Six Dates With Barker
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| Six Dates With Barker | |
|---|---|
| Format | Comedy |
| Starring | Ronnie Barker Christopher Timothy Valentine Dyall Lesley-Anne Down Michael Bates Freddie Jones Michael Hordern |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | London Weekend Television |
| Original run | 8 Jan 1971 – 12 Feb 1971 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
Six Dates With Barker were a series of six one-off, half hour situation comedies showcasing the talents of Ronnie Barker. All were broadcast by London Weekend Television early in 1971.
Writers on the series included John Cleese, Graham Chapman and Spike Milligan. The producer was Humphrey Barclay.
Contents |
[edit] Episode list
- Show 1 - 1937: The Removals Person
- Transmitted 8 January 1971
- Barker plays Fred, a short sighted removals man who works whilst the owner of the house watches The Coronation. Also starring Joan Behham, Gillian Fairchild, Nan Braunton and Christopher Timothy. Written by Hugh Leonard. [1] [2]
- Show 2 - 1899: The Phantom Raspberry Blower of Old London Town
- Transmitted 15 January 1971
- A mysterious figure who blows raspberries at people terrifies Victorian London. Also starring Alan Curtis, Moira Foot, Larry Noble, Christine Ozanne and John Sharp. Written by Spike Milligan [3] [4]
- Show 3 - 1970: The Odd Job
- Transmitted 22 January 1971
- When his wife leaves him, Barker hires a passing odd job man to kill him when he least expects it. When his wife returns he finds his previous request impossible to cancel. Also starring David Jason and Joan Sims. Written by Graham Chapman and Bernard McKenna [5] [6]
- Show 4 - 1915: Lola
- Transmitted 29 January 1971
- A top female agent goes missing after the German Head of Espionage fails to monitor her properly. Also starring Graham Armitage, Valentine Dyall, Freddie Earle, Freddie Jones and Dennis Ramsden. Written by Ken Hoare and Mike Sharland [7] [8]
- Show 5 - 1971: Come in and Lie Down
- Transmitted 5 February 1971
- Barker plays Dr Swanton, a psychiatrist who is visited by a patient (Michael Bates), who is so terrified of being diagnosed with mental problems, he pretends to be a gasman. Written by John Cleese [9] [10]
- Show 6 - 2774 AD: All the World's a Stooge
- Transmitted 12 February 1971
- Also starring Lesley-Anne Down, Joyce Grant, Michael Hordern and Victor Maddern [11]
[edit] Spin-offs
There were several spin-offs to come from this series.
- The Phantom Raspberry Blower of Old London Town was turned into a series of sketches in the 1976 series of The Two Ronnies, though this time David Jason was the disguised phantom blower.
- The Odd Job Man became a 1978 film, retitled The Odd Job. Extended from the original TV version to feature length. Though this time, original co-writer Graham Chapman took Barker's part, Diana Quick took the part of his wife, originally played by Joan Sims. David Jason as the hitman was the sole original cast member in this movie (though even his part was at first going to be played by Keith Moon).
- The Removals Persons was turned into Ronnie Barker's final TV series Clarence, seventeen years after the original was made. This time, written by Barker, using the pseudonym, Bob Ferris. Coincidentally the name of Rodney Bewes character in The Likely Lads.
[edit] Archive Status
Unlike many television programmes of its time, all six shows exist in the archives. They have not yet been released on DVD.
[edit] Trivia
All episodes were filmed in colour except The Odd Job, which was filmed in black and white due to a Colour Strike. [12]
[edit] External links
- Six Dates With Barker at the bbc.co.uk Guide to Comedy
- Six Dates With Barker at the British Film Institute
- Six Dates With Barker at the Internet Movie Database
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