The latest recovery from the 'Sutton Park' tapes has recently been uploaded to YouTube and covers the tail-end of Episode 1599 and the opening of Episode 1600. Which, astonishingly, is only just over half-way through the complete run of the series!
Filmed around Boxing Day 1996 - you can tell this from the electronic datestamp at one point - it boasts an impressive cast of three humans and four puppets and features a split storyline involving two dimensions.
That's not to imply that anyone has turned into a cardboard cut-out (though that did happen at least once in other episodes), but rather that Paul has simply turned the sepia filter on to escape from the evil plans of the rubber-faced Controller.
Nick has been mysteriously transported to a random field in the middle of nowhere (near Salisbury, of course!), which annoys him enough to become unsually sweary and Little Jay suddenly discovers religion when he finds Gourd. This joke is so knowingly bad that I couldn't help laughing at it.
For some obscure plot-related reason that I can't quite put my finger on, I am also in the alternative dimension, though my multi-hued umbrella is making a spirited attempt at defying the sepia filter, despite the covering dialogue that it's lost all its colour.
The footage opens with a very brief insight into our early 90s spoof 'Blake's 7' video, where I'm wearing an eyepatch (I was Travis, but so too was Nick) and Elaine is doing her best Servalan impression. The garden shed in the background shows just how cheap and cheerful an effort this was, but at least we had fun doing it!
There appears to be wildlife in both dimensions, though the footage cuts out before we get a look at the swan spotted by Nick.
To be honest, I don't remember much about this particular filming session, but it's nice to see it again. As often happens with this recovered stuff, it ends just as I was getting into the story and I look forward to seeing what happens next...
And I can certainly recall the coat and gloves I'm wearing. Though in my usual fashion, I probably held onto them for far too long afterwards...
'Sutton Park' Episodes 1599 and 1600 can be seen here.
(There are one or two ever-so-slightly rude words, but we don't think the BBFC will complain after all this time!)
(Written by Andrew Trowbridge)
This same clip also appears as audio in some of the recent episodes of THE SHY LIFE PODCAST. (#215-216, 219) which allowed me to add a few additional audio effects.
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