Richard "Richie" Richard and Edward Elizabeth "Eddie" Hitler have been stuck on the titular uncharted island for three years. The show begins with Richie stuck in the island's latrine and getting himself out. Eddie enters and tells him that he rescued an unconscious "bird" from the beach and placed her in his hammock. Richie eagerly starts to administer the "Shag of Life"...and discovers that the "bird" is actually an albatross. After starting a fight with Eddie, Richie prepares breakfast: brambles and a dying fish he found in the latrine. Richie gets food poisoning and involuntarily vomits, burps, and farts. The pair then suddenly hear the sound of drums and spot a group of Welshcannibals cooking Keith Floyd in a pot nearby. The cannibals notice and hunt them. Richie manages to fend them off by vomiting in their direction, but the cannibals land a poison dart on the tip of Richie's penis and the brim of Eddie's hat as they flee. To save Richie's life, Eddie retrieves a Japanese armyWorld War II medical kit from his secret Japanese bunker and injects an antidote directly into his buttocks via a giant medical syringe. After a male albatross arrives and defecates on Eddie's head, he and Richie recap on how they ended up on Hooligan's Island in the first place. It all started when Eddie talked Richie into taking Ecstasyfor the first time, resulting in them both performing the non-stop "Nightmare 12-Hour Dance," getting chased by the police, and hijacking an ambulance. While on the run, they encountered a seemingly-homosexual theatrical impresario, Sir "Pervy" Leslie McBlowjob, who was willing to give them a job in exchange for sexual favours. They were then set to perform onstage aboard a cruise liner as "The Great Arsehole and Norman," but their performance went horribly wrong. It consisted of a nude Eddie shoving a sword down a passenger's throat and throwing rabbits into the audience, Richie sawing the ship's captain in half with an electric chainsaw, and Eddie crashing a motorcycle and sidecar into the disco console during the "Curtain of Death" finale. As a result, the entire ship was set on fire. In a desperate attempt to quench the fire, Eddie tore a hole through the ship with an ax, which caused the ship to fill with water and sink. With all available lifeboats full, Richie and Eddie survived the shipwreck by holding onto Eddie's electric organ for six hours until they reached land. After delivering the full recap, Richie and Eddie look for ways to pass the time while they wait to be rescued and taken back to Hammersmith, London. They end the play's first act by briefly performing a cover of "Born to Be Wild" and rehearsing their specialty act "The Great Arsehole and Norman."
Act two
Still waiting to be rescued, Richie and Eddie try discussing interests and watching sharks, until they find a 15 megatonnuclear bomb in the middle of the island. It was left behind by a Frenchfrogman whom Eddie told to 'fuck off outta here' as part of a nuclear testing program. After accidentally activating the bomb, Richie and Eddie try various methods to defuse it Near the end of the play, a French boat sails nearby and Richie and Eddie desperately try to grab their attention in hope of rescue. Eddie lights and detonates signal flares which accidentally hit the ship and cause it to explode. The play ends with Richie and Eddie running out of time: the nuclear bomb explodes with them both near it.
Shortly after it was filmed, it was released on VHS and in 1999, it was released on DVD. In late 2006, a DVD box set titled the Big Bottom Box, contains the show, along with the other 4 live shows, the movie and a "Best of Bottom Live" mockumentary titled Big Bottom Live.
Bloopers
This show, much like the past two live shows and the next two after it, has plenty of bloopers made by Ade and Rik, however Hooligan's Island is subject to a large blooper midway through the first act that manages to unravel the plot for a brief moment in the show. During one scene, Eddie was supposed to momentarily distract Richie so he could retrieve a medical kit from his secret Japanese bunker, then return and cure Richie after being struck by a poisoned dart. However, when exiting the bunker Ade does not close the door properly and when Richie looks around he clearly sees the door to the bunker. Out of character, Rik then bursts into a fit of hysterical giggling and is unable to continue. Eddie then improvises that the poisoned dart also gave Richie "momentary amnesia" and a "side effect of excessive giggling". He will therefore not remember the door until act two when he is supposed to find out about it, which Rik goes along with.
Television adaptation
On 23 August 2012, the BBC announced that Hooligan's Island was to be adapted into a television series. The show would be a spin-off sequel to Mayall and Edmondson's BBC Two sitcom, Bottom, and was due to air on BBC Two in 2013. On 15 October 2012, Edmondson announced during an interview with BBC Radio Essex that he had pulled out of the new series of Hooligan's Island, stating that he wished to pursue other interests.
