Forty-seven seconds of pure comedy genius, a recently rediscovered Morecambe and Wise public information film has now been made available to watch online on BFI Player and YouTube. One of the earliest drink-drive campaign films, it hasn’t been seen by the public for more than 50 years.
Featuring Ernie telling Eric to ‘be wise’ and not drive home after their Christmas party, the film was originally made for the Central Office of Information (COI). The original 35mm print was found in a box of 1960s cigarette advertisements recovered from Ulster Television, who were in the process of moving to new premises in Belfast.
The rediscovered material was returned to the BFI National Archive via Kaleidoscope, the classic TV archive based in Birmingham, and is preserved on behalf of The National Archives as part of the COI collection.
“I thought I’d seen every possible recording of Morecambe & Wise,” comments Gary Morecambe, Eric’s son, “so was both surprised and delighted by this recent discovery.”
“Any rediscovered footage featuring Britain’s most beloved double-act is precious,” says BFI archive TV programmer Dick Fiddy, “but the nature of this piece – urging the public to refrain from drinking and driving some three years before enforcing legislation was passed – distinguishes it as a true oddity.”
Chris Perry, CEO of Kaleidoscope, who recovered the film from Ulster TV, says: “The smallest cans of film can sometimes yield the greatest discoveries. It was exciting to see such famous faces turn up unexpectedly when we inspected the film. Definitely one of the best, most memorable discoveries made by Kaleidoscope over the last 30 years.”
Two decades later, Ernie Wise made another appearance in a public information film for the National Blood Service, starring alongside Morecambe and Wise regular, Glenda Jackson. Blood Donor: Glenda and Ernie (1981) is also available on BFI Player part of the NHS on Film collection.
