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Oh, Happy Band!

PLANS FOR a new airport in a northern province are opposed by HARRY WORTH and…his brass band. Yes, that’s right. The deadly Perry-Croft DAD’S ARMY duo sneaked this clunker out when no-one was looking.

10 Comments

10 Comments

  1. Nick

    September 4, 2012 at 10:17 am

    This got a front cover of the Radio Times I remember.

  2. THX 1139

    April 8, 2019 at 12:24 pm

    Probably the first and last thing I saw Harry Worth in. One of those megastars who slipped from the public consciousness when he was barely cold in his grave, only revived occasionally by comedy dads (or granddads, now) doing his shop window stunt. There was a theme song that ended with “Oooooooooooohhhhh, happy band!!!” Can’t recall if they did the “You have been watching” bit.

  3. Glenn Aylett

    April 14, 2019 at 6:19 pm

    I do remember two other well loved actors making poor swansongs in the early eighties, Arthur Lowe made a sitcom about a kindly public school teacher that bombed when ITV released it posthumously as it was short on laughs and 1940s public schools weren’t known for being kind olaces. Then there was John Mills attempt at a pensioner sitcom, Young At Heart, which was equally unfunny, if a bit more successful as it followed Coronation St and attracted the elderly audience from the soap.

  4. Glenn Aylett

    April 14, 2019 at 9:47 pm

    AJ Wentworth, BA, was the Arthur Lowe one. It was a good idea and probably would have worked on BBC 2, but was a bit too niche for ITV and was rather short on laughs.

  5. richardpd

    October 9, 2019 at 11:07 pm

    Leonard Rossier also had a sub-par swansong in Tripper’s Day

    Harry H Corbett was another star with a weak last show, as was Richard Beckinsale & James Beck.

  6. Droogie

    October 10, 2019 at 3:26 pm

    I remember Arthur Lowe being in a duff Roy Clarke sitcom called Potter . He died before a third season could be filmed, and was replaced by Robin Clarke in the roll instead.

    • Glenn Aylett

      October 12, 2019 at 5:27 pm

      Potter was ho hum, best remembered for Potter introducing himself with the line” used to be Potter mint, the hotter mint”, as he owned a sweet factory, but not a sitcom that ever got shown again after the early eighties. Also Lowe did an ITV sitcom around the same time about a priest, which wasn’t very funny, so his last three outings after the big one weren’t memorable, which was a shame really.
      Anyone remember the Ian Lavender sitcom, Rosie, about a copper in Scarborough that aired in the late seventies? While not laugh out loud, it was a fair attempt for him to follow up Dad’s Army and was likeable enough.

  7. richardpd

    October 12, 2019 at 11:03 pm

    Rosie started as The Growing Pains of PC Penrose, but was retooled as Rosie after one seris.

    Paul Greenwood played the title role, I can’t see Ian Lavender listed in the cast.

    In spite of it being written by Roy Clarke it’s never had a latter day revival as far as I know.

    Only The Growing Pains of PC Penrose is available on DVD according to the Wikipedia.

    • Glenn Aylett

      October 13, 2019 at 11:22 am

      Sorry it was Paul Greenwood. Always got him mixed up with Ian Lavender at the time.
      An interesting sitcom outing for the surviving Dad’s Army cast was on 1983 on Radio 2 called It Sticks Out Half A Mile, about them taking over a pier. Not particularly amusing, but interesting to see what the Eastgate Home Guard were doing after being stood down.

  8. richardpd

    October 13, 2019 at 11:21 pm

    I’ve heard of It Sticks Out Half A Mile, but not had a chance to hear it.

    It was adapted twice for TV but with no Dad’s Army Characters or cast.

    First as BBC pilot Walking the Planks & later a series by Yorkshire TV as High & Dry.

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