A cult-classic British radio comedy from the 1950s is getting a revival at the most unlikely of places, Allen Hall Lunchtime Theatre. If you're feeling emotionally burnt out by unfair grades or the political drama flooding your TikTok feed, then this might just be your reprieve. The Goon Show is here on campus. It might make you laugh so hard there’ll be a puddle.
“It’s absolute nonsense – but clever nonsense,” said director Harry Almey, who’s bringing Spike Milligan’s Foiled by President Fred to Allen Hall Lunchtime Theatre on August 14th and 15th.
For those who don't know this obscure show from 50 years before any undergrad was born, The Goon Show is an unhinged radio program from the post-war era. Milligan, Peter Sellers, and Harry Secombe created a genre-defying fever dream of surrealist satire, slapstick silliness, and quick witted voice acting.
“It’s just three individuals who were conked on the head in the war, having a laugh,” Harry explained to Critic Te Ārohi. He is adapting the radio play for stage, so it’s not just actors reading scripts from behind microphones, but a chaotic visual scene in which they play multiple roles, wear boots on their heads, and throw their bodies into the idiocy.
Performing it live, though, is no straightforward task. “To perform The Goon Show on stage is quite a unique experience,” said one cast member. “We’re putting physical action to something that was only ever heard. There’s a lot of opportunities for physical comedy.”
Despite the absurdity, Harry sees The Goon Show as a deeply human piece of comedy. “Every man in the show, bar one, was a war veteran. They saw horror. And their way to deal with that was to laugh. I think that's beautiful.” He hopes this will be a much-needed reprieve for students caught up in academic stress or the doomscrolling cycle. “You don't need to know anything going on. The actors are having so much fun [that] the audience can’t help but laugh.”
The Goon Show was last performed in Allen Hall in 2023 as a koha-only show, because the team didn’t have the rights. “But this time? I've spoken to Spike Milligan’s daughters,” Harry said. “As of this week I've got verbal permission. This is the first ever fully licensed, ticketed Goon Show production in Dunedin, ever.”
The cast has one final plea for the audience. “[Director] Harry Almey is a crazed, crazed man. Help God, please help. He makes me dance like a monkey,” one actor confided in Critic. Their advice to students? “Interact with more (1950s) Goon. (I’m aware of the connotations – please stop the connotations.)”
So bring a friend, come with open minds, a taste for nonsense, and, ideally, an empty bladder. Gooners unite!
Tickets for The Goon Show, and all other lunchtime theatre performances, can be found on humanitix.com ($5 for students, $10 for the public). Door sales are also available 30mins prior to the performance.