Dad's Army - BBC1 Sitcom - British Comedy Guide (original) (raw)

  1. 1st July: Dad's Army was best use ever of licence fee, says ex-BBC comedy chief (The Times)

Dad's Army. Image shows from L to R: Lance Corporal Jones (Clive Dunn), Private Pike (Ian Lavender), Captain Mainwaring (Arthur Lowe), Sergeant Wilson (John Le Mesurier), Private Frazer (John Laurie), Private Godfrey (Arnold Ridley). Copyright: BBC

Genre

Sitcom

Broadcast

1968 - 1977

Channel

BBC One

Episodes

80 (9 series), plus 4 short inserts

Creator

Jimmy Perry

Stars

Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier, Clive Dunn, John Laurie, Arnold Ridley, Ian Lavender, James Beck, Bill Pertwee and more

Writers

Jimmy Perry and David Croft

Directors

David Croft and Bob Spiers

Producer

David Croft

Company

14th May, 1940: With the threat of invasion from Nazi Germany a horrifying reality, a new branch of the military was created out of the men not yet in the regular army. This force, first known as the Local Defence Volunteers, would soon become known as the Home Guard - but due to the vast number of elderly volunteers it also earned the nickname of "Dad's Army".

In Walmington-on-Sea, a town on the south coast of England, the Home Guard platoon is lead by Captain George Mainwaring, the pompous local branch manager of Swallow Bank. Alongside Mainwaring are his public school educated second-in-command and the bank's chief clerk Sergeant Arthur Wilson, and local butcher, old war horse and third-in-command Lance Corporal Jack Jones.

The main body of the platoon is comprised of a number of regular privates. The most notable of these are mummy's boy and bank clerk Frank Pike, pessimistic Scottish undertaker James Frazer, black market spiv Joe Walker and elderly medical orderly Charles Godfrey.

As if the Germans and constant threat of invasion weren't bad enough, the platoon have their own local problems, not least from common greengrocer and despised chief ARP Warden Hodges; Pike's interfering mother Mavis (who has a "relationship" with Wilson); the vicar and verger who run the church hall where the platoon parade; and Mainwaring's terrifying but never-seen wife Elizabeth.

Despite all that age, war, and their own pomposity, infighting and incompetence throws at them, these fine boys make up England's last line of defence against Nazi attack. God save them - and God help us!

More about Dad's Army

Additional details

Part of

Dad's Army

Also known as

Production

Studio

Camera set-up

Multi-camera

Picture

Colour

Soundtrack

Opening theme tune written by Jimmy Perry, composed by Derek Taverner, and sung by Bud Flanagan. The Band of the Coldstream Guards conducted by Captain (later Major) Trevor L. Sharpe play the closing theme music.

Broadcast details

First broadcast

Wednesday 31st July 1968 at 8:20pm on BBC One

Next repeats

  1. Series 5, Episode 10: Today at 7pm on Gold
  2. Series 5, Episode 11: Today at 7:40pm on Gold
  3. Series 5, Episode 12: Sunday at 7:20pm on Gold
  4. Series 5, Episode 12: Monday at 3pm on Gold
  5. Series 5, Episode 12: Monday at 7pm on Gold
  6. Series 5, Episode 13: Monday at 7:40pm on Gold
  7. Series 5, Episode 13: Tuesday at 3pm on Gold
  8. Series 5, Episode 13: Tuesday at 7pm on Gold
  9. Series 6, Episode 1: Tuesday at 7:40pm on Gold

Most recent repeats

View all 4,844 repeats

Recording details