''Oh Happy Band!'' is a BBC television

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 ...

written by David Croft and

Jeremy Lloyd John Jeremy Lloyd, OBE (22 July 1930 – 23 December 2014) was an English writer, screenwriter, author, poet and actor. He was the co-writer of several successful British sitcoms, including ''Are You Being Served?'' and Allo 'Allo!''. Ear ...

. The series ran for six episodes in 1980 on BBC 1, and featured the last screen appearance of comedian Harry Worth. For musical sequences, the series featured the

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

Brass Ensemble. Since broadcast, the series has not been repeated or released on any home consumer media.

Plot

Harry (Harry Worth) is the conductor of a brass band in the small (fictional) northern town of Nettlebridge. During the course of the series, he and his fellow band members become involved in a campaign to prevent the building of a new airport over their town.Oh Happy Band!
at David Croft.co.uk, retrieved 7 July 2010

Cast

* Harry Worth as Mr. Beddington *Margaret Clifton as Miss Mayhew *

Jonathan Cecil Jonathan Hugh Gascoyne-Cecil (22 February 1939 – 22 September 2011), known as Jonathan Cecil, was an English theatre, film, and television actor. Early life Cecil was born in London, England, the son of Lord David Cecil and the grands ...

as Mr. Herbert * John Horsley as Mr. Braithwaite * Billy Burden as Mr. Sowerby *

Tom Mennard Tom Mennard (11 February 1918 – 2 November 1989) was an English comedian and actor. Mennard had a long career in variety, radio and television. Mennard was born in Beeston, Leeds, the son of an undertaker.Roy Hudd & Philip Hindin, ''Roy Hudd's ...

as Mr. Pilgrim *

Tony Sympson Tony Sympson (10 July 1906 – 30 March 1983) was a British actor. Selected filmography * ''The Indiscretions of Eve'' (1932) - Pip * ''Sexton Blake and the Mademoiselle'' (1935) - Tinker * '' Sexton Blake and the Bearded Doctor'' (1935) - ...

as Mr. Giles *

Jan Holden Valerie Jeanne Wilkinson (9 May 1931 – 11 October 2005) was an English actress known as Jan Holden, using her mother's maiden name as a stage name. In theatre she was known for her performances in light comedy and appeared in several telev ...

as Mrs. Draper *

Moira Foot Moira Foot (born in Northampton) on 19 June 1953 is an English actress. She starred in '' 'Allo 'Allo!'',. playing Denise Laroque, the leader of the local communist resistance. She also played Miss Thorpe, Mr Rumbold's temporary secretary, i ...

as Glenda *

Peggy Ann Clifford Peggy Ann Clifford (23 March 1921 in Poole, Dorset – 26 May 1986, in Kensington), was an English film, stage, and television character actress. She was born Peggy Anne Hamley Champion. Her mother's maiden name was Clifford. She appeared in t ...

as Mrs. Tickford *

Harold Bennett Harold Frank Bennett (17 November 1898 – 11 September 1981) was an English actor, active in stage, television and film best remembered for being in sitcoms written and produced by David Croft, having played 'Young Mr. Grace' in the 1970s Bri ...

as Vicar

Episodes

#A Bird in the Bush (3 September 1980) #Let Bygones Be Bygones (10 September 1980) #A Record to Be Proud of (17 September 1980) #Home Cure (24 September 1980) #A Song in the Air (1 October 1980) #Diplomatic Privilege (8 October 1980)

Reception

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.

, writing in the BBC Guide to Comedy writes: "An odd amalgam of ideas from established sitcom creators Lloyd and Croft...Considering the usual dependability of the major protagonists here, it is fair to say that ''Oh Happy Band!'' was flat rather than sharp."Oh Happy Band!
at the former BBC Guide to Comedy (archive), retrieved 7 July 2010

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oh Happy Band! 1980 British television series debuts 1980 British television series endings BBC television sitcoms David Croft sitcoms English-language television shows 1980s British sitcoms