Bill Oddie dies at 85, Goodies star and wildlife presenter
Bill Oddie, what a lovely bloke. He wrote us a letter when we started making The Young Ones, wishing us the very best, and warning us against interference from higher up. He didn’t know anyone in the cast personally. It just came out of the blue. Lovely thing to do.
Richard Herring217We made a joke about him on Fist of Fun and he sent us a signed photo joining in with the gag!
Mr. Minister26I've never thought about the spiritual connection between The Goodies and The young ones. But it seems obvious.
Toot Le Mondy19Played in a band with him in the eighties; lovely bloke.
jimspriggs65.bsky.social14Loved The Goodies when I was a small kid. Loved Nature Watch when I was much more grown up. .... And I reaaaally loved The Young Ones when I was a teenager. Cheers Ade.
Some Bloke11I went to school with his children, as well as Michael Palin’s kids. It was a real thrill when Bill would occasionally show up for school assembly. Because of the Goodies, no one had more cred.
Sir Andrew Aguecheek from Shakespeare6La, I have received letters from men I scarce knew, and each one I pressed to my bosom like a lost coin. A kindness unlooked for is the truest gold.
Such sad news about Bill Oddie, a Renaissance Man genius, but here's the lovely conversation we had about his amazing comedic musical contribution to The Goodies on Front Row back in 2018. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
PlasticOmar 🍏☮️❤️8Very sad news. The Goodies were ahead of their time and there hasn’t been anything like their show since.
John Dredge3One of my earliest memories is singing A Man’s Best Friend Is His Duck. A song I could relate to.
ELY 🧹🪣🇺🇸3This one hurts. Bill made wildlife feel joyful and funny, not just serious. He taught a whole generation to look up and notice birds. Rest well 💙 "Goodies, goody goody yum"
Irish Princess, Deeply Annoyed2The Boring Olympics, with Marcel Marceau being a multiple gold medalist, was what shaped my humor for life. Thank you, darling Bill.
Dinsdale Piranha1I met Tim Brooke-Taylor a couple of times, briefly, he was a lovely man, but I will always regret not having met Bill Oddie. He was special. A national treasure.
Bollocks. Bill Oddie can't be dead, because that means only one Goodie remains. And because the song that always plays in my head when I hear his name feels all wrong today. Bill Oddie Bill Oddie Put your hands all over my body. I hope he'd laugh at that. He made my childhood gleeful. RIP
Barry4You’re right. Every time one of these greats go, it’s like a part of my childhood dies with them.
Eh? What?4Just leaves Graeme Garden as oldie, but Goody
Usman-Smith1Bill Oddie R. I. P. Tha' ecky thump mastery launched a thousand p*ss & martial artists. The northern soul wi' cloth cap n clogs made us all goodies. Farewell, tha ripples you made in't canal o'life were priceless.
Catherine1Favourite Goodies sketch? Box delivered to Goodies says "Nose Vole, open with care". Tim asks "why is it called a nose vole?" as box is opened. Cut to him with a piece of string (tail) hanging from his nostril. Such a simple & silly joke but still funny decades later. Sure this was an Oddie joke!
The Goodies were a treat for kids in the 70s. Like Python for toddlers. For some reason, when I was 6, I thought that Oddie & Brooke-Taylor were also in The Beach Boys and that Graeme Garden was a school teacher appointed to look after them.
Richard Littler104In the 70s, there was a fad for iron-on t-shirts designs - branded images, or make-your-own kits with mixed images, letters, numbers, etc. A kid at my jnr school had a Goodies t-shirt that his mum had made with iron-on letters, but had spelled it Goodeys. He acquired the nickname Dim Brooke-Taylor.
Jonny Maher1I was listening to Miriam margoyles who classified them as a bunch of cunts from her Cambridge days
I went to the same school as Bill Oddie (KES in Birmingham) and there were legends that he'd once arrived at school on horseback and also had put up diversion signs which meant all the traffic along the main Bristol Road had to pass through the school grounds but I don't know if either is true.
Jonathan Coe50The only time I met him (apart from sitting next to him at a Gary Burton concert when I was 22) was at a charity thing at the Palace of Westminster. He didn't want to reminisce about the Goodies until I asked him about the music and working with Mike Gibbs and then his eyes lit up and he was off.
David Benedict3I very much hope it was all true.
Johnny Morris on a boat2I was at Uni with someone who must have been your close contemporary, and he related the same diversion story. Reported as having been perpetrated on his last day at school. A horse wasn’t mentioned
tom slists1I don’t know whether those stories are true, but they’re goodies
A story about Bill Oddie RIP. When Rowan Williams was Archbishop of Canterbury, he used to invite me to his Christmas parties. One year, I took my husband Andy Gill as my plus one…
Catherine Mayer25Within minutes, he and Bill O gravitated towards each other, and their increasingly uproarious conversation drew space scientist Colin Pillinger. I was over the other side of the room thinking how much fun Andy was having so tore myself away from clerics debating “what would Jesus do?” (srsly)…
Carl Rosman10I am glad to say that while this bit may well be true of the poor old UK, repeats of The Goodies were a regular and wonderful feature of weekday evenings on Australian TV during my childhood, without which I would be quite a different person.
Pete 🦆4Just heard Alexei Sayle talking about his mate Andy on his podcast. Andy attracted the right people.
ala8.bsky.social1Bill made that show nature watch, without him, wouldn't be so popular
Simon Proctor 🇺🇦1Love this and am so here for these kinda stories. Thanks ❤️
After finding out about beloved comedian and nature lover Bill Oddie passing away, I am requesting all prayers, spells and similar to form a protective circle around I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue star and final Goodie, Graeme Garden. Please and thank you 💜
Webgiant3He's a doctor (earned it during "I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again") so he knows how to extend life and prevent death. Better odds on him.
ian-urru.bsky.social1I introduced one of my friends who'd grown up in America to The Goodies back around 2002. Showed her the episode "Bunfight at the OK Tea Rooms". She was curled up in a ball crying with laughter at the biscuit-poker scene.
Bill Oddie, much-loved member of The Goodies comedy series in the 1970s, dead at 85
Rocketpilot 🇵🇸12What the fuck ABC? Is that a threat
Just Another Film Nerd4Bill Oddie, Graeme Garden and Tim Brooke-Taylor were as essential and influential in comedy as Python. Oddie was a terrific presence on radio and TV and will be truly missed
matthew green2goodie goodie yum yum :-( RIP you brilliant weirdo
Bill Oddie R.I.P. The man who made me literally piss myself laughing (the one and only time) fifty years ago watching an episode of The Goodies. I got to tell him that in person! Bill was also a superb musician and songwriter. Check out his Beatles pastiche. www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYVB...
David James4It could have been a lot worse - a viewer literally died laughing while watching 'Kung Fu Kapers'!
steven r gardner @gardstvtxbsky.social2What's sad is I knew nothing about Bill Oddie or the Goodies before clicking on the Bill Oddie trending. Watching this Cricklewood video I now know I've missed out on some great British Comedy.
James Cooke2He was definitely a man who knew his funk in putting together some of the Goodies musical material. I've just read that he described his music sounding like Parliament on bad day.
Goldie and Komos2The Goodies gave us Kitten Kong and I'll be forever grateful 😂
Derek Collett1My mum thought I was in real danger of dying when I laughed myself almost into unconsciousness during the opening to one Goodies episode.
The Invisible College1This song is huge favourite of mine. A brilliantly done popsike pastiche.
