresses, Alison and Rebecca Marsh are pretty easy to spot and Alison Thomas can be seen as Benny's nurse. (This sketch also featured a reworking of the old "Very Well, M'Lady" quickie that opened his B&W show of Jan. 27, 1971, only with Bob Todd as the butler overhearing the goings-on in the new version. - William Brown). This sketch doesn't compare with classics like "Big Poppa" and "Chubby Dodds", but it is worth watching Benny get mad when they lose everything.

Come To The Cabaret, (beginning) (not in the menu) starts off outside the "Cafe De L'Opera" with Benny reprising his role as R. Dibble, handyman. He changes a light bulb for Lorraine Doyle and mixes himself a drink; everyone lines up at the punchbowl for a taste until they see Bob Todd's false teeth in it; Benny does a gag with a piano stool and Len Keyes uses his drum sticks to grab some donuts. This sketch continues into the next chapter in Come to the Cabaret, (conclusion), with the girls dancing in colorful dresses and black stockings (and singing "Wilkommen (Welcome)" from the musical Cabaret. - William Brown), while there is a repeat gag of the musicians who use their instruments to snatch food from those dining at the cafe. Then the lovely Alison and Rebecca Marsh appear and sing "Money Makes The World Go Around". (The actual song title here was "Money, Money," also from Cabaret; the performance of this number and "Wilkommen" may explain the titling of this segment on this set. - William Brown). These are two very talented singers and entertainers and it is not hard to see why this segment is probably a fan favorite. It's also a highlight in this episode and in this collection. At the end, the rest of the girls return and do one more dance, (to a reprise of "Wilkommen." - William Brown). Strangely, they are not introduced as "Hill's Angels" for this segment. This certainly won't raise your temperature the way earlier classics like "Runaway" (TV Workout) or the way "New York, New York" did, but its certainly entertaining. The Marsh sisters are a highlight.

Discrimination in the Workplace features Benny as an executive who puts the moves on Louise English. Little does he know that she is there to find out who the deadwood is. Naturally, Benny sings a different tune and is very apologetic. He shrinks down to small size with the use of some visual effects. Unfortunately, the sketch goes a little too far I think when Louise steps on him and squashes him with her high heels. (Indeed, this bit - and for that matter, the ending gag - could be seen as representing a symbolic change in the direction of Louise's career, being that as this show was taped after Episode 53 in production order, it was technically her last-ever appearance on TBHS; though she appeared in some uncredited bit roles in the filmed segments of said Episode 53. - William Brown). Next, Benny steps out for another monologue in Benny Hill: Behind the Scenes!. He talks about the difficulty of writing and creating his shows and how fans assume he has had lots of "oh, be joyful" with some of the girls on the show or that he has big parties. There are also some jokes about Thames Television. Then Benny introduces some foreign films.

The films Benny introduces are part of Eurpean Television, the first one being the brilliant "Hott Sexe, Free Loofa und Lust orgie", ("A Summer Romance"), which really seems to be a send-up of Scandanavian adult films. Everyone in this sketch adopts a scandanavian accent with Benny as husband to the sexy Lorraine Doyle. Benny goes golfing with Henry McGee and Lorraine whistles for her lover, played by Jon Jon Keefe to crawl in through her bedroom window. Everything about this sketch is dead-on! The very tone and feel to the way this is directed and put together gives you the impression of an adult film. The important difference is that this is hilarious, particularly the accents that Lorraine and Jon Jon adopt. Listen to Lorraine say "hurt me... I want you to hurt me" or "my husband!". The english subtitles cover up their vital parts when they undress. This is truly a memorable sketch in this box set and could easily be considered the best moment in these late episodes. Original and hilarious! The second feature is the "Cross-Strassen Motel" with everyone speaking in a German accent. Benny delivers packages to Henry McGee at a Hotel. Sue Upton, Anna Dawson and Jon Jon Keefe also appear. (This was a "German" version of the British TV soap Crossroads, which Benny previously had sent-up in his "Jack and Jill Variations" sketch of 12/17/75. - William Brown).

A Day in the Life of Rembrandt features Benny as the famous painter painting two sexy girls with mixed results. Watch Benny try to paint a bomb with the fuse set to explode! Benny also paints a picture of Jade Westbrook. While in the park, Benny disturbs some picnicers and this begins the usual chase. To escape them he steals a large transport truck which he crashes. He steals a car and crashes it, the flames lighting his cigar. He then steals another car, which belonged to three girls coming out of the bushes. They are tying up their belts which makes me wonder what they were doing in the bushes in the first place. (One gag involved Benny painting Jade, then taking the painting and leaving a white gap in the background where the frame was. As he's running with her portrait, she moves around - but if you look closely on some TV, video or computer monitors, it's apparent he's running in place. - William Brown). Closing Chase (not in the menu) closes this program with Benny going over a huge cliff and surviving! Little Jade Westbrook catches up with him and chases him. Benny escapes by climbing up to a huge snow-capped mountain-top, only to find Jade there with him at the end. Although this is not a particularly funny close, it is amusing.

1. Thames Logo
2. Benny Quickie: Left my Wallet at Home (not in the menu)
   Bijou Burlesque
   Benny Quickie: Large Hypodermic (not in the menu)
3. Benny Quickies: Honesty!
4. Funny Old World
5. Benny Quickies: Honesty II!
6. Proverbs
7. Benny Quickie: Doctor on the Go
8. The New York Slob
9. The Edited Sketch
10. Benny Quickies: Directions and Obsessions
11. Cagney & Lacey
12. Hospital Hi-Jinx
13. Closing Chase (not in the menu)

Funny Old World is another extened series of bits put together to form one long sketch. It starts with Benny performing a rap to the music he rapped to in the Madame Louise Summer Collection. Benny sings on the street with Anna Dawson with members of the cast behind him. This is followed by several silent segments; Henry McGee as an army officer feeding a baby, Benny as a street urchin fixing a broken statue, Lorraine Doyle becoming the model he uses to fix it; Bob Todd is a bobby who chases a young girl who defaces public property; some girls in a street window do some tap-dancing with some cheap camera tricks, (with Samantha Spencer-Lane dancing on the show for the first time since 1982, and in fact it would be her last series appearance. - William Brown), and Jon Jon Keefe plays waiter to Henry McGee in a street cafe. Unfortunately, with the repetitive "Funny Old World" song repeated again and again and the lack of comedy, this goes on just a little too long.

Benny Quickies: Honesty II! starts off with Benny sneaking into a darkened apartment with Lorraine Doyle, careful not to waken her roommate. Then Benny is a Russian diplomat making a speech that doesn't go too well. Then it's another Just Married bit with Benny and Christine Pilgrim on their wedding night but she is reading War and Peace. In Proverbs, we have what appears to be an unused bit from earlier in the series. (In fact, looking at his appearance, this could have come from circa 1978. - William Brown). Benny sits in a pub and relates words of wit and wisdom. Benny has that twinkle in his eye and it's a welcome bit in the middle of this less than stellar episode. Benny Quickie: Doctor on the Go features Bob Todd getting help from Dr. Benny who is about to leave for his vacation.

The New York Slob features the always excellent Helen Horton as Benny's wife, Miriam. This is the same character Benny played in the "Lean On My Crutch" bit from the "Yield To The Dawn" sketch. They get a visit from Henry McGee who really likes Helen and wants to do some wife-swapping with Benny. Benny thinks the sexy and nubile Lorraine Doyle is Henry's wife. Watch Benny go to pieces when he spills coffee on her. Look out for Lorraine walking out in heels and Lingerie! Kathy Staff turns out to be Henry McGee's wife. This sketch was originally done in Black and White with Patricia Hayes as Benny's wife and Jenny Lee-Wright as the young girl in "Henry and Alice and Bob and Mary", (January 27, 1971). Nicholas Parsons proposed the wife-swapping in the original. (And Rita Webb was in the role played here by Ms. Staff. Another thing: In this recasting, Henry McGee and Lorraine Doyle use their own first names for their characters, unlike the different names of the 1971 original. Look for a reference to the show's U.S. syndicator Don Taffner on the front page of the paper Benny's reading at the opening. - William Brown). This may not be as funny as the original, but it certainly is a highlight in this episode.

The Edited Sketch features Henry McGee and Jon Jon Keefe as two censors that must edit a scene in a studio editing room. The sketch in question features Benny as a handyman with Bob Todd as his wife. As we watch this one, Henry McGee and Jon Jon provide audio commentary as they try to figure out what to cut and what to keep from the film they are editing. At key points, they struggle with what decision to make, with Benny, in the scene, aware that an important moment could wind up on the cutting room floor. The best scene comes at the end when Lorraine Doyle invites him in to her apartment, pours him a drink, invites him into her bedroom for sex and Henry and Jon Jon debate whether to keep the scene or cut it, testing Benny's patience. I suspect this was an idea that came to Benny after all of the pressure he was getting from interest groups who wanted him to change his show. A brilliant and original idea.

Benny Quickies: Directions and Obsessions begins with Benny giving directions to Henry McGee and a carful of beautiful girls looking for directions to Bath. Then, Benny sees Dr. Henry McGee as a very old man who is having problems with his sex drive. Next, Benny does another cop show spoof in Cagney & Lacey with Benny playing both of the famous American female cops at the same time. The two cops break into an empty apartment and wait for the "bad guys". Bob Todd plays the villain with Benny's voice dubbed over his. A clever little sketch. Hospital Hi-Jinx takes place at an old-folks hospital with Benny trying to get a dog to "heel". He repeats this with such passion that a bunch of the old folks are "healed". The nurses chase Benny and I think this is the last time we see girls on the show in nurses uniforms and the trademark black stockings. (It was also Len Keyes' final appearance in the series; in one shot, he walks off with Bob Todd and Sydney Arnold. - William Brown). Benny steals a BMX bike and the show finishes up in Closing Chase (not in the menu), with Benny hitting a tree and ending up wearing a halo. (This show was also the last on this set to feature the classic Thames logo opening. - William Brown).

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Complete And Unadulterated:
The Hill's Angels Years,
Set 6 (1986-1989)
Details:
Studio: A&E Home Video
Release Date: 01/30/2007
No. of Discs: 3 (Box Set)
Running Time: 6 Hours, 40 Mins. + extras
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Color
Audio: Dolby Digital Mono
DVD Features:
Hill's Angels In Conversation Featurette
The Benny Hill Cheeky Challenge Trivia Quiz #6 Interactive Menus
Scene Selection
Distributed by Newvideo