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into orbit with rockets in their basement. Best loved by many were his miniature plays on tiny sets without characters. Bentine stood over the sets and narrated as special effects and noises portrayed the movements and adventures of an imaginary tiny cast in what could be a western town one week and
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Another show included a short sketch where a detonator plunger was pushed down and a factory chimney fell in the wrong direction, demolishing a terraced house. The plunger was then pulled back up, and the house was restored as the chimney rose back into its original position (that is, the film was
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The programme also collected fictitious news reports from the eight corners of the world (hence its name), read by
Michael Bentine as a newsman or commentator and had many madcap sketches. In one sketch Bentine and other explorers trek through forests to find the source of the River Thames. Having
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which tried to repeat the former series' success. For this series, Bentine was located in the capital city, Filthnik, in the fictitious country of Ozonia. In the 8 October 1966 episode, Bentine tries to turn Ozonia into a Mecca for tourists. This episode also featured the
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reached an end point, all they find is a leaking tap. Disappointed, they start to backtrack and
Bentine before leaving turns off the tap which results in the River Thames disappearing and boats ending up sunk into the mud. (This idea was also revived for
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where the explorers encounter monstrous cranes and excavators rampaging through a jungle, using sped-up film footage of real machinery. The sketch ends with the explorers producing a captured specimen, a full-size
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An LP was released by
Parlophone in 1962 (produced by George Martin) of sketches including "Football Results", in which the newsreader gets increasingly excited as he appears to be about to win a fortune on the
223:. In cartoon sequences, the characters interacted with real people. These inserts were produced by Biographic Cartoon Films Ltd. The actors were seen in many different disguises and
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in its concepts and sketches, including
Bentine's newsreader device for continuity and officialdom was mocked via a Ministry of Holes instead of a
239:. In total 57 black and white episodes (including the pilot) were produced by the BBC. Of this total, 11 episodes are thought to no longer exist.
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Another sketch described an expedition to find mysterious beasts known only by components such as wheels and cogs. This turns into a parody of
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award in 1962 for Light
Entertainment, while a compilation show, screened by the BBC in 1963, won that year's Press Prize at the
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173:. This stunt required 25 men standing inside the whale to move it along, which caused traffic delays. He also sent the
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613:"popsike.com - The Goons Michael Bentine It's A Square World LP Parlophone '62 Stereo Sample - auction details"
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began to develop some of his characters in the series, like the old codger, and developed his funny voices.
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Festival in
Montreux. The shows were devised and written by Bentine and
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The series was revived for one colour episode in 1977 for BBC 1 called
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a haunted house the next. This feature was revived in the later series
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631:"BFI Screenonline: Bentine, Michael (1922-1996) Biography"
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There was a follow-up series in 1966 for ATV called
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496:The Rose d'Or Festival award winners 1961 - 2008
133:is a British comedy television series starring
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586:. No. 72. p. 10. Archived from
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696:1964 British television series endings
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