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

British sitcom A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television. British sitcoms have predominantly been recorded on studio sets, while some include an element of location filming. Live audiences and multi-camera ...

that aired on ITV 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 ITV 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 Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

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 feels superior due to their social class, education level, or social status in general;De Botton, A. (2004), ''Status Anxiety''. London: Hamish Hamilton it is sometimes used especially when they pr ...

and the

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

is Wentworth's constant enemy.

Cast

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

Harry Andrews Henry Stewart Fleetwood Andrews, CBE (10 November 1911 – 6 March 1989) was a British actor often known for his film portrayals of tough military officers. His performance as Regimental Sergeant Major Wilson in '' The Hill'' (1965) earned And ...

as The Rev. R Gregory Saunders, MA (Oxon) * Marion Mathie as Matron * Deddie Davies 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''. 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 The first BBC programme for women was the programme cal ...

''. 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 near

Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...

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 British English-language television shows Television shows produced by Thames Television Television series by Fremantle (company) 1980s school television series Television series set in the 1940s