Michael Parkinson, Kenneth Williams, Maggie Smith and Sir John Betjeman
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- čas přidán 25. 08. 2024
- This upload is a companion video to the Parkinson special of 1973, featuring an extended debate between Kenneth Williams and union leader Jimmy Reid, with a little help from the audience. That programme can be found here;
• Kenneth Williams and J...
During this segment preceding the debate episode, Parky and Kenneth Williams got into a brief, heated exchange over the conduct of the trade union movement, and social and political ideologies more generally. Although by today's standards there wasn't too much in it, it garnered such a reaction that Kenneth was invited back to debate with union leader Jimmy Reid for a special show. In this case, both Parkinson and Kenneth Williams showed their professionalism, in that neither allowed things to escalate, and KW himself defused any tension with a brilliantly over the top, "I've never been so insulted!"
Otherwise it's an interesting combination of guests, with Sir John appearing to have a great time. It ends with a poignant reading, by Kenneth Williams and Maggie Smith, of John Betjeman's Death in Leamington.
In a subsequent retrospective, Michael Parkinson stated that this episode was from late 1972, but it may have been early in 1973.
#MichaelParkinson #KennethWilliams #MaggieSmith #JohnBetjeman #Parkinson
RIP PARKY. Michael Parkinson has passed away, August 16th, 2023, aged 88. 🙏
Jst noticed that you posted this to begin with! Duh......Thanx for putting it out there.
thankyou for the bit in the description too..
interesting
Parkinson was the best interviewer this country and possibly the world could ever have.
I totally agree, in this case both he and KW instinctively knew just how far they could push their disagreement without it getting out of hand, and the throw to John Betjeman just defused everything brilliantly. They really did make telly for adults in those days, when it was all about the guests and not the host. His interview with Orson Welles from around 1972 I think was among his best. @@marillionman8811
Died on Madonna’s 65th birthday
Kenneth Williams is so WILDLY articulate! What a wonderful group! Thank you for posting!
Thank you for commenting, I agree, I find him fascinating to listen to whether you agree with him or not.
A fair bit of repetition deviation and hesitation in this instance. But a tour de force, is our Ken.
Just perfect. Will culture and TV ever reach those heights again?
It's a brilliant segment. I particularly like how both Parky and KW knew when to rein it in so things wouldn't get out of hand. KW's "I've never been so insulted" was perfectly timed. I totally agree with your comment, this is one of my favourite Parkinson moments.
If the likes of Big Brother and Celebrity Love Island are anything to go by, we are heading at breakneck speed back to the primordial swamps from whence we came. Note too how the speakers are allowed finish a sentence without being interrupted, another sadly bygone relic from yesteryear.
Never.
@@georgemorley1029 No never! Can you imagine this now? Democratising video media seemed liberating, and I suppose it was, but we should have known what would result. Love this, pish that a lot of it is. However, we will never know this again. I want educated pish, yeahhhh!!!XXX
An educational and entertaining discussion, but nothing to do with Parkinson. In fact, even here, Parkinson's few interventions are totally unnecessary.
Wonderful how Parkinson gave his guests the time to speak and be involved - a great skill. RIP
What I wouldn't give to be able to turn back the clock to have Kenneth Williams back in our universe. He was smart, witty and told great stories that I used to love listening to.
Yes, and this combination with John Betjeman and Maggie Smith is about the ultimate 'comfort watch'.
Agreed. If there was ever a time that humanity needed inspiration, it's now.
Holy moly. Tv was once worth watching Absolutely fabulous
It really was
RIP Sir Michael Parkinson. This like many of his interviews has stood the test of time in my memory. No other chat show host seemed to offer such freedom to talk, apart from maybe someone like the excellent Dick Cavett stateside.
Excellent points, there were many remarkable encounters, I think Orson Welles was one of my favourites (apart from this one). One of his best interviews, I think, was with the intimidating Australian media mogul Kerry Packer, they had a robust disagreement about Tony Greig and World Series Cricket, which Packer was financing, yet things remained courteous the whole time. A masterclass, and probably a forgotten art. Parky did a very nice, warm and friendly interview with Kenneth Williams on Desert Island Discs, I think a year or so before KW passed away. Also agree about Dick Cavett, another great talent.
Wow what a triumvirate of amazing talent on this show. Dame Maggie, Sir John Betjeman and Lord Kenneth!
Yes, I love this mix of personalities as well. Television is certainly not what it once was. Thanks for commenting.
This is when Saturday night telly was worth watching. Mind you I liked the daytime talk shows back then too.
A very good point. We shouldn't forget Mavis Nicholson as a great interviewer as well.
@@GeorgeFairbrother Oh yes. She was brilliant.
@@jacklondoner4579 It seems that the BBC recognise Parky's back catalogue of interviews as a goldmine of history and have done retrospectives and also frequent social media posts to keep them in the public eye. I haven't seen too much of Mavis' work apart from CZcams clips. There must be an equally fascinating catalogue somewhere in the vaults of Fremantle or whoever owns the Thames archive.
I have this video bookmarked, as I go back to it quite often for humour and reflection. Or political debates with my brother in-law!
But I always stopped before Mr Betjeman. It was the Kenneth Williams bit....that I was after.
A week ago I watched to the end.......lo and behold I discovered "Slough".
However, today is a sad day as George says below.............Michael Parkinson was a family favourite......his shows from Ali to Spike. and Emu.......
...have been a large influence on my life. Hell, I was hooked by the intro music...Harry Stoneham and his quartet...then big band!!
Rest In Peace, Sir.......but we will always call you "Parky"
Totally agree. I used to have that segment on audio tape and played it quite often in my car. I was always captivated by the reading of Death in Leamington, although I'm not sure I ever totally understood it. . I love the way Parky and KW, total professionals, knew instinctively just how far to push their disagreement, then pulled back. This kind of TV is a lost art now, I think.
I wish they would air intelligent conversations like this on tv now
There are not many well educated “personalities” and so called “celebrities” who could hold an intellectual conversation these days. The quality of novels that kids are reading early in their lives now is sadly lacking!!.
@@ralphplumb7027 very true, though most intelligent conversations can be found on pod casts these days, in some back water of the internet.
Maggie Smith…..that voice! ❤
Such a beautiful recitation of the poem & Betjeman’s tears of delight
I agree, just a perfect moment.
A programme from a civilisation sadly lost to history.
Brilliant thank you for posting this
Thank you, I'm very glad you enjoyed it. It's one of my favourite Parky moments as well.
Kenneth Williams hits the nail on the head. Lovely to see John Betjeman.
I agree, It's a great combination - I also love how Parky and KW know just how far to take it without it getting out of hand.
Maggi smith seems like such a decent respectful women.
My God Kennths batteries must have been changed to brand new this interview. 😅😅
It was Wilfred Owen Ken was quoting from the poem "Insensibility" when he said the eternal reciprocity of tears. "By choice they made themselves immune, To pity and whatever mourns in man; Before the last sea and the hapless stars; Whatever mourns when many leave these shores; Whatever shares; The eternal reciprocity of tears".
Thank you for providing that additional context.
Kenneth Williams was an absolute national treasure: so funny. I adored the Carry On Films. John Bejtamin was a legend too. Ken was bang on about housing. He was a bright guy.
He was a bore.
Betjeman's conversational speech is as poetic as his poetry!
Oh, indeed yes. But I must disagree with his views on tower block housing. The views are often worth the lacking of one''s own garden to sit in of an summer's afternoon/evening.
Sir John was having the time of his life.
Yes he was, I agree, it's a real pleasure to watch for that reason.
I'm loathe to yearn for 'the good old days' but this is what tv was made for.
I tend to unashamedly yearn for the good old days 😅
How true 👍
Kenneth Williams is irreplaceable. I wonder if the public appreciated how fortune they were to live in an era when he was regularly on television. It is unfortunate that his later appearance on Parkinson alongside Diana Dors is not available to watch on CZcams. Likewise his excellent appearances on The Mike Walsh Show, which indeed were once on CZcams.
So refreshing to watch these articulate, interesting people interact. So different from the rubbish that gets bandied about now!
Maggie Smith was stunning!
So sorry to lose Michael Parkinson, growing up in Australia my family always watched his show.
Same here. Actually I only recently discovered his complete interview with Kerry Packer, which is actually one of his best. That kind of tough but courteous interviewing, or conversation, is a lost art now, sadly.
I would imagine that Kenneth Williams would have written this interview up in his diary.
So you could get an exact date for the interview by consulting the diaries.
Rip parky, great interview and very relevant still what they are talking about
"The evilness of tall skyscrapers and nothingness". We were warned. Annihillation (I can't spell it) is imminent.
What is shocking is the same political issue of housing.
Only got worse. Kenneth is simply brilliant.
For those who might be interested in how the relationship between Kenneth Williams and Michael Parkinson unfolded in the ensuing years, they had a very enjoyable, warm and friendly encounter in July of 1987, when Parky was hosting the BBC's Desert Island Discs programme and KW was his guest. Link here to the BBC website to listen or download;
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p009mljj
9
Its so magnetic to hear proper English spoken😊
SADLY, tIME RAN OUT FOR ALL, EXCEPT MAGGIE.
Enjoyed your poems. And your unique word choices enhanced the poems emotional impact and kept me engaged throughout.
I’m a poet specializing in Japanese forms: haiku, tanka, haibun, kyoka, senryu. I hope you don’t mind me sharing a tanka and my haiku, a tribute poem to Bashō’s frog with commentary by the late AHA founder and poet Jane Reichhold who considered my Basho haiku among her top 10 haiku of all time. What an honor.
Here’s the Bashō poem and commentary:
Bashō’s frog
four hundred years
of ripples
At first the idea of picking only 10 of my favorite haiku seemed a rather daunting task. How could I review all the haiku I have read in my life and decide that there were only 10 that were outstanding? Then realized I was already getting a steady stream of excellent haiku day by day through the AHA
forum.
The puns and write-offs based on Basho's most famous haiku are so
numerous I would have said that nothing new could be said with this
method, but here Al Fogel proved me wrong. Perhaps part of my delight in this haiku lies in the fact that I agree with him. Here he is saying one thing
about realism-ripples are on a pond after a frog jumps in, but because it refers back to Basho and his famous haiku, he is also saying something about the haiku and authors who have followed him. We, and our work, are just ripples while Basho holds the honor of inventing the idea of the
sound of a frog leaping is the sound of water
As haiku spreads around the world, making ripples in more and larger ponds, its ripples are wider-including us all. But his last word reminds us all that we are ripples and our lives ephemeral. It will be the frogs that will remain.
~~
And my tanka:
returning home
from a Jackson Pollock
exhibition
I smear my face with paint
and morph into art
~~
-All love in isolation
from Miami Beach,
Florida,
Al
What a privilege to see X
When chat shows weren't controlled by PR people.
...And television was actually made for adults
Compare even just that one excerpt with what is on offer now and weep.
Yes.
Kenneth…. Slow down and let others speak 🥴
The others had already been on and had their spot. This segment within a one hour programme was his turn.
Since Betjeman said himself, on the show, "I am 65 nearly 66" [born August 1906] the tv recording was in 1972 as it was his coming 66th birthday! 1973 would be too late. In any case. By then he had fully parted from his wife in 1973! She got mentioned a lot in the 1972 interview, recently broadcast again on BBC4.
Great to know, thank you for that additional context.
I fast forward…. He’s still hasn’t shut up🥴😄
The audience start chuckling about that as well 😅
Kenneth Williams was probably the only person who could out-talk Robin Williams.
Kenny and Maggie were friends since the 50s
I remember seeing an interview with Maggie Smith, it might have been on 'Acting in the Sixties', in which she explains how KW actually coached her in terms of acting and comic timing. A great combination of talent.
Wonderful posh accents!
Thank you for commenting, your grace. :))
The vulnerability of the artist! That resonated with me. Especially as these three splendid achievers were/are noted for such. It is an irony that the greatest creativity springs from the greatest emotional traumas, a fact for which we must be oddly grateful.
John Betjeman's comment of dreading seeing his name in print, and not even subscribing to a press-cutting agency, was a fascinating insight. I often wonder what that generation of artists would make of the current media and social media landscape. Great point, and thank you for commenting.
I love tower blocks.
I was fascinated with New York skyscrapers when I was about 7.
Same here, although I've never had to live in one so I can only judge from interest's sake. John Betjeman certainly wasn't a fan.
Betjeman genuinely moved by that.
Yes, it's a a great moment
WITH kENNY ON, NOBODY ELSE IS REQUIRED
RIP SIR MICHAEL
For a man who prided himself on his use of language , I would question Williams use of the word ‘augurs’ for what critics set out to be. love the guy obvs for his wit.
Learn something everyday - I looked Augur up and it didn't quite mean exactly what I thought it did. 😅
Wow .our stars were actually, intelligent , funny and cultured.
It was a different world 😅
Full?
RIP to "Parky"....but i always think of my dad, as we used to watch "Parkinson" religiously, but im sure it was so my dad could see how many times he touched or scratched his nose..."go on touch your nose" my dad would cry...then when he did my dad would go "wahhhhey" followed by the number, in order, of times he touched it during the episode
That's brilliant. Thanks for commenting. 🤣🤣
Williams & Sir Betch are God's imo
Kenneth Williams motor mouth.
In a good way.
Poor Maggie, out of her depth..
John Betjeman seems like a nice bloke, but not exactly a great poet
A great poet maybe not, but certainly an enjoyable, competent and invocative one, without question.
What? How would you define 'a great poet' then, James?
A matter of opinion. I've learned through a long life, if an artist is popular they can't be 'great'. Be they painter, composer, writer....
That's not proved historically, no matter how long your own life, norie - so let's look at what you say is your 'opinion'.You use the word 'artist' - but all the past masters of the performing arts (musicians, dancers, actors in theatre & film) can only be popular because they are 'great' while they are alive. But if you are really meaning poets, writers, painters, composers - then (a random selection) how do you explain the lifetime popularity of Dickens; or Hardy; or Oscar Wilde; or da Vinci; or Michelangelo; or J S Bach; or Byron; or Liszt; or Palestrina, or Betjeman . . . . @@noriemeha
Great poets can also rhyme. He had a simple way of saying what is quite deep.