Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?

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Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?
Bob and Terry in Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads?
Genre	Comedy
Running time	30 mins
Producer(s)	James Gilbert Bernard Thompson
Starring	James Bolam Rodney Bewes Brigit Forsyth
Opening theme	What Happened To You
Ending theme	What Happened To You
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Language(s)	English
Original run	1973–1974
No. of episodes	27
Official website
IMDb profile

Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? was a hit British sitcom broadcast between January 1973 and December 1974, as the colour sequel to The Likely Lads. It was written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. There were 27 television episodes, including a 45 minute Christmas finale; and then in 1976 the Lads were reunited for a popular movie spin-off.

1 The Series
2 Regular Cast
3 Episode guide
- 3.1 Series 1
- 3.2 Series 2
4 The Radio Series
5 Feature Film
6 In popular culture
7 See also
8 External links

[edit] The Series

The show followed the resumed friendship, after five years apart, of two young working-class men, Bob Ferris (Rodney Bewes) and Terry Collier (James Bolam).

Set on Tyneside, the verbose humour derived mostly from the tension between Terry's cynical and lazy personality and Bob's ambition to join the middle class via his new white-collar job, new house, and impending marriage to his childhood sweetheart Thelma.

Since the end of The Likely Lads, in 1966, Bob has left factory life behind for an office job, although what Bob actually does is not a major factor in the show; though the fact he's now a white-collar worker, joining badminton clubs and so on, does form an important part of the new character dynamic. He is also literally moving on, up to the brand new Elm Lodge housing estate.

Terry, meanwhile, sees his army experience as giving him moral superiority over Bob. But he finds it hard to adjust to all the changes that have occurred in the five years he's been away. As is also implied by the show's title, the series plays on a feeling of nostalgia for the days of the lads' innocent youth.

The word 'likely' in the title, which in some northern English dialects means 'likeable', in this context means "likely to succeed", because in the 1960s series the two lads were on the brink of making their way in the world.

The show's catchy theme song, What Happened to You?, was written by Mike Hugg (of Manfred Mann) and La Frenais, and was performed by Hugg's session band under the name 'Highly Likely'. It made the lower reaches of the UK Top 40 in 1974. Mike Hugg also wrote the theme tune to the Likely Lads feature film.The song's poignant lyrics "What became of the people we used to be?" were clearly resonant for the 'swinging sixties' generation and also haunted the imaginations of children in the 70's, who were struck by their potential presience and saddened by their questioning sorrow.

The complete first and second series (including the Christmas special) are now available in the UK on DVD.

[edit] Regular Cast

James Bolam (Terry Collier)
Rodney Bewes (Bob Ferris)
Brigit Forsyth (Thelma Chambers: Bob's fiancée)
Sheila Fearn (Audrey: Terry's slightly older sister)

[edit] Episode guide

[edit] Series 1

Strangers On A Train - The duo are reunited by chance aboard a train.
Home Is The Hero - Terry finds it hard to adjust to life in the 1970s.
Cold Feet - Due to a misunderstanding, Terry causes havoc between Bob and Thelma, leading Bob to get cold feet about the wedding.
Moving On - A miserable Terry quits Tyneside to go round the world with an old army friend.
I'll Never Forget Whatshername - Terry, now back home again, looks up some of his old flames. His lack of success with them makes him self-pitying, and Bob smug, until a suspicion arises that Terry may once have had a fling with Thelma.
Birthday Boy - A surprise birthday party for Terry goes wrong, when someone else is accidentally invited to the party instead of him.
No Hiding Place - The lads try to avoid learning the result of an England football match before the TV highlights in the evening. Flint (Brian Glover) tries to spoil it for them in order to win a bet. This episode was remade by Ant & Dec in 2002.
Guess Who's Coming To Dinner? - Terry joins Bob and Thelma at a posh dinner party.
Storm In A Tea Chest - Thelma forces Bob to throw out his childhood junk. A fun fact revealed here is the name of the skiffle group the lads used to be in: Rob Ferris And The Wildcats.
The Old Magic - The lads test out whether they can still 'pull' or not, and end up with someone they certainly didn't expect.
Countdown - The duo get set for Bob's wedding, and we meet Thelma's dad George (Bill 'Compo' Owen), a staunchly working-class socialist.
Boys Night In - The night before the wedding. Bob refuses to have a stag night, but Terry tries to get him in the party mood nonetheless.
End Of An Era - Bob and Thelma finally marry. Things will never be the same again: old ways, old days, gone for ever... Or are they?

[edit] Series 2

Absent Friends - Terry looks after Bob's house while he's on honeymoon, and romances Thelma's younger sister Susan. This picks up some of the threads from the episode "The Old Magic".
Heart To Heart - Bob and Thelma return home, and Thelma's sister leaves Terry.
The Ant And The Grasshopper - Bob grows increasingly tired of Terry's lazy lifestyle.
One For The Road - Bob is caught drink-driving and Terry attempts to help him out.
The Great Race - The lads relive their youth with a bicycle race.
Some Day We'll Laugh About This - Terry romances Bob's bored neighbour. Also features a cheeky milkman and people falling through floors.
In Harm's Way - Terry takes a job as a hospital porter and causes a series of disasters. The victim of every one of them is Bob.
Affairs And Relations - The pair, gone fishing, catch Thelma's dad 'playing away' with a blonde in a hotel. Then Thelma turns up unexpectedly, and thinks the blonde is there with Bob.
The Expert - The sequel to "Affairs And Relations", with Thelma leaving Bob yet again.
Between Ourselves - Terry moves in with a depressed Bob, and plays housewife in Thelma's absence.
The Go-Between - Terry tries to fix things up between Bob and Thelma, but Bob ends up with his head in a gas oven. This brings to a conclusion the storyline which began in "Affairs and Relations" and has been running across four episodes.
Conduct Unbecoming - Both lads end up in court on separate assault charges involving the same local ruffian, Duggie Scafe. Scafe later turns up as Terry's milkman in the 1976 feature film.
The Shape Of Things To Come - Frightened that Terry is ruining his life, Bob decides to sever their ties but finds he can't escape him, making a down-beat finish to series 2.

In 1974, all 26 episodes from series 1 and 2 were repeated in a continuous six month run which culminated in a Christmas Special.

Christmas Special - Terry takes Bob and Thelma to a Christmas Party as their cab driver. (First broadcast: 24 Dec 1974)

[edit] The Radio Series

The 13 episodes of series 1 were adapted for the radio, using the original television cast, and were broadcast in 1975 from 30th July to 22nd October.

[edit] Feature Film

In 1976, a feature-length movie was released, directed by Michael Tuchner. By this time, both lads have moved house and Terry has a foreign girlfriend (played by Mary Tamm).

[edit] In popular culture

In 1997, British band Snuff included a cover of the series' theme tune, titled Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? on their fifth album, Potatoes And Melons Wholesale Prices Straight From The Lock Up. It is available for free download at Fat Wreck Chords. The band plays the song at most of their gigs.