Editing Tony Hancock (section)

==Introspection==
In early 1960, Hancock appeared on the BBC's ''[[Face to Face (British TV series)|Face to Face]]'', a half-hour in-depth interview programme conducted by former Labour MP [[John Freeman (British politician)|John Freeman]]. Freeman asked Hancock many soul-searching questions about his life and work. Hancock, who deeply admired his interviewer, often appeared uncomfortable with the questions, but answered them frankly and honestly. Hancock had always been highly self-critical, and it is often argued that this interview heightened this tendency, contributing to his later difficulties. According to Roger, his brother, "It was the biggest mistake he ever made. I think it all started from that really. ... Self-analysis – that was his killer."<ref>Quoted in Fisher, p. 272</ref>

Cited as evidence is his gradual [[ostracism]] of those who contributed to his success, such as Sid James and his scriptwriters, Galton and Simpson. His reasoning was that, to refine his craft, he had to ditch catch-phrases and become realistic. He argued, for example, that whenever an ad-hoc character was needed, such as a policeman, it would be played by someone like [[Kenneth Williams]], who would appear with his well-known oily catchphrase "Good evening". Hancock believed the comedy suffered because people did not believe in the policeman, knowing it was just Williams doing a funny voice.<ref name="H&N"/>