The Lenny Henry Show

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The Lenny Henry Show
GenreSketch comedy, sitcom
Written byLenny Henry
Chris Reddy (1985)
Stan Hey (1987–1988)
Andrew Nickolds (1987–1988)
Directed byGeoff Posner (1984–1988)
Juliet May (1995)
Michael Cumming (2004–2005)
StarringLenny Henry
Theme music composerSimon Brint
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series7
No. of episodes48
Production
Executive producersKevin Lygo (1995)
Polly McDonald (1995)
Clive Tulloh (2004–2005)
Mark Freeland (2004–2005)
ProducersGeoff Posner (1984–1988)
Geoff Atkinson (1995)
Lissa Evans (2004–2005)
Running time30 minutes
Production companiesCrucial Films (1995)
Tiger Aspect Productions (2004–2005)
Original release
NetworkBBC One
Release4 September 1984 (1984-09-04) –
24 June 2005 (2005-06-24)
Related
Lenny Henry in Pieces (2000–2003)

The Lenny Henry Show is a comedy sketch show (and in its 1987–1988 incarnation, a sitcom) featuring Lenny Henry. It was originally broadcast between 1984 and 1988, and was later revived twice, in 1995 and 2004–2005.[1][2][3]

History[edit]

Original version (1984–1985)[edit]

The original version of the show ran for two series on BBC 1 in 1984 and 1985. Each series had six episodes. A 40-minute special was aired in December 1987. Recurring guests include Nicholas Lyndhurst (3 episodes) and Robbie Coltrane (2 episodes). Bands featured on the 1984 series included Musical Youth and Second Image.[4]

Sitcom incarnation (1987–1988)[edit]

Two further series broadcast in 1987–1988 kept the same name,[5] but followed a sitcom (rather than sketch-based) format. This version starred Henry as Delbert Wilkins, a well-meaning but trouble-prone pirate radio DJ at the fictional Brixton Broadcasting Corporation. At the end, Wilkins went "legit", gaining a job with the BBC World Service, and a son.[6]

1995 revival[edit]

The show was revived for one series in 1995; it failed to pick up audiences and was cancelled after its first run.[7]

2004–2005 revival[edit]

Lenny Henry revived the format once again in 2004 for two series of 8 episodes, containing stand-up and recurring sketches with recurring appearances by Gina Yashere.[8]

2020 Radio 4 revival[edit]

The show was revived for a six-part BBC Radio 4 series in 2020.[9]

Transmissions[edit]

Series[edit]

Series Start date End date Episodes
BBC One
1 4 September 1984[10] 9 October 1984[11] 6
2 5 September 1985[12] 10 October 1985[13] 6
3 27 October 1987[14] 1 December 1987[15] 6
4 15 September 1988[16] 3 November 1988[17] 6
5 1 April 1995[18] 6 May 1995[19] 6
6 30 April 2004[20] 18 June 2004[21] 8
7 6 May 2005[22] 24 June 2005[23] 8
BBC Radio 4
1 25 August 2020[24] 29 September 2020[25] 6

Specials[edit]

Date Entitle
28 December 1994[26] Christmas Special
28 December 1995[27] Christmas Special

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Comedy - The Lenny Henry Show". BBC. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  2. ^ "Lenny Henry interview". The Telegraph. 30 November 2010. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  3. ^ "Entertainment | Lenny Henry to quit sketch shows". BBC News. 3 May 2005. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  4. ^ "BBC - Comedy Guide - The Lenny Henry Show". Archived from the original on 28 September 2004. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  5. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - 1987-1988". IMDb.com. 27 October 1987. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  6. ^ "BBC - Comedy Guide - The Lenny Henry Show". Archived from the original on 31 August 2004. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  7. ^ Thomas Sutcliffe (1 May 1995). "Watch out for that big black guy". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  8. ^ "BBC - Comedy Guide - The Lenny Henry Show". Archived from the original on 29 January 2005. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  9. ^ "Brand New 'The Lenny Henry Show' for BBC Radio 4". Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  10. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 4 September 1984 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 4 September 1984. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  11. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 9 October 1984 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 9 October 1984. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  12. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 5 September 1985 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 5 September 1985. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  13. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 10 October 1985 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 10 October 1985. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  14. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 27 October 1987 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 27 October 1987. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  15. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 1 December 1987 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. December 1987. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  16. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 15 September 1988 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 15 September 1988. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  17. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 3 November 1988 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 3 November 1988. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  18. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 1 April 1995 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. April 1995. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  19. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 6 May 1995 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 6 May 1995. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  20. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 30 April 2004 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 30 April 2004. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  21. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 18 June 2004 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 18 June 2004. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  22. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 6 May 2005 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 6 May 2005. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  23. ^ "The Lenny Henry Show - BBC One London - 24 June 2005 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 24 June 2005. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  24. ^ "BBC Radio 4 - The Lenny Henry Show, Episode 1". BBC.
  25. ^ "BBC Radio 4 - The Lenny Henry Show, Episode 6". BBC.
  26. ^ "The Lenny Henry Christmas Show - BBC One London - 28 December 1994 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 28 December 1994. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  27. ^ "The Lenny Henry Christmas Show - BBC One London - 28 December 1995 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 28 December 1995. Retrieved 22 August 2018.

External links[edit]

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