Screening of The Happiness Patrol, BFI, 31 August 2024.
Last Saturday (August 31st 2024) the BFI hosted the launch of the next season in the Doctor Who Collection” Blu-ray range – Season 25. The chosen story to represent this season was “The Happiness Patrol” and our good friends and intrepid reporters Jacqueline Lindemulder and Angela Scholder of the Dutch Whovian Community reports.
Before 10:00am people were already queueing to see if they would be able to still get hold of a ticket from the returns desk.
While walking in to the theatre they played a song with lyrics “The Greatest Show on Earth”. While Sylvester walked in he made the funny gesture of not wanting to look at his younger self on screen.
The presenter Justin walked in with Bagpuss. He mentioned that today we would be getting rid of any killjoys: “If anyone is unhappy, security guards are standing by”.
He mentioned a Blake’s 7 Blu-ray box set later in the year.
Later he joked “It’s not Whooverville, then you’re in the wrong place”. People laughed. He talked about “The Happiness Patrol” and about how it has grown in reputation, while initially it had been a story which had a lot of negative reviews and was seen as just extremely camp, and “not Doctor Who”.
He also checked on social media at what people had commented about “The Happiness Patrol”, mentioning someone having posted about having badges made, he was there where they then immediately got one.
There was a joke about the audience looking more like Oppenheimer than Barbie.
The usual quiz, where Sylvester won a Build your own Kandyman package.
There was also a talk with Pete McTighe who remarked about this season being one of his favourites of the show, “being comfort food.”
Pete wore a nice Pink TARDIS T-shirt. He explained that most cut material has been reinserted, running to a total of 18 minutes. This was possible as the original studio tapes were still existing. One thing is that now the Kandyman is getting a proper on-screen send-off.
It was noted that Graeme Curry’s wife and daughter were in the audience, where then a message from the daughter was read.
Unfortunately during the first episode it quite quickly became clear that what was being shown was not the remastered and updated version, but the original. They announced this and that they had tried to get the right version quickly, but that it wasn’t managed.
So, we then watched the first two episodes of the original broadcast version.
The first talk was with Stephen Mansfield, the puppeteer for Fifi. He talked about rediscovering one of the three original Fifi puppets where the mechanics was still working, which only needed restoration works on the nose. Fifi then was unveiled.
They was joking about him having to work Fifi from in between Sheila’s legs.
Originally Fifi had been thought of as a person in a costume and the pipes people being puppets, but it was swapped around. The pipe people were played by kids.
Then the 3rd episode was shown.
After this episode the value added material was shown, starting with the trailer and a preview of “Looking for Dursley”, a documentary about the life of Dursley McLinden.
Following this we had the Q&A with director Chris Clough, script editor Andrew Cartmel, Dame Sheila Hancock, Sophie Aldred, and Sylvester McCoy.
Sheila normally doesn’t watch any of her work, but said she had been totally engrossed in it and thought it was an example of modern art. “The sheer creativity”. She mentioned to really not hating happy people, after which Sylvester mock walked off. She had not been told anything about the context to the story, but had felt it to be anti-Thatcher and had played it that way, also, the ugliness of the period.
Sylvester mentioned all of it was such fun making, not only “The Happiness Patrol”. He said how brilliant the Kandyman was. Sophie mentioned that “The Happiness Patrol” is still so relevant.
Many Doctor Who fans rejected the story as then, they could only see the camp surface and not really the story underneath.
They talked about how Chris Clough had cast Sophie, to which Sylvester responded “So it was you who’s to blame!”
There also was an interesting conversation about Doctor Who and being political and people commenting about that now, while it always has been the case. Sylvester mentioned this as why he had started watching Doctor Who.
After the Q&A there was a signing, and a quiz in the bar.
It was a great day, even if we didn’t get to see the remastered and updated version.
With thanks to Jacqueline Lindemulder and Angela Scholder of the Dutch Whovian Community
Doctor Who: The Collection Season 25 will be released on October 28th 2024
STATEMENT FROM THE BFI SOUTHBANK
Doctor Who: The Happiness Patrol
+ Q&A with actors Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred and script editor Andrew Cartmel
We apologise to customers who attended the screening on Saturday 31 August as we weren’t able to show the correct version. We understand the disappointment this will have caused during what was otherwise a great event.
We are pleased to have this opportunity to show the new version. Previous bookers are being contacted by the Box Office and have exclusive priority on this event until Thursday 12 September 12:00 (noon). After this time, any remaining tickets will go on general sale at £17, concs £14 (Members pay £2 less).