'Kung Fu Kapers’ sketch is named the greatest ever moment from TV show The Goodies
'Kung Fu Kapers' episode from The Goodies chosen as winner at Bristol festival
The comedy show starred Graeme Garden, Bill Oddie and Tim Brooke-Taylor
The Bristol Slapstick Festival brought the men together at the Redgrave Theatre
By EMILY WEBBER FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 09:32 EST, 27 January 2020 | UPDATED: 10:25 EST, 27 January 2020
The sketch 'Kung Fu Kapers' has been chosen as the greatest ever moment from 1970s and 80s TV show The Goodies.
The skit, which aired on March 24 1975, was announced as the winner at Bristol's Slapstick Festival.
Chris Daniels, from the Festival, said he was delighted fans had picked 'such a creative and innovative episode'.
The show starred writers and creator Graeme Garden, now 76, Bill Oddie, 78, and Tim Brooke-Taylor, 79, collectively known as The Goodies.
'Kung Fu Kapers' sketch aired on March 24 1975 and was announced as the winner at Bristol's Slapstick Festival
The show starred (left to right) Graeme Garden, 76, Bill Oddie, 78, and Tim Brooke-Taylor, 79, collectively known as The Goodies
The festival brought the three men together for a special reunion at the sell-out event held at the Redgrave Theatre on Saturday 25 January.
The 30-minute 'Kung Fu Kapers' episode involves Tim and Graeme deciding to take up kung-fu before Bill introduces them to 'Ecky-Thump' - a Lancastrian martial art which involved throwing black pudding at opponents.
Slapstick Festival's Chris Daniels and Goodie Graeme Garden were both surprised the Kitten Kong episode did not win.
Graeme Garden (left), Bill Oddie (right) and Tim Brooke-Taylor (centre). The skit from the 1970 show was announced as the winner at Bristol's Slapstick Festival
Bill Oddie,(far left), Graeme Garden (middle left) and Tim Brooke-Taylor (left) with the Bay City Rollers singing 'Shang-A-Lang'
Mr Daniels said there had been a 'brilliant response' to the poll, with more than 600 people responding online.
He said: 'In terms of 'favourite episode of all time', I was surprised about Kung Fu Kapers because I thought Kitten Kong would be the top choice, purely because it's the best known image associated with the Goodies.
'I do remember Kung Fu Kapers [transmitted in March 1975] - it's one of their standout episodes. I remember seeing it as a child - as a kid, I just loved it.
'It's the silliness and the stupidity of it that I loved - grown men, dressed up and hitting each other with giant sausages.'
Goodie Graeme Garden said he had also expected Kitten Kong to win 'as that's the one people seem to remember'.
'However, our voters seem to have been a discerning lot, and have carefully considered their decision,' Mr Garden said.
'[Kung Fu Kapers] is a worthy winner - some nice set-pieces, a bit of parody, and one or two gags that were very much of their time.
'Filming the fight sequences, I don't think any of us got hurt, which was miraculous.
'My abiding memory is falling headfirst into a vat of gunge, live in front of the studio audience - not much chance of a retake if it went wrong.'
Chris Daniels said the Goodies' humour 'still resonates with audiences'.
'Slapstick is a perennial type of humour that crosses generations,' he said.
'Whether it's Tom and Jerry or Charlie Chaplin or The Goodies, audiences still engage with the best visual comedy and humour - and The Goodies did it so well.'
Where are stars of The Goodies now?
Graeme Garden, 76, lives in Oxfordshire, with his wife Emma. He has since embraced a role as a novelist and writes and directs for the corporate video company Video Arts - famous for its training of Monty Python star John Cleese.
Alongside Tim Brooke-Taylor, he co-wrote 'The Complete Uxbridge English Dictionary: I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue' which was published in 2016.
Bill Oddie, 78, who lives in Rochdale, has since been a presenter on BBC Springwatch and now presents Wild Animal Rescue on Channel 5.
The TV favourite sank into a deep depression, before being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
In a frank and emotional interview with the Daily Express he said he had been on a variation of drugs before he finally managed to find one that would work for him.
He was awarded an OBE for his work in wildlife conservation and said that it was hard leaving the BBC show as he had been involved from the start.
Tim Brooke-Taylor, 79, lives in Berkshire, and has since starred in various sitcoms.
He has been a panellist on BBC radio show 'I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue' for more than 40 years alongside Graeme Garden.
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