17:35 – Sheepy’s opening caption and music.
17:40 – Thames TV morning start-up music.
17:45 – Only When I Laugh – S01E01 – A Bed with a View – A sitcom made by Yorkshire Television for ITV, written by Eric Chappell (Rising Damp, Home to Roost). It stars Christopher Strauli as Norman, a rather naive middle-class man who is admitted to a hospital ward and finds that he is sharing it with a working-class layabout called Figgis (James Bolam) and an upper-class hypochondriac called Archie (Peter Bowles). All three of them cause headaches for the hospital staff, led by Richard Wilson with Derrick Branche. This week, in the first-ever episode, Norman arrives at the ward and is given the bed next to the window. A game of musical beds ensues as Figgis and Archie want it too. First broadcast on 29th Oct 1979 by ITV. Am rerunning this for one of our now-regular viewers who missed it first time round (just catching the last 2 or 3 episodes) and would like to see it all.
18:11 – Michael Bentine’s Potty Time S03E03 – Mysteries of the Mighty Thames / The Seven Wonders of the World – a British children’s TV show, written by and starring Michael Bentine, and directed and produced by Leon Thau for Thames Television. This week, it’s no wonder that the Potties knew who built the Seven Wonders of the World; according to Professor Potsworthy, they were all built by the same Potties. And Thames Potty Lock-Keeper Bloggs finds he has a whale of a time in apprehending the greatest unlicensed inhabitant of his stretch of the river. First broadcast on Tue 18th Jan 1977 by ITV.
18:33 – The Gemini Factor S01E05 – Reflections – a 1987 six-part children’s serial starring Louisa Haigh and Charlie Creed-Miles, written by Paula Milne, directed by Renny Rye, and produced by Sheila Kinany for Thames TV. A twin brother and sister separated at birth. Two halves forming the Yin and Yang. Two telepathic minds. An ancient clock tower. A mystery to keep the mind alert. This week… well the series is obscure enough to have no Wiki page and a fairly minimal IMDb presence, so your guess is as good as mine! First broadcast on Mon 30th Nov 1987 by ITV.
18:58 – Clangers (New CBeebies Version) S01E16 – Mother’s Melody – the 2010s reboot of the famous early-1970s Oliver Postgate / Peter Firmin stop-motion children’s television series about a family of mouse-like creatures who live on, and inside, a small moon-like planet. This week, Tiny Clanger has made up a lovely new tune to play with her singing flower friends. Mother Clanger thinks Tiny is very talented, but when Tiny suggests Mother should have a go, she gets very flustered and rushes off to her garden. But Major Clanger has a plan – and soon there is the sound of lovely music coming from the garden. Who can possibly be playing? First broadcast on Mon 6th Jul 2015 at 5.30pm by CBeebies.
19:09 – Star Trek (The Original Series) S03E02 – The Enterprise Incident – This week, an apparently insane Capt. Kirk has the Enterprise deliberately enter the Romulan Neutral Zone where the ship is immediately captured by the enemy. First broadcast in the USA on Fri 27th Sept 1968 by NBC at 10pm.
20:00 – Tales of the Unexpected S01E09 – The Way Up to Heaven – a British television series that aired between 1979 and 1988. Each episode told a story, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, with an unexpected twist ending. Every episode of series one, eight episodes of series two, and one episode of series three were based on short stories by Roald Dahl, who provided introductions for the first two series. This week, in the last of the first series, a husband and wife are at odds with each other over punctuality. Could an opportunity arise to resolve their differences? First broadcast on Sat 19th May 1979 by ITV.
20:25 – Special Branch S03E06 – Red Herring – After a two-and-a-half-year break (Nov 1970 – Apr 1973) on original transmission, this show returned in a completely revamped form, now made by Euston Films in their first-ever production for Thames TV. It now stars George Sewell as DCI Alan Craven, with support from an on-off combination of Roger Rowland as DS Bill North and Patrick Mower as DCI Tom Haggerty. This week, a group of London youths are linked to several deadly bombing attempts. With connections to the IRA, the Communist Party and anarchist elements, the group continues their plot, while the Special Branch works with an explosives disposal expert to stop them. First broadcast on Wed 9th May 1973 by ITV. This episode features Roger Lloyd-Pack and Diana Quick.
21:16 – Eurotrash S06E05 – The legendary late-night magazine show starring Antoine de Caunes and Jean-Paul Gaultier, exploring unusual and bizarre topics from Europe and around the world. This week, we have Lolo Ferrari, Arielle Dombasie, Romeo Cleaners, Cowboy Village, University of Trampology, Supermodel Shopping: Nick Moss, Old Age Porn Star, Sit On Me. First broadcast on Fri 10th May 1996 by Channel 4.
21:40 – The Persuaders! E03(P08)/24 – Take Seven – A British action comedy television series starring Tony Curtis and Roger Moore, produced by ITC Entertainment. It was filmed in Britain, France, and Italy between May 1970 and June 1971. The series’ synth-laden theme music was composed by John Barry. The Persuaders are two equally-matched men from different backgrounds who reluctantly team together to solve cases that the police and the courts cannot. This week: Brett and Danny find themselves embroiled in a cat-and-mouse game of deceit and murder as a long-missing heir returns from the grave claiming a coveted, multi-million-pound fortune. But is he a sibling or an impostor? First broadcast on Fri 1st Oct 1971 by ITV. Featuring Sinéad Cusack, Christian Roberts, and Richard Hurndall. The DVDs have the episodes in (P)roduction Order, however after some thought and research I’ve decided to show them in their original LWT broadcast order (which matches IMDb & Wikipedia). Some ITV regions varied the date and order (Granada and Anglia, for example, transmitted a day earlier).
22:30 – Girls on Top S02E03 – Who’s Ya Uncle Shelley? – a British sitcom, broadcast on ITV in 1985 & 1986, made by Allan McKeown’s Witzend Productions for Central Independent Television. It starred Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Ruby Wax and Tracey Ullman (S1 only) with Joan Greenwood. It was written by French, Saunders and Wax, with additional material for two episodes written by Ullman. It was produced & directed by Paul Jackson (S1) and Ed Bye (S2). Both theme and incidental music were written and perforned by Chris Difford & Glenn Tillbrook. This week, Jennifer accidentally joins the world of big business, but her access to computers comes in handy for Amanda when she’s forced to work from home. First broadcast on Thu 20th Nov 1986 at 9.00pm by ITV. Featuring Pauline Quirke and John Sessions.
22:55 – Agony S03E03 – Hospital Romances – An ITV sitcom that aired from 1979 to 1981. Made by London Weekend Television, it stars Maureen Lipman as Jane Lucas who has a successful career as an agony aunt but whose own personal life is a shambles. It was created by Len Richmond and real-life agony aunt Anna Raeburn, both of whom wrote all of the first series. The second and third series were written by Stan Hey and Andrew Nickolds. This week, laid up in hospital after giving birth, Jane can’t seem to get any peace from all the visitors. Then she locks horns with the sister on the ward who she believes is a racist. First broadcast on Sun 1st Feb 1981 by ITV.
23:20 – Fanny Hill – DVD Extras – for the recently-shown two-part BBC adaptation of John Cleland’s controversial 1748 novel Fanny Hill, written by Andrew Davies and directed by James Hawes, that tells the story of a young country girl (Rebecca Night) who is lured into prostitution in 18th-century London. Details as follows:
23:20 – Bringing Fanny Hill to Life
23:31 – Production Difficulties
23:35 – The ‘Look’
23:42 – The Subject of Nudity
23:51 – A Tale of Morality?
23:54 – Closedown music.
23:59 – Closedown.