Editing It's That Man Again (section)

==Broadcasts==
===Pre-war===
====Series 1: July to August 1939====
[[File:Thomas Reginald 'Tommy' Handley - BBC.jpg|thumb|upright=1|The comedian [[Tommy Handley]] in the 1940s]]
The first series of ''ITMA'' was planned to be a trial run of six shows of 45-minute duration, broadcast fortnightly. They began on 12 July 1939, performed at a BBC [[Recording studio|sound facility]], either at [[Maida Vale Studios]],{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=3}} or [[St. George's Hall, London|St. George's Hall]].{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=31}} The shows were broadcast live on the [[BBC National Programme]] at 8.15&nbsp;pm.{{sfn|"It's That Man Again". ''The Radio Times''}} The programme was set on a ship able to broadcast radio programmes, with Handley as the station controller and presenter. He was accompanied by Cecilia Eddy, Eric Egan and Sam Heppner. The show included a quiz hosted by [[Lionel Gamlin]].{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=31}}{{sfn|"It's That Man Again". ''The Radio Times''}}

In an article in the ''[[Radio Times]]'' that accompanied the first programme, Worsley described the premise of the show: Handley "gets hold of a ship, equips it with a transmitter and studio, and sails the Seven Seas scattering broadcast culture (Handley brand) and 'commercials' (any brand)".{{sfn|Worsley|1939|p=10}} Music was provided by the Jack Harris Band, who had been performing at London hotspots, including the [[Café de Paris (London)|Café de Paris]] and the [[London Casino]].{{sfn|Worsley|1939|p=10}} With a tense international situation in mid-1939, Kavanagh was careful to avoid writing in political jokes, or any material too topical or sensitive. Handley was known to keep to a script, with little or no [[ad-libbing]] to worry the producers.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=3}}{{sfn|Took|1981|p=23}}

The fourth episode of ''ITMA'' was broadcast on 30 August. When the [[Second World War]] broke out on 3 September, the remainder of the series was cancelled.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=32}}{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=4}}{{efn|The pre-war broadcasts of ''ITMA'' comprised one series with four programmes, from 12 July 1939 to 30 August 1939.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=27–28}}}} The show had been of limited success,{{sfn|Took|1981|p=23}} and Worsley thought it was likely to have been "another broadcasting flop".{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=4}}

===Wartime===
====Series 2: September 1939 to February 1940====
The BBC had planned for the outbreak of war, and once it was declared, the Variety Department was moved to [[Bristol]].{{sfn|Took|1981|p=23}}{{efn|''ITMA'' broadcast seven series during the war, from September 1939 to June 1945:
*Series 2: 19 September 1939 to 6 February 1940 (20 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=28}}
**"Star Variety Special" from the [[Palace Theatre, Manchester]] on 18 May 1940{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=28}}{{sfn|"Star Variety". ''The Radio Times''}}
*Series 3: 20 June to 25 July 1941 (6 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=28–29}}
*Series 4: 26 September 1941 to 1 May 1942 (32 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=29–30}}
**"A Grand ITMA Concert" on 12 May 1942{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=30}}{{sfn|"Tommy Handley Introduces a Grand 'ITMA' Concert". ''The Radio Times''}}
*Series 5: 18 September 1942 to 29 January 1943 (20 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=30–31}}
**"A Grand ITMA Concert" on 12 May 1942{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=31–32}}{{sfn|"Tommy Handley in a Grand ITMA Concert". ''The Radio Times''}}
*Series 6: 15 April to 29 July 1943 (16 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=32}}
*Series 7: 7 October 1943 to 8 June 1944 (36 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=33}}
**"Well for Santa Claus" (as part of ''[[Children's Hour]]'') on 25 December 1943{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=33–34}}{{sfn|"Well for Santa Claus". ''The Radio Times''}}
*Series 8: 21 September 1944 to 14 June 1945 (39 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=34}}}} The relocation meant some of the original performers were not available; a new cast was assembled from those who had moved to Bristol and who had received the requisite [[Security vetting in the United Kingdom|security clearance]] from the [[Ministry of Information (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Information]].{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=32}}{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=6}} Handley was accompanied by Vera Lennox, [[Maurice Denham]], [[Sam Costa]] and [[Jack Train]], and the music for the second series was by the [[Jack Hylton]] Band, conducted by [[Billy Ternent]] and supported by the Rhythm Octet.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=28}}

With the idea of a broadcasting ship now too improbable during wartime, the premise of the programme changed to have Handley as the head of the fictional Ministry of Aggravation and Mysteries, where he worked in the Office of [[wikt:twerp|Twerps]].{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=6}}{{sfn|Freedman|2015|p=67}} Other changes to the format included dropping the quiz section of the programme—which Worsley thought held up the flow of the show—replaced by "Radio Fakenburg", a spoof of [[Radio Luxembourg]].{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=11}} The running time was reduced from the 45 minutes of the first series to half an hour, and remained so through all the subsequent series.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=3, 7}} A [[Blackout (wartime)|blackout]] was in place for evenings and nights, and all cinemas and theatres had been closed by the government; such measures provided a boost to the listening figures for the show.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=34}} The writer and comedian [[Barry Took]] writes that the success also came from the programme's "self-assurance and cheerful optimism [which was] a welcome relief in that time of fear and uncertainty".{{sfn|Took|1981|p=23}}

The second series of ''ITMA'' finished in February 1940 and the show went on a nationwide tour that kept it off the air for nearly 18 months, except for one special edition in May 1940. Took notes that the show lacked the impact it had on radio, as Handley's performances were more intimate through a microphone than in a theatre.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=28}}{{sfn|Took|1981|p=24}}

====Series 3 and 4: June 1941 to May 1942====
While ''ITMA'' was absent from the airwaves, the [[The Blitz|German bombing campaign]] had included Bristol, which triggered a move of the Variety Department to [[Bangor, Gwynedd|Bangor]], northwest Wales, in April 1941.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=16}}{{sfn|Dibbs|2019|p=123}} When series three began broadcasting in June 1941, Kavanagh had introduced more characters, and set the show in the fictional seaside town of Foaming-at-the-Mouth with Handley as its mayor, renaming the programme, briefly, ''It's That Sand Again'', before it reverted to ''ITMA''. There were also changes in the cast. Denham and Costa had both joined the armed forces since the previous series; new actors were brought in, including Horace Percival, Dorothy Summers, Clarence Wright and [[Fred Yule]].{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=18}}{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=34–35}}

Series 3 ran for six weeks, ending on 25 July 1941. Series 4 followed two months later, beginning on 26 September. The programme was attracting 16&nbsp;million listeners by this stage, and was the most popular programme the BBC Variety Department had ever broadcast.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=36}} During programme five, listeners heard the explosion of two [[naval mine]]s that had been dropped on Bangor, landing half a mile (0.8&nbsp;km) from the studio, instead of in the [[River Mersey]]. Although the actors continued after a brief pause, the programme had been taken off the air and replaced with music.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=36}}{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=21–22}}

In April 1942 ''ITMA'' provided a command performance at [[Windsor Castle]] in the presence of [[George&nbsp;VI]] and [[Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon|his queen]] on the occasion of the 16th birthday of [[Elizabeth II|Princess Elizabeth]]. It was, notes Worsley, the first Royal Command Radio Show.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=24–25}} The royal family were fans of the programme; a member of the Royal Household said that if the war were to end between 8.30 and 9.00&nbsp;pm on a Thursday night none of the household would dare to tell the King until ''ITMA'' had finished.{{sfn|Grahame|1976|p=15}}

====Series 5 and 6: September 1942 to July 1943====
Series 5 started in September 1942 and ran for twenty weeks. One of the programmes in November was broadcast on the [[BBC Forces Programme]] to the soldiers in North Africa, the first time the show had been transmitted to the troops.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=37–38}} The shows became increasingly topical and up-to-the-minute.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=37}} Worsley began experimenting with the size of the audience to see which worked best. He tried in the theatres and cinemas of Bangor and [[Llandudno]] to get an audience of 2000, and in the studio in Bangor with 200; he also tried with no audience, and settled on 200 as the right number.{{sfn|Took|1981|pp=23–24}}{{efn|Took notes that for decades afterwards, radio and television audiences in the UK all had 200–300 people, based on Worsley's research.{{sfn|Took|1981|p=24}}}} The premise of the show changed again with Handley ejected as the mayor of Foaming-in-the-Mouth, and now the manager of a munitions factory. Several new characters were introduced, including Colonel Chinstrap, a dipsomaniac retired army officer voiced by Train.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=37}}

Before the sixth series began recording, a film version, ''[[It's That Man Again (film)|It's That Man Again]]'', was released. Starring Handley and including many of the radio programme regulars, it was written by Kavanagh and [[Howard Irving Young]] and directed by [[Walter Forde]].{{sfn|"It's That Man Again (1943)". ''British Film Institute''}}{{sfn|"Non-Stop Revue". ''The Times''}} ''[[The Times]]'' considered it difficult to transpose a radio show format onto a cinema screen, but thought Forde "manages his difficult task extremely well". As a consequence, the reviewer thought the film "achieves at least a partial success through the extravagance of its own craziness".{{sfn|"The Tivoli To Reopen". ''The Times''}}

The scenario of the programme changed again for series six, when, following a decision to move the munitions factory underground, a [[sulphur]] spring was tapped and Foaming-in-the-Mouth became a [[spa]].{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=37}}

====Series 7 and 8: October 1943 to June 1945====
[[File:The Royal Navy during the Second World War A21267.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|alt=A group of civilian performers on the deck of a warship|The ''ITMA'' cast with some of the crew of {{HMS|Anson|79}} under four of the ship's [[BL 14-inch Mk VII naval gun|14-inch guns]]]]

In the latter part of 1943 the Variety Department finished a relocation back to London.{{sfn|Dibbs|2019|p=126}} Series 7 of ''ITMA'', which began in October that year, was recorded in the [[Criterion Theatre]] at [[Piccadilly Circus]].{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=39}} The show restarted without Train, whose health, which had been worsening for some time, broke down completely; he spent a year in a sanatorium in North Wales recovering. Worsley took the decision to rest Train's characters rather than have another actor portray him; although he was criticised for the decision, he said "any imitation was to my mind as paste to real diamonds".{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=6}}{{sfn|Grundy|1976|p=69}} The series included broadcasts for each of the three forces: in January 1944 ''ITMA'' was broadcast from the [[Royal Navy]] base at [[Scapa Flow]], a show for the [[Royal Air Force]] was recorded at the Criterion in February, and an Army edition from the Garrison Theatre at the [[Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich]].{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=38–42}}

Series 8 began in September 1944 with a special show from the [[Wolseley Motors]] factory in Birmingham,{{efn|At the time, the factory was engaged on wartime production of tanks and other vehicles for the army.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=45}}}} but the show was not well received, and it was decided not to have any further broadcasts away from the studio.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=45–46}} Train returned to the cast, but at the end of 1944 Worsley was hospitalised for seven months.{{sfn|Grundy|1976|p=69}}{{efn|Worsley had been struggling with what he thought was [[lumbago]] for a few months, but found out that it was a more serious condition and was quickly hospitalised.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=47}}}} The production duties were taken up by [[Ronnie Waldman]] until Worsley returned in May 1945. His first programme back was ''V-ITMA'', the special edition show of 11 May 1945, which celebrated the end of the war in Europe.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=41}}{{sfn|"V-ITMA". ''The Radio Times''}}{{efn|''V-ITMA'' was, as Worsley describes it, "Tommy's own private celebration of the great event".{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=47}}}} The series came to an end a month later, after a run of 39 weeks.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=34}}

===Post-war===
====Series 9 to 12, post-war: September 1945 to January 1949====
[[File:The Laugh!- the Recording of the Radio Comedy 'itma', London, England, UK, 1945 D24429.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|alt=Photo taken at a recording session, with two performers, front, and band and conductor behind|Handley (centre) and Dorothy Summers recording an episode of ''ITMA'' in 1945; the conductor [[Charles Shadwell (musician)|Charles Shadwell]] (right) laughs.]]

For the start of the post-war ''ITMA''s, Handley, Kavanagh and Worsley decided to change many of the cast to keep the show fresh; Dorothy Summers, Sydney Keith, [[Dino Galvani]] and Horace Percival were all released from the show and replaced by [[Hugh Morton (actor)|Hugh Morton]], Mary O'Farrell, [[Carleton Hobbs]] and Lind Joyce; Clarence Wright returned to the programme.{{sfn|Grundy|1976|p=79}}{{efn|ITMA broadcast four series after the war, from September 1945 to January 1949:
*Series 9: 20 September 1945 to 13 June 1946 (39 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=34–35}}
**"Whither Tomtopia? (A Discussion on a Burning Topic)" on 12 September 1946{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=36}}{{sfn|"Whither Tomtopia?". ''The Radio Times''}}
*Series 10: 19 September 1946 to 12 June 1947 (39 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=37}}
*Series 11: 25 September 1947 to 10 June 1948 (38 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=37–38}}
*Series 12: 23 September 1948 to 6 January 1949 (16 weeks){{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=38}}}} The premise of the show changed too: Handley left Foaming-in-the-Mouth and became the governor of the fictional island of Tomtopia.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=52–53}} The storyline towards the end of series 9 centred on a government investigation of the administration on Tomtopia; the series ended in June 1946 with Handley leaving Tomtopia to return to Britain.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=37, 42–43}}

A prequel programme to series 10, "Whither Tomtopia?", was based in the idea that Handley had "to face an enquiry into his governorship" of the island. He faced questions from, among others, [[Dilys Powell]]—the film critic from ''[[The Sunday Times]]''—the medical spokesman [[Charles Hill, Baron Hill of Luton|Dr Charles Hill]] and the author [[A. G. Street]]; the programme was chaired by [[Sir William Darling]], MP.{{sfn|"Whither Tomtopia?". ''The Radio Times''}}{{efn|The idea for the programme came from a real life lunch given at the [[Connaught Rooms]] on [[Great Queen Street]] for the cast of ''ITMA''. Postprandial speeches dealt with Tomtopia as if it were a real [[crown colony]], and "Handley's administration" of the island was found inadequate.{{sfn|Worsley|1949|p=56}}}} The remainder of the series dealt with Handley living in the fictional Castle WeeHoose in Scotland, where he was building a rocket to take him to the Moon. In about week six of the series, the rocket was launched, but crash-landed on Tomtopia, where a new governor—Percy Palaver, played by [[Deryck Guyler]]—was in charge.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=43–44}}{{sfn|Worsley|1949|pp=60–61}}

Series 11, which began in September 1947, had the final recruit to the ''ITMA'' cast: [[Hattie Jacques]], who played Ella Phant and Sophie Tuckshop. She became so nervous during the audition that Handley held her hand, which she found made her more nervous.{{sfn|Kavanagh|1975|p=136}}{{sfn|Merriman|2007|loc=924}} Handley's health was beginning to decline by the end of the 38-week series, and it was suggested that series 12 should be delayed. He said no, and ''ITMA'' began again in September 1948. On 9 January 1949, three days after the sixteenth episode of the series—the 310th episode of ''ITMA''{{sfn|Took|1981|p=23}}{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=24}}—Handley died suddenly of a [[cerebral haemorrhage]]. The news was announced on that evening's radio, at the close of the Sunday evening repeat of the show, by the Director General of the BBC, [[William Haley|Sir William Haley]], who insisted on making the announcement himself.{{sfn|Took|2011}}{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=47}}{{sfn|Davalle|1988|p=21}} Without its star, ''ITMA'' was cancelled; Took observes that Handley "was so much the keystone and embodiment of the actual performance that ''ITMA'' died with him".{{sfn|Took|2011}}