A lost television performance by the late film star and musician Dudley Moore, from before he achieved international fame, has been recovered by preservationists. The black-and-white clip features The Dudley Moore Trio performing on the BBC program "This is Petula Clark" in 1967.
Film is Fabulous!, a preservation group, announced the discovery last week. The recording was found within two private film collections as the group cataloged its contents. The performance, aired on December 19, 1967, is one of many BBC variety and music programs from the 1960s and 1970s that are considered lost due to the network's practice of erasing and re-recording tapes to save costs before the widespread adoption of reruns.
Moore, who became a well-known actor in Hollywood with roles in films such as "10" and "Arthur," for which he received an Oscar nomination, began his career as a classically trained jazz musician. He was an accomplished pianist and composer who led his own trio and established a reputation in the jazz world before his pivot to comedy.
Surviving fragments of such lost broadcasts are increasingly being found in private collections, attics, and forgotten film archives. This recovery adds a valuable piece to the missing tapestry of British television history.