One of Peter Sellers’ favourite episodes of The Goon Show, The Jet-Propelled Guided NAAFI was inspired directly by the news, after Spike Milligan seized on a Daily Telegraph story about the misuse of taxpayer money overseas.
James Page joins Tyler to discuss the episode, exploring how a fortunate detail in the original article gave Milligan the perfect comic hook — a gag whose original context may have faded, but whose impact endures. They also delve into the episode’s many quotable lines and memorable sequences (including the surprising appearance of g-strings in 1956), the introduction of a new theme tune, and contemporaneous negotiations with the BBC for a new series.
There’s also time for some well-earned Ratties praise, and the story of that moment when an audience member wandered onto the set of Wogan during a Harry Secombe and Spike Milligan interview.
