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Helen Fraser (actress)
Helen Fraser (born Helen Margaret Stronach; born 15 June 1942) is an English actress, who has appeared in many television series since the early 1960s. For international audiences, she may be best known for her roles in ''Billy Liar'' (1963) and '' Repulsion'' (1965). She is also well known in Britain for portraying the role of miserable warder Sylvia Hollamby in the prison drama series '' Bad Girls''. She appeared in the series from the first episode in 1999 until the last in 2006. Career She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art alongside Tom Courtenay and John Thaw, among others. She gained her breakthrough role alongside Courtenay in ''Billy Liar'' (1963). They later played the parents of character Dave Best in the Christmas special of '' The Royle Family'' (2008). She is best known to television viewers for her long-running role in the ITV women's prison drama '' Bad Girls'' as unpleasant prison officer Sylvia Hollamby from the first episode in 1999 to the last in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, which had a population of 237,110 in 2019. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, and with little early history to speak of, Oldham rose to prominence in the 19th century as an international centre of textile manufacture. It was a boomtown of the Industrial Revolution, and among the first ever industrialised towns, rapidly becoming "one of the most important centres of cotton and textile industries in England." At its zenith, it was the most productive cotton spinning mill town in the world,. producing more cotton than France and Germany combined. Oldham's textile industry fell into decline in the mid-20th century; the town's last mill closed in 1998. The demise of textile processing in Oldham depressed and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Likely Lads
''The Likely Lads'' is a British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais and produced by Dick Clement. Twenty episodes were broadcast by the BBC, in three series, between 16 December 1964 and 23 July 1966. However, only ten of these episodes have survived. This show was followed by a sequel series, in colour, entitled ''Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?'', broadcast between 9 January 1973 and 24 December 1974. This was followed in 1976 by a spin-off feature film ''The Likely Lads''. Some episodes of both the original black and white series and the colour sequel were adapted for BBC radio with the original television cast. Premise The original show followed the friendship of two young working class men, Terry Collier (James Bolam) and Bob Ferris (Rodney Bewes), in the mid-1960s. Bob and Terry are assumed to be in their early 20s (when their ages are revealed in the later film, this puts both characters at around 20 when the series started). After gro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Calendar Girls (play)
''Calendar Girls'' is a stage play based on the 2003 film of the same name. Production history The play was adapted by Tim Firth and directed by Hamish McColl. After a successful try-out at the Chichester Festival Theatre in September 2008 and a lengthy national tour, a stage adaptation of the film started previewing on 4 April 2009 at the Noël Coward Theatre in the West End, opening on 20 April. The original cast included Lynda Bellingham, Patricia Hodge, Siân Phillips, Gaynor Faye, Brigit Forsyth, Julia Hills and Elaine C. Smith. While the play was a financial success (it took in over £1.7 million in advance ticket sales), the critical reception was mixed. The play closed at the Noël Coward Theatre in London on 9 January 2010 before embarking on a second national tour which began on 27 January 2010. The show had several different casts to keep it fresh and to also allow producers to bring well known actresses into the play who do not want to commit to long runs. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy Liar
''Billy Liar'' is a 1959 novel by Keith Waterhouse that was later adapted into a play, a film, a musical and a TV series. The work has inspired and been featured in a number of popular songs. The semi-comical story is about William Fisher, a working-class 19-year-old living with his parents in the fictional town of Stradhoughton in Yorkshire. Bored by his job as a lowly clerk for an undertaker, Billy spends his time indulging in fantasies and dreams of life in the big city as a comedy writer. Characters ;William "Billy" Fisher :Billy is 19, and living with parents Alice and Geoffrey, and his grandmother, Florence Boothroyd. Billy lies compulsively to everyone he comes across, whether it is by claiming that his father is a retired naval captain/cobbler, or telling his parents that Arthur's mother has broken her leg. Billy works as a clerk for undertakers Shadrack & Duxbury. He is engaged to two girls and in love with a third, and he constantly refers to a vague job offer wri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. Internationally, it is known as the National Theatre of Great Britain. Founded by Laurence Olivier in 1963, many well-known actors have performed at the National Theatre. Until 1976, the company was based at The Old Vic theatre in Waterloo. The current building is located next to the Thames in the South Bank area of central London. In addition to performances at the National Theatre building, the National Theatre tours productions at theatres across the United Kingdom. The theatre has transferred numerous productions to Broadway and toured some as far as China, Australia and New Zealand. However, touring productions to European cities was suspended in February 2021 over concerns about uncertainty over work permits, additional costs and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Two Ronnies
''The Two Ronnies'' is a British television comedy sketch show starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was created by Bill Cotton and aired on BBC1 from April 1971 to December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo sections, serial stories and musical finales. Origins Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett met in 1963 at the Buckstone Club in the Haymarket, London, where Corbett was serving drinks between acting jobs. At the time, Barker was beginning to establish himself as a character actor in the West End and on radio. They were invited by David Frost to appear in his new show, '' The Frost Report'', with John Cleese, but the pair's big break came when they filled in, unprepared and unscripted, for eleven minutes during a technical hitch at a British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards ceremony at the London Palladium in 1970. In the audience was Bill Cotton, the Head of Light Entertainment for the BBC, and Sir Paul Fox, the Controller of BBC1. Cotton was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dick Emery
Richard Gilbert Emery (19 February 19152 January 1983) was an English comedian and actor. His broadcasting career began on radio in the 1950s, and his self-titled television series ran from 1963 to 1981. Life and career Richard Gilbert Emery was born 19 February 1915, in University College Hospital, Bloomsbury, London. His parents were the comedy double act Callan and Emery. They took him on tour when he was only three weeks old and gave him the occasional turn on the stage during his childhood, which was always on the move and disrupted, creating problems for the future but setting the scene for eventually going into showbusiness himself. His parents split up when he was eight and he chose to stay with his mother, who gave up showbusiness. He tried a variety of jobs before the stage: mechanic, office boy, farm hand and driving instructor. During the Second World War he was called up to the RAF and rose to the rank of corporal. However, because of family problems, he returned to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Casualty (TV Series)
''Casualty'' (stylised as ''CASUAL+Y'') is a British medical drama series that airs weekly on BBC One. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 6 September 1986. The original producer was Geraint Morris. Having been broadcast weekly since 1986, ''Casualty'' is the longest-running primetime medical drama series in the world. The programme is set in the fictional Holby City Hospital and focuses on the staff and patients of the hospital's Accident and Emergency (A&E) Department. The show has strong ties to its sister programme ''Holby City'', which began as a spin-off series from ''Casualty'' in 1999, set in the same hospital. The final episode of ''Holby City'' was broadcast in March 2022. ''Casualty''s exterior shots were mainly filmed outside the Ashley Down Centre in Bristol from 1986 until 2002, when they moved to the centre of Bristol. In 2011, ''Casualty'' celebrated its 25th anniversary and moved production to t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
One Foot In The Grave
''One Foot in the Grave'' is a British television sitcom written by David Renwick. There were six series (each consisting of six half-hour shows) and seven Christmas specials over a period of ten years from early 1990 to late 2000. The first five series were broadcast between January 1990 and January 1995. For the next five years, the show appeared only as Christmas specials, followed by one final series in 2000. The series features the exploits of Victor Meldrew, played by Richard Wilson, and his long-suffering wife, Margaret, played by Annette Crosbie. Wilson initially turned down the part of Meldrew and David Renwick considered Les Dawson for the role, until Wilson changed his mind. The programmes invariably deal with Meldrew's battle against a long series of problems, some of which he creates for himself. Set in an unnamed town in Southern England, Victor takes involuntary early retirement. His various efforts to keep himself busy while encountering various misfortunes and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duty Free (TV Series)
''Duty Free'' is a British sitcom written by Eric Chappell and Jean Warr that aired on ITV from 1984 to 1986. It was made by Yorkshire Television. Cast *Keith Barron as David Pearce *Gwen Taylor as Amy Pearce * Joanna Van Gyseghem as Linda Cochran * Neil Stacy as Robert Cochran *Carlos Douglas as Carlos the Waiter *Bunny May as Hotel manager ''(series 1)'' *George Camiller as Hotel manager ''(series 2 and 3)'' *Ray Mort as George ''(series 1 and 2)'' *Hugo Bower as Zimmerman ''(series 1)'' *Joseph Fazal as Spanish Policeman ''(series 2)'' Plot ''Duty Free'' is about two British couples, David and Amy Pearce and Robert and Linda Cochran, who meet while holidaying at the same Spanish hotel in Marbella and the interruptive affair conducted by David Pearce and Linda Cochran during their break. Another recurring character is the hotel waiter Carlos. Although set in Spain, the show was recorded entirely in the Leeds Studios – only for the concluding Christmas special was the b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tales Of The Unexpected (TV Series)
''Tales of the Unexpected (Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected)'' is a British television series that aired between 1979 and 1988. Each episode told a story, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, with an unexpected twist ending. Every episode of series one, eight episodes of series two, and one episode of series three were based on short stories by Roald Dahl collected in the books '' Tales of the Unexpected'', ''Kiss Kiss'', and '' Someone Like You''. The series was made by Anglia Television for ITV with interior scenes recorded at their Norwich studios, whilst location filming mainly occurred across East Anglia. The theme music for the series was written by composer Ron Grainer. The dancer in all episodes was Karen Standley. Format The series originally adapted various stories from Roald Dahl's anthology books. Despite being produced on a low budget, the series attracted notable guest stars, including Susan George, Siân Phillips, José Ferrer, Joseph C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rising Damp
Structural dampness is the presence of unwanted moisture in the structure of a building, either the result of intrusion from outside or condensation from within the structure. A high proportion of damp problems in buildings are caused by ambient climate dependent factors of condensation and rain penetration. Capillary penetration of fluid from the ground up through concrete or masonry is known as "rising damp" and is governed by the shape and porosity of the construction materials through which this evaporation-limited capillary penetration takes place. Structural damp, regardless of the mechanisms through which it takes place, is exacerbated by higher levels of humidity. Dampness control is fundamental to the proper functioning of any building. Controlling moisture is important to protect occupants from adverse health effects and to protect the building, its mechanical systems and its contents from physical or chemical damage. Symptoms Dampness tends to cause secondary damag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
