''Ben Travers' Farces'' is a British

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term ori ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed ...

which originally aired on

BBC 1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

. It ran for a single series of seven episodes between 19 September and 31 October 1970. Each was a stand-alone adaptation of a

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical humor; the use of deliberate absurdity or ...

Ben Travers Ben Travers (12 November 188618 December 1980) was an English writer. His output includes more than 20 plays, 30 screenplays, 5 novels, and 3 volumes of memoirs. He is best remembered for his long-running Aldwych farce, series of farces first ...

. The first six episodes were adaptations of

Aldwych Farces The Aldwych farces were a series of twelve stage farces presented at the Aldwych Theatre, London, nearly continuously from 1923 to 1933. All but three of them were written by Ben Travers. They incorporate and develop British low comedy styles, ...

beginning with '' Rookery Nook'' while the seventh ''She Follows Me About'' was based on his wartime play of the same title.https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/55864029773c441d867f20978569e39f

Main Cast

Arthur Lowe Arthur Lowe (22 September 1915 – 15 April 1982) was an English actor. His acting career spanned 36 years, including starring roles in numerous theatre and television productions. He played Captain Mainwaring in the British sitcom ''Dad' ...

(7 episodes) *

Richard Briers Richard David Briers (14 January 1934 – 17 February 2013) was an English actor whose five-decade career encompassed film, radio, stage and television. Briers first came to prominence as George Starling in ''Marriage Lines'' (1961–66), but ...

(7 episodes) *

Jenny McCracken Jenny may refer to: * Jenny (given name), a popular feminine name and list of real and fictional people * Jenny (surname), a family name Animals * Jenny (donkey), a female donkey * Jenny (gorilla), the oldest gorilla in captivity at the time of ...

(6 episodes) *

Megs Jenkins Muguette Mary "Megs" Jenkins (21 April 1917 – 5 October 1998) was an English character actress who appeared in British films and television programmes. Life and career Jenkins was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, the daughter of a construction ...

(3 episodes) *

Terence Alexander Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English film and television actor, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British TV drama '' Bergerac'', which ran for nine series on BBC One between 1981 and 1991. ...

(3 episodes) *

Frank Thornton Frank Thornton Ball (15 January 192116 March 2013), professionally known as Frank Thornton, was an English actor. He was known for playing Captain Peacock in '' Are You Being Served?'' and its sequel '' Grace & Favour'' (''Are You Being Serve ...

(3 episodes) *

Alec Ross Alexander Ross (15 September 1879 – 25 June 1952) was a Scottish professional golfer. He was a native of Dornoch and learned his golf in his home country, but like many British professional golfers of his era he spent many years working as ...

(3 episodes) * Tim Barrett (3 episodes) *

Irene Handl Irene Handl (27 December 1901 – 29 November 1987) was a British author and character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films. Life Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the younger of two daughters of an Austria-born father ...

(2 episodes) *

Elizabeth Knight Elizabeth Knight (1 November 1944 – 22 August 2005) was a British film and television actress. Life and career Elizabeth Knight was born on 1 November 1944 in Oxford, Oxfordshire. She made her first film appearance in the 1968 musical ''Oli ...

(2 episodes) *

Mollie Sugden Mary Isobel Sugden (21 July 19221 July 2009), known professionally as Mollie Sugden was an English actress. She was best known for being an original cast member in the British sitcom ''Are You Being Served?'' (1972–1985) as senior saleswoman M ...

(2 episodes) *

Geoffrey Palmer Geoffrey Palmer may refer to: Politicians * Sir Geoffrey Palmer, 1st Baronet (1598–1670), English lawyer and politician * Sir Geoffrey Palmer, 3rd Baronet (1655–1732), English politician, Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicestershire * Geoffrey ...

(2 episodes) *

Jessica Benton Jessica Benton (born 15 November 1948) is a British actress, mainly known for her role as ''Elizabeth Onedin / Frazer / Fogarty'' in the BBC series ''The Onedin Line'', that ran from 1971 to 1980. Benton had some minor roles on TV such as ''Z-Ca ...

(2 episodes) *

Polly Adams Pauline "Polly" Adams (born 27 August 1939) is an English actress best known for her work on the stage both in England and in the United States, and for her portrayal of Mrs. Brown on the television series ''Just William''. She made her Broadwa ...

(2 episodes) * Althea Parker (2 episodes) *

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 ...

(2 episodes) * Edward Dentith (2 episodes)

Episodes

* '' Rookery Nook'' (19 September 1970) * ''

A Cuckoo in the Nest ''A Cuckoo in the Nest'' is a farce by the English playwright Ben Travers. It was first given at the Aldwych Theatre, London, the second in the series of twelve Aldwych farces presented by the actor-manager Tom Walls at the theatre between 1923 ...

'' (26 September 1970) * '' Turkey Time'' (3 October 1970) * '' A Cup of Kindness'' (10 October 1970) * ''

Plunder Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...

'' (17 October 1970) * '' Dirty Work'' (24 October 1970) * '' She Follows Me About'' (31 October 1970)

References

Bibliography

* Hogg, James. ''More Than Just A Good Life: The Authorised Biography of Richard Briers''. Hachette UK, 2018.

External links

* {{IMDb title, 32431433 BBC television comedy 1970 British television series debuts 1970 British television series endings British English-language television shows Television shows based on plays