The Laughter Show, 1984
The Laughter Show was a BBC comedy sketch show featuring Les Dennis and the late Dustin Gee.
Hugely popular in it’s day, this Saturday night show ran for three series between 1984 and 1986, up until the sad death of Dustin Gee in 1986.
Les Dennis and Dustin Gee had met on the Russ Abbott’s Madhouse show and would perform alongside Russ Abbott in various sketches.
In 1984 the BBC offered them their own show. The show became a huge success for the pair. However tragically it came to an abrupt end, when on 3rd January 1986, Gee died after suffering a heart attack on New Year’s night 1986, whilst he and Dennis were playing the Ugly sisters in Cinderella.
The third and final series went out in 1986, after the death of Dustin Gee.
In 1987, Gee’s comedy partner and friend Les Dennis kept the show going as a solo performer, changing the title to Les Dennis’ Laughter show, it continued to run until 1991.
Summary
The show provided a mix of sketches and musical numbers. Each week they were joined by different comedians.
It was The Laughter Show that included the pair’s most notable impressions, as Coronation Street’s Vera Duckworth (played by Dustin Gee) alongside Mavis Riley (played by Les Dennis).
Clips
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Starring
Les Dennis and Dustin Gee
Details
Channel: BBC1
Original Transmission Dates: 7th April 1984 – 22nd April 1986