Meet Morecambe and Wise -- that's Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise -- who formed one of Britain's most illustrious and best-loved double-acts of all time. From beginnings in post-WWII Great Britain the lads soon found a home first on radio, then with television series and specials that spanned 20 years. And, for many of those years, they produced Britain's most watched Christmas special -- a real tradition. Morecambe and Wise were versatile, with both men capable of song and dance as well as either the comic or straight man role. That versatility made them a huge influence on future British comics including Ben Elton and Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie. Not bad for a couple of song and dance men who just wanted to make people laugh. As always find extra cuts below and thanks for sharing our shows!

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Morecambe and Wise had oodles of chemistry -- perfect for two guys who could flex between the comic and straight man parts with ease. Here is some typical banter with Shakespeare the focus. https://youtu.be/WMXz2SCqtfg?si=rMO19GXNPcWZD__6

As one of Britain's top variety shows, Morecambe and Wise were the place to be for pop stars including a man who was the biggest of all back in the early 1970s -- Tom Jones! -- who shows a bit of comedic flair himself. https://youtu.be/e66z6nnWKq0?si=Siv0_Hkb0kiPECpT

One of Morecambe and Wise's secrets was the quality of their scripts, mostly written by Eddie Braben who also was the pen behind David Frost and Ronnie Corbett. It allowed them to draw top-notch guest stars including Andre Previn, here helping the boys with a classical music bit (taken from the 1971 M&W Christmas Special). https://youtu.be/R7GeKLE0x3s?si=sBr-gYcqixGc1l8j