JOHNNY’S TV CAREER BEGINNINGS.

Johnny performed a “One Man” show in the “Late Date” series on Tyne Tees TV in 1966. The producer saw Johnny working to half a dozen people, when the “no laughs” add libs crease him up. Johnny recreated it as a 15 minute play in a deserted nightclub, checking what went wrong when the audience had been there? This was his first TV show.

By 1967 Johnny was a very successful Stand Up Comedian. He had compered several Pop Tours including the first Rolling Stones and the Dusty Springfield/Herman's Hermits tours. He featured on BBC radio variety shows and the producer suggested him to BBC TV. When BBC Children’s TV called, he could only imagine that the offer would be for Crackerjack, which he felt would be ideal. He breezed ino an interview oozing confidence until Peter Ridsdale Scott said, “You’ll be great on Playschool!” “What’s that?” he asked. “It’s a show for under 5's at 11 am on BBC 2.” Johnny was heading for the door, but was persuaded to at least take an audition.

At the audition he didn’t want the job, but his clowning got laughs in the gallery. As is often the case in show business, you can always get the jobs you don’t want. At first he couldn’t relax with the childish material, and producer Cynthia Felgate threatened to drop him. Suddenly he realized several things - He loved everything about TV; the show was for children, so why worry what adults think? He was not being fair in half selling himself; nobody in the cabaret world knew he was doing it and he could hide away and quietly learn TV from the inside. He was to stay with Playschool for 16 very happy years.

Also in 1967 Johnny compered Rediffusion’s 90 minute Christmas Night Spectacular. The show was recorded in November and went well. There was talk of a possible 13 part series for the new year. Johnny asked his agent to try The Val Doonican Show, for January as a follow up. He auditioned and producer, John Ammonds who later produced Morecambe and Wise, was sold.

The following Tuesday, Johnny’s agent rang to say they wanted him on the Doonican Show that very Saturday, 5th December. “What about rehearsals?” asked JB. “I’ve got you out of those, so you can work a pub in Manchester until Friday night” said the hapless agent. Johnny sent in a script that day. On the Saturday at 4pm the producer said hello and then opened the unopened script envelope. He immediately said that this was not the material Johnny had done at the interview and asked for several cuts. The single 10 minute camera rehearsal took place around 6.30, in the empty studio whilst the cast was on a meal break. In arranging the cuts, the script now didn’t work and JB made several mistakes. There was no time for a second rehearsal. The show was going live at 8 pm to 19 million viewers.

The show began and at last JB was introduced. His first gag got a laugh and then the camera just spun away - it had broken down. This was live. A camera man jumped from sitting on his camera pedestal and swung his camera at Johnny. Johnny tried to help by moving towards the camera and moved out of his light. So now he was working with an edited script, in the dark to 19 million viewers. It was a disaster. Rediffusion, having released Johnny from their barring clause, were horrified and pulled every scrap of Johnny’s media coverage for the Christmas Show. That same week, Rediffusion then lost the franchise to London Weekend and Thames and any idea of a 13 part series was gone. The Christmas show went out un-noticed. That was the sum total of Johnny’s TV Stand Up career.

In 1970 and 1972, Johnny wrote two half series (9 shows) of “Cabbages and Kings”, a historical comedy romp starring Johnny with Derek Griffiths and Julie Stevens. It was successful but expensive; in some episodes the three played over 30 parts. Sketches were often ambitious, like “The Knights of the Round Table” where they each played 4 or 5 parts and each character got killed, in four minutes. They filmed the Roman’s invading Britain, the Boston Tea Party, the Battle of Bunker Hill and the opening of the Great Exhibition in 1851. Johnny wrote a “Charge of the Light Brigade” sketch and made three step-in panto horses in his garage. With two gigantic mirrors, to get the Charge effects, for this one sketch, they managed 127 camera set up’s in one day on the moors outside Manchester. The studio budget was spent on the pre filming alone. The Costume budget was exhausted just for wigs. But it was fun and the shows were funny.

Playaway began, starring Brian Cant, and Johnny was asked to write some material. He was eventually writing around 80% of the show. He also wrote for adult comics, like Les Dawson, Dave Allen, et al, but Playaway gave him six times the airtime that adult TV offered, so once again Children’s TV won through.

THINK OF A NUMBER.

At last, Cynthia Felgate, his wonderful executive producer, asked what Johnny would do if he had his own TV series. So he drew up some ideas around his lifelong hobby; Recreational Maths. Albert Barber was offered the Producer/Director job, which was to prove so lucky for them both, as they dovetailed instantly, with Albert’s graphic design training matching Johnny’s comedy background along with their combined love of science and technology.

The technical rehearsal for the pilot “Think of a Number” took place in March 1977 in a bare rehearsal room with a toilet roll for a phone and metal posts for doors. Johnny played the 25 minute show like a stand up monologue, without a single pause. At the end, the hardened TV technicians, surprised themselves as well as Johnny and Albert. They just stood and applauded - a rehearsa? We were on to something.

There were to be 6 series of six shows, with each episode having a different mood. There was always a Maths show, a Body Show, a Science show, a Real Life show, a Material or Technology Show and an Every Day Subject show. Each theme carried the show seamlessly from beginning to end, giving much more cohesion than any magazine type show.

SERIES 1. The “Cutting Our Teeth” Series.

1. Storing Energy. No number news, Weapons.
2. The Body.
3. Materials. Wood.
4. Water, Water everywhere.
5. The Shape of Wealth. Coins/Gold Bars. Actual Gold bar/ young girl sequence.
6. Time. Called "Not before Time" because of the very late script. Time won the BAFTA Harlequin Award 1979, Children’s Programmes - Factual Information. From 1980, The prize became the traditional BAFTA Golden Mask.

SERIES 2.
1. Face Facts - Your Nose is in middle because it’s the scenter. Disabled Chair.
2. Absolutely Nothing. From Zero, through vital electricity and atomic forces that we cannot see.
3. Seeing the Light. Included BBC’s 1st live Infra Red Laser use in studio, despite being blacked by the unions.
4. The Pressure’s Mine. My dad owned an airline. If you want your tyres pumping up .....

5. Getting Things Moving. JB nude in bath as Archimedes, hovering the Audience. Great Oil Rig model Sequence.

6. Squeezing It In. Incl Johnny singing The Minute Waltz.

SERIES 4. 1982/83 Recorded in Manchester.
1. What does Exactly mean, Exactly? Fine measurement including laser measuring.
2. Musical Numbers.
3. Box Clever. Maths with Boxes.
4. Dangerous Curves. Cone cutting and mathematical curves.
5. Just by Chance. Odds and Probability.
6. What made me, me? Reproduction. Featured Johnny’s producers, his mum and dad.

SERIES 5. 1983/84 Now with the resident Pete Moss Band.
1. The Maze of Ways from A to B. Taxicab Maths.
2. In the Balance. Pendulum Swings.
3 or 4. Plane Planes and Flights of Fancy - Barnaby Paper Aircraft.
4 or 3. Bounce and Stretch. Great Micheline Man opening.
5. Think of a Number and Beat It. Drums and Musical Rhythms.
6. Say it with Numbers - in which Johnny invented and the audience learnt a new language.

SERIES 6.
1. Suck and Blow -
2. Up and Over. Arches and Bridges.
3. The Four Side Saga. Square Maths Puzzles
4. Let the Angle of Force be with You. Fishing, Golf, Cannon Balls.
5. The All Star Show featuring 3D model of the Plough.
6. The All Action Body Show - With guest Gymnasts and karate kid who beats JB.

THINK AGAIN.

A new concept, without an Audience. Each show contained a JB on filmclip and a film compilation, and was rehearse recorded in a single day, which would not now be possible.

SERIES 1. Teeth Cutting series.

1. Buy Books, or Bye Books. On Printing and Publishing.
2. Textiles, showing Jacquard Loom punch cards, Weaving and Knitting, topology.
3. Water - Including JB's Helicopter film of the River Thames.
4. Communications, with film at Poldhu and large Satellite Aerials.
5. Bang Bang Bang - Explosives - Abitious - BBC chose to put this On Line?

SERIES 2. More confident Series.
1. Teeth. A gruesome History of Dentistry.
2. Flight. A wonderful production team effort witn end sequence that makes me cry even today.
3. Chairs. Amazing result for the subject matter - Winner Prix Jeunesse and ABU Asian Broadcasting Union.
4. About Growing Up. - Ambitiously about adolescence.
5. About Energy. Problematic from the start. Environmental Prog - Duff Info then and today.
Researching this show and its hypocracies established my doubts and cautions over environmentalism.
6. Milk. A very good programme onsuch a mundane subject. Bought by the British Dairy Council.

SERIES 3.
1. Great Britain - A Tour de Force. Hard to believe we pulled it off and go so much into it.
2. All at Sea - History of Shipping (in a studio?). Oil Tanker training, Guiltspur - tiny Atlantic crossing boat.
3. Doors. International Emmy Nomination. Unlikely Subject as with Chairs, but it worked.
Richard 3rd type sketch on Castle gates. Lambourgini, for which we had to cut slots in the scene dock doors.
4. All that Glisters. Story of Jewellery. BBC’s largest ever one day Insurance cover. Security guard each side of main camera. On the recording day, thieves stole BBC Bristols computers.
5. The Cutting Edge. Sharp Edges, for children? Swords and Samurai. At the end, Johnny accidentally cut his head off with a cut-throat razor.
6. Heaven Preserve Us. Canning History. With Turbanned Indian sketch that works.

SERIES 4
1. Fire. 3 Practical Fires in studio. Amazing TV with Johnny catching fire at the start.
Formula Three car and Fire Dousing Foam.
2. Heads - Good show with technically very difficult sketch.
3. Photography - Excellent and Timeless. Compliation sketchThanks to George Auckland.
4. Who’s Bright Idea was Electricity. Strong educational show. In Line with KS4 Curriculum
5. Fastenings. Attempt to cover a more feminine subject.
6. Money - Benny Green in Punch said Best TV Prog of entire week.

SERIES 5.
1. Gas . Excellent and timeless History of an Industry. Gasometer Sketch
2. Energy. Coal, Oil, Nuclear etc - I think?
3. Police. Very Strong programme about police and public/children links.
4. Time - Story of Time.
5. Paint. Painting Sistine Chapel Ceiling Sketch
6. Offices. Brave attempt at difficult subject. Paper sustainability.

THINK BACKWARDS - 5 x 15 mins as a Weekly Strip.

1. 10, 9. Why a 10 digit number system. The magic of 9 in number tricks.
2. 8, 7. Octagons and eight legged things, mystical and lucky seven
3. 6, 5. Perfect six, hexagons and six sided cubes. Bunch of 5's, pentagons and pentangles.
4. 4, 3. All square four and the mystical Three’s a Crowd.
5. 2, 1, 0. Binary Numbers and single digits, and the greatest ever invention - Nothing.

THINK THIS WAY - 5 x 15 mins as a Weekly Strip.

1. Upwards. Kites, Balloons and flying. Atmospheric layers and Space.
2. North. The Icecaps, the Pole Star and North seeking compasses.
3. South. The exotic south, with Antarctica and so much sea. Desert Islands.
4. East. The orient and why first maps had east at the top. Chinese and eastern influences.
5. West. The development of the America’s and the USA. Latitude and time measurement.

THINK IT - DO IT. 1986/87

Aimed at encouraging kids to get involved in career dreams and aims right away.

In these series, Johnny spent more time on solo Comedy Sketches, which later formed the basis of a series of their own.

Series 1.
1. Robotics. Practical ideas for projects and thoughts to the future.
2. Dress and Costume Design. Looking at the business of design and fashion.
3. Public Highways. Examining how road and traffic systems work
4. Advertising. Sellinganything and everything -especially yourself - confidence building.
5. Cooking. How to outdo McDonalds and eat healthily at the same time.
6. The Oil Industry. It’s past, present and thoughts on the future

Series 2.
1. Body Care.
2. People Moving - Air Passenger Industry
3. Visual Arts, TV. Aspects of TV production and creation. Destroying Set sketch.
4. Electrical Impulse - Illumination, Electronics and lighting design.
5. Interior Designs.
6. Why Not You?

KNOW HOW 1988/89

Johnny did two series, sharing the show with two other excellent presenters. But decisions made were stunted and unimaginative. A magazine format with no central theme, quickly becomes unfocused. Johnny's suggestions to cure this were at last accepted for a third series, but it was too late. BBC Children's Television had been decimated and Johnny refused Series 3 and walked away.

JOHNNY BALL REVEALS ALL - 5 Series for ITV - CENTRAL TELEVISION 1989/93

A new challenge, with Johnny writing and presenting. He chose as Producer/Director, the excellent Clive Doig who'se BBC career was longer than Johnny's. He cut his teeth with Vision On and produced Eureka. But a problem was not at first realised - Central TV had very limited slots and could offer only 7 shows a year - so the new partnership would always be frustrating. However, there were improvements on the later Think shows, with young actors on hand for sketches and ambitious design ideas that Clive helped realise.

Series 1. B'ham 1989. 1 Bones?, 2 On the Surface 3, All Stuck Up, 4 Measuring Up, 5 Twisting and Turning, 6, Food for Thought, 7, What's Next?

Series 2. B'ham 1990. 1 Scale, 2 Mechanics, 3 Textiles, 4 Muscle, 5 Boxes, 6 Rhythm, 7 Printing

Series 3. N'ham 1 Blood, 2 All Aglow, 3 Hard Rock, 4 Dynamics , 5 Balance, 6 Nature's Numbers, 7 People who Count.

Series 4 . N'ham 1 Nerves, 2 Pressure, 3 Curves, 4 Water, 5 Mazes and Codes, 6 Toss of a Coin, 7 Ceramics

Series 5. N'ham 1, Face Facts, 2, Hot Wheels, 3 Electrifying, 4 Over/Under, 5 Spirals.

BOUNCING BACK - Comedy Sketch Compilation Series - BBC 1996

A compilation Series, revisiting the best of the Think Series comedy sketches. Johnny had very little to do with the editing, being too close to the material. The original shows had a balance of light and heavy items. Just featuring the comedy, was not in line with Johnny's method, as there was no thought to the actual conveying of information. The linking style was awful, underaging the material. The shows however, do illustrate the breadth of comic styles used in Johnny's writing.

1. Robotics.
2. Visual Arts.
3. The Body.
4. Clothes.
5. Angles.
6. Design.
7. Work.
8. Energy.