Archie could probably have got his show backed today

Ironically, the 'contemporary' detail of John Osborne's play -- the teddy-boys, the angry young men announcing that Britain was Finished, the pre-Beatles rock music, the declining seafront -- seems to me to have weathered rather less well than the supposedly past-it music hall scene. I think we were supposed to laugh at the pitiably old-fashioned quality of Archie Rice's act in the era of brand new television: nowadays, it actually looks quite good compared to Reality TV. Pier-end shows still go on, featuring similar acts -- with his line in patter, his singing voice, and his nifty dancing, Archie could probably get a summer booking on the nostalgia circuit fairly easily.

~~Igenlode, who didn't get why Billy Rice was supposed to be so much better, on the evidence of what we actually see from him on screen...

Gather round, lads and lasses, gather round...