![[Bonzo Dog]](bonzo.gif)
"I have suffered for my music, now it's your turn"
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Neil wearing his Rockin' Duck hat,
from the blurb with The Bonzo Dog Band Cornology.
Chris Welch quotes Neil (in his 1974 Melody Maker article, reproduced in The History of The Bonzos) as saying he did various things before joining the Bonzos, such as playing a marching phono-fiddle with the Alberts: "a singularly disappointing instrument I may add". Neil enlarges on this in his blurb on By Jingo, It's British Rubbish and it may be him on, for instance, the Sleepy Valley track.
Contributed by Alan Jolley: Around the time that he was making the Innes Book of Records, he was advertising Holsten Pils. What's more, when he performed at Queen Mary College, at the time, it was his drink of choice.
Neil did the title song and narration for 112 episodes of the Raggy Dolls animated children's series (approx. 1986-1994).
The tribute CD For the Love of Harry: Everybody Sings Nilsson contains a track by Aimee Man, One, which features Neil singing background vocals.
Contributed by afroray@aol.com: Neil did some adverts for Quality Street: "Magic Moments, when two hearts are share-hare-hare-ing!" in the early 90s.
The Adventures of Mole video (BMG Kidz 1995), part of a project called The Wind In The Willows Collection, features songs by Neil: Busy Life and Long Ago, sung by Kirsty MacColl, and Oh My Wonderful Friends, sung by Midge Ure.
Neil had a spot in his Rutle persona on Rory Bremner...Who Else? c1995.
He presented the BBC Radio 2 series Tickling The Ivories in April-May 1996: half-hour features on musical comedy styles, such as musical parody.
From September 1998 he had a new series on Anglia TV, Away With Words, filmed around the region and explaining the origin of various words and expressions such as blazers (St John's College), "blowing hot & cold" and "bob's your uncle". A feature about the series and Neil appeared in The Cambridge Evening News on 31 Aug. The series started on 15 September (19:30) and lasted for 13 weeks. The show was a co-production with satellite/cable channel Discovery Home & Leisure. He mentioned that a fourth series of Innes Book of Records may be coming.
In 1999 he was one of the reporters in the BBC East Anglia Out and About series, reporting on diverse topics such as the history of Norwich, Colchester Beer festival and Ridley's Brewery.
Charmingly Persistent Productions is Neil's record
company, which launched his new CD in May 2000.
[Neil explains...] ...Over the 26 programmes [of Do Not Adjust Your Set] we became good friends. Eric rang me up out of the blue when they were doing the Python shows at the Beeb and said "Our warm-up man can't make it, do you fancy it?" I said "I don't do warm-ups." He said "It's 25 quid" and I said "Alright, I do warm-ups."
