John Devon Roland Pertwee, known professionally as Jon Pertwee, was an English actor. Born into a theatrical family, he became nationally known as a comedy actor, playing Chief Petty Officer Pertwee in the BBC Radio sitcom The Navy Lark (1959–1977) and appearing in four films in the Carry On series.
Ronald William George Barker was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as Porridge, The Two Ronnies, and Open All Hours.
Leslie Samuel Phillips was an English actor. He achieved prominence in the 1950s, playing smooth, upper-class comic roles utilising his "Ding dong" and "Hello" catchphrases. He appeared in the Carry On and Doctor in the House film series as well as the long-running BBC radio comedy series The Navy Lark. In his later career, Phillips took on dramatic parts including a BAFTA-nominated role alongside Peter O'Toole in Venus (2006). He provided the voice of the Sorting Hat in three of the Harry Potter films.
Frank Thornton Ball, professionally known as Frank Thornton, was an English actor. He was best known for playing Captain Peacock in the TV sitcom Are You Being Served? and its sequel Grace & Favour and as Herbert "Truly" Truelove in TV sitcom Last of the Summer Wine.
John Talfryn Thomas was a Welsh character actor, best known for supporting roles on television in the 1970s, including those of Private Cheeseman in Dad's Army (1973–1974) and Tom Price in Survivors (1975), while Thomas also appeared with Jon Pertwee in two Doctor Who serials.
Barry Leopold Letts was an English actor, television director, writer and producer, best known for being the producer of Doctor Who from 1969 to 1974.
Walter Tenniel Evans was a British actor.
The Big Business Lark is a radio comedy sitcom of partly satirical form broadcast in 1969. It stars Jimmy Edwards and Frank Thornton and was written by Lawrie Wyman as a spin-off from The Navy Lark, although no characters crossed over between the two shows. In a sense, the spin-off element was in The X Lark name format.
The Embassy Lark is a radio comedy series broadcast from 1966 to 1968 as a spin-off from The Navy Lark. It was written by Lawrie Wyman and starred Frank Thornton and Derek Francis. It was produced by Alastair Scott Johnston. Three series, of 13, 14 and 15 episodes, were made.
Sid Colin was an English scriptwriter, working for radio, television and the cinema. He is best remembered for creating the television comedy The Army Game (1957–59) and writing for Up Pompeii! (1969–1970), as well as films including Carry On Spying and Percy's Progress. He occasionally collaborated with regular Carry On series writer Talbot Rothwell. Earlier in his career, he was a musician and occasional lyricist.
Watch Your Stern is a 1960 British comedy film directed by Gerald Thomas and starring Kenneth Connor, Eric Barker and Leslie Phillips. It was based on the play Something About a Sailor by Earle Couttie.
The Navy Lark is a 1959 British comedy film based on The Navy Lark radio series broadcast on the BBC Light Programme. It featured Cecil Parker, Ronald Shiner and Leslie Phillips, Gordon Jackson and Hattie Jacques. It was filmed mainly at West Bay, Bridport, Dorset. Only Phillips had appeared on the radio version – all other parts were recast. The film was produced at Walton-on-Thames.
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 programmes. Most of the variety segments no longer exist in accordance with the BBC's practice of discarding programmes at the time.
Patricia Elvira Hake, known as Elvi Hale, is a British retired actress. She played Anne of Cleves in The Six Wives of Henry VIII, broadcast in 1970.
Heather Jean Chasen was an English actress, known for her roles in soap operas; playing Valerie Pollard in the ITV soap opera, Crossroads, from 1982 to 1986 and guest roles in Doctors, Holby City and Family Affairs. Chasen also played many roles in BBC Radio 2's The Navy Lark from 1959 to 1977, and appeared in the television series Marked Personal from 1973 to 1974. She played the recurring role of Lydia Simmonds in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a role which received positive reviews from critics and EastEnders crew and cast members. Furthermore, she appeared extensively in theatre productions and film; in 2012, she appeared in a film version of Les Misérables.
April Walker was born in 1943 in Sherborne, Dorset. She is a British actress and trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art between 1960 and 1962.
HMS Paradise is a British comedy television series which originally aired on ITV between 1964 and 1965. It is set at a Royal Navy station on an island off the Dorset coast where very little actual work takes place. The show bore strong similarities to The Navy Lark, a popular radio series. All episodes are now considered to be lost.
Alastair Ninian Scott Johnston was a British radio producer working for the BBC, mainly on comedy programmes.
Lawrence Caulfield Wyman was a British comedy scriptwriter.
