Under Two Floorboards

"Under Two Floorboards — A Story of the Legion"
The Goon Show episode
Episode: no.	Series: 5 Episode: 18
Written by	Spike Milligan Eric Sykes
Based on	Beau Geste
Announcer	Wallace Greenslade
Produced by	Peter Eton
Music	Orchestra: Wally Stott Geldray: Happy Days and Lonely Nights Ellington: The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane
Recording Number	TLO 72116
First broadcast	25 January 1955 (1955-01-25)
Running time	30:17

Under Two Floorboards — A Story of the Legion is an episode from The Goon Show. It is the eighteenth show in the fifth series. The show was recorded at 9.15pm on Sunday 23 January 1955. The recording took place at the Camden Theatre, Camden Town, London.

The first British public broadcast was on the Home Service on Tursday 25 January 1955 at 8.30pm (except Scotland). It reached a peak listenership of 2.6m.

The show's first repeat was the following Friday at 12.25pm / 12.30pm, (depending on area) 28 January 1955, on the Home Service. It was listened to by 1.9 million.

Synopsis

'Beau' recently down from Cambridge with his fellow graduates Moriarty and Grytpype-Thynne, attends a ball at Oxley Towers where Lady Seagoon's famous 'Blue Shower' diamond, worth a king's ransom, is stolen. By the time the police have arrived 'Beau' has decided to join the Foreign Legion. There he meets with disaster after disaster until finally, disguised as Riff-Raff, he is forced to join an Arab raiding party. Eventually he returns to Fort Zinderneuf with the plans of the secret wash-houses of Charing Cross Station where he is decorated with the Legion D'Honeure 3rd Class for emptying Arab dustbins in the heat of battle.

Music

• The BBC Radio Orchestra was conducted by Wally Stott
• Max Geldray plays Happy Days and Lonely Nights (Fred Fisher)
• The Ray Ellington Quartet plays The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane (Sid Tepper / Roy C Bennett)

Technical

Originally recorded on TLO 72116 (15 ips ¼" tape recorded at Broadcasting House). The tape survived in TS and was used for the version of the show featured in Compendium Vol 2. The damage inflicted by a noisy fader on the mixing panel was removed where possible.