''Captain Fantastic'' was a regular feature of television series ''

Do Not Adjust Your Set ''Do Not Adjust Your Set'' (''DNAYS'') is a British television series produced originally by Rediffusion, London, then, by the fledgling Thames Television for British commercial television channel ITV from 26 December 1967 to 14 May 1969. The ...

'' from 1967 to 1969 which appeared as a filmed insert between the videotaped sketches. The title character was a bowler-hatted, plastic-mac wearing and umbrella carrying

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

played by David Jason.

Denise Coffey Denise Dorothy Coffey (12 December 1936 – 24 March 2022) was an English actress, director and playwright. Early life Coffey was born in Aldershot in 1936, the only child of Dorothy (''née'' Malcolm), and her husband, Denis Coffey, an Irishm ...

also appeared as the

villain A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

ous Mrs Black. Each episode was shot on location in and around

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. There was no lip sync dialogue, so episodes played like silent movies, narrated by Jason in character over a frenetic piece of library music (''Hero V. The Villain'' by Johnny Pearson). Each week Mrs Black would attempt to take over the world using the electronic gadgetry contained in her "horrible handbag", while Captain Fantastic tried to set things right using his high-tech umbrella. Each episode ended on a cliffhanger, usually accompanied by a sarcastic comment from the announcer. During one first series episode of the show,

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, musician and writer. Idle was a member of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band The Rutles, and is the writer of the music and lyrics for the Broadwa ...

followed the ''Captain Fantastic'' segment with the song "Captain Fantastic, We Love You", backed by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. The performance featured several of the regular cast members dancing while dressed as superheroes, including Jason who was dressed as

Robin Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') **Bush-robin **Forest rob ...

. Some years later Jason was to wear a

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

suit in an episode of '' Only Fools and Horses''. Once the run of ''

'' finished, the serial was incorporated into

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a Broadcast license, franchise holder for a region of the British ITV (TV network), ITV television network serving Greater London, London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until th ...

children's magazine ''

Magpie Magpies are birds of the Corvidae family. Like other members of their family, they are widely considered to be intelligent creatures. The Eurasian magpie, for instance, is thought to rank among the world's most intelligent creatures, and is one ...

''.

References

* * ITV sketch shows British superheroes Television superheroes Male superheroes {{UK-tv-prog-stub