Tommy Cooper Collection (DVD)

It's magic, mirth and music - just like that! Tommy Cooper was a man who only had to walk onstage to cause hysterics - a constant presence on television for four decades, he was instantly recognisable by his imposing frame, lame jokes and trademark fez. His joyfully chaotic shows, replete with failed magic tricks (along with a few that worked - in reality Cooper was an accomplished magician), were all huge critical and commercial hits and made Tommy Cooper one of the best loved comedians of the last 50 years. This release celebrates Tommy Cooper's enduring appeal with three classic Thames series from the 1970s: The Tommy Cooper Hour, Cooper and Tommy Cooper - Just Like That!. Ranging from an attempt to catch a bullet between his teeth to emulating the Great Houdini's death-defying escape from an air-tight steel trunk this set easily shows why Eric Sykes has hailed Tommy Cooper as the "funniest man in the world". Andrew Sachs, comedienne Sheila Bernette, Victor Spinetti, Ian Hendry and Dandy Nichols are among the guests daring to participate in the mayhem, with Lynsey de Paul providing songs and flunkeys David Hamilton, Ken Wilson and Eddie Davies on hand to assist the master of "tragic magic".