Broadcast to the Empire
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Christmas Night With the Stars Insert: Broadcast to the Empire |
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| Script | Jimmy Perry and David Croft |
|---|---|
| Director | David Croft |
| Producer | David Croft |
| Recorded | Sunday 26/11/72 |
| Original transmission | Monday 25/12/72 |
| Series | N/A |
| Length | ?? |
| Original Viewing Figures | ?? |
| Preceded by | 1970: The Cornish Floral Dance |
| Followed by | N/A |
Broadcast to the Empire is the fourth and final Christmas Night With the Stars Insert of the British comedy series Dad's Army that was originally transmitted on Monday 25 December 1972.
Contents |
[edit] Synopsis
The platoon are very excited as they have been chosen to take part in the BBC radio Christmas Broadcast, just before the King's speech.
[edit] Plot
The platoon are excited by the broadcast, which they will be doing from the Church Hall. There is a great deal of excitement in the platoon, through the typically cynical Hodges bets they will "make a right mess of it"
During run-through practice the script, the BBC official annoys Mainwaring by telling him he doesn't sound like an officer, and suggesting that he and Wilson switch parts. Jones, meanwhile, irritates the sound engineer by continual banging on the microphone. The rest of the men play-up to their usual roles. The BBC sound effects machine is broken, and they are forced to imitate many of the noises themselves.
With a few moments to go the BBC Official reveals they have been cut from the programme, because it was over-running. The platoon take their revenge by all banging on the microphone.
[edit] Notes
This episode was notable as it is only 15 minutes long, takes place in one setting. It is not counted in the canon of the series. In spite of this it is very popular with Dad's Army fans because of the well-balanced script, and the ensemble performance of the cast.
It was only released on DVD in 2007 as an extra on the Christmas Specials edition.
This was later extended into a full episode for the radio series.
[edit] Cast
| Cast | Characters |
| Arthur Lowe | Captain Mainwaring |
| John Le Mesurier | Sergeant Wilson |
| Clive Dunn | Lance Corporal Jones |
| John Laurie | Private Frazer |
| James Beck | Private Walker |
| Arnold Ridley | Private Godfrey |
| Ian Lavender | Private Pike |
| Bill Pertwee | ARP Warden |
| Peter Greene | BBC Engineer |
| Michael Knowles | Mr Willerby Troughton-Maxwell BBC Producer |
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