''Rudy's Rare Records'' is a

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 ne ...

series created by

Lenny Henry Sir Lenworth George Henry (born 29 August 1958) is a British actor, comedian, singer, television presenter and writer. Henry gained success as a stand-up comedian and impressionist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in ''The Lenn ...

Danny Robins Danny Robins (born September 1976) is an English comedy writer and performer, broadcaster and journalist. Robins began his comedy career as a teenager doing stand-up in his home town of Newcastle upon Tyne, where he was friends with Ross Noble, a ...

and

Dan Tetsell Dan Tetsell (born 2 July 1974) is a British actor, comedian and writer for radio, television and stage. He has worked on a number of projects, including '' The Museum of Everything'', ''That Was Then, This Is Now'', ''Newsjack'' and ''Parsons and ...

, broadcast on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

. Originally a radio comedy series from 2008–2014, it was later adapted for the stage in 2014. A not-for-broadcast TV pilot was reportedly shot in 2014, but was not developed for broadcast. The plot follows Adam Sharpe, who returns to Birmingham from London after a breakdown, and is forced to move in with his father Rudy Sharpe. They squeeze into the flat above the eponymous Rudy's Rare Records, his dad's shambolic record shop selling reggae, ska and soul. While Adam is anxious and straight-laced, Rudy is exuberant, opinionated and brash. Other characters include Adam's adult son Richie, shop employee Tasha, the self-proclaimed first black goth girl in Handsworth, Doreen, Rudy's girlfriend, and Clifton, his friend. The series features a majority

Black British Black British people are a multi-ethnic group of British citizens of either African or Afro-Caribbean descent.Gadsby, Meredith (2006), ''Sucking Salt: Caribbean Women Writers, Migration, and Survival'', University of Missouri Press, pp. 76–7 ...

cast and a soundtrack that focuses on reggae, ska and hip-hop.

Cast

Larrington Walker Larrington St Anthony Walker (1946 – 3 September 2017) was a Jamaican-born British actor. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Walker emigrated to the UK in 1956. Walker starred in the British television drama Taboo, and starred in movies such as ''Sec ...

as Rudy Sharpe *

as Adam Sharpe * Natasha Godfrey as Tasha * Joe Jacobs as Richie Sharpe *

Claire Benedict Claire Benedict (born 28 July 1951) is a British actress known for her work in classical productions on the British stage, but best known for portraying the principal character Mma Ramotswe in the continuing radio adaptations of '' The No 1 La ...

as Doreen *

Jeffery Kissoon Jeffery Kissoon (born 4 September 1947) is an actor with credits in British theatre, television, film and radio. He has performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company at venues such as the Royal National Theatre, under directors including Peter ...

as Clifton *

Tracy Ann Oberman Tracy-Ann Oberman (born Tracy Anne Oberman; 25 August 1966) is an English actress, playwright and narrator. She is widely known for roles including Chrissie Watts in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' (2004–2005) and Valerie Lewis or "Auntie ...

as Alison – Source:

Stage adaptation

A stage adaptation by Henry and Robbins also titled ''Rudy's Rare Records'' opened at the

Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre ...

on 4 September running until 20 September, before transferring to the

Hackney Empire Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney. Originally designed by Frank Matcham it was built in 1901 as a music hall, and expanded in 2001. Described by ''The Guardian'' as ‘the most beautiful theatre in L ...

from 24 September to 5 October 2014. The production was directed by

Paulette Randall Paulette Randall, MBE (born 1961) is a British theatre director of Jamaican descent.

and featured Henry, Walker, Kissoon and Godfrey reprising their roles from the sitcom alongside

Joivan Wade Joivan Wade ( ; born 23 July 1993) is an English actor known for playing Manyou in the BBC comedy television series '' Big School'', Jordan Johnson on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', and Cyborg (comics), Victor Stone/Cyborg in the HBO Max se ...

as Ritchie and Lorna Gale as Doreen.

References

BBC Radio comedy programmes BBC Radio 4 programmes 2008 radio programme debuts 2014 radio programme endings {{UK-radio-show-stub