40 Years of Minder – A Celebration
October 29, 2019When Gunfight at the O.K. Laundrette aired at nine o’clock on Monday the 29th of October 1979, many Britons were unaware as to what precisely constituted a “Minder”’. However, the […]
Frightening Children’s TV
October 25, 2019Looking for an original scare this Halloween? Skip the horror recommendations, and dive into the world of vintage children’s television. To adults of a certain age, the words “Chocky” or […]
The Man Who Haunted Himself – Roger Moore's Finest Hour?
October 14, 2019In the 70s and 80s, late-night television often aired a cinematic gem before the latest public information film about a badly driven Vauxhall. There might be Nicky Henson and his […]
Hancock’s Hour And Three-Quarters: The Rebel
October 7, 2019“I am aiming for a universal comedy that will transcend class and state barriers.” “Cut out the slang.” That was the advice the by-then-retired Stan Laurel gave to Tony Hancock […]
Tony Hancock on the Big Screen – The Rebel and The Punch and Judy Man
September 30, 2019There are two early scenes in The Rebel that make the viewer realise they are viewing one of the finest comedies of its generation. The first is of Tony Hancock […]
Women of Character – Irene Handl
September 23, 2019“Baleful” is the mot juste (appropriate word) for the various chars, housekeepers and landladies embodied by Irene Handl, whether dealing with a “bohemian” lodger or confronting incomprehensible government paperwork. Beneath […]
Celebrating Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) at 50
September 19, 2019In the 1960s, no other TV company did crime drama like ITC. In fact, few British series of the time boasted the Hollywood-like gleam and ambition of Man In A […]
The Comedy Man – Kenneth More’s Finest Hour?
September 16, 2019To glance at any 1950s or early 1960s copy of the Spotlight Casting Directory is to be immersed in a world of ambition, hope and quiet desperation. Asides from the […]
Women of Character – Peggy Mount
August 23, 2019For many years, British cinema and television boasted a profusion of landladies, barmaids and charwomen who were forever on the alert for those who dared ‘to take a liberty’. They […]