ADVENTURE WEEKLY
'Adventure Weekly' was the name of a junior newspaper set up by five budding reporters; Peter (Brent Oldfield), Andy (Len Jones), Tubby (Ian Ellis), Swot (Frank Barry) and Fred (Elizabeth Dear). As dynamic young reporters they got involved in a whole series of adventures spread over 13 episodes which included capturing a team of post office robbers and covering the story of an unexploded WWll bomb. The kids are offered facilities within the local 'Cliffsea Reporter' offices, itself an ailing publication with a very modest circulation which is faced with imminent closure until it is bought out by London based newspaper magnate Lord Huntingford. Even then the junior journolists are faced with losing the paper's support until they mount a successful campaign to save it and ultimately uncover their biggest scoop to date. The series was originally conceived as a seven-part childrens' drama by the late Shaun Sutton, who was later to become BBC TV’s Head of Drama, but when the extra episodes were added Sutton realised that he was too involved with other projects and he called in Victor Pemberton to write six of them. It was Pemberton's first job for the BBC and he remembers it with affection: "Although the idea was hardly earth-shattering, the series and characters were really very appealing. I enjoyed the job very much, not only because it gave me valuable television writing experience, but also because it gave me the chance to work with the late Joan Hickson, that enchanting Miss Marple in a later BBC TV series." Sutton was instrumental in casting Patrick Troughton in the role of 'Doctor Who' and then chose Jon Pertwee to succeed him. Victor Pemberton went on to have a close association with 'Who' and the series was directed by another Doctor Who legend; Barry Letts. The other episodes were written by Ian Shurey and P.J. Hammond, the latter of whom devised the science fiction series 'Sapphire and Steel'.
13 Episodes of 25 minutes duration. B&W. BBC TV 1968-69.
ADVENTURES IN PARADISE
Created by James A. Michener, Adventures In Paradise starred Gardner McKay as Adam Troy, the handsome captain of a schooner called the Tiki. Troy, a veteran of the Korean War, became involved in all kinds of comings and goings featuring fortune hunters and freebooters as well as a host of beautiful Tahitian women. Our hero had a number of partners during the series three-year run including a Chinese-American called Oliver Lee (Weaver Levy), Clay Baker (James Holden) and Chris Parker (Guy Stockwell). Although set in the South Pacific the series was filmed on the back-lot of 20th Century-Fox. Following the cancellation of the series McKay turned his back on showbusiness to travel the world. He returned to acting in the 1960's and later became a playwright, drama critic and teacher. He passed away at the start of 2002 aged 69.
91 episodes of 60 minute duration. ABC. Black and white. 1959-1962.
THE ADVENTURES OF BLACK BEAUTY
Anna Sewell (1820-78) wrote only one book in her lifetime but it became an all time children's classic. The book, for which Sewell received just £20.00, was published in 1877 just three months before her death, and told the story of a black mare who had been brutally treated by a succession of cruel owners until it was finally taken in by a kind family that nursed it back to health. The TV series, with specially written scripts, was set on a beautifully spacious Victorian country estate and featured Judi Bowker as Vicky Gordon, the thoroughbred's latest owner. (When Bowker left the series Stacy Dorning as Jenny replaced her). Other members of the cast included William Lucas as Dr James Gordon and Roderick Shaw as Kevin Gordon and sharing the directorial seat was Charles Crichton who later went on to make the hit movie A Fish Called Wanda. A sequel, The New Adventures of Black Beauty was made in 1990 with Lucas and Dorning reprising their roles.
54 Episodes of 30 minute duration and 1 of 55 minutes. 1972-74 and 1990.
ALICE
Very early BBC TV outing for Lewis Carroll's classic fantasy produced by George More O'Ferrall and transmitted live as a Christmas treat on 21st December 1946. Subtitled 'Some of her Adventures in Wonderland' this 40 minute broadcast was shown twice (performed live) before disappearing into the ether forever. Vivian Pickles played Alice and supporting cast included Erik Chitty-twenty years before he appeared as 'Smithy' in 'Please Sir!-and a young Miriam Karlin years before she starred as the stroppy shop steward who became something of a national institution in 'The Rag Trade'.
2 showings - 40 minute duration. BBC TV. First broadcast 21/12/1946.
ALL OUR YESTERDAYS
One of Granada Television's most successful series of all time, produced originally by Tim Hewat, 'All Our Yesterdays' began in 1960 and was presented by noted foreign correspondent James Cameron who linked together edited version of two 1930s cinema newsreels from the same week twenty-five years ago. In 1961 Dublin born journalist and historian Brian Inglis took over and it was with him that the programme became best remembered. Lasting only twenty minutes each programme took a somewhat light-hearted look at past life; but by 1964 it took on much darker and serious overtones as it concerned itself with the rise of Nazism and ultimately the outbreak of World War Two. Studio guests and newspaper articles were also used to get a flavour of the time and light relief came in the form of ‘Daily Express’ cartoonist Osbert Lancaster’s satirical caricatures, the captions of which were read by actors. One wartime newsreel that the audience found particularly amusing was "Hoch der Lambeth Valk", a propaganda film of a Nazi rally, with goose-stepping parades, which was re-edited, reversing frames in some sequences, so that the marchers appeared to be dancing to the Cockney song "The Lambeth Walk". The programme continued with the war years throughout the rest of the 1960s and in the early 1970s took a look at post war austerity and how the world (but mostly Britain) came to terms with the after-effects of the conflict. 'All Our Yesterdays' finished its run in 1973 after thirteen years on the air. In 1975 Brian Inglis wrote and narrated a unique sound archive of World War Two for the record label Cameo Classics, entitled 'Sounds of All Our Yesterdays'. The series was revived in 1987 and was presented by veteran broadcaster Bernard Braden, utilising footage from the archives of Granada, ITN and Pathe Newsreel-but it finally disappeared from our screens in 1989.
20 minute duration. ITV TV. 1960 - 73. 1987 - 89.
AND MOTHER MAKES THREE
Almost a direct follow on from the BBC's hugely popular 'Not In Front Of The Children' starring Wendy Craig who was in an almost constant state of domestic discord, only on this occasion she was left carrying the babies herself as she was cast as widow Sally Harrison. However, the babies in question, Simon (Robin Davies) and Peter (David Parfitt) were in fact two almost-teenagers and help was often at hand from Auntie Flo (Valerie Lush). Craig played her role with a delightful scatterbrained aplomb that was to become something of a trademark for her in a long and distinguished television career. There were four series altogether and by the end of the last Sally had met, fallen in love with, and married antiquarian bookseller David Redway (Richard Coleman). This lead to a sequel...'And Mother Makes Five' (David had a daughter, Jane, played originally by Miriam Mann and in the sequel by Maxine Gordon), for which Wendy Craig wrote several episodes under the pseudonym Jonathan Marr.
26 episodes of 30-minute duration. ITV. 1971-73.
ANDY ROBSON
Based on Frederick Grice’s 1969 novel, 'The Courage of Andy Robson', about a young boy (Tom Davidson) who is uprooted from his life in the pit community of Easington, in 1910, when his father is killed in a mining accident. Andy is sent to stay in a remote part of Northumberland, but after upsetting his new schoolmaster and making an enemy of the school bully he realises he has a lot to learn about rural life. Andy is given a dog to care for but in the second episode (Plague Dogs) an outbreak of rabies further alienates him from the locals. Help is at hand in the form of upper class Victoria Dennison (Stephanie Tague) and local lad Alec (Stevie-Lee Pattinson) whom he befriends. The trio shared numerous adventures across two seasons including intrigue with foreign agents, hunting for buried treasure and preparing for a royal visit.
20 episodes of 30 minute duration. Tynne Tees. 1982 - 1983
ARREST AND TRIAL
Innovative US crime drama series which was almost two programmes in one. The 90 minute presentation was split into two parts. In the first 45 minute segment viewers saw Ben Gazzara as LA Detective Sgt. Nick Anderson as he hunted down the suspect to a crime and ultimately made the arrest. Then in the second part Chuck Connors appeared as attorney John Egan and the police procedule turned into courtroom drama as Egan attempted to get the accused acquitted. The series ran for just one season.
30 episodes of 90 minute duration. B&W. ABC 1963-64.
ASK ASPEL
Hard to believe it in this day and age but in 1970, long before the video revolution, the only way to see your favourite clips from the previous week's television was to write in to Michael Aspel, the genial TV presenter who became one of the country's most familiar faces during the 1960s and 1970s, as a regular presenter of the evening news, before moving on to a wide variety of light entertainment roles including the long running BBC children's TV series, 'Crackerjack' and his own TV series, 'Ask Aspel.' Each week Michael's postbag would be full of requests to rerun favourite clips-mainly from children's shows but with a few adult programmes slipping in from time to time including 'Monty Python's Flying Circus', 'The Goodies', 'Top Of The Pops' and 'The Morecambe & Wise Show'-to name but a few. Mike also got to interview the likes of John Cleese, Peter Cushing, Roger Moore and the top pop stars of the day such as Kate Bush. The series proved popular with young viewers and enjoyed two runs, finally finishing in 1981 by which time VCR's were becoming more commonplace in British homes and viewers could keep their own favourite clips to watch whenever they wanted...which is more than the BBC did with much of their archive material!
BBC TV 1970-73 and 1976-81.
ASK THE FAMILY
'Ask the Family' was a quiz show which originally was hosted by Robert Robinson and proved suprisingly durable running from 1967 to 1984 on BBC 1. The programme involved two family teams, made up of a mother and father and two teenage children who would be asked questions on a variety of subjects. The series became famous for its picture puzzles, especially for photographs of ordinary objects taken in extreme close-up - which became the programme's trademark - and animated caption slides prepared by Eric Ilett. It was also noted for its unusual theme music, a sitar piece called "Acka Raga" performed by the jazz musician Jon Mayer. The series was presented in a terribly middle class British manner so when it was revamped and revived in 2005 it caused almost a public outrage. The latest incarnation broadcast on BBC2 was hyped by the Beeb as the first primetime outing for Dick'n'Dom, two children's presenters who had hosted the Saturday morning show Dick 'n Dom in da Bungalow...one of the lesser regarded Saturday morning offerings on BBC TV. Their new venture received a critical mauling too. In fact, the show's original creator, Patricia Owtram, felt compelled to write a letter to 'The Times' newspaper in which she complained: "I was appalled that, in a programme in which small girls took part, there were so many jokes about willies and so much sexy cuddling between a presenter and an over-excited mother. I sound like a Grumpy Old Producer. I probably am. If the BBC was going to take someone's idea, make it over, use excerpts from it, repeat selected programmes, and devote airtime to knocking them down, it might have been a courtesy to tell the deviser that this was going to happen." This complaint was echoed by the show's former producer Rosalind Gold who likened the new version to "witnessing your favourite aunt prostituting herself for a cheap thrill." Methinks they were none too happy!
