Geoffrey Palmer

Desert Island Discs: Archive 2005-2010

BBC

Society & Culture, Personal Journals

4.4 • 804 Ratings

🗓️ 27 February 2005

⏱️ 38 minutes

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Summary

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the actor Geoffrey Palmer. Best known for his roles in The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, Butterflies and As Time Goes By, he had to wait a long time to become a household name and national treasure. Unsure what career to pursue after a spell in the army, he fell into acting because a girlfriend was involved in amateur dramatics. He worked in repertory theatre throughout the 60s and 70s and ended up working with John Osborne during the Royal Court's heyday in West of Suez, and later with Laurence Olivier.

With a face "reminiscent of a bloodhound mourning a lost scent", Palmer has, by his own admission "cornered the market in playing dull, plodding men". Many of his characters live out lives characterised by petty worries, suburban frustration and missed opportunities, but he plays them brilliantly, and with a sympathy that elevates them to the status of unlikely heroes. Geoffrey's grumpy on-screen persona has also recently led to him doing the narration for the BBC TV series Grumpy Old Men, which has become a cult hit and brought him a whole new generation of viewers. He was awarded an OBE in the new year honours list.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: One O'Clock Jump by Benny Goodman Book: Oxford Book of English Verse by Arthur Quiller-Couch & Oxford Book of Twentieth Century English Verse by Philip Larkin Luxury: Fly-fishing rod

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, it's Nicola Cochlin. Young people have been making history for years, but we don't often hear about them. My brand new series on BBC Sounds sets out to put this right. In history's youngest heroes, I'll be revealing the fascinating stories of 12 young people who've played a major role in history and who've helped shape our world. Like Audrey Hepburn, Nelson Mandela, Louis Braille and Lady Jane Grey, history's youngest
0:25.4	heroes with me, Nicola Cochlin. Listen on BBC Sounds.
0:30.7	Hello, I'm Krista Young and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Discs Archive.
0:35.6	For rights reasons, we've had to shorten the music.
0:38.8	The program was originally broadcast in 2005,
0:42.3	and the presenter was Sue Lawley.
0:44.2	Music My castaway this week is an actor.
1:01.6	His mournful expression and rich voice have made him a household name.
1:06.2	In television series such as the fall and rise of Reginald Perrin,
1:09.9	Butterflies with Wendy Craig, and more
1:11.7	recently as time goes by with Judy Dench, his effortless seriousness has had the nation
1:17.4	falling about with laughter. He's a latecomer to such success. He joined the army after the war,
1:23.2	drifted into the theatre because a girlfriend was keen on amateur dramatics, and then when he was 44, began getting parts in the West End and at the National Theatre
1:31.9	alongside the likes of Ralph Richardson, Paul Schofield, Lawrence Olivier and John Gilgood.
1:37.4	Television had to wait until later.
1:39.4	He was 50 before that part of his career took off.
1:42.7	Now 77, he's still acting.
1:45.4	I like he says to play comedy that doesn't look like comedy.
1:49.7	He is Geoffrey Palmer.
1:51.5	So it's comedy, but you play it straight, Jeffrey.
1:54.4	You get more laughs that way, do you?
1:56.2	I don't know whether I get more laughs, but it's the way I like to do it.
	...

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