The Ink Shortage (VG)

"The Ink Shortage"
The Goon Show episode
Episode: no.	Series: Vintage Goons Episode: 7
Written by	Spike Milligan
Based on	The Great Ink Drought of 1902
Announcer	Wallace Greenslade
Produced by	Roy Speer
Music	Orchestra: Wally Stott Geldray: The Duke's Joke Ellington: Fascinatin' Thing
Recording Number	T5/AG/4417
First broadcast	8 December 2008 (2008-12-08)
Running time	27:58

The Ink Shortage is an episode from The Goon Show. It is the seventh show in the Vintage Goons series (although the show's title was announced as 'Hansard Unexpurgated') and was based on the series 4 episode 22 show The Great Ink Drought of 1902. There was a pre-recording rehearsal show at 2pm Sunday 29 December 1957, but the show was actually recorded later at 5.15pm. Both the pre-recording and recording was done at The Camden Theatre, London.

The first British public broadcast was on BBC 7 on Monday 8 December 2008 at 8.00am.

Story

Pen manufacturers across the land are panicking , for it is 1902 and the Great Ink Drought has hit. The public are requested to keep calm , and not fill their fountain pens up unless absoutley necessary. To find a new source of ink, blotting-paper manufacturer Henry Crun sends an expedition to drill the inkwells in China. But financial lizard Sir Bernard Seagoon has bought shares in ink, and has disguised himself as John Chinaman in order to thwart the expedition. He, Grytpype-Thynne and Moriarty plan to blow up the whole drilling area with the help of Bluebottle... will they succeed?

Music

• The BBC Orchestra was conducted by Wally Stott
• Max Geldray plays The Duke's Joke (Alan Clare)
• The Ray Ellington Quartet plays Fascinatin' Thing (Harry A. Edgington)

Technical

Originally recorded on T5/AG/4417 (Agfa FR tape stock at 15 ips ¼" tape recorded at St. Hilda's, Maida Vale). This tape survived intact at TS and was used to create the version included on Compendium Vol 9.