''A.J. Wentworth, B.A.'' is a

British sitcom A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television. Most British sitcoms are recorded on studio sets, while some have an element of location filming. A handful are made almost exclusively on location ...

that aired on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

in 1982. Set in the 1940s, the programme was shown posthumously following the death of its lead actor Arthur Lowe, who died on 15 April 1982. Based on the writings of H. F. Ellis, ''A.J. Wentworth, B.A.'' was written by Basil Boothroyd. It was made for the

network by

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

Plot

''A.J. Wentworth, B.A.'' is set in the 1940s at Burgrove, a boys' preparatory school in Wilminister, in rural England. A.J. Wentworth is the mathematics master. He is very fond of the school but inefficient at disciplining his pupils who take advantage of his kind but haphazard nature. As in the books, Wentworth has very little self-awareness. The headmaster, the Rev Saunders, who is nicknamed 'Squid' by the boys, is a

snob ''Snob'' is a pejorative term for a person who believes there is a correlation between social status (including physical appearance) and human worth.De Botton, A. (2004), ''Status Anxiety''. London: Hamish Hamilton ''Snob'' also refers to a per ...

and the

Matron Matron is the job title of a very senior or the chief nurse in several countries, including the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and other Commonwealth countries and former colonies. Etymology The chief nurse, in other words the person ...

is Wentworth's constant enemy.

Cast

* Arthur Lowe as Mr Arthur James Wentworth, BA (Cantab) *

Harry Andrews Harry Stewart Fleetwood Andrews, CBE (10 November 1911 – 6 March 1989) was an English actor known for his film portrayals of tough military officers. His performance as Regimental Sergeant Major Wilson in ''The Hill'' (1965) alongside Sean ...

as The Rev. R Gregory Saunders, MA (Oxon) * Marion Mathie as Matron *

Deddie Davies Deddie Davies (born Gillian Nancy Davies, 2 March 1938 – 21 December 2016) was a Welsh character actress. Biography Davies was born in Bridgend, Wales. She trained at RADA and is most familiar to television viewers for comedy roles in a hos ...

as Miss Coombes * Ronnie Stevens as Rawlinson *Michael Bevis as Gilbert *Marcus Evans as Mason *Alistair Callender as Anderson *Stephen Rooney as Atkins *Andrew McDonnell as Etheridge *Michael Underwood as Hillman *Paul Hawkins as Hopgood II *Simon Curry as Otterway *Halil Halil as Sapoulos *Benjamin Taylor as Trench

Production

Development

''A.J. Wentworth, B.A.'' was adapted from the writings of H. F. Ellis, which first appeared in ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

''. They were later published in two books, ''The Papers of A.J. Wentworth, B.A.'' and ''The Papers of A.J. Wentworth, B.A. (Ret'd)'', that were first published in 1949 and 1962 respectively. Arthur Lowe had also read out selections from the books in the daily literacy slot of ''

Woman's Hour ''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946. History Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by ...

''. A piece from ''A.J. Wentworth, B.A.'' was read out by

, who played the headmaster, at Arthur Lowe's memorial service.

Locations

The exterior location filming of the school took place at

Box Hill School Box Hill School is an independent coeducational boarding and day school situated in the village of Mickleham near Dorking, Surrey, England. The school has approximately 425 pupils aged 11–18. 70 percent of students are day students whilst th ...

near Dorking in Surrey. In the opening credits, the junior pupils took part.

Episodes

Home media

The Complete Series of A.J. Wentworth, B.A. was released on DVD on 9 July 2012.

References

Mark Lewisohn Mark Lewisohn (born 16 June 1958) is an English historian and biographer. Since the 1980s, he has written many reference books about the Beatles and has worked for EMI, MPL Communications and Apple Corps.

, "Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy", BBC Worldwide Ltd, 2003
''A.J. Wentworth, B.A.''
at British TV Comedy

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 0162063 1980s British sitcoms 1982 British television series debuts 1982 British television series endings ITV sitcoms English-language television shows Television shows produced by Thames Television Television series by Fremantle (company)