The Missing Prime Minister

"The Missing Prime Minister"
The Goon Show episode
Episode: no.	Series: 4 Episode: 15
Written by	Spike Milligan Larry Stephens
Announcer	Wallace Greenslade
Produced by	Jacques Brown
Music	Orchestra: Wally Stott Geldray: 'Deed I Do Ellington: Woe! Is Me / I'll Be Glad When You're Dead (You Rascal You)
Recording Number	TLO 41242
First broadcast	8 January 1954 (1954-01-08)
Running time	28:57

The Missing Prime Minister is an episode from The Goon Show. It is the fifteenth show in the fourth series. The recording was made at Aeolian I, 135–137 New Bond Street, London. The show recording started at 9pm on Sunday 3 January 1954.

The first British public broadcast was on the Home Service on Friday 8 January 1954 at 9.30pm (except Northern Ireland). It reached a peak listenership of 1.9m. It was repeated on the Home Service the next morning, Saturday 9 January, at 8.45am with a listener audience of 0.8m.

Story

A police officer wonders if the Prime Minister is still inside

At midnight, Christmas Eve 1953, the police discover that 10 Downing Street has gone missing with the Prime Minister still inside. Inspector Gladys Seagoon and Sergeant Bluebottle of the CID investigate the eye-witness statement of Constable Eccles whilst Major Bloodnok mans roadblocks to catch the abductors.

Music

• The BBC Radio Orchestra was conducted by Wally Stott
• Max Geldray plays 'Deed I Do (Walter Hirsch (music) / Fred Rose (lyrics))
• The Ray Ellington Quartet plays Woe! Is Me (James Cavanaugh / Dick Sanford / Bob Emmerich) / I'll Be Glad When You're Dead (You Rascal You) (Sam Theard)

Technical

Originally recorded on TLO 41242 (Agfa FR tape stock at 15 ips ¼" tape recorded at Broadcasting House). This was recorded off-air onto tape and then from tape onto an acetate disc. This recording wasn't made using a microphone but via a direct connection to the tape recorder. Unfortunately the off-air recording suffers from distortion caused either by mis-tuning of the radio or over-modulation.