Early Life and Beginnings in Comedy
Born in Aberdeen, Scotland, he grew up in Preston. Garden was educated at Repton School, and studied medicine at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he joined the prestigious Cambridge University Footlights Club (of which he became President in 1964), and performed with the 1964 Footlights revue, Stuff What Dreams Are Made Of at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Garden qualified in medicine at King's College London, but has never practised. Asked how he justified making jokes rather than saving lives, he answered:
I don't think I would have done it as well. It's an interesting question – whether you've contributed more to the vast store of human enjoyment by doing comedy or by being a doctor, but the answer for me is that I don't think I would have been as successful or as happy being a doctor.Garden and Bill Oddie co-wrote many episodes of the television comedy series Doctor in the House, including most of the first season episodes of the series and all of the second season episodes, as well as co-writing episodes of the subsequent Doctor at Large and Doctor in Charge series. Later, Garden also wrote for Surgical Spirit (1994). Graeme Garden has also presented three series of the BBC's health magazine Bodymatters.
Garden was co-writer and performer in the classic BBC radio comedy show, I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (ISIRTA) (1965–1970, and 1973). Garden was studying medicine during the early seasons of I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again, and this commitment made it difficult for him to be a member of the cast during the third season because of a midwifery medical course in Plymouth. However, he kept on sending scripts for the radio show by mail – and rejoined the cast of ISIRTA upon his return to his medical studies in London. On several occasions his medical qualifications are lampooned; in the 25th Anniversary Show, David Hatch asks him if he's still a writer. Garden: "Here's something I wrote this morning". Hatch: "It's a prescription". "Yes," says Garden, "but it's a funny one...".
On television Graeme Garden was co-writer and performer in the comedy series Twice a Fortnight with Bill Oddie, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Jonathan Lynn.
Later, he was co-writer and performer in the comedy series Broaden Your Mind with Tim Brooke-Taylor (Bill Oddie joined the series for the second season).
Read more about this topic: Graeme Garden
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