Shut That Door - Larry Grayson At ITV [DVD] [1972]

I can i begin to review Mr Grayson ?. It almost feels like im insulting him to "review" him but im telling myself this is Amazon maybe people missed him the first time round and are not children of the 70's who remember him with such love and affection , who dosent .When i saw this DVD was available i just thought this is a "must have" ..love comedy and innuendo and if you thought 2012 was innuendo city ...let me tell you it has nothing today on Mr Graysons lines and elivery and evn just a look - there is no other person on the planet who did it like Larry , may have tried to in vain ..but nobody has come close .I wasnt expecting such a superb compilation , the actual interviews and memorable showing us around his bungalow , his little dog and inviting us all in like we were personal friends its intimate and emotional , combined with so much laugher which the next second you can just feel so touched that totally at one listening and hanging on to his every word .There was evrything in this video , interviews here and there , sketches , him explaining his life , his friends , you seeing those people on this dvd , his relationship with his sister and you knowing he was such a sweet and sentimental guy that you instantly take to at first sight ..intodays world its just so comforting to know you have him ther available with all his work in your collection to cheer you and sometimes shock you with his hilareous and naughty words whcih i did a double take at times just how this genious got away with it..and thats why ..he was a genious one of a kind nobody could ever come close to the one and only Mr Grayson .You can rest assured that everything he did is here isnt it amazing , you will see some of those fab generation game moments but there are too many favs to mention Janet Street Porter who im a fan of isn in there too in her youth - with those 80's styles and looks ..amazing i loved the school visit ...sometimes Mr Grayson did cry and his eyes so genuine i could feel it ..i was upset but mostly i thought ..what a lovely dvd ..when i saw Mr Grayson it was with my grandmother on weekends and it was ll part of us bonding and loveing each others company but we had Larry to top it off and we had lovely days watching him and laughing out loud shut that door nan used to say ...my brother when i presented him with this dvd at Xmas last year i saw his face and his eyes light hes a couple years older i dont think he knew it was available off he went in a rush quick hug for sister and i think he wathed it that night on his laptop ...with mince pie ! and bottle of wine ...Larry thanks for the memories ...in our hearts ...and our dvd players ...x

I remember Larry from very early childhood as part of the classic Saturday night line up on BBC1 in the late 70s/early 80s in Larry Grayson's Generation Game (with Isla St Clair!), although at the time my interest lay in the earlier show, Doctor Who. He came across as a gentle, slightly nervous and uncertain performer in the show, although I believe that it was the pinnacle of his career and a big hit at the time. Being one for nostalgia I watched some earlier programs he had done which had been posted on Youtube and was very pleasantly surprised to find him much more than the host of The Generation Game, which I don't feel gave him full reign to showcase his comic talents and delivery. The earlier shows to me were quite a revelation, particularly for the time, and are Larry at his best. I found him to be an incredibly endearing, funny man, just being his camp self (and the audience loving him for it) at a time when Britain was still quite hostile to homosexuality. With the inclusion of so much Larry in the DVD this is indeed a comprehensive delight.

I only vaguely remember Larry Grayson from the original 1970s shows and I'm sure most of his comedy would have gone way over my head. However I have always found his humour very funny and in many ways quite innocent. I was taking a chance on this DVD, as I wanted something light to watch while having supper in the evening -just to unwind after work. And I'm glad I did purchase this. Each show is less than 25 minutes and follows a standard format in series one - some stand up to open the show, a sketch, an unusual act in which Larry is involved (possibly standing in for the assistant of a knife thrower) and finally a song comically delivered.Season two varies from season one and is much improved. He has better guest stars (David Nixon the magician etc)and a regular spot taken in his 'kitchen' when a popular personality of the day visits. He's a very seasoned performer and you can see the years of stage experience coming through, especially with the songs. I'm amazed he was able to get away with some of the double entendres he comes out with. It can be strange to see an audience of very straight-laced women laughing hysterically at his double meanings. Mind you, it's not all nuanced of course. A lot of it is innocent and funny. The DVD also has a lot of extra material in the form of his Palladium appearances and a really informative documentary. He comes across as a really likeable man, friendly and very happy with his lot. A lot of the 1970's material from LWT has aged but most of this material could be delivered today - but probably be censored before the 9pm watershed! Very entertaining.

It's been along time over due but well worth the wait as this 3 discs dvd set is a brilliant collection of one of Britains funniest comedians.The team or person who have collected all the surviving material of Larry Grayson's time at ITV have done a wonderful job because this box set is a fitting tribute to the great man.My dear wife bought me this set for Christmas and i haven't stopped laughing since!I was a young kid in the 1970s so barely remembered Larry's original "Shut That Door" series, so it and Larry's subsequent series were basically more or less new to me and what a treat they are.It's quite easy to see why Larry was given the job as replacement host to Bruce Forsyth on "The Generation Game" as his latter day shows on ITV were quite similar to The Generation Game format, such as interacting with guest star's perfomances and communicating with the audience etc.In saying that he never took the spot light away from which ever star was appearing on his shows.I think ultimately Larry always gave the audience the feeling that he was a people person,warm, generous and very,very funny.I've seen 5 stars dished out like sweets on Amazon to far less deserving people and DVDs but This DVD set and Larry Grayson are without doubt a 5 star act. Buy and enjoy :o)