Comedy Playhouse began on 15 December 1961. The series was initially a vehicle for the talents of Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, who - freed from writing for a specific comedian - wrote 10 short comedy plays that could each be developed into a future sitcom.
One episode, 'The Offer', provided the pilot of what became Steptoe and Son. From 1963, with Steptoe taking much of Galton and Simpson's time, other writers were drafted in. Comedy Playhouse ran until 1974 and originated several other notable sitcoms, including Till Death Us Do Part, All Gas and Gaiters, The Liver Birds, Not in Front of the Children, Up Pompeii, Happy Ever After, Are You Being Served? and Last of the Summer Wine.
Not every Comedy Playhouse episode became a full series, including the first episode, 'Clicquot et Fils'. This starred Eric Sykes as an undertaker in a small French town in 1926, with Warren Mitchell as his assistant. The strong ing cast - including Joan Hickson, Frank Thornton and Charles Lloyd Pack - demonstrated Galton and Simpson's intention to cast the right actors for the part.
The Comedy Playhouse idea as a testing ground for new and experimental comedy continued with Comedy Special, which spawned Citizen Smith. In 2012 the BBC plans to air a fresh season of sitcom pilots, with the aim of nurturing the enduring comedy hits of tomorrow.
