"We're the Goodies, Yes the Goodies, oh the Goodies are coming for you - ha ha ha ha!"
David Graeme Garden
Graeme Garden is a novelist, playwright, actor (including successful performances in the West End), and presenter. He has scripted, directed and presented training and information films. He has even voiced cartoon characters! Graeme is also a team member for ‘I'm Sorry, I Haven't a Clue’, a program that he devised for BBC Radio 4 in the early 1970s.
Childhood
David Graeme Garden was born on 18th February 1943 in Aberdeen, Scotland. He has a younger sister called Elizabeth.
His father was an orthopaedic surgeon who served in the RAMC in Africa and Europe during WW2, his mother was a nurse.
When Graeme was four years old the family moved to Preston, Lancashire, where his mother still lives.
He was educated at Repton Public School, Derbyshire where he discovered he had a talent for science, taking A-levels in Chemistry, Physics and Biology.
University
Graeme began a three-year degree in Natural Sciences (anatomy, physiology and biochemistry) at Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge in 1961. Graeme explained the course in an interview as, "studying the sciences, dissecting genuine animals and doing lots of experiments. There was not much in the way of actual people, apart from watching lab technicians taking each other's blood pressure – and ourselves being used as guinea-pigs, breathing air depleted of oxygen: you pass out."
While he was at Cambridge he joined CULES (Cambridge University Light Entertainment Society) before joining The Footlights Club. To gain entrance to the Footlights, he was auditioned by Tim Brooke-Taylor who was President at the time, (a year later, in 1963, Graeme would become the next President). His entertaining audition piece, Pets Corner is revisited in the stage show The Goodies Rule OK, which is touring the UK this year (2007)
He also performed & co-wrote the 1963 revue, ‘Stuff What Dreams Are Made Of’ which was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Whilst at University, Graeme formed friendships with his future fellow Goodies, Tim Brooke-Taylor and Bill Oddie as well as associating with future members of the Monty Python team.
Pre-Goodies
After graduating, Graeme began his clinical training at King's College Hospital in London. It was during this period that he began work on I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again, a radio series with Tim, Bill and John Cleese among others. At one point he had to take time out from the show, (although he continued to write for it) as he was doing his obstetrics course in Plymouth, delivery babies and stitching new mothers: "The aircraft-carrier Ark Royal had been in Plymouth nine months before, so we were very busy."
After his three years of training was over in 1967, he was offered a part in a television comedy series, Twice A Fortnight on BBC1. He accepted on the grounds that he might not get an opportunity like that again, whereas medical jobs came up all the time. He also took himself off the official medical register. "My medical knowledge is a blessing - or a curse. I experience a slightly better form of hypochondria”
Around this time he was sharing a flat with future Python, Eric Idle whom he’d befriended at University. Eric was working on Do Not Adjust Your Set at the time and he suggested Graeme should collaborate with Tim. Taking Eric’s advice, in 1968 he co-wrote and appeared with Tim on ‘Broaden Your Mind’, a sketch show for BBC2 which ran for two series, in the second series they occasionally enlisted the help of Bill. When the BBC approached them for a third series, they decided a change was needed. Other performers, notably Monty Python, were already doing the sketch show format very well. The idea they came up with, which had the working titles of ‘Narrow Your Mind’ and ‘Superchaps Three’ went on to become ‘The Goodies’.
In 1967 Graeme married Liz. Their children are Sally, born in 1971 and John, born in 1975
The Goodies
‘The Goodies’ began life on BBC2 on 8th November 1970. The show ran for 12 years, they made 75 episodes over 9 series, the last of which was with LWT. Graeme co-wrote them with Bill and, in the early years, with assistance from Tim. They had three best-selling books associated with the show and they won two Silver Roses of Montreaux.
The Goodies also enjoyed success in the charts with songs penned by Bill and often used in the shows. Their most famous record was, of course, ‘The Funky Gibbon’ which reached No.4 in the charts.
Graeme and Bill had begun a project together in 1969, co-writing ‘Doctor in the House’ for LWT along with John Cleese, Graham Chapman (also a qualified Doctor), Barry Cryer and various other writers. Graeme continued to contribute to the writing of two more, (Doctor at Large and Doctor in Charge), of the long-running and popular ‘Doctor’ series over the next three years, (there were 7 in all).
ISIRTA was put on the back-burner due to various work commitments from 1970 until 1973 where the performers got together for one last series, however Graeme very cleverly devised another radio show for BBC Radio 4, entitled ‘I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue’. It began in 1972 and is still running today, more popular and successful than ever. In the early days of ISIHAC, all three Goodies were panellists. Graeme and Tim are still entertaining Radio 4 audiences on the show and with the spin-off books, co-written by Graeme.
In 1978, during a break between series’, Graeme appeared with Tim for a successful run in the West End in the play ‘The Unvarnished Truth’
1981 was an eventful year, it saw The Goodies recording their final series and Graeme divorce his wife of 14 years.
Also in this year, Graeme published his first novel, ‘The Seventh Man’, a humorous, alternative view of the spy-novels that were popular around that time.
Post Goodies
In 1982 Graeme carried on his writing partnership with Bill Oddie to create a television comedy series called ‘The Astronauts’, which was set on an International Space Station.
By the beginning of the 80’s, Graeme had developed a taste for theatre work and over the next seven years he appeared in numerous productions and touring with The Cambridge Theatre Company. Plays he has appeared in include, Hotel Paradiso, School Days and An Inspector Calls and A Little Hotel on the Side at the National Theatre.
Graeme re-married in 1983 to Emma. They have a son called Tom who was born in 1984.
In 1983, Graeme was the voice of Bananaman, as well as various other characters in the popular cartoon series of the same name. This humorous parody of comic book super-heroes also featured Tim and Bill who voiced the other characters.
1983 was a busy year as Graeme also presented the first two series of ‘A Sense of the Past’, a history programme for Yorkshire Television and the first series of quiz show ‘Tell The Truth’ for LWT.
In 1985 Graeme began co-presenting the health programme Bodymatters on the BBC. He presented the programme for 3 years.
In 1987 Graeme began writing scripts and directing for Video Arts’ training and information films. He has worked with John Cleese on many medical programmes for the same company.
1988 saw the publication of two new books penned by Graeme, ‘The Skylighters’, a children’s book with illustrations by Neil Canning and ‘Graeme Garden’s Compendium of Very Silly Games’ which speaks for itself!
Over Christmas 1988 the National Theatre presented his play ‘The Magic Olympical Games’ and in 1989 he wrote ‘The Whole Hog’, a television play for the BBC starring Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones (for whom he also wrote some sketches).
He has also written material for Rory Bremner in his various shows over many years.
Drawing on his medical knowledge again, Graeme wrote episodes of the comedy ‘Surgical Spirit’ for LWT in 1994.
He was a team captain on ‘If I Ruled The World’, a comedy panel game for BBC2 in 1997 and he has guested on ‘Have I Got News For You’ twice. More recently, he has appeared as a panelist on QI and ‘Never Mind The Fullstops’
Also in 1997, the radio show ‘Do Go On’ began its five-year run on Radio 4. Graeme co-wrote and appeared alongside Griff Rhys Jones in this highly successful show, which won 2nd prize for comedy at the Sony Radio Awards.
As an actor Graeme has appeared in many productions including ‘Yes Minister’, ‘My Summer With Des’ written by Arthur Smith and ‘Murder Most Horrid’ with Dawn French. Continuing his love of working on medical programmes, Graeme has appeared in ITV’s ‘Peak Practice’ and more recently in several episodes of Holby City on BBC1.
Graeme’s first love is radio "Of everything I have done, the most fun to do is radio in front of an audience. They're a part of the conspiracy, they can see you but nobody else can. You don't have to learn any lines, and by and large you don't have to fall over very much."
He has worked on countless radio shows including ‘There’ll Never Be Another’, which documented the lives of many comedy legends, ‘The Blood Chronicles’ another medically themed show and ‘The Motion Show’ a panel game on Radio 4. He is also known for his radio work on ‘Beat The Kids’, sketch show ‘The Right Time’ and guesting on popular show ‘Jeremy Hardy Speaks To The Nation’. Of course, most famously he is known and loved as a panellist on ‘I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue’, the programme he devised all those years ago, and the spin off from that show, ‘Hamish and Dougal’ with Barry Cryer, Jeremy Hardy and Alison Steadman.
In 2001 he returned to his love of the theatre by writing ‘Horse & Carriage’, a stage play adapted from the farce ‘Mariage de Barillon’. This starred Griff Rhys Jones and Alison Steadman.
Graeme is particularly in demand for his writing talents and he has worked on various radio and TV shows over the last few years including, for radio ‘Giles Wembley-Hogg Goes Off’ with Marcus Brigstocke and ‘About A Dog’ starring Alan Davies and for TV ‘Shoebox Zoo’ and ‘Absolute Power’ the highly acclaimed political comedy
In 2003 Graeme, with Tim Brooke-Taylor, co-presented a daytime quiz show’ Beat The Nation’ for C4.
He is the voice of Mr Bibby, the Geography teacher on ‘Bromwell High’, a comedy animation for C4.
In 2006, Graeme co-wrote the stage play ‘Pocket Orchestra - The Unlikely Lives of the Great Composers’ with Callum McLeod. It was an unusual combination of acting and live music and featured Sylvestor McCoy as the guide to the bizarre lives of various famous composers.
In 2005 he got together with his fellow Goodies to perform a show on stage at the Sydney Big Laugh Comedy Festival in Australia. This was such a success that he and Tim went back later that year for an Australian Tour. This led to them taking the show, 'The Goodies Still Rule OK' to the Edinburgh Festival and the Brighton Comedy Festival in 2006 and touring the UK in 2007.
Today
He now lives in Oxfordshire with his family. When taking time out from writing and performing he enjoys painting and playing the banjo although it would seem he has given up music as in interviews he has commented “The banjo I learnt at one point. What does one play on the banjo? Banjo music. That's why I stopped."
“I'm not terribly musical. I used to play the guitar until my kids got better than me, then I stopped in a sulk.”
His son, John (known as JJ Garden) plays the keyboard and bass guitar for the Scissor Sisters.
Asked about his choice of career he answered "It's an interesting question - whether you've contributed more to the vast store of human enjoyment by doing comedy or by being a doctor, but the answer for me is that I don't think I would have been as successful or as happy being a doctor."
Compiled by Carrie Yarrow