News

New U.S. DVD Set: The Secret Policeman’s Balls

18 Jan 09

On 27 January 2009 (US), the Secret Policeman’s five biggest balls are coming to DVD on a 3 disc set from Shout Factory. The Secret Policeman’s Balls were a high-profile charity event that kicked off with "Pleasure at Her Majesty’s" in 1976 to raise funds for the British Section of Amnesty International. In September 1981, Eric Clapton appeared at "The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball" dueting with Jeff Beck. That night also featured performances from Sting, Bob Geldof, Phil Collins and Donovan.

The various balls also featured musicians Pete Townshend, Lou Reed, Joan Armatrading and the best of the British comedians: John Cleese, Michael Palin, Graham Chapman, Dudley Moore, Peter Cook, Billy Connolly and many more. Intiatially broadcast on television in the UK, some were later made available on LP, CD and video tape for home viewing.

Unfortunately, the early video versions did not feature the complete performance by Beck and Clapton ("Cause We’ve Ended as Lovers," "Further On Up The Road" and "Crossroads"). Hopefully, that will be rectified in this new release on DVD. A complete song-by-song disc listing is not available.

The Balls featured on the 3 DVD set are:

1976: Pleasure At Her Majesty’s
1979: The Secret Policeman’s Ball
1981: The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball
1987: The Secret Policeman’s Third Ball
1989: The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball

Bonus features include a 2004 BBC documentary, "Remember The Secret Policeman’s Ball?", essays and video introductions by the events’ co-producer, Martin Lewis, and other rare footage.

Format: NTSC / Region 1 (US and Canada)
3 Discs
Run Time: 510 minutes
ASIN #: B001GP5TMM

Note: In November 2004 in the UK, a 5 DVD set, "The Secret Policeman’s Ball: The Complete Edition" was released in celebration of the event’s 25th Anniversary.