"Humph"

Friday marked a sad day for many fans in the UK and outside of the Radio panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue.
The long-standing chairman of the show, Humphrey Lyttelton died following surgery, aged 86.
Obviously because of his age it wasn't a shock, but it is a very sad day.

The show has been running for 36 years (it started in 1972) and was born out of a comedy show called I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again, written by Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie and starring themselves, Tim Brook-Taylor (who of course went to to star as The Goodies on TV), John Cleese (yes, that John Cleese) and Jo Kendall, as an attempt to bring funny people together to create something entertaining and funny without the chore of writing scripts for each programme. Indeed the first year of Clue saw Graeme and Tim joined by I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again regulars as the panelists, with Barry Cryer and Humphrey Lyttelton alternating in the chairman role.
After the first year the cast settled down with Humphrey acting as regular chairman and Barry Cryer joining the panelists along with Tim, Graeme and Bill Oddie.
By the third year, Bill Oddie had left and was replaced by Willy Rushton and this was the line-up that would remain more or less unchanged (apart from the odd recordings where guests were brought in if a regular was unavailable) until Willy Rushton's untimely death in 1996.

Humphrey Lyttelton himself was an Etonian Ex-guardsmen who was known for being one of the better Jazz musicians and also presented some Jazz shows for radio.
His selection as chairman for the comedy show was as inspired as it was unpredicatable, but his demeanour on the show and act of being mildly annoyed by the whole thing was hilarious.
He always considered himself first and foremost a musician, but most people (certainly in the last twenty years) know him through ISIHAC.

I first discovered the show while leafing through the Christmas Radio Times in 1986 and decided to make a point of listening to the show. The daftness, irreverence and sense of fun was a revelation. It is true that ISAHAC is not as satirical or cutting edge as some other comedy shows, but it has endured while for the most part they have not.
I was instantly hooked and have tried to listen to as many of the programmes as I possibly could. Indeed I have found that a dose of ISIHAC humour is a great remedy for those times I have been feeling unwell. It has been a part of my life for over twenty years.

After Willy Rushton's death in 1996, Tim Brook-Taylor recounted a conversation he had with Willy some time before, during which they discussed what would happen to the show if any of the regulars died. They agreed that it should continue unless it was the chairman, Humphrey Lyttelton, at which stage they should call a halt to the programme.

To be honest, I don't know whether I want them to continue or not. The creative genius behind it (Graeme Garden) is still going strong and there is certainly nothing else like it on the radio. It would be a great shame never to have any more Clue to look forward to.
But on the other hand, I would understand completely if the remaining regulars want to draw a line underneath the significant volume of work that is ISIHAC and keep the feel and style of it as a tribute to a potentially irreplaceable chairman.

To give you an idea of the unique nature of this show, there are around 12 CDs and audio tapes and 5 books relating to the series. It was not only popular enough to tour the country for recordings but was one of the only radio shows that charged for audience attendence and was still solidly booked after only a few days. So popular was it, that they insitigated a tour (i.e. without being recorded) last year and had another tour this year.
The last date on the tour was Bournemouth last week and I was lucky enough to attend. Sadly, Humphrey had already been taken ill and was unable to attend the show, although he was well and in good spirits before the surgery and even recorded a message for the show.
In his absence, Rob Brydon deputised in his place at short notice, but it just wasn't the same.