Private Walker

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Private Walker
Dad's Army character
James Beck-1973.png
Private Walker in "The Honourable Man" (1973), his penultimate onscreen appearance
First appearance"The Man and the Hour"
Last appearance"Things That Go Bump in the Night"
Created by
Portrayed by
In-universe information
Occupation Black market spiv
RelativesGrandmother
Affiliated with Home Guard

Private Joe Walker is a fictional black market spiv (or "wholesales supplier", as he describes it) and Home Guard platoon member, first portrayed by James Beck in the British television sitcom Dad's Army . [1] Appearing in the first six series, Walker was one of the seven primary characters in Dad's Army.

Contents

Concept and creation

Scriptwriter Jimmy Perry originally intended to play the part of Private Walker himself, but was advised against it by his co-writer David Croft. [2] The character was based on a spiv character created and performed by British comedian and actor Arthur English.

Characterisation

A cockney, Walker was born in 1906, and raised in Plainstow, East London. [3] He is the second-youngest member of the platoon, the youngest being Private Pike. A pleasant and amiable, if slightly shifty, personality, [1] Walker is nevertheless a constant thorn in Captain Mainwaring's side, for he does not share Mainwaring's idealism. However, despite this, he is a good-natured man, who is loyal to his commanding officer and platoon comrades and is a valuable asset to the platoon. This is owing to his many black market "business" connections and his ability to mysteriously conjure up almost anything that, due to the war, has become rationed or is no longer available in the shops. [1]

Possessing keen improvisational skills and cunning, Walker is usually responsible for getting the platoon out of the many scrapes they find themselves in. [1] He is constantly on the lookout for opportunities to make a few bob, often attempting to sell black market supplies to his platoon comrades, and various influential people, often at high prices and from dubious sources. [1] A ladies' man, Walker is seen with several girlfriends across the series; [4] [5] the most prominent of these is Shirley/Edith (played by Wendy Richard), who is seen in several episodes.

Walker is allergic to corned beef, which is why he has not been called up for the regular army, [1] although it is generally assumed that he has found a way to dodge the rules. This allergy was revealed in the episode "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Walker", in which he was conscripted, only to be discharged when it was found that corned beef fritters were the only rations left for the soldiers to eat. [6]

Departure

Walker's final appearance was in the episode "Things That Go Bump in the Night". Beck had only completed the location filming for this episode, filmed some time before the studio recordings, when he fell ill and died on 6 August 1973. [7] His character was last mentioned in the following episode, "The Recruit", in which it was explained that Walker had "gone up to the smoke" to "do a deal". [1] However, the character survived the war, as he is seen attending the launch of Mainwaring's "I'm Backing Britain" campaign in a scene set in 1968 in the first episode. [8]

Following Beck's death, war reporter Private Cheeseman, played by Talfryn Thomas, was brought into the series. He had previously made a cameo appearance in the episode "My British Buddy".

Other portrayals

In the radio series of Dad's Army, Graham Stark took over the role of Walker following Beck's death until Larry Martyn was cast to portray Walker for the remaining radio series. John Bardon played Walker in the stage production from 1975–76. [9]

Daniel Mays played Walker in the 2016 feature film, [10] while Mathew Horne portrayed Walker in Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes in 2019. [11]

Reception

Co-writer Jimmy Perry approved of the casting of Beck: "He had the right mix of cheekiness and charm. He gave the role a bit of oomph." [7]

Historian Mark Lewisohn wrote that, following Beck's death in 1973, "The subsequent series failed to match the brilliance of the earlier episodes, perhaps indicating how integral Beck's dodgy spiv character was to the mix." [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Beck</span> English actor (1929–1973)

Stanley James Carroll Beck was an English television actor. He appeared in a number of programmes, but is best known for the role of Private Walker, a cockney spiv, in the BBC sitcom Dad's Army from the show's beginning in 1968 until his sudden death in 1973.

"The Man and the Hour" is the first episode of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and was first broadcast on 31 July 1968. It was later adapted for radio.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Captain Mainwaring</span> Fictional character from the sitcom Dads Army

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"The Deadly Attachment" is the first episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Wednesday, October 31, 1973. It is arguably one of the best known episodes of the series due to the rare encounter between the platoon and the Germans. A scene in which a German officer demands to know Private Pike's name, and Captain Mainwaring says "Don't tell him, Pike!", has been judged as one of the top three greatest comedy moments of British television.

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Private James Frazer is a fictional Home Guard platoon member and undertaker, first portrayed by John Laurie in the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army. He is noted for his catchphrases "We're doomed!" and "Rubbish!"

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<i>Dads Army</i> British TV sitcom (1968–1977)

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.

"A Stripe for Frazer" is a missing episode of the British television comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 29 March 1969. Of the three missing Dad's Army episodes it is the only one to have been reconstructed using animation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chief ARP Warden Hodges</span> Fictional British television character

Chief ARP Warden William Hodges, commonly known as "Hodges", is a fictional greengrocer and chief air raid warden first portrayed by Bill Pertwee in the British television sitcom Dad's Army. Created by series writers Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Hodges served as Captain Mainwaring's main rival in the series, and was noted for his catchphrases "Ruddy hooligans!" and "Put that light out!".

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Dad's Army characters - British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide. 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  2. ↑ "10 things you didn't know about Dad's Army - Dad's Army - Gold". Gold . 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  3. ↑ Dad's Army Annual 1973. Manchester: World Distributors. 1 January 1973. ISBN   9780723501428.
  4. ↑ Perry, Jimmy; Croft, David (11 September 1968). "Shooting Pains". Dad's Army. Series 1. Episode 6.
  5. ↑ Perry, Jimmy; Croft, David (6 November 1969). "War Dance". Dad's Army. Series 3. Episode 9.
  6. ↑ Perry, Jimmy; Croft, David (15 March 1969). "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Walker". Dad's Army. Series 2. Episode 3.
  7. 1 2 Clark, Neil (6 August 2013). "James Beck: the Dad's Army star cut off in his prime". The Telegraph. Retrieved 29 December 2021.
  8. ↑ Perry, Jimmy; Croft, David (31 July 1968). "The Man and the Hour". Dad's Army. Series 1. Episode 1.
  9. 1 2 Lewisohn, Mark (2003). Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy. London: BBC Worldwide. p. 205. ISBN   0563487550.
  10. ↑ "Gambon and Courtenay to star in Dad's Army film - BBC News". BBC. 8 October 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  11. ↑ "Mathew Horne Interview - Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes - Gold". Gold . 2023. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
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