Does anyone remember 'Candid Camera' ?!
Question: Yes.
I believe that this was a version of an earlier American show. Originally, if memory serves, in Britain it was first called "We've Got You Covered."
People like Alan Funt come to mind but one of the early presenters was the late Bob Monkhouse.
The early programmes 'starred' front man Jonathan Routh. He was a master of keeping a staight face whilst doing ludicrous things. One of his trademarks was to hold a clenched fist (non-threatening!) near to any unsuspecting member of the public. This fist concealed a microphone.
The much-copied show, including such things as "Beadle's About", "Game For A Laugh" and shows with Noel Edmonds, was good in that everything was simple. They must have made each episode for about ￡35! Nobody was made to look foolish or embarrassed. These days such hidden camera shows seem to require the distressing or the shocking of people. If they are injured or have a heart attack, so much the better!
A couple of "Candid Camera" stunts I remember illustrate the simplicity and benign nature of the show. Firstly, there was the famous item involving Jonathan Routh rolling down a slope in an old car into a garage. The car's engine had been removed! When the attendant came out, Routh asked him to fill the car with petrol and then check the oil, whilst he went to the toilet. When the attendant lifted the bonnet, he found no engine! When Routh returned, the puzzled attendant pointed out the problem. Routh pretended to be perplexed, saying that the engine was there the last time he looked!
Then there was the item where Routh pretended to be a foreigner and stopped various people in the street to ask for advice. He claimed "to have lost his scruples"! "Where can I find my scruples?" he asked in an outlandish accent, in halting English. (How many people today would even know what the word meant?) The reactions from various people were hilarious. One Londoner replied, "Well, you are in a bad way, mate!" 'Borat' comes to mind today. Nothing is new!
The point is that it was the star of the show who was made to look stupid and not the members of the public. When Routh would sit in a cafe and steal sausages from another diner's plate, the 'victim' would be astonished but not in grave distress! The fun came from the facial expressions and different reactions - from incredulity to outrage.
If licence payers are to be subjected to more and more repeats, why not repeat some of those early "Candid Camera" classics?
Allen B.
Answers: Yes.
I believe that this was a version of an earlier American show. Originally, if memory serves, in Britain it was first called "We've Got You Covered."
People like Alan Funt come to mind but one of the early presenters was the late Bob Monkhouse.
The early programmes 'starred' front man Jonathan Routh. He was a master of keeping a staight face whilst doing ludicrous things. One of his trademarks was to hold a clenched fist (non-threatening!) near to any unsuspecting member of the public. This fist concealed a microphone.
The much-copied show, including such things as "Beadle's About", "Game For A Laugh" and shows with Noel Edmonds, was good in that everything was simple. They must have made each episode for about ￡35! Nobody was made to look foolish or embarrassed. These days such hidden camera shows seem to require the distressing or the shocking of people. If they are injured or have a heart attack, so much the better!
A couple of "Candid Camera" stunts I remember illustrate the simplicity and benign nature of the show. Firstly, there was the famous item involving Jonathan Routh rolling down a slope in an old car into a garage. The car's engine had been removed! When the attendant came out, Routh asked him to fill the car with petrol and then check the oil, whilst he went to the toilet. When the attendant lifted the bonnet, he found no engine! When Routh returned, the puzzled attendant pointed out the problem. Routh pretended to be perplexed, saying that the engine was there the last time he looked!
Then there was the item where Routh pretended to be a foreigner and stopped various people in the street to ask for advice. He claimed "to have lost his scruples"! "Where can I find my scruples?" he asked in an outlandish accent, in halting English. (How many people today would even know what the word meant?) The reactions from various people were hilarious. One Londoner replied, "Well, you are in a bad way, mate!" 'Borat' comes to mind today. Nothing is new!
The point is that it was the star of the show who was made to look stupid and not the members of the public. When Routh would sit in a cafe and steal sausages from another diner's plate, the 'victim' would be astonished but not in grave distress! The fun came from the facial expressions and different reactions - from incredulity to outrage.
If licence payers are to be subjected to more and more repeats, why not repeat some of those early "Candid Camera" classics?
Allen B.
Yes i do, i used to love watching it.....
Classic...
now your talking, the original and best
Yes!! It was one of the first 'reality' shows and was fantastic!!
If producers were smart, they would once again try to repeat the enthusiasum and delight of this show...(they did try once, but it did not get it right)
Yes Allen Funt was great.
The original (1960s) series was good, then it went a bit Jeremy Beadle.
I sure do. The good days.
ha ha`yer they were very good`-hey youl be taking us Back to Muffin the Mule``in a Bit`??
yes and that was so funny and so much better than "you been framed" ........... :)
I think the early series was the past. And for me as a child the one I can recall was the car that split in half and rode toward walkers! Then the car taken into a garage with no engine to be fixed!
omg yeah now i do but not until you just mentioned it was it were they some one up and made them look like a complete odiot then approached them? that must have been on years ago.
yes i do loved it
Yes...I remember both versions....prefer the original one.
Yes , I remember that show but I never liked the show , sorry I no alot of people did .
yes hun, it was the original, and all these spin offs are a poor substitute
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=og5AQ8aqmD...
star time
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Yes that was the days of good comedy
Guess we are showing our ages?
Indeed, Allen Funt & Durwood Kirby. The original cracked me up.
Sure! Alan Funt. Loved it.
How about Dark Shadows?
o hell i
it was great