Time, Space and Short Skirts

One of the best TV memories of my childhood was watching the entire Comic Relief marathon in 1991, when I was living in London. It started about 15 minutes before I got home from school, and went long into the night, hosted by Lenny Henry, Griff Rhys Jones and Jonathan Ross, and featuring among other things, Theophilus P Wildebeeste doing a 'sex off' dancing duel with the real Tom Jones, and a brand new Blackadder era, the Cavaliers and the Roundheads (which later, to my shame, I accidentally taped over with an episode of a random soap opera, something only rectified this Christmas when my honey bought the complete Blackadder on DVD).

I rewatched my dodgy taped recordings of that night for YEARS, including all the charitable bits about drinking water in Africa and homeless youth.

Later in the 90′s, a certain Mr Moffat whom I knew as the creator and writer of one of my favourite all time TV shows, Press Gang (getting to see season three of this was another TV highlight of my year in England) showed that a Doctor Who comedy sketch didn't have to be painful and make all the old stupid jokes, with the wonderful Curse of Fatal Death – featuring an all star cast, the first official Doctor/companion romance, and the first female incarnation of the Doctor.

I couldn't join in with Comic Relief live that year, but I purchased the VHS as soon as possible, in my local ABC Shop, and was surprised and grateful to be able to do so.

Now, thanks to the wonder of the internet, I actually get to watch the best Comic Relief sketches, and so it's not just this thing I got to share in one particular year. (Funnily enough, I can also donate to the cause long distance!) I take great delight in the fact that Doctor Who gets to be part of the shenanigans, not just this year, but pretty much every year, because it's one of the things people like best about the BBC.

So hooray for Comic Relief, and for Doctor Who!