The Secret Policeman’s Ball

E290621

British comedy show benefit show series charity event concert film series

The Secret Policeman’s Ball is a famed British comedy and music benefit show series, originally staged for Amnesty International, that brought together leading comedians and musicians in the late 1970s and 1980s.

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All labels observed (10)

Label	Occurrences
The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball	2
The Secret Policeman’s Ball canonical	1
The Secret Policeman’s Ball (1979 film)	1
The Secret Policeman’s Ball 1979	1
The Secret Policeman’s Ball 2012	1
The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball	1
The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball (1989 film)	1
The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball (1981 film)	1
The Secret Policeman’s Third Ball	1
The Secret Policeman’s Third Ball (1987 film)	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T2698313 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: The Secret Policeman’s Ball
Context triple: [Peter Cook, notableWork, The Secret Policeman’s Ball]

A. I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue
I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue is a long-running BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show known for its absurd word games, improvisation, and deadpan, innuendo-laden humour.
B. Monty Python Live (Mostly)
Monty Python Live (Mostly) is a 2014 stage reunion show by the surviving members of the British comedy group Monty Python, featuring live performances of their classic sketches and new material at The O2 in London.
C. 24 Hour Party People
24 Hour Party People is a 2002 British comedy-drama film that chronicles the rise of Manchester’s music scene from the late 1970s to early 1990s through the experiences of Factory Records and its co-founder Tony Wilson.
D. Live at the Apollo
Live at the Apollo is a landmark 1963 live soul album by James Brown, celebrated for its electrifying performance and major influence on live recording in popular music.
E. Spitting Image
Spitting Image is a British satirical television show famous for its caricatured puppet portrayals of politicians and celebrities.
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: The Secret Policeman’s Ball
Target entity description: The Secret Policeman’s Ball is a famed British comedy and music benefit show series, originally staged for Amnesty International, that brought together leading comedians and musicians in the late 1970s and 1980s.

A. I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue
I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue is a long-running BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show known for its absurd word games, improvisation, and deadpan, innuendo-laden humour.
B. Monty Python Live (Mostly)
Monty Python Live (Mostly) is a 2014 stage reunion show by the surviving members of the British comedy group Monty Python, featuring live performances of their classic sketches and new material at The O2 in London.
C. 24 Hour Party People
24 Hour Party People is a 2002 British comedy-drama film that chronicles the rise of Manchester’s music scene from the late 1970s to early 1990s through the experiences of Factory Records and its co-founder Tony Wilson.
D. Live at the Apollo
Live at the Apollo is a landmark 1963 live soul album by James Brown, celebrated for its electrifying performance and major influence on live recording in popular music.
E. Spitting Image
Spitting Image is a British satirical television show famous for its caricatured puppet portrayals of politicians and celebrities.
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (60)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	British comedy show ⓘ benefit show series ⓘ charity event ⓘ concert film series ⓘ
basedOn	earlier Amnesty International benefit shows such as A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick) ⓘ
countryOfOrigin	United Kingdom ⓘ
followedBy	The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball
genre	benefit concert ⓘ comedy ⓘ music ⓘ
hasInfluenceOn	modern charity comedy galas ⓘ
hasParticipant	Ben Stiller ⓘ Billy Connolly ⓘ Bob Geldof ⓘ Coldplay ⓘ David Walliams ⓘ Dudley Moore ⓘ Eddie Izzard ⓘ Eric Clapton ⓘ Graham Chapman ⓘ Jeff Beck ⓘ John Cleese ⓘ Jon Stewart ⓘ Kasabian ⓘ Michael Palin ⓘ Mumford & Sons ⓘ Neil Innes ⓘ Noel Fielding ⓘ Pete Townshend ⓘ Peter Cook ⓘ Phil Collins ⓘ Rowan Atkinson ⓘ Russell Brand ⓘ Sarah Silverman ⓘ Sheryl Crow ⓘ Sting ⓘ Terry Gilliam ⓘ Terry Jones ⓘ Tom Jones ⓘ
inception	1976 ⓘ
language	English ⓘ
location	London, England ⓘ surface form: London
notableEvent	The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Ball 1979 The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Ball 2012 The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Third Ball
notableFor	combining alternative comedy with rock music for charity ⓘ
notableVenue	Her Majesty's Theatre, London ⓘ surface form: Her Majesty’s Theatre Theatre Royal Drury Lane ⓘ
notableWork	The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Ball (1979 film) The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball (1989 film) The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball (1981 film) The Secret Policeman’s Ball self-linksurface differs ⓘ surface form: The Secret Policeman’s Third Ball (1987 film)
organisedFor	Amnesty International ⓘ
producer	Martin Lewis ⓘ Peter Walker ⓘ
purpose	human rights fundraising ⓘ raising awareness of Amnesty International ⓘ
sponsor	Amnesty International ⓘ surface form: Amnesty International UK section