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2point4 Children
''2point4 Children'' is a BBC Television sitcom that was created and written by Andrew Marshall. It follows the lives of the Porters, a seemingly average, working-class London family whose world is frequently turned upside-down by bad luck and bizarre occurrences. The show was originally broadcast on BBC One from 1991 to 1999, and ran for eight series, concluding on 30 December 1999 with the special episode "The Millennium Experience". Lead actor Gary Olsen (who played the father) died from cancer in September 2000. The show is regularly repeated in the UK. In Australia showings are on UKTV. The name of the show comes from the stereotypical average size of a typical nuclear family in the UK. The show regularly picked up audiences of up to 14 million throughout the 1990s, with an average of between 6 and 9 million. The final episode was viewed by 9.03 million people. In 1997 a remake of the show debuted in the Netherlands: ''Kees & Co'' starring Simone Kleinsma. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use new characters in each sketch, and stand-up comedy, where a comedian tells jokes and stories to an audience. Sitcoms originated in radio, but today are found mostly on television as one of its dominant narrative forms. A situation comedy television program may be recorded in front of a studio audience, depending on the program's production format. The effect of a live studio audience can be imitated or enhanced by the use of a laugh track. Critics disagree over the utility of the term "sitcom" in classifying shows that have come into existence since the turn of the century. Many contemporary American sitcoms use the single-camera setup and do not feature a laugh track, thus often resembling the dramedy shows of the 1980s and 1990s rathe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
UKTV (Australia And New Zealand)
BBC UKTV is an Australian pay television channel in Australia and New Zealand, screening British entertainment programming, sourced mainly from the archives of the BBC, RTL Group (mainly Talkback Thames material) and ITV plc. The channel was originally a joint venture with Foxtel (60% ownership), the RTL Group (20% ownership) and BBC Worldwide (20% ownership). It is now owned solely by BBC Studios. It is the home of the channel's flagship programme ''The Graham Norton Show''. History The channel was first launched in Australia in August 1996, becoming available on Austar in April 1999 and on Optus in December 2002. A New Zealand version with different programming launched on Sky TV, in November 2003. It shows a mix of repeats of old UK shows previously screened in Australia or New Zealand and new episodes of programs not shown before in Australia or New Zealand. Repeated series include ''Doctor Who'', ''Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'', '' Are You Being Served?'', '' Dad's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yahoo! News
Yahoo! News is a news website that originated as an internet-based news aggregator by Yahoo!. The site was created by a Yahoo! software engineer named Brad Clawsie in August 1996. Articles originally came from news services such as the Associated Press, Reuters, Fox News, Al Jazeera, ABC News, ''USA Today'', CNN and BBC News. In 2001, Yahoo! News launched the first "most-emailed" page on the web. It was well-received as an innovative idea, expanding people's understanding of the impact that online news sources have on news consumption. Yahoo allowed comments for news articles until December 19, 2006, when commentary was disabled. Comments were re-enabled on March 2, 2010. By 2011, Yahoo had expanded its focus to include original content, as part of its plans to become a major media organization. Veteran journalists (including Walter Shapiro and Virginia Heffernan) were hired, while the website had a correspondent in the White House press corps for the first time in February 20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shirley Bassey
Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists in Britain. Born in Cardiff, Bassey began performing as a teenager in 1953. In 1959, she became the first Welsh person to gain a number-one single on the UK Singles Chart. In the following decades, Bassey amassed 27 Top 40 hits in the UK, including two number-ones. She became well-known for recording the soundtrack theme songs of the James Bond films '' Goldfinger'' (1964), '' Diamonds Are Forever'' (1971), and '' Moonraker'' (1979). In 2020, Bassey became the first female artist to chart an album in the Top 40 of the UK Albums Chart in seven consecutive decades with her album '' I Owe It All To You''. Bassey has also had numerous BBC television specials, and she hosted her own variety series, '' Shirley Bassey''. In 2011, BBC aired th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chiswick
Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Fuller's Brewery, London's largest and oldest brewery. In a meander of the River Thames used for competitive and recreational rowing, with several rowing clubs on the river bank, the finishing post for the Boat Race is just downstream of Chiswick Bridge. Old Chiswick was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with an agrarian and fishing economy beside the river; from the Early Modern period, the wealthy built imposing riverside houses on Chiswick Mall. Having good communications with London, Chiswick became a popular country retreat and part of the suburban growth of London in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was made the Municipal Borough of Brentford and Chiswick in 1932 and part of Greater London in 1965, when it m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roger Lloyd-Pack
Roger Anthony Lloyd-Pack (8 February 1944 – 16 January 2014) was an English actor. He is best known for playing Trigger in ''Only Fools and Horses'' from 1981 to 2003, and Owen Newitt in '' The Vicar of Dibley'' from 1994 to 2007. He later starred as Tom in ''The Old Guys'' with Clive Swift. He is also well known for the role of Barty Crouch Sr. in ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' and for his appearances in ''Doctor Who'' as John Lumic in the episodes " Rise of the Cybermen" and " The Age of Steel". He was sometimes credited without the hyphen in his surname. He died in 2014 from pancreatic cancer. Early life Lloyd-Pack was born in Islington, London, the son of actor Charles Lloyd-Pack (1902–1983) and Ulrike Elisabeth (''née'' Pulay, 1921–2000), an Austrian Jewish refugee who worked as a travel agent. He attended Bedales School near Petersfield in Hampshire, where he achieved A Level passes in English, French and Latin. He subsequently trained at the Royal Acad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Raffield
Paul Raffield (born 19 June 1957, London) is a British academic, director and actor. He had a successful career in the theatre before embarking on an academic career at the University of Warwick in 2004. In addition to his many leading roles in the theatre, he played two different characters in '' Coronation Street'': in 1996 as Dr Stirling, and in 2005 as a vicar. Other TV credits include ''After You've Gone'', ''The Worst Week of My Life'', ''The Robinsons'', ''The Bill'', ''Karaoke'' and ''2point4 Children''. Films include ''Vera Drake'', '' Stoned'' and '' Buddy's Song''. He appeared in two series of Steven Moffat's sitcom '' Joking Apart'' as Robert Glazebrook, opposite Tracie Bennett as his wife, supporting Robert Bathurst and Fiona Gillies. Raffield took part in the audio commentary for the DVD release of the second series in 2008. Shortly after filming the pilot for ''Joking Apart'', he briefly appeared in ''Press Gang'', in the fourth-season episode "Bad News", also ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Annette Kerr
Catherine Annette Kerr Peacock (2 July 192023 September 2013), known professionally as Annette Kerr, was a Scottish born actress of film, television and stage. Life and career During her childhood, Kerr moved with her family from her birthplace in Scotland to Watford, Hertfordshire, where he father worked as a physiotherapist. She made her theatrical debut at the Watford Palace Theatre, and later trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. Frequent reference to Kerr is made in '' The Kenneth Williams Diaries'' (edited by Russell Davies). Kerr and Williams were close friends, and worked together in several stage productions. Davies, Russell (ed.) (1993): ''The Kenneth Williams Diaries''. following their first meeting in 1949. At one point, Williams proposed to her.Obituary: Annette Kerr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barbara Lott
Barbara Dulcie Lott (15 May 1920 – 19 December 2002) was a British actress probably best remembered as Ronnie Corbett's character's mother, Phyllis Lumsden in the BBC television sitcom '' Sorry!''. She also appeared in '' Coronation Street'', '' Rings on Their Fingers'', '' Survivors'', ''Z-Cars'' and as Rona's auntie Pearl in the BBC television sitcom ''2point4 Children'', amongst others. Lott was born on 15 May 1920 in Richmond upon Thames, Surrey. Her father, William Lott, was an executive at Ealing Studios and Lott appeared in small roles in films as a child. She studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1937 and joining repertory theatre. In 1940, she married Stuart Latham, who was later a producer of '' Coronation Street''. Lott eventually made her London stage debut in ''Love for Love'' at the Haymarket Theatre in 1944. Her first television appearance was as Viola in ''Twelfth Night'' in 1950 and she went on to appear frequently on televis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sandra Dickinson
Sandra Dickinson (née Searles) is an American-British actress. She trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. She has often played characters who fell into the trope of a dumb blonde with a high-pitched voice. Early life Dickinson was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Maryland with her younger brother. Her father, Harold F. Searles, was a psychoanalyst. Her mother, Sulvii "Sylvia" Manninen, of Finnish descent, was a nurse. Career In 1973, at the age of 24, she made her acting debut as a waitress in the 1973 British film ''The Final Programme''. She is perhaps most well-known for her role of Trillian in the TV series of Douglas Adams's ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''. She has appeared in films including ''Superman III'', '' Supergirl'', '' StagKnight'', '' Ready Player One'' and ''The Batman''. She has provided the American voice of Jemima Puddle-Duck in the British animated children's television series ''The World of Peter Rabbit and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patricia Brake
Patricia Ann Brake (25 June 1942 – 28 May 2022) was an English actress. From the age of 16, Brake trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, before joining the Salisbury Playhouse. She joined the Royal Shakespeare Company where (among other roles) she played Hermia in a production of ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'', directed by Peter Hall (director), Peter Hall, which also featured Judi Dench, Diana Rigg, Ian Richardson and Ian Holm. This was followed by a period in the West End Theatre, West End. She began appearing on television in such series as ''Emergency – Ward 10'', ''No Hiding Place'' and ''A Sharp Intake of Breath'' with David Jason, and also had film roles in ''My Lover, My Son'' (1970), ''The Optimists of Nine Elms'' (1973). Brake played Ingrid Fletcher, the daughter of Norman Stanley Fletcher, in the BBC sitcom ''Porridge (TV series), Porridge'', and its sequel ''Going Straight''. In 2015, she guest-starred in the BBC ongoing drama ''Casualty (TV series), Cas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liz Smith (actress)
Betty Gleadle (11 December 1921 – 24 December 2016), known by the stage name Liz Smith, was an English character actress, known for her roles in BBC sitcoms, including as Annie Brandon in '' I Didn't Know You Cared'' (1975–1979), the sisters Bette and Belle in '' 2point4 Children'' (1991–1999), Letitia Cropley in '' The Vicar of Dibley'' (1994–1996) and Norma Jean Speakman ("Nana") in '' The Royle Family'' (1998–2000, 2006). She also played Zillah in '' Lark Rise to Candleford'' (2008) and won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for the 1984 film ''A Private Function''. Early life Liz Smith was born Betty Gleadle in 1921 in the Crosby area of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire.Liz Smith gets MBE This Is Scunthorpe, 14 July ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
