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'Fork Handles' Handwritten script by
Ronnie Barker
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| The Two Ronnies |
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| 'Fork Handles' Handwritten script by
Ronnie Barker
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£0.00 |
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SALE BY AUCTION
*****SOLD*****
THIS PIECE IS BEING SOLD BY AUCTION ON BEHALF OF A PRIVATE CLIENT AND WILL BE SOLD TO THE HIGHEST FORMAL BID OVER £30,000 RECEIVED BEFORE 5PM / 1700 HOURS GMT ON THURSDAY 20TH DECEMBER 2007.
BEFORE SUBMITTING A BID PLEASE ENSURE YOU HAVE READ 'THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE ORIGINAL MEMORABILIA COMPANY LTD AND BIDDER'.
DESCRIPTION
This is the original and complete handwritten script of arguably the greatest British comedy sketch of all time written by the comedy genius Ronnie Barker.
For 30 years The Two Ronnies entertained us in a career spanning 98 television shows, 12 series, several Christmas specials and numerous 'Sold Out' London stage shows. Of all the sketches they ever performed, the public voted 'Fork Handles' 'The Greatest Two Ronnies Sketch Of All Time'.
Written by Ronnie Barker under his alias 'Gerald Wiley' Fork Handles was first aired on The Two Ronnies show on September 4 1976 under its original title, 'Annie Finkhouse' and has since gone down in TV comedy folklore under its acquired name 'Fork Handles' or 'Four Candles'.
This historical sketch was written by Ronnie Barker in the 1970's on 4 individual pages of A4 lined paper. Each page has writing to just one side, thus perfect for museum or other display.
On the front page Ronnie Barker has written the original title 'Annie Finkhouse' and his pseudonym 'Gerald Wiley'.
At the end of the opening paragraph he has rather intriguingly added the comment 'Please discuss' and further down the front page squeezed the word 'garden' before 'fork handle' to make it clear RC (Ronnie Corbett) must get a garden fork handle from the back of the shop.
The script contains various minor amendments throughout and is complete with the original 'BILLHOOKS' ending that was subsequently rewritten by Ronnie Barker in later years.
This is indisputably one of the most important pieces of British broadcasting memorabilia ever to become available for sale. To say this is the television equivalent of say, Lennon’s lyrics to 'Imagine' would not, in our opinion be an unreasonable comparison.
CONDITION
Pages have shown some minor discolouration over time consistent with age. The red ink is bold and clear on every page, with no signs of fading.
This piece is currently held together by a single staple and a centre crease runs across the middle of every page where this document has been folded in two. Page 4 has a crease running diagonally across the bottom half of the page.
PROVENANCE & GUARANTEE OF AUTHENTICITY
The script first came to light in 2006 on BBC1's Antiques Roadshow.
The BBC expert Marc Allum said "I literally can't contain my excitement...I'm possibly about to hold something very historic...the thought that he actually sat down and wrote this is absolutely amazing".
Michael Aspel in a subsequent BBC television follow up of the greatest finds of the series said said "Could it really be the hand of Ronnie Barker?... Mark Allen wasn't able to prove it on the day but we clinched it through an unimpeachable source".
The BBC had taken the script to Ronnie Corbett who confirmed its authenticity in a 5 minute televised feature that was broadcast on BBC1 in April 2007.
"It was quite sweet for me to see his handwriting again... it certainly is his handwriting" said Ronnie Corbett.
Ronnie Barker’s widow also subsequently confirmed she does not have a hand-written copy of Fork Handles in her collection and was happy for the piece to be sold.
The Fork Handles script is one of a number of items believed to have been given away by Ronnie Barker in the 1970s, long before works of this type were regarded to have any value. Away from the TV camera, Ronnie Barker was a very private person and would often decline requests for personal appearances, instead preferring to give personal items away.
A detailed Certificate of Authenticity will accompany this piece with full details of its provenance along with a recording of Ronnie Corbett with this script confirming its authenticity.
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE ORIGINAL MEMORABILIA COMPANY LTD AND BIDDER
By bidding on this auction whether you are a private purchaser or an agent acting on behalf of the purchaser the individual submitting the bid is the legal bidder. He or she by submitting a bid acknowledges that they are making a contractual commitment to purchase and are entering into a legally binding contract with The Original Memorabilia Company Ltd.
How to bid
Bids will be only be accepted in writing by clicking on the auction symbol link above.
When placing a bid you are required to submit your full name, email address, postal address and two contact telephone numbers including one mobile number. Please ensure you provide all required information including a valid email address, without which your bid will not be accepted.
On receipt of your bid The Original Memorabilia Company Ltd will contact you to confirm the validity of your bid and advise you by email and text within 24 hours as to its status. Further email and text updates will follow in the event the status of your bid changes.
Please note the highest bid will be updated daily at www.originalmemorabilia.co.uk until the 19th December and then every 30 minutes from 9.30am on the 20th December 2007 until the auction finishes at 5pm GMT.
The highest authorised bid over the reserve price when this auctions ends will be accepted as the winning bid. Authorised bids are those registered with The Original Memorabilia Company Ltd before 5pm Thursday 20th December 2007.
Please note this is not an automated bidding system. All bids are individually validated by The Original Memorabilia Company Ltd and therefore it is strongly recommended that you submit your bid in good time to avoid disappointment.
Commission
Please note The Original Memorabilia Company will apply a 5% commission fee to the final winning bid price. VAT at 17.5% will only be applied to the commission.
Payment
Full payment must be received by The Original Memorabilia Company Limited within 72 hours from when the auction ends unless alternative payment arrangements have been agreed in writing in advance.
Delivery
Given the importance of this piece delivery will be made in person by The Original Memorabilia Company Ltd to any mainland UK address at no additional charge.
Law
Whether the bidder is a resident of the United Kingdom or not, by bidding on this item the bidder agrees that this agreement is governed by the Law and Courts of England and Wales.
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