Letters
Tell us what’s on your mind
Well done Rewind TV for showing ‘offensive’ Hancock episode
Three cheers to Rewind TV for showing the so-called ‘offensive’ Tony Hancock episode from 1956 on YouTube (Issue 718, page 6, www.snipca. com/56106). I can certainly see why it wouldn’t get made now, but that’s irrelevant. The point is it was deemed appropriate once, and we shouldn’t forget how much values can change in almost 70 years. How many of the TV shows that are acceptable now will remain so come 2095?
The episode itself is a charming time capsule, though not as funny as the later episodes broadcast as Hancock’s Half Hour. It’s worth watching just to see June Whitfield (pictured above) fluff her lines at 22:45!
James Corbett
Long live VHS recorders and DVD players
You made some excellent points in Issue 718’s article on keeping physical discs and not relying on streaming (page 60). I remember raising my eyebrows when friends of mine threw out their VHS recorders about 20 years ago. I was even more surprised when they ditched their DVD players 10 years ago. I’ve kept hold of both because I’ve always known streaming was a fool’s paradise. Yes, you’ve got a treasure trove of content to watch, but it was obvious from day one that you never actually owned any of it.
I’m pleased I kept hold of my VHS collection from the 1980s and 90s. If I want to watch a show, I simply slot it in and press play. It costs me the princely sum of £0 in subscription fees, and I don’t have to ‘upgrade’ to avoid adverts because they’re aren’t any! Long live physical media.