The essentials

If you want to see, hear and read Beyond The Fringe for yourself, then the essential purchases are:

Compact disc: The Complete Beyond The Fringe 3CD set is far and away the best buy. The first two CDs contain the complete two-hour 1961 Fortune Theatre show, while the third disc contains six tracks from the 1962 Broadway album, plus the long-deleted 1964 Broadway album in its entirety.  The set typically sells for anything up to £25.99 but amazon.co.uk sells it new for a bargain-basement £14.97 (it's three CDs plus a lavish booklet, after all) and often has second-hand copies available from about a tenner. The 1962 Broadway album is also available as a single CD but at £12.99 you might as well spend the extra couple of quid and go for the aforementioned 3CD Complete set. Finally there's a  Classic songs and sketches CD which is cheap and cheerful, and a good budget choice, though the omission of any of Dudley Moore's solos is a bit rum.

DVD: A DVD of the 1964 farewell performance  by the original cast is available but only on region 1. What madness is this!? Still, if you have the capacity to play R1 discs then it's well worth getting. The sound quality is rather "off" in places but considering this is the only original filmed performance by the group and was believed lost for many years, to have it at all is a rather wondrous thing.

Book: The Complete Beyond the Fringe scripts book is available in paperback. The classic 1961 Fortune Theatre show plus additional stuff from Edinburgh, Cambridge and Broadway. Even the scores for Dudley Moore's piano solos are included. Can't say fairer than that, can you?

The historical stuff

 Records

Beyond The Fringe
UK Original LP Parlophone PMC 1145 (1961)
UK Reissue LP EMI One-Up OUM 2151 (1976)

- Royal Box / The Heat-Death of the Universe / Bollard / Deutscher Chansons / T.V.P.M. / Aftermyth of War / Civil War / Real Class / Little Miss Britten / Black Equals White / Take A Pew / The End Of The World

Original Broadway Cast: Beyond The Fringe

US Original mono LP Capitol W1792 (1963)
US Original stereo LP Capitol SW 1792 (1963)

-Bollard / The Sadder and Wiser Beaver / Deutcher Chansons / Take A Pew / Aftermyth Of War / Sitting On The Bench / And The Same To You / Portrait From Memory / So That's The Way You Like It / The End of the World

Sitting On The Bench
UK 7" single Parlophone 45-R 4969

- Sitting On The Bench / End Of The World

Both tracks taken from the Broadway cast LP above. Sitting On the Bench has music by George Martin.

Beyond The Fringe '64 
(with Paxton Whitehead in place of Jonathan Miller)
US Original mono LP Capitol W2072 (1964)
US Original stereo LP Capitol SW2072 (1964)
US Reissue CD  on DRG  Records

- Home Thoughts From Abroad / The English Way Of Death / Weill Song / Royal Box / One Leg Too Few / Two English Songs / Lord Cobbold - The Duke (Studio 5 Interviews) / Real Class / A Piece Of My Mind / The Great Train Robbery

Beyond The Fringe
EMI double CD (7 93962 2 1)

- Royal Box / The Heat-Death of the Universe / Bollard / Deutscher Chansons / T.V.P.M. / Aftermyth of War / Civil War / Real Class / Little Miss Britten / Black Equals White / Take A Pew / The End Of The World / The Sadder and Wiser Beaver / Sitting on the Bench / And the Same to You / Portraits from Memory / So That's the Way You Like It / The English Way of Death / Weill Song / Home Thoughts From Abroad / One Leg Too Few / Two English Songs / Lord Cobbold - The Duke / A Piece of My Mind / The Great Train Robbery

The Complete Beyond the Fringe
3CD set
- LONDON 1961: Steppes in the Right Direction / Royal Box / Man Bites God / Let's Face It / Bollard / The Heat-Death of the Universe / Deutscher Chansons / The Sadder and Wiser Beaver / Words... and Things / T.V.P.M. / And the Same to You / Aftermyth of War / Civil War / Real Class / Little Miss Britten / The Suspense is Killing Me / Porn Shop / The Death of Lord Nelson / Frank Speaking / Bloddy Rhondda Mine / Black Equals White / Sitting on the Bench / Bread Alone / Take a Pew / So That's the Way You Like It / The End of the World / BROADWAY 1962: Bollard / Take A Pew / Aftermyth of War / Sitting on the Bench / Portraits from memory / The End of the World / BROADWAY 1964: Home Thoughts From Abroad / The English Way Of Death / Weill Song / Royal Box / One Leg Too Few / Two English Songs / Lord Cobbold - The Duke (Studio 5 Interviews) / Real Class / A Piece Of My Mind / The Great Train Robbery

Extracts from the Complete Beyond the Fringe (promo for the above set)
 CD: CD-FRINGE-61
- One Leg Too Few / The Great Train Robbery / Royal Box / Porn Shop / Black Equals White / T.V.P.M. / Bollard / Aftermyth of War

Beyond the Fringe: Classic Songs and Sketches
CD: EMI Comedy Classics
-Steppes in the Right Direction / Man Bites God / The Sadder and Wiser Beaver / Aftermyth of War / The Suspense is Killing Me / Porn Shop / The Death of Lord Nelson / Sitting on the Bench / Bread Alone / The End of the World / Homes Thoughts from Abroad / The English Way of Death / One Leg Too Few / Lord Cobbold - The Duke / The Great Train Robbery

Compilations featuring Beyond the Fringe material

Peter Cook and Dudley Moore EP
7" EP: Parlophone GEP8940 (1965)
Includes: Sitting on the Bench / And The Same To You
plus "Strictly For The Birds" by the Dudley Moore Trio.

Peter Cook Anthology 1961-1989
2x Cassette on Laughing Stock
Includes: Royal Box / TVPM / Real Class / Black Equals White / The Sadder And Wiser Beaver / The Great Train Robbery
...and versions from various Amnesty International benefits of:  Sitting On the Bench /   The End Of The World / One Leg Too Few

Various Artists:
EMI Classic British Comedy (EMI Gold,  CD, 2000) includes: Royal Box
The Best Comedy Album In The World Ever! (Virgin, 3CD, 2000) includes: One Leg Too Few / TVPM / Lord Cobbold / Take A Pew / The Great Train Robbery
Produced By George Martin (Parlophone, CD box set, 2001) includes Aftermyth Of War (extract) / End Of The World
The Classic Comedy Box (EMI Gold, 3CD, 2004) includes: One Leg Too Few / Take A Pew / Sitting On The Bench / The Great Train Robbery / The Royal Box
I Love Comedy (Virgin TV, 3CD, 2004) box includes: One Leg Too Few
Essential Comedy (EMI, 3CD exclusive to Amazon, 2006) includes: One Leg Too Few / The End Of The World / The Royal Box / Lord Cobbold & The Duke / The English Way Of Death
The Original Comedy Album (EMI Gold, CD, 2007)  includes Take A Pew

Compilations featuring versions of Beyond the Fringe sketches

One Over The Eight (1961 Decca LP mono LK 4393, stereo SKL 4133) includes Kenneth Williams in "One Leg Too Few" (Amazon UK: compact disc)

The World Of Kenneth Williams (1964 Decca LP SPA 64) also includes Kenneth Williams in "One Leg Too Few"

Interesting Facts: The Decca Recordings 1960-1 (2007 Decca CD) is a Kenneth Williams compilation which includes "One Leg Too Few" along with various other Peter Cook-penned sketches. (Amazon UK: compact disc | download)

Good Evening (US) Island LP ILPS 9298  LP by Cook and Moore includes live versions of One Leg Too Few and Die Flabbergast.

An Evening With Peter Cook And Dudley Moore And E.L.Wisty Funny Business /  Speaking Volumes 522 101 4 includes the above Good Evening album in full, and therefore includes the same versions of One Leg Too Few and Die Flabbergast. (Amazon UK: audio cassette)

A Poke In The Eye (With A Sharp Stick) Transatlantic LP TRA 331 includes So That's The Way You Like It. US version also includes Sitting on the Bench. (Amazon UK: compact disc)

The Dead Parrot Society  Rhino CD R2 71049 includes Sitting On the Bench (Amazon UK: compact disc)

The Mermaid Frolics Polydor LP 2384 101 includes the same version of Sitting on the Bench.

The Secret Policeman’s Ball Island LP ILPS 9601 Peter Cook leads an all-star cast in The End of The World.

Published scripts

UK: Souvenir Press, 1963 (paperback)
US: Samuel French 1963 (paperback) (ISBN: 0573640025)
US: Random House 1963 (hardback, "Fireside Book Club" edition)
US: Samuel French 1964  (paperback, "acting edition") (ISBN: 0573640025) 
UK: Methuen 1987 (paperback) (ISBN: 9780413146700) (ISBN: 9780749316877)
UK: Methuen London 1992 (reprint of 1987 edition) (ISBN: 0413146707) 
US: Mandarin 1993 (paperback)  (ISBN: 074931687X)
UK?: Methuen 1996 (ISBN: 074931687X)
UK: Methuen 2003 (ISBN: 041377368X)