Film, Video and Audio Formats
Adaptations of the shows have been released in various film, video and audio formats over the years. Because there have been multiple different versions released in different configurations in different countries over the years, there has been some public confusion as to which version is which.
The confusion is most notable in respect of the two widely different versions of the film The Secret Policeman's Other Ball. The only home-video/DVD version presently available is based on the UK version of the film. There is currently no home-video version of the very different, original 1982 US version of the film. The confusion is apparent from consumer comments and complaints on e-tailer websites such as Amazon.com.
The first two Amnesty productions Pleasure At Her Majesty's (1976) and The Mermaid Frolics (1977) have never been released on home video in their original unedited form – only in truncated form. Video reissues of The Secret Policeman's Ball (1979) and The Secret Policeman's Other Ball (1981) have also had original sequences edited out.
The US compilation The Secret Policeman's Private Parts (1983) – that featured special additional content and outtakes not included in the original UK films – has not been available in any format since the early 1980s and has never been released outside the US.
The most recent home-video release has been a 5-disc box set of DVDs entitled The Secret Policeman's Ball: 25th Anniversary Silver Box Set. Released on region zero international format. The discs feature the edited, truncated versions of the earlier films.
The original audio albums of comedy and music from the shows have not been commercially available since the early 1990s.
Shout! Factory released "The Secret Policeman's Balls" in January 2009. The 3-DVD set includes Pleasure At Her Majesty's (1976), The Secret Policeman's Ball (1979), The Secret Policeman's Other Ball (1981), The Secret Policeman's Third Ball (1987) and The Secret Policeman's Biggest Ball (1989). In early 2010, Shout! Factory released the DVD The Secret Policeman's Private Party, featuring the best comedic moments from various Secret Policeman's Balls.
In celebration of the 30th anniversary of The Secret Policeman's Ball, Shout! Factory partnered with Amnesty International on a collection of musical highlights entitled "The Secret Policeman Rocks." The 14-track anniversary CD was released on 29 September 2009.
Read more about this topic: The Secret Policeman's Balls
Famous quotes containing the word video:
“These people figured video was the Lord’s preferred means of communicating, the screen itself a kind of perpetually burning bush. “He’s in the de-tails,” Sublett had said once. “You gotta watch for Him close.””
—William Gibson (b. 1948)