''Black Cinderella Two Goes East'' (sometimes referred to as ''Black Cinderella II Goes East'') was a radio

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on 25 December 1978. The programme is notable for being one of only a few radio programmes (co)-produced by

Douglas Adams Douglas Noel Adams (11 March 1952 – 11 May 2001) was an English author and screenwriter, best known for ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''. Originally a 1978 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radio series), BBC radio comedy, ''The H ...

while he was employed by the BBC as a radio producer, also for giving a significant role to a serving politician,

John Pardoe John Wentworth Pardoe (born 27 July 1934) is a retired British businessman and Liberal Party politician. He was Chairman of Sight and Sound Education Ltd from 1979 to 1989. Early life and education Pardoe was the son of Cuthbert B. Pardoe and ...

. The hour-long programme was written by

Clive Anderson Clive Stuart Anderson (born 10 December 1952) is an English television and radio presenter, comedy writer, and former barrister. Winner of a British Comedy Award in 1991, Anderson began experimenting with comedy and writing comedic scripts durin ...

and Rory McGrath and was co-produced by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd. The programme featured performances by: * Richard Baker, Narrator *

Tim Brooke-Taylor Timothy Julian Brooke-Taylor OBE (17 July 194012 April 2020) was an English actor and comedian best known as a member of The Goodies. He became active in performing in comedy sketches while at the University of Cambridge and became president ...

, Timothenia and the King *

Rob Buckman Robert Alexander Amiel Buckman (22 August 1948 – 9 October 2011) was a British doctor of medicine, comedian and author, and president of the Humanist Association of Canada. He first appeared in a Cambridge University Footlights Revue in 1968, ...

, Prince Charming * John Cleese, Fairy Godperson *

Peter Cook Peter Edward Cook (17 November 1937 – 9 January 1995) was an English actor, comedian, satirist, playwright and screenwriter. He was the leading figure of the British satire boom of the 1960s, and he was associated with the anti-establishme ...

, Prince Disgusting *

Graeme Garden David Graeme Garden OBE (born 18 February 1943) is a Scottish comedian, actor, author, artist and television presenter, best known as a member of The Goodies and a regular panellist on ''I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue''. Early life and education ...

, Gardenia and Manny *

David Hatch Sir David Edwin Hatch, (7 May 1939 – 13 June 2007)
"''Just a Minute''" site wa ...

, himself * Maggie Henderson, Cinderella *

Jo Kendall Josephine Mary Kendall ( Robinson, 17 February 1940 – 29 January 2022) was a British actress and writer. She was known for her work on the BBC radio comedy show ''I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again'', which debuted in 1964, and for her role as ...

, Wicked Stepmother and Princess Sally *

Richard Murdoch Richard Bernard Murdoch (6 April 19079 October 1990) was an English actor and entertainer. After early professional experience in the chorus in musical comedy, Murdoch quickly moved on to increasingly prominent roles in musical comedy and rev ...

, Baron Ofbeef *

Bill Oddie William Edgar Oddie (born 7 July 1941) is an English writer, comedian, songwriter, musician, artist, birder, conservationist, television presenter and actor. He was a member of comedy trio The Goodies. A birder since his childhood in Quinto ...

, himself, Town Crier and Talking Horse *

MP, Fairy-tale Liberal

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Douglas Adams had to follow the show's writers to Cambridge in order to get them to work on the script, and had to pick up the finished script from a messenger on a train. Adams also recorded a reluctant John Cleese at home. Cleese had vowed never to work for BBC Radio again, following a dispute over a sketch in the series '' John Cleese's Sketchbook''. Cleese's lines were then played from a tape recorder into the broadcast programme.

References

*'' Douglas Adams at the BBC'' - Three Compact Disc set *BBC Radio 7 ''Tribute to Douglas Adams'' - Transmitted on 2 March 2003 *'' Don't Panic: The Official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Companion'' by Neil Gaiman {{UK-radio-show-stub BBC Radio comedy programmes BBC Radio 2 programmes