Parsley Sidings is a BBC Radio sitcom of the early 1970s created by Jim Eldridge. It stars Arthur Lowe and Ian Lavender (who were starring in the sitcom Dad's Army at the time) and Kenneth Connor from the Carry On films. [1]
The show is set in a sleepy out of the way railway station on the main line between London and Birmingham, in the Midlands. The main characters are the station master, Mr Horace Hepplewhite (played by Arthur Lowe); his son, Bertrand (Ian Lavender); station porter Percy Valentine (Kenneth Connor); Mr Bradshaw, the signalman (also played by Kenneth Connor, as was Clara the station hen); and station tannoy announcer Gloria Simpkins (Liz Fraser, who was also in the Carry On films, and appeared in the Dad's Army feature film). The guest cast in some episodes included Bill Pertwee (also from Dad's Army, appearing in episode 11), Roger Delgado (The Master in Doctor Who in the Jon Pertwee era) with the announcer for the programme being Keith Skues.
The scripts are by Jim Eldridge (who would later go on to write for many more series, the most successful being the BBC's King Street Junior ). The series was produced by Edward Taylor, and was broadcast on BBC Radio 2. Due to the BBC's then practice of wiping tapes after the broadcast of a show, only a minority of the 21 episodes produced were still in the BBC archive; Goodbye, Parsley Sidings and The Entente Cordial are aired on BBC Radio 4 Extra occasionally and have always been in the BBC archives, while A Night Out, A Bird in the Hand and The Secret Agent were recovered between 2001 and 2003 as off-air recordings from members of the public. These episodes were aired in early 2007. All the other episodes are known to exist in private hands.
In 2008, more episodes were 'discovered', including the pilot and "The New Level Crossing". [2]
The BBC broadcast some programmes from the series in February 2011. Starting 1 November 2012, 4 Extra began a run of the whole series using audio compiled from both the BBC's own archive and private collections, with intros and outros re-recorded by original on-stage announcer Keith Skues. [3]
The signature tune is "Banjo Boy" by Roger Roger, from the LP Mood Music Vol. 18 in the Chappell music library. (This music was also used for the signature tune of the 1969–71 British TV series The Mind of Mr. J.G. Reeder .)
Series 1 | |||
Title | Recorded | First broadcast | |
Pilot | Unknown | 28-02-1971 | |
The Market Special | 01-12-1971 | 05-12-1971 | |
The Postal Express | 02-12-1971 | 12-12-1971 | |
The Beauty Queen Contest | 02-12-1971 | 19-12-1971 | |
The Inspector Calls | 03-12-1971 | 31-12-1971 | |
The 1890 Rocket | 03-12-1971 | 02-01-1972 | |
The Excursion | 07-12-1971 | 09-01-1972 | |
Cricket, Lovely Cricket | 12-12-1971 | 16-01-1972 | |
Who'll Be Mother? | 14-12-1971 | 23-01-1972 | |
The Concert | Unknown | 30-01-1972 | |
Goodbye, Parsley Sidings | 09-01-1972 | 06-02-1972 | |
Series 2 | |||
Title | Recorded | First broadcast | |
Pass The Parcel | 25-10-1972 | 29-09-1973 | |
The Flower Show | Unknown | 06-10-1973 | |
The Entente Cordiale | 15-11-1972 | 13-10-1973 | |
A Night Out | 23-10-1972 | 20-10-1973 | |
The Goods Train | Unknown | 27-10-1973 | |
A Bird in the Hand | 08-11-1972 | 03-11-1973 | |
The Purity League | 13-11-1972 | 10-11-1973 | |
The New Level Crossing | 27-10-1972 | 17-11-1973 | |
The Film Makers | 06-11-1972 | 24-11-1973 | |
The Secret Agent | 01-11-1972 | 01-12-1973 |
William Desmond Anthony Pertwee, was a British comedy actor. He played the role of Chief ARP Warden Hodges in the sitcom Dad's Army.
Arthur Lowe was an English actor. His acting career spanned 37 years, including starring roles in numerous theatre and television productions. He played Captain Mainwaring in the British sitcom Dad's Army from 1968 until 1977, was nominated for seven BAFTAs and became one of the most recognised faces on UK television.
It Sticks Out Half a Mile is a BBC Radio sitcom created by Harold Snoad and Michael Knowles as a sequel to the television World War II sitcom Dad's Army, for which Snoad and Knowles had written radio adaptations.
Arthur Ian Lavender is an English stage, film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Private Pike in the BBC sitcom Dad's Army, and is the last surviving major cast member of the series following the death of Frank Williams in 2022.
Kenneth Connor, was a British stage, film and broadcasting actor, who rose to national prominence with his appearances in the Carry On films.
Harold Edward Snoad is a British television producer, writer and director. He is best known for the television sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, starring Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift. He is also well known for having directed and produced Ever Decreasing Circles starring Richard Briers and Peter Egan, as well as Don't Wait Up starring Tony Britton and Nigel Havers.
Michael Sydney Knowles is a British actor and scriptwriter who is best known for his roles in BBC sitcoms written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft.
Frank John Williams was an English actor, best known for playing Reverend Timothy Farthing in the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army (1969–1977).
"The Man and the Hour" is the first ever episode of the British comedy sitcom Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 31 July 1968 and was later adapted for radio. It was also the first ever black and white episode. The first ever episode marked the first regular appearances of Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier, Clive Dunn, John Laurie, Arnold Ridley, Ian Lavender and James Beck.
"The Enemy Within the Gates" is the fourth episode of the first series of the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Wednesday 28 August 1968, one week later than planned, due to the Warsaw Pact Invasion of Czechoslovakia.
"Under Fire" is a missing episode in the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Saturday 5 April 1969. One of the three missing Dad's Army episodes, the videotape was wiped for reuse. The last episode of series 2, it was the final Dad's Army episode to be recorded in black and white.
"Something Nasty in the Vault" is the fifth episode of the third series of the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Thursday 9 October 1969.
"The Recruit" is the seventh episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 12 December 1973.
Dad's Army is a 1971 British war comedy film and the first film adaptation of the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army (1968-1977). Directed by Norman Cohen, it was filmed between series three and four and was based upon material from the early episodes of the television series. The film tells the story of the Home Guard platoon's formation and their subsequent endeavours at a training exercise. The film version of the television series comprises the following cast members: Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier, Clive Dunn, John Laurie, Arnold Ridley, Ian Lavender and James Beck.
"Broadcast to the Empire" is the fourth Christmas Night with the Stars sketch of the British television comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Monday 25 December 1972. A full-length radio version was also made, entitled Ten Seconds From Now, which was the last radio episode to be made.
"A Brush with the Law" is the eleventh episode of the fifth series of the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 15 December 1972.
Christmas Night with the Stars is a television show broadcast each Christmas night by the BBC from 1958 to 1972. The show was hosted each year by a leading star of BBC TV and featured specially made short seasonal editions of the previous year's most successful BBC sitcoms and light entertainment programs. Most of the variety segments no longer exist in accordance with the BBC's practice of discarding programmes at the time.
Dad's Army is a British television sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and originally broadcast on BBC1 from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. It ran for nine series and 80 episodes in total; a feature film released in 1971, a stage show and a radio version based on the television scripts were also produced. The series regularly gained audiences of 18 million viewers and is still shown internationally.