Editing Eric Sykes (section)

=== 1950s ===
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2024}}
Sykes had begun to write for television as early as 1948,<ref name="televisionheaven1">{{cite web |url=http://www.televisionheaven.co.uk/ericsykes.htm |publisher=Television Heaven |title=TV Greats: Eric Sykes |access-date=26 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090409151343/http://www.televisionheaven.co.uk/ericsykes.htm |archive-date=9 April 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> but from the early 1950s Sykes began to make an ultimately successful transition from radio to TV, writing a number of series episodes and one-off shows for the BBC. His credits in this period include ''The Howerd Crowd'' (1952), ''Frankie Howerd's Korean Party'', ''Nuts in May'', and ''The Frankie Howerd Show'', as well as ''The Big Man'' (1954) starring [[Fred Emney]] and [[Edwin Styles]]. Sykes also made his first screen appearance at this time in the army film comedy ''[[Orders Are Orders (1955 film)|Orders Are Orders]]'' (1954), which also featured [[Sid James]], Tony Hancock, Peter Sellers, Bill Fraser, and [[Donald Pleasence]].{{CN|date=April 2024}}

Sykes's small office above a grocer's shop at 130 [[Uxbridge Road]], [[Shepherd's Bush]], was shared from around 1953 by Spike Milligan. (Sykes and Milligan later jointly formed [[Associated London Scripts]] (ALS) with [[Galton and Simpson|Ray Galton and Alan Simpson]], a writers' agency which lasted for well over a decade until being effectively dissolved in 1967). Late in 1954, Sykes began collaborating with Spike Milligan on scripts for ''The Goon Show'', easing Milligan's workload. Their first collaborative script was for a ''Goon Show'' special called ''Archie in Goonland'', a crossover between ''The Goon Show'' and ''Educating Archie''. The special was broadcast in June 1954 and featured the regular Goon Show cast ([[Harry Secombe]] was then appearing in both)<ref>{{cite book |author=Carpenter, Humphrey |title=Spike Milligan: The Biography |publisher=Hodder & Stoughton |year=2003 |page=[https://archive.org/details/spikemilliganbio0000carp/page/155 155] |isbn=0-340-82611-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/spikemilliganbio0000carp/page/155 }}</ref> plus [[Peter Brough]], his [[Dummy (ventriloquism)|dummy]] [[Archie Andrews (puppet)|Archie Andrews]] and Hattie Jacques.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/goonography/series4.html |title=Wilmut's Goonography: Goon Shows – 4th Series |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724085710/http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/goonography/series4.html |archive-date=24 July 2008}}</ref> It was not a success, however, and neither recording nor the script has survived. Sykes and Milligan are credited as the co-writers of all but the first six of the 26 episodes in Series 5 (1954–55)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/goonography/series5.html |title=Wilmut's Goonography: Goon Shows – 5th Series |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724085613/http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/goonography/series5.html |archive-date=24 July 2008}}</ref> and three episodes of Series 6 (1955–56); Sykes also wrote a 15-minute Goon Show Christmas special, ''The Missing Christmas Parcel'', broadcast during the [[Children's Hour]] on 8 December 1955.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/goonography/series6.html |title=Wilmut's Goonography: Goon Shows – 6th Series |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103152524/http://www.thegoonshow.co.uk/goonography/series6.html |archive-date=3 January 2009}}</ref>

In 1955, Sykes wrote and performed in a BBC Christmas spectacular, a spoof pantomime called ''Pantomania'', which featured many well-known BBC personalities of the era; it was directed by [[Ernest Maxin]], who went on to produce some of the most famous comedy routines for [[Morecambe & Wise]]. That same year Sykes signed a contract as scriptwriter and variety show presenter for the newly formed independent television company [[Associated Television|ATV]], while continuing to write and perform for the BBC.<ref name="televisionheaven1"/>

In 1956, Sykes performed, wrote scripts, and acted as script editor for the pioneering [[Associated-Rediffusion|Rediffusion]] TV comedy ''[[The Idiot Weekly, Price 2d]]'', the first attempt to translate the humour of the Goons to television. It starred Peter Sellers, with Sykes, [[Kenneth Connor]], and [[Valentine Dyall]]. During this year he also made his second film appearance, playing a minor role in the [[Max Bygraves]] film ''[[Charley Moon]]'', which also featured Bill Fraser, [[Peter Jones (actor)|Peter Jones]], [[Dennis Price]], and (as a child) [[Jane Asher]]. During 1956–57, Sykes also wrote for and performed in ''[[The Tony Hancock Show]]'', where he again worked with Hattie Jacques.{{CN|date=April 2024}}

His next venture for the BBC was a one-hour special, ''Sykes Directs a Dress Rehearsal'', playing a harassed director in a fictional TV studio rehearsal room, just before going live to air. Later that year he wrote and appeared in another all-star spectacular called ''Opening Night'' which celebrated the opening of the 1956 National Radio Show at [[Earl's Court]]. In 1957, he created ''Closing Night'', which closed the 1957 show.{{CN|date=April 2024}}

By this time Sykes had developed hearing problems; he subsequently lost most of his hearing, but learned to lip-read and watch other performers say their lines to get his cues. In 1957, he wrote and appeared in an edition of ''Val Parnell's Saturday Spectacular'', the first of two shows in this series that he wrote for Peter Sellers. The first went out under the title of ''Eric Sykes Presents Peter Sellers'', and the second, in 1958, was called ''The Peter Sellers Show''.{{CN|date=April 2024}}

In 1959, Sykes wrote and directed the one-off BBC special ''Gala Opening'', with a cast that included [[Stanley Unwin (comedian)|'Professor' Stanley Unwin]] and Hattie Jacques,<ref name="televisionheaven1"/> and played a small supporting role in the [[Tommy Steele]] film ''[[Tommy the Toreador]]''.{{CN|date=April 2024}}