 Since Howerd was not well known to American audiences, this may have been his biggest exposure in the US.There was a cabaret tour of New Zealand in 1979.After six years without a regular television show in the United Kingdom (though he had hosted a one-off UK version of "The Gong Show" for Channel 4, which was critically panned and was not commissioned for a full series), Howerd returned to TV screens in 1987 in the Channel 4 show "Superfrank!