My Wildest Dream

1 9 5 6 – 1 9 5 7 (UK)

This 30-minute panel show from Granada featured the urbane Terry-Thomas leading the panel, with his three “dreaming partners” Tommy Trinder, David Nixon and Alfred Marks. Acting as “peacemaker” was Kenneth MacLeod.

The panel’s objective was to determine, by diligent questioning, the secret fantasies of the humble folk wheeled before them. Inevitably, since most people’s fantasies tended towards the predictable (win the pools, go out with Marilyn Monroe), a bit of creative bending of the rules crept in.

Hence a woman appeared claiming she wanted more than anything to put a mouse in a guardsman’s boot, while another contestant longed to tickle a point duty policeman under the arms.

Such bewildering dollops of whimsy would, the producers hoped, be spun into comedy gold by the dreaming partners. What actually happened was that four comic minds, all too aware of the humourlessness of the situation, trod water ever more frantically until panic set in.

My Wildest Dream started to appear later and later in the evening schedule, but – although the panel calmed down a bit – the brickbats continued to the bitter end.

Host
Terry-Thomas
Dreaming partners
David Nixon
Tommy Trinder
Alfred Marks
Peacemaker
Kenneth MacLeod

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