37:
353:
some of
Milligan's characterisations and stimulated his already rich and lively imagination. Milligan would throw out all kinds of hit-or-miss suggestions; Stephens would retrieve the ones most likely to work. Milligan would sometimes get distracted or paralysed by all of the comic possibilities; Stephens would often find the most effective way to get him back on track and moving forwards.
367:(1956), and made countless last-minute re-writes of various comedians' scripts, innumerable gags for a wide range of variety shows and quite a few unofficial edits of troublesome television scripts. Stephens' heavy drinking had aggravated his high blood pressure, and he died on 26 January 1959; the official cause of death was a cerebral haemorrhage brought about by chronic hypertension.
336:(2006) states that Stephens' partnership with Milligan "foundered initially in the early 1950s – when he was drinking more than four bottles of rum and a couple of bottles of whisky each week". In February 1954, the BBC asserted that Stephens had violated the terms of his contract by failing to deliver scripts for
352:
Logical, perceptive and clever, he could capture
Milligan's quick little ideas before they shot straight out of sight and then place them into a relatively coherent structure. His own keen visual sense – he would even illustrate his scripts with vivid little drawings of certain goons – helped sharpen
171:
before
Hancock became well known, and was Hancock's best man at the comedian's first wedding. In turn Hancock and his new wife Cicely were witnesses at Larry's marriage to Diana Forster a few days later. Both of the brides were models for the French fashion house
737:
701:
143:(ALS), and was said to have been "one of the most eye-catching characters, in the earliest days of the company...he played a significant cameo role in the first phase of success for ALS".
764:
BBC Genome, Bring On The Girls (1955), celebrations marking the tenth anniversary of The
British Forces Network with Vanessa Lee, Diana Decker, Carole Carr, Irene Handl and Pat Coombs,
637:
873:
546:
The Life and Times of Larry
Stephens - Finally Revealed, Mike Brown, The Missing Page (the magazine of the Tony Hancock Appreciation Society) Vol.2 Nos. 2 & 3, 2002
159:, when he was four. He attended Quinton Infant and Junior School then Birmingham Central Grammar School. Trained as an accountant, Stephens distinguished himself as a
702:
http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/search/0/20?adv=0&q=BUMBLETHORPE&media=all&yf=1923&yt=2009&mf=1&mt=12&tf=00%3A00&tt=00%3A00#search
386:
McCann (2006) states that
Stephens and his wife were on their way to dine out with Milligan. It was most likely that Stephens' death was the reason that
184:
In 1952, he developed a potential radio series for
Hancock, which was designed to run for a full half-hour without musical breaks, then usual, called
533:
878:
597:
167:. Following service in the war, during which he served as a Commando captain, he returned to England, and began writing for British comedian
340:
on time, and that, thereafter, his work would only be considered on spec. Insulted, Stephens refused to have anything further to do with
390:
episode, "Dishonoured – Again" (broadcast on 26 January 1959) was a remake of the show "Dishonoured" (broadcast on 14 December 1954).
858:
568:
411:
363:
332:
that
Stephens, doubling both as a key contributor and as Milligan's agent, began to drink so heavily it affected his work.
383:
in his biography of
Milligan, states that he died in a car while going out to dinner with his wife, Diana, and Milligan.
188:. Although Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers and others were provisionally attached to the project, it was never recorded.
17:
517:
482:
250:
311:
episodes (later, Wiltshire also rewrote an unused
Stephens script for the show). Several of his radio scripts for
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125:(16 July 1923 – 26 January 1959) was a BBC radio scriptwriter, best remembered for co-writing
215:
218:
as a live 'script-in-hand' performance with actor and impressionist James Hurn (as Tony Hancock) and
140:
357:
Stephens was probably at his busiest during 1955 and 1956, during which time, apart from co-writing
210:
re-emerged in 2015. After its rediscovery in the BBC Archives by Stephens' biographer Julie Warren,
225:
Stephens wrote for a number of popular shows, comedians and entertainers in the 1950s including
888:
379:
fans believe that Stephens died while having dinner with Milligan. Another theory, advanced by
298:
765:
725:
713:
689:
663:
627:
BBC Radio 4 Programme: "Larry Stephens, The Man Who Never Was" (originally aired 24 May 2007)
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on the condition that Milligan, not the BBC, pay his salary. Per McCann (2006), Stephens was
293:
853:
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344:. Two years after the BBC cancelled his contract, Milligan managed to rehire Stephens for
135:. Stephens was a regular writer of the show for the first two years, and then returned to
8:
214:
was finally premiered in November 2017 – 65 years after its planned broadcast. Staged by
156:
799:
456:
GRO Register of Births: SEP 1923 6b 1497 W.Bromwich, Lawrence G. Stephens, mmn = Hughes
380:
88:
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McCann, (2006), p.152. Note: McCann has the date of Stephens' death as 25 January 1959
139:
to assist Milligan. From his association with Milligan, Stephens became involved with
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478:
475:
Spike & Co: Inside the House of Fun, with Milligan, Sykes, Galton & Simpson
238:
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132:
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GRO Register of Deaths:MAR 1959 5d 624 PANCRAS – Lawrence G. Stephens, aged 35
397:
of Stephens has been written by his cousin Julie Warren. The book is entitled
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BBC Genome, Fables of the Fifties HORACE CLABTROUT AND THE BEANSTALK (1953),
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programme on Stephens' life, it was while working on the second season of
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301:. Stephens also wrote for other popular television series too, such as
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Stephens' death has been a subject of surmise and conjecture. Many
176:. Milligan once remarked that "Larry and Tony were like brothers".
812:
361:, he also supplied the story and helped shape the screenplay for
36:
738:"Hancock's Half Hour Collectibles - Notes to Accompany Volume 1"
173:
712:
BBC Genome: Kenneth Horne, Derek Roy, The Forces Show (1954),
195:
were later re-written by Stephens and broadcast by the BBC as
766:
http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/1c1540680bb243988f020acc561204ca
726:
http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/f50c7323ef664138828d3da0fbe24c3e
714:
http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/3f63cd8a852e4da8b3b67f3f1b7e48f9
700:
BBC Genome Project: Robert Moreton in Bumblethorpe (1951),
690:
http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/abf02fdb14244d219e8eaff6fec6bf30
534:"Tribute to writer Larry Stephens who shaped modern comedy"
399:
It's All In The Mind: The Life and Legacy of Larry Stephens
315:
were later adapted by Wiltshire for the TV puppet version,
160:
307:
with Maurice Wiltshire, with whom he also co-wrote three
598:"Long-lost Larry Stephens radio scripts to be performed"
222:
among the cast, Stephens' "great writing" was noted.
638:"Lost Tony Hancock Scripts Performed For First Time"
874:Military personnel from the West Midlands (county)
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724:BBC Genone, Arthur Askey Arthur's Inn (1954),
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297:(1956–57), which was screened on ITV by
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569:"Forgotten Hancock script rediscovered"
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264:(with Spike Milligan and Peter Ling),
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364:The Case of the Mukkinese Battle Horn
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664:"Jon Pertwee in PERTWEE'S PROGRESS"
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477:. London: Hodder & Stoughton.
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163:pianist before the onset of
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510:Spike Milligan: A Biography
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276:(with Spike Milligan) and
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206:The original script for
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299:Associated-Rediffusion
268:(with Jimmy Grafton),
203:, instead of Hancock.
884:British Army officers
864:British radio writers
781:McCann, (2006), p.151
555:McCann, (2006), p.150
439:(1963-1964) TV series
420:The Tony Hancock Show
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294:The Tony Hancock Show
151:Stephens was born in
814:It's All In The Mind
573:British Comedy Guide
274:Forces All-Star Bill
512:. London: Granada.
157:Quinton, Birmingham
381:Humphrey Carpenter
286:Bring On The Girls
258:Pertwee's Progress
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604:. 20 October 2017
575:. 3 November 2015
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116:Scriptwriter
82:(1959-01-26)
60:16 July 1923
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415:(1956) Film
326:BBC Radio 4
231:Jon Pertwee
201:Brian Reece
199:, but with
97:Nationality
843:Categories
674:9 November
668:BBC Genome
648:9 November
608:20 October
579:7 November
444:References
282:Eric Sykes
235:Dick Emery
212:Vacant Lot
208:Vacant Lot
193:Vacant Lot
186:Vacant Lot
147:Early life
113:Occupation
89:St Pancras
56:1923-07-16
423:(1956–57)
395:biography
377:Goon Show
309:Goon Show
278:Star Bill
247:Derek Roy
70:, England
750:26 March
91:, London
284:), and
100:British
516:
481:
280:(with
249:, and
180:Career
174:Lanvin
741:(PDF)
489:p.149
371:Death
131:with
834:IMDb
752:2018
676:2017
650:2017
610:2017
581:2015
514:ISBN
479:ISBN
233:and
161:jazz
76:Died
44:Born
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
