Presented by Nicholas Parsons, Just a Minute has been a schedule mainstay over the last 44 years, featuring many participating panellists. Four of which were Just A Minute regulars for many years and described in one show by it's presenter as the “Witty, impossible, irrepressible...” Clement Freud, Derek Nimmo, Peter Jones and Kenneth Williams.
Memorable moments from the classic radio series featuring Just A Minute’s gang of four (of whom the shows ultimate success derived) and next generation stalwart Paul Merton have been grouped together by AudioGO for Just A Minute: The Classic Collection on compact disc format comprising 22 half hour shows recorded between 1967 and 1999.
Just a Minute - Without Hesitation, Deviation Or Repetition
Just A Minute’s creator Ian Messiter had originally devised the shows idea for a series called One Minute Please in the 1950s. The formula proved so successful it was repeated for Just A Minute which began only 3 months after Radio 4 began broadcasting in 1967.
The series premise is simple. A panellist is required to talk for a minute on any given subject without hesitation, deviation or repetition. Such an occurrence can warrant a challenge from an opposing contestant when they too must pick up the challenge and continue.
The collection features a who’s who of the last five decades entertainment industry as panellists including Graham Norton, Julian Clary, Dr Magnus Pike Maureen Lipman, John Junkin, Brian Johnston, Stephen Fry, Richard Murdoch, Stanley Unwin and Linda Smith.
First Just A Minute Show From 1967 Featured In Classic Collection
Featured within The Classic Collection is the very first edition from December 1967, and makes interesting listening. Presented by Nicholas Parsons, the panellists included Clement Freud, Derek Nimmo, Beryl Reid and the unknown Wilma Ewart.
Both Freud and Nimmo waste no time in applying their raconteur skills to the game by trying to talk about subjects as diverse as "excuses for being late" and "knitting a cable stitched jumper", of which Freud observes: “Any repetition you’ll get is absolutely necessary.” It’s also interesting to hear that as the minute ends a cuckoo is sounded by the shows creator Ian Messiter, instead of the now widely recognised buzzer.
There are many other classic moments to be sampled from the series long history including the time Clement Freud missed the recording session due to adverse weather conditions enforcing Nicholas Parsons to sit in as panellist, while show creator Ian Messiter took over as host.
Classic Kenneth Williams Moments On Just A Minute Release
Another episode finds composer Tim Rice challenging Kenneth Williams for repetition of the word “whether”. Williams who is clearly faced with a challenge discussing the subject of musical conductor Arturo Toscanini responds: “Was it nothing, you great fool!” before continuing “…I’m not going to be made a fool of by that great jerk”. Such an outburst gets a response of laughter from both the audience and the panel. However; giving Williams sensitive nature and how seriously his autobiography “Just Williams” revealed he took the game, one does wonder if there’s greater depth to his comments.
Despite the fact that several of the participating panellists are no longer with us, these shows makes an enjoyable and fascinating listen. There’s great pleasure in hearing Peter Jones (best remembered as the voice of the book in Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy) challenging an opposing panellist on deviation, and then doing it himself.
All panellists and Nicholas Parsons are clearly having a wonderful time taking part and it’s easy to find yourself as the listener joining in as the recordings unfold. This therefore makes Just A Minute: The Classic Collection a bumper compendium of classic radio episodes on CD designed for repeated listening.
- Running for approximately 11 hours, Just a Minute: The Classic Collection is available as a boxed set from AudioGO and is a brilliant selection of programmes from one of radios most enduring radio series.
