"The Secret Policeman's Private Party" is a curious release, to say the least. Simply put it's a two-hour "greatest hits" sampler of various "Secret Policeman's Ball" events from throughout the early 80s. If you're like I was when I heard the title, you'd likely have no clue what this means, but when you see the list of names on the cover, your interest will likely through the roof, provided you love classic British comedy. To make a long story short, the "Secret Policeman's Ball" was a live event featuring various titans in British comedy, performing live along with some equally notable names in music (who are not featured here, but instead on a separate DVD release titled "The Secret Policeman Rocks!"). These events began as benefits for Amnesty International and have continued quite regularly, with the last occurring two years ago.

The simplest endorsement of the disc I can give, is it made me laugh on a fairly consistent basis. The majority of the performances here were ones I was already familiar with, but seeing them live, always adds a fresh new element to things, whether it be an actor breaking character or a slight bit of improv thrown in for the crowd. The members of Monty Python (sans Eric Idle) are by and far the most featured performers, appearing in the vast majority of the program's 30-odd segments.

The disc opens with a sprint, giving the audience a true classic, "The Dead Parrot" sketch from "Monty Python's Flying Circus." From there, the program largely delivers its laughs from the likes of the always hilarious Rowan Atkinson (performing both his trademark mind blowing, one-man bits, as well as holding his own with the Pythons in group ensembles), the questionable inclusion of two Chris Langham bits (they were mildly funny, but his recent personal mistakes make it hard to laugh at anything he does) as well as Peter Cook, the man who by far, steals every scene he appears in here.

Despite many of his bits being rather brief, Cook is the master of deadpan when placed alongside John Cleese in a series of bizarre sketches. The concept is quite simple, but as Cook gets more absurd in his recitation of random facts to Cleese's character, the more serious he gets. At one point, the stoic Cleese can be seen grimacing to avoid breaking character, something I've rarely seen him do, but often inflict on others. Cook's entry on the disc closes with a two-man sketch reuniting him with friend and comedic partner in crime, Dudley Moore (in his only appearance on the program). Like the Cook/Cleese pairings, Cook's deadpan sends the crowd into a roar of laughter and Moore proves unable to keep a straight face, cracking up in the first few seconds. The only downside is the performance serves as a reminder that Cook passed away far too soon.

If there is any downside to the set, it all falls to the unclear nature of its existence. Like I said before, I was by and large, fully entertained; the bits are funny, not all are A-level gut busters like the ones mentioned above, but they are still quality entries. However, Shout has a larger set of the full Secret Policeman events, so if this is the greatest hits release, I don't see much reason to buy the complete collection. Likewise, if this is instead a mere sampler of what is in store for purchasers of the large set, then this is one of those titles where you should just rent it.

Unfortunately, Shout has committed an unintentional gaffe with the DVD's front and back cover. The names Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie are household names for British comedy fans, and the latter is likely known to most of the world for his role as Gregory House on US television. The disc proudly advertises this classic duo on the front cover, back cover, and liner notes. However, they don't appear once in any sketch, nor in the closing credits, which they would, even if they were background performers. Producer Martin Lewis, e-mailed me to explain that Shout did not mean to mislead customers and is in the process of correcting the cover for future printings.

The 1.33:1 transfer is in bad shape. Despite the performances being no more than 30 years old, the media on which they were preserved appears to be largely video (or from film to tape), as the whole production looks like a third generation VHS that has seen better days. I could nitpick all the defects (print damage, misaligned frames, terrible color levels), but I think the previous statement gives you a good idea of what to expect. Surprisingly, save for a few glaring errors relating to tracking hiccups, the less than attractive video quality didn't hinder my enjoyment of any of the performances.

The Audio

Like the video, the English 2.0 soundtrack leaves a lot to be desired, but is mostly in adequate condition Some of the performances have slight audio drops, while nearly all exhibit distortion at the highest levels, likely due to inferior recording equipment. Again though, like the video quality, I was still able to enjoy the performances and unlike some British productions, didn't struggle attempting to understand the sometimes-obtuse accents.

The Extras

None.

Final Thoughts

There is no doubting that "The Secret Policeman's Private Party" is two hours of solid, live British comedy. While it is by no means a substitute for any of the Monty Python Live DVDs or standalone pieces from the individual performers, it's definitely worth checking out. British comedy fans are highly encouraged to give this a rental and if they really like what they see here, look into the larger Secret Policeman sets. Rent It.