The Great British Sitcom: "On The Buses"

[LMLDallas78]

I can't imagine Terry Scott doing stand up

I imagine most people who can do comedy would need to be able to think on their feet and a lot started off in the holiday clubs.
From what I remember Terry Scott was great in Terry and June, obviously scripted I know.

I would've loved to have seen him and Bill Maynard at Butlins in their Heyday.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

What else has he done, do you know?

The Carry Ons spring to mind. Bill had roles in a number of them: Guy Fawkes in Henry; Joan Sims's slobbish husband in At Your Convenience; part of Sid and Bernie's bungling criminal gang in Matron, etc.

He appeared in a number of sitcoms of the 70s in various supporting roles. And he also had the lead role in The Gaffer which I mentioned earlier in the thread (I have very fond memories of watching, but nothing too specific).

I think you're right that Greengrass is his best-known role. Which is probably a good point for me to confess: I've never watched an episode of Heartbeat.

I remember he stood for Parliament once but I don't remember which party he represented.

Earlier this week I read that he'd had his own show on Radio Leicester in more recent years which was evidently controversial at times (he was sacked without notice in 2008, though I'm unsure of the circumstances).

I remember it originally went out at 8pm on Monday, opposite Panorama on BBC1, which was preferable and kind of illustrates how highly it was regarded in our household.

Thanks for this. You know I always love finding out this stuff and you have a great memory for these details.

I do recall seeing clips of it that ITV would trail to promote the show and thinking how annoying Selwyn was and thinking that the humour that was the premise of the show would wear very thin very quickly.

That's understandable. And it was certainly how I viewed the character in the earliest episodes (and again in the last episode I watched which was the first of the sequel series). Thankfully, the character's annoying over-enthusiasm is mostly diffused by the great ensemble: Megs Jenkins, who you mentioned, playing his slightly dotty mother; Ray Mort; Please Sir!'s Richard Davies and Bill Dean (now best known as Brookside grouch Harry Cross) as his social acquaintances; Robert Keegan as his brother and Lynda Baron as his sister-in-law.

I also remember my parents talking of him and Terry Scott, how they worked together at Butlins (Skegness I think) as so many entertainers did back then before they broke onto TV.

I've long been curious to see Great Scott - It's Maynard!, which was the sketch show they did in the Fifties. As far as I know it's long been wiped from existence. But then I wouldn't be surprised if by now someone's found an episode or two and uploaded them you-know-where.

I can't imagine Terry Scott doing stand up or something that would have required him to think on his feet but maybe I'm doing him a disservice.

From what I remember Terry Scott was great in Terry and June, obviously scripted I know.

Yes, I really like Terry Scott. He's been pretty solid in everything in which I've seen him. I also get the sense that he's quick with the repartee, and this comes across in series like Terry & June and Happy Ever After (both of which are overdue a rewatch for me) where there are long scenes filmed fairly quickly that require supporting moments where someone fluffs a line or some mishap occurs.

From what I've read, Terry did have a reputation for being difficult to work with, partly because he was a perfectionist who expected everyone around him to be on the ball, and partly because there are allusions to him being a bit of a letch. Babs Windsor's bath scene in Carry On Henry has legends attached to it. And more recently Miriam Margolyes didn't have good things to say about him in her autobiography.

Of course, many of these showbiz stories are apocryphal and June Whitfield spoke very highly of his professionalism. I know I certainly haven't paid enough attention to this stuff to spoil my enjoyment of him.

 

[LMLDallas78]

I've never watched an episode of Heartbeat.

Never watched Heartbeat??!! My goodness, you haven't lived! Only joking, I can't say I was ever a fan of it, but it was always part of Sunday tradition.

Like most things the early ones were the best with Nick Berry, Niamph Cussack and the dear old guy who played her Doctor dad.

Yes, I really like Terry Scott.

Love that info about Terry Scott, I didn't know any of that, How intriguing. His behaviour if true sadly makes him one with many.
Interesting how different women speak differently about him. You've got me wanting to know more now!

 

[AndyB2008]

The Carry Ons spring to mind. Bill had roles in a number of them: Guy Fawkes in Henry; Joan Sims's slobbish husband in At Your Convenience; part of Sid and Bernie's bungling criminal gang in Matron, etc.

He appeared in a number of sitcoms of the 70s in various supporting roles. And he also had the lead role in The Gaffer which I mentioned earlier in the thread (I have very fond memories of watching, but nothing too specific).

I think you're right that Greengrass is his best-known role. Which is probably a good point for me to confess: I've never watched an episode of Heartbeat.





Earlier this week I read that he'd had his own show on Radio Leicester in more recent years which was evidently controversial at times (he was sacked without notice in 2008, though I'm unsure of the circumstances).





Thanks for this. You know I always love finding out this stuff and you have a great memory for these details.





That's understandable. And it was certainly how I viewed the character in the earliest episodes (and again in the last episode I watched which was the first of the sequel series). Thankfully, the character's annoying over-enthusiasm is mostly diffused by the great ensemble: Megs Jenkins, who you mentioned, playing his slightly dotty mother; Ray Mort; Please Sir!'s Richard Davies and Bill Dean (now best known as Brookside grouch Harry Cross) as his social acquaintances; Robert Keegan as his brother and Lynda Baron as his sister-in-law.





I've long been curious to see Great Scott - It's Maynard!, which was the sketch show they did in the Fifties. As far as I know it's long been wiped from existence. But then I wouldn't be surprised if by now someone's found an episode or two and uploaded them you-know-where.










Yes, I really like Terry Scott. He's been pretty solid in everything in which I've seen him. I also get the sense that he's quick with the repartee, and this comes across in series like Terry & June and Happy Ever After (both of which are overdue a rewatch for me) where there are long scenes filmed fairly quickly that require supporting moments where someone fluffs a line or some mishap occurs.

From what I've read, Terry did have a reputation for being difficult to work with, partly because he was a perfectionist who expected everyone around him to be on the ball, and partly because there are allusions to him being a bit of a letch. Babs Windsor's bath scene in Carry On Henry has legends attached to it. And more recently Miriam Margolyes didn't have good things to say about him in her autobiography.

Of course, many of these showbiz stories are apocryphal and June Whitfield spoke very highly of his professionalism. I know I certainly haven't paid enough attention to this stuff to spoil my enjoyment of him.

Bill Dean in addition to playing one of Selwyn's friends, also penned the show's theme.

Prior to his death, Richard Davies was one of two main surviving actors playing the teachers in Please Sir - the other being John Alderton. (Out of the students in the series, Peter Cleall, David Barry, Carol Hawkins and Penny Spencer are still alive).

 

[Mel O'Drama]

With the first episode of Selwyn, it's back to square one in all the wrong ways. The character is zany, over the top and completely out there without the all-important grounding that came from his family, friends and familiar environs. As a one-off, transplanting Selwyn to a holiday camp is a novelty (Sykes did the same thing fairly recently in this very thread), but I have to question how on earth permanently dumping the entire cast apart from one character got beyond the germ of an idea from a writer or producer.

Sadly, the sequel series has continued to disappoint on this level.

The holiday camp setting does seem an effort to give the series a USP, but the execution leaves much to be desired. With Hi-de-Hi! still just a gleam in Perry and Croft's eyes, there's very little out there apart from (as mentioned) one-off episodes of sitcoms, so it does feel very much like a case of trial and error. Where Hi-de-Hi! eventually got it right was having a good-sized ensemble of characters on which to focus.

And this brings us on to the problem with Selwyn: there are simply too few regular faces. Apart from Selwyn and Mr Price, there is no ensemble to speak of. One or two actors have popped up in tiny recurring roles, but there's no sense of an ensemble. With the main cast made up of just two, it gives Selwyn's quirks and eccentricities far more of a platform, which isn't a good thing, in my opinion. One quickly tires of him saying "magic" and giving the thumbs up which now seems to follow every second sentence he says. Likewise, running gags with glass falling out of the window every time he leaves Price's office quickly wear out their welcome.

Selwyn is certainly not unwatchable. Helping out has been the presence of some familiar faces. From Corrie alone, there's been Percy Sugden, Chalky Whitely and Vera Duckworth.

There have also been a few laughs, most of which have come from unscripted moments. A nice example of this came from another running gag where Selwyn's bed (generally with someone sitting on it) collapses every time he leaves his chalet. In the third episode, the actors playing Mr and Mrs Thatcher evidently weren't expecting the bed on which they sat to collapse quite so forcefully. Audrey Maye - the actress playing the very proper Mrs Thatcher - fell backwards onto the bed with her legs flying up, briefly flashing her knickers straight to the camera, evoking huge gales of laughter from the studio audience (who were also presumably given an eyeful) and from Audrey herself. As she struggled to sit back up, she could be seen visibly corpsing, eventually having to lean over so that she was behind the back of the actor playing her husband in an effort to conceal her uncontrollable giggles. Funnily enough, I think I saw the same actress corpse during a scene later in the episode when balls from a bingo machine flew out at the assembled audience, one hitting her on the bonce. I suppose once you've lost it once, it sets something of a trend. But it does suggest that the cast had some fun making the series which in turn has given my own enjoyment a much-needed boost.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Never watched Heartbeat??!! My goodness, you haven't lived!

Ha ha. Yes, I'm not sure why but it simply never spoke to me.

I would be up for checking it out at some point, but with Network having gone under this year, I can't see me getting it on home media anytime soon.

Interesting how different women speak differently about him. You've got me wanting to know more now!

Well, June was renowned for being a consummate professional who got on with all her colleagues and was always on the ball when it came to knowing what was needed. I imagine she was hugely diplomatic, and she worked with a number of people who were said to be not the easiest to work with (Tony Hancock springs to mind). I imagine they appreciated working with her because she was so prepared and met their high standards. I suspect she was also too professional to be anything less than diplomatic when speaking about them.

Even so there are interviews with June like this one, where she covers how she handled his efforts to give her notes:

Sometimes he would give me advice on acting.

He'd say, 'I think you should do it this way,' and I'd say, 'Oh yes, fine.' And then I'd probably do it exactly as I had before, and he'd say, 'That's better!'

I have a couple of June's autobiographies on the bookshelf. It's a long while since I've looked them over, so I suppose I could dig them out and look for clues. That said, I think it was from these that I deduced she was the queen of diplomacy.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Bill Dean in addition to playing one of Selwyn's friends, also penned the show's theme.

He also sang it during the first series. And each episode had different lyrics to fit the current storyline. Really clever.

It's interesting to see that they've carried this theme over to the sequel series, Selwyn, even though Bill himself is no longer present. Now I'm curious to know what arrangements were made regarding this.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Selwyn came to an end last night with the final two episodes.

The kindest thing to say about this final series was that it was not as good as its predecessor. Original formula Selwyn Froggitt, however, turned out better than anticipated.

The sequel series ended with the season over and Selwyn leaving the camp for the year. I like to think he's gone back to Scarsdale where he continues to do his thing, driving family and friends mad in the process.

At the very end of the final Selwyn episode, there was a montage of some of the series' most memorable moments. Tellingly, all bar a couple of flashes were from the first three series.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Next up is another first time watch for me, but this time it's a series of which I had far more awareness than the last couple of sitcoms...

^ Even though I'm glad to have a more recently repackaged version for the space-saving qualities, I wish my set had this gorgeous cover.

Along with a few other ITV sitcoms - Please Sir! and Rising Damp spring to mind - I associate On The Buses with Saturday afternoons. And in common with those, I seem to remember catching snippets of it without much of it registering. I probably thought it was a bit daft. Not that I had an aversion to daft, but there were other factors at play. Even 40 years ago, I remember finding its aesthetics quite old-fashioned (like Rising Damp, I imagine the deliberately drab sets contributed greatly to this).

So, what do I know about this series. Well, a fair amount of the basics, really. Most of the characters and the dynamics are familiar to me: let's face it, most are more caricatures than characters, and this simplicity means once glimpsed, never forgotten. Dopey, frumpy Olive; bantering Stan; gurning Blakey with his "I 'ate you Butler". Grumpy brother-in-law Arthur. They're all present and correct. As is the memorably catchy theme tune.

While it's mostly exactly as expected from my fragmented memories, there are a few surprises. Associating this with the Seventies, I hadn't realised the series had begun as early as 1969. And in black and white, to boot. The opening titles look pretty basic here (when looking for images to post above, I was reminded of the famous cartoon opening titles, which explains why the one I got looked so malapropos). I was also surprised to see only two actors credits in the opening: Reg Varney and Cicely Courneidge.

On the cast themselves, it looks like Cicely had enjoyed a long and distinguished career before this. Having no real memory of Doris Hare in the role, it's nice to be able to view Cicely's performance objectively. I really like her, and I already wondering how I'll feel about the recast (and curious to know why it took place).

Varney I'm less excited about. Watching his performance I can't help feeling that he's nowhere near as charming/charismatic/adorable/funny as he'd like to think. There's a bit of the loud "roll up, roll up/cor blimey thing to him which belies Varney's music hall image. The cheeky chappie schtick simply isn't my kind of thing, but I view it as a necessary evil here. Like Sid James in the Carry Ons, I accept it's a big draw for many even if I'm not one of them. Also in common with Sid James, this is reinforced by the writers pandering either to the character's image or the actor's vanity by having them either pursuing or being pursued by young women half their age. It arguably taps into an element of fantasy for the middle aged heterosexual men in the audience. No matter how old they are, what shape they're in, or how dominated they are by their mother, it seems there's hope.

Stephen Lewis's one-note performance killed the mood for me on the wonderful Last Of The Summer Wine. So far in this series he's actually been fine. It's interesting to see at this point he's simply called "The Inspector". I have a feeling there'll come a turning point where he is recognised as a breakout character by the writers who then ruin things by giving us too much of a good thing. In my mind's eye Blakey and Jack were one and the same character... I suppose it must be the uniform. Jack's militant stewardship has already given us a strike, and I'm sure there'll be more depot politics to come. Hopefully funny ones.

Olive is possibly the character I remember best. Anna Karen gave her a nauseatingly stomach turning (and hilarious) smoker's cough in the first episode. So far she hasn't done a great deal, but I'm sure this will change. Her husband Arthur is played by an actor I used to confuse with Bernard Bresslaw when I was younger. So far, Michael Robbins has been pretty flawless. Dare I say he's possibly the most interesting character at this point.

Guest actors in these first two episodes have included Gwendolyn Watts - probably best known to me as Charles Hawtrey's pregnant wife, tending to his phantom pregnancy symptoms in Carry On Doctor - as the first of Stan's young clippies; and Rudolph Walker whose own sitcom from shortly after this was on the cards as a possibility last night when deciding which sitcom to crack open.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Oh yes, and I may have recently pre-ordered this:

Which may have helped tip the scale towards finally watching the series after all these years.

 

[Angela Channing]

I associate On The Buses with Saturday afternoons.

That's interesting because my earliest recollection of the show was when it was broadcast at 7pm on Fridays. That was almost certainly a repeat screening of the series because I would have been too young for the original broadcast. Although I'm sure I watched it, I have no memory of any episode. I've seen the films many times as they are often shown on TV.

On the cast themselves, it looks like Cicely had enjoyed a long and distinguished career before this. Having no real memory of Doris Hare in the role, it's nice to be able to view Cicely's performance objectively. I really like her, and I already wondering how I'll feel about the recast (and curious to know why it took place).

This comes as a complete surprise to me as I was totally unaware that another actor had originated the role of Stan and Olive's mother.

Also in common with Sid James, this is reinforced by the writers pandering either to the character's image or the actor's vanity by having them either pursuing or being pursued by young women half their age. It arguably taps into an element of fantasy for the middle aged heterosexual men in the audience. No matter how old they are, what shape they're in, or how dominated they are by their mother, it seems there's hope.

I quite like Reg Varney, I thought he was good in the film The Best Pair of Legs In The Business (1973), but he was clearly too old for the role of Stan. I do wonder whether the part was written for a younger actor but the producers decided to go with Reg Varney because they wanted a high profile actor in the role. Stan was single, living at home with his mum, horny as a teenager and chasing after young women (or at least that was how he was in the films) which would have been far more believable with an actor in his early 20s rather than the middle-aged Reg Varney.

Oh yes, and I may have recently pre-ordered this:

I think the first On The Buses film is one of the best big screen versions of a British sitcom that were made in the 1970s.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

my earliest recollection of the show was when it was broadcast at 7pm on Fridays. That was almost certainly a repeat screening of the series because I would have been too young for the original broadcast.

My Saturday afternoon memories are so vague they might well be distorted or just plain wrong.

Although I'm sure I watched it, I have no memory of any episode.

It's much the same for me. I couldn't tell you any situation that occurred in any of the episodes.

Stan was single, living at home with his mum, horny as a teenager and chasing after young women (or at least that was how he was in the films) which would have been far more believable with an actor in his early 20s rather than the middle-aged Reg Varney.

Yes - this is it exactly. Your description made me think that it had been made perhaps half a decade or so later it would be a perfect fit for someone like Robin Asquith.

I've seen the films many times as they are often shown on TV.

I think the first On The Buses film is one of the best big screen versions of a British sitcom that were made in the 1970s.

This is good to know.

My relationship with the films is the same as the series. I have memories of catching glimpses of them when they were on, but not paying attention. I think they were often on at strange times, like late at night, and frequently at times like Christmas when I was too preoccupied with other things to pay much attention to what was on telly.

I think I've mentioned before that my only specific recollection of any of the films is from one of the sequels where they visit a wildlife park and a big cat (a lion?) ends up wandering on one of the buses.

I'm very much looking forward to watching the films, and the prospect of seeing them in HD makes it feel even more attractive.

 

[LMLDallas78]

Next up is another first time watch for me, but this time it's a series of which I had far more awareness than the last couple of sitcoms...

^ Even though I'm glad to have a more recently repackaged version for the space-saving qualities, I wish my set had this gorgeous cover.

Along with a few other ITV sitcoms - Please Sir! and Rising Damp spring to mind - I associate On The Buses with Saturday afternoons. And in common with those, I seem to remember catching snippets of it without much of it registering. I probably thought it was a bit daft. Not that I had an aversion to daft, but there were other factors at play. Even 40 years ago, I remember finding its aesthetics quite old-fashioned (like Rising Damp, I imagine the deliberately drab sets contributed greatly to this).

So, what do I know about this series. Well, a fair amount of the basics, really. Most of the characters and the dynamics are familiar to me: let's face it, most are more caricatures than characters, and this simplicity means once glimpsed, never forgotten. Dopey, frumpy Olive; bantering Stan; gurning Blakey with his "I 'ate you Butler". Grumpy brother-in-law Arthur. They're all present and correct. As is the memorably catchy theme tune.

While it's mostly exactly as expected from my fragmented memories, there are a few surprises. Associating this with the Seventies, I hadn't realised the series had begun as early as 1969. And in black and white, to boot. The opening titles look pretty basic here (when looking for images to post above, I was reminded of the famous cartoon opening titles, which explains why the one I got looked so malapropos). I was also surprised to see only two actors credits in the opening: Reg Varney and Cicely Courneidge.

On the cast themselves, it looks like Cicely had enjoyed a long and distinguished career before this. Having no real memory of Doris Hare in the role, it's nice to be able to view Cicely's performance objectively. I really like her, and I already wondering how I'll feel about the recast (and curious to know why it took place).

Varney I'm less excited about. Watching his performance I can't help feeling that he's nowhere near as charming/charismatic/adorable/funny as he'd like to think. There's a bit of the loud "roll up, roll up/cor blimey thing to him which belies Varney's music hall image. The cheeky chappie schtick simply isn't my kind of thing, but I view it as a necessary evil here. Like Sid James in the Carry Ons, I accept it's a big draw for many even if I'm not one of them. Also in common with Sid James, this is reinforced by the writers pandering either to the character's image or the actor's vanity by having them either pursuing or being pursued by young women half their age. It arguably taps into an element of fantasy for the middle aged heterosexual men in the audience. No matter how old they are, what shape they're in, or how dominated they are by their mother, it seems there's hope.

Stephen Lewis's one-note performance killed the mood for me on the wonderful Last Of The Summer Wine. So far in this series he's actually been fine. It's interesting to see at this point he's simply called "The Inspector". I have a feeling there'll come a turning point where he is recognised as a breakout character by the writers who then ruin things by giving us too much of a good thing. In my mind's eye Blakey and Jack were one and the same character... I suppose it must be the uniform. Jack's militant stewardship has already given us a strike, and I'm sure there'll be more depot politics to come. Hopefully funny ones.

Olive is possibly the character I remember best. Anna Karen gave her a nauseatingly stomach turning (and hilarious) smoker's cough in the first episode. So far she hasn't done a great deal, but I'm sure this will change. Her husband Arthur is played by an actor I used to confuse with Bernard Bresslaw when I was younger. So far, Michael Robbins has been pretty flawless. Dare I say he's possibly the most interesting character at this point.

Guest actors in these first two episodes have included Gwendolyn Watts - probably best known to me as Charles Hawtrey's pregnant wife, tending to his phantom pregnancy symptoms in Carry On Doctor - as the first of Stan's young clippies; and Rudolph Walker whose own sitcom from shortly after this was on the cards as a possibility last night when deciding which sitcom to crack open.

Really enjoyed the films but was always disappointed with the series, never as funny and didn't like the audience laughter.
I'm sure the films didn't have that, but my memory is a little faded.

If the series started in '69, I'm not sure when the films were aired. I watched the series in colour so maybe I've watched re runs much later?

The series just didn't seem to have the same quality feel about it and that was only my childlike opinion and that spoiled it for me, but the films were fun, absolutely hilarious.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Really enjoyed the films but was always disappointed with the series, never as funny and didn't like the audience laughter.
I'm sure the films didn't have that, but my memory is a little faded.

Yes, the studio audience was very much a part of the sitcom, and something that I don't recall making it across to the big screen version of any sitcom which had a big screen version (think Man About The House; George & Mildred; Are You Being Served? Bless This House; The Lovers; Porridge; Dad's Army; Please Sir...). Personally, in a number of those examples I felt something was missing without the laughter because I so associated it with these characters.

Of course, the budget was always bigger with these type of films and they usually had a little more time to produce it. Plus it was probably shot in a different format (film as opposed to videotape), and often with more upmarket filming techniques, better studio sets (or even real interiors) and more location work. That said, there are a number that I feel work better on the small screen. And some of these film spin-offs will reprise the "greatest hits" from the series, often losing something in translation.

If the series started in '69, I'm not sure when the films were aired.

Looking at the transmission dates, it seems the first film (August '71) was released around six weeks before Series Five began; Mutiny On The Buses (June '72) came shortly after Series Six; and Holiday On The Buses (December '73) was released some eight months after the series had ended altogether (those dates go to show how quickly they were churning out the series. Two per year. And it looks like Series Two began just weeks after Series One ended).

I plan to save them all for after I've finished the series, since I'm assuming they're a different animal and probably non-canon (as with most big screen sitcom translations). But if anyone knows different, I may rethink.

 

[Angela Channing]

My Saturday afternoon memories are so vague they might well be distorted or just plain wrong.

It was a hugely popular series and repeated many times so I'm sure your memory is correct too.

Yes - this is it exactly. Your description made me think that it had been made perhaps half a decade or so later it would be a perfect fit for someone like Robin Asquith.

Robin Asquith would have been a far more believable age for character or one of my favourite sitcom actors Barry Evans might have been good too. However, I was thinking around about the same time when I would have watched On The Buses, a sitcom called Billy Liar was also on the telly and Jeff Rawle played the lead character. He would have been a really good fit for Stan Butler and about the right age for how the character behaved (the horny teenager vibe).

I think I've mentioned before that my only specific recollection of any of the films is from one of the sequels where they visit a wildlife park and a big cat (a lion?) ends up wandering on one of the buses.

That would have been Holiday On The Buses which I think was the weakest of the 3 films but still had some good laughs in it.

 

[AndyB2008]

NBC in the US decided to try and remake On The Buses as Lotsa Luck.

The action was transplanted to New York instead of London, and the Reg Varney, Doris Hare\Cicley Courtnage and Anna Karen characters would be played by Dom De Luise, Kathleen Freeman and Beverly Sanders.

NBC paired the show on Monday nights along with a vehicle for Diana Rigg called Diana. Sadly neither show was able to compete with The Rookies on ABC or Gunsmoke on CBS.

Midway, NBC axed Diana and moved Lotsa Luck to Fridays instead. Despite a lead in from the popular Sanford and Son (ranked at No.3), Lotsa Luck faced Top 20 hits Good Times and The Six Million Dollar Man, and basically the luck ran out.

The failure didn't hurt Dom DeLuise or Kathleen Freeman's careers though. (CBS tried to remake another LWT show with Beacon Hill, based on Upstairs Downstairs, but that flopped and an American attempt at another LWT drama\sitcom has not been attempted since.)

 

[Mel O'Drama]

one of my favourite sitcom actors Barry Evans might have been good too.

Billy Liar was also on the telly and Jeff Rawle played the lead character. He would have been a really good fit for Stan Butler and about the right age for how the character behaved (the horny teenager vibe).

Oh yes. I could see either of those working.

I'd been really trying to think of someone era-appropriate but struggled. The best I could come up with was someone like Richard O'Sullivan or thirty-somethings like James Bolam or Jim Dale.

That would have been Holiday On The Buses which I think was the weakest of the 3 films but still had some good laughs in it.

Thanks for this. It seems fitting that the only scene I can visualise from either series or film will be the very last thing I watch.

NBC in the US decided to try and remake On The Buses as Lotsa Luck.

The action was transplanted to New York instead of London, and the Reg Varney, Doris Hare\Cicley Courtnage and Anna Karen characters would be played by Dom De Luise, Kathleen Freeman and Beverly Sanders.

I've never quite got the reasoning behind American TV remaking so many of our series rather than simply importing them to screen. Perhaps it has to do with unions and creation of jobs or something. Without context it can appear a little dismissive and insular. And it's still happening with sitcoms like Ghosts.

Despite a lead in from the popular Sanford and Son

Gosh - another adaption of a British series.

CBS tried to remake another LWT show with Beacon Hill, based on Upstairs Downstairs, but that flopped and an American attempt at another LWT drama\sitcom has not been attempted since

I read about this when I watched UpDown. This seems an even more surprising remake considering the British original was very popular in the States.

 

[LMLDallas78]

Yes, the studio audience was very much a part of the sitcom, and something that I don't recall making it across to the big screen version of any sitcom which had a big screen version (think Man About The House; George & Mildred; Are You Being Served? Bless This House; The Lovers; Porridge; Dad's Army; Please Sir...). Personally, in a number of those examples I felt something was missing without the laughter because I so associated it with these characters.

Of course, the budget was always bigger with these type of films and they usually had a little more time to produce it. Plus it was probably shot in a different format (film as opposed to videotape), and often with more upmarket filming techniques, better studio sets (or even real interiors) and more location work. That said, there are a number that I feel work better on the small screen. And some of these film spin-offs will reprise the "greatest hits" from the series, often losing something in translation.





Looking at the transmission dates, it seems the first film (August '71) was released around six weeks before Series Five began; Mutiny On The Buses (June '72) came shortly after Series Six; and Holiday On The Buses (December '73) was released some eight months after the series had ended altogether (those dates go to show how quickly they were churning out the series. Two per year. And it looks like Series Two began just weeks after Series One ended).

I plan to save them all for after I've finished the series, since I'm assuming they're a different animal and probably non-canon (as with most big screen sitcom translations). But if anyone knows different, I may rethink.

Seeing those dates makes me realise I must have watched the films when they were repeated. I was too young to watch when they originally aired. I must've watched the series too when it was repeated.

As you say audience laughter was very much part of these sit coms and I didn't mind it for other shows, but I imagine I probably saw the films first which is why the films were so disappointing for me.

I've never been a fan of comedy as such, it was just part of everyday family viewing, but the films seemed different, probably as you've explained because of budget and how they were filmed.

I also really enjoyed the stories involved, there seemed so much going on with the characters jobs and home lives. Stand out ones I remember are them having to deal with women drivers and Olive having her son. I think they were from the films anyway. And also one in a holiday camp similar to Butlins that we could identify with.

Olive's husband (can't remember his name even though he was a main character) was a comedic version resembling JR Ewing how he used to speak to and treat Olive, that's just my little observation from a very young mind. Although that was probably like most comedys back then of course. That's not me getting all PC it's just how it was.



My brother and I would often mimic Reg Varney (is that the right name?) saying, "I'll get you Butler!" So funny.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Seeing those dates makes me realise I must have watched the films when they were repeated. I was too young to watch when they originally aired. I must've watched the series too when it was repeated.

Those dates would have been when they were released in cinemas. I'd imagine they wouldn't have premiered on TV for another four, five years or even six years after cinema release, which was fairly standard back then. This would put their TV premieres between 1976 and 1979 (ish), which might make it more possible for you to have seen one or two of them when they made their TV debut.

I imagine I probably saw the films first which is why the films were so disappointing for me.

Yes, that's understandable. How you view the series of On The Buses is probably similar to how I look at the 1975 Carry On Laughing series that was made for TV. I eventually discovered it on DVD after I was already very familiar with the films, and so the low budget, lack of location work and abundant studio laughter makes it feel very much an inferior product.

I've never been a fan of comedy as such, it was just part of everyday family viewing, but the films seemed different, probably as you've explained because of budget and how they were filmed.

The films were made by Hammer, who really knew their stuff when it came to filmmaking. Looking at their filmography, On The Buses seems to be their first adaption from a sitcom, and they must have got a taste for it looking at their 1970s output. I suppose the OTB film being the #2 film for 1971 made them realise there was a huge market ready to tap.

Olive's husband (can't remember his name even though he was a main character) was a comedic version resembling JR Ewing how he used to speak to and treat Olive, that's just my little observation from a very young mind.

Oh yes. Now you mention it, I can see exactly why you'd have drawn parallels with that dynamic.

 

[LMLDallas78]

This would put their TV premieres between 1976 and 1979 (ish),

That makes much more sense thank you.

This really is a fascinating trip down memory lane for me. It's bringing up so many shows I'd simply forgotten about.
And I only joined to talk about Dallas!