Variety Bandbox

Presented by Philip Slessor, it became a feature of Sunday evenings for more than eight years between February 1944 and September 1952.^[3] Hosting duties would later be taken over by Derek Roy.^[4]

Amongst those who launched their careers on the show was Frankie Howerd, who first appeared on Variety Bandbox in 1947 following a provincial tour.^[5] Howerd was to become a fixture of the show and honed his catch phrase-driven comedic style in these appearances.^[3] Tony Hancock also featured on the show early in his career.^[6] March 1950 saw the debut of a fortnightly series within the show called Blessem Hall which featured several characters voiced by a young Peter Sellers in one of his earliest performances, alongside Miriam Karlin.^[3]

Arthur English, who debuted on the show in 1949, also gained prominence through his broadcasts and was for a time 'resident comedian' on the show, despite his tendency to upset the producers by also including visual gags in his act.^[7] The show also provided Bill Kerr with his first break in the UK^[8] whilst Max Wall was a regular performer on the show.^[3] Although not as performers on Variety Bandbox, Eric Sykes and Bob Monkhouse both began as a scriptwriter on the show.^[9]

As well as comedy Variety Bandbox also featured big band music with the likes of Ted Heath, Geraldo, Ambrose, Woolf Phillips, and Joe Loss all leading their orchestras.^[10]

• Billy Cotton Band Show
• Comedy Bandbox
• Workers' Playtime
• Albert Modley