''That's Your Funeral'' was a

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

from 1971 about a

North of England Northern England, or the North of England, refers to the northern part of England and mainly corresponds to the historic counties of Cheshire, Cumberland, Durham, Lancashire, Northumberland, Westmorland and Yorkshire. Officially, it is a gr ...

funeral director A funeral director, also known as an undertaker or mortician (American English), is a professional who has licenses in funeral arranging and embalming (or preparation of the deceased) involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks o ...

called Basil Bulstrode (Bill Fraser). Storylines used many

urban legends Urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not. These legends can be e ...

about the funeral industry. It was cancelled after one series. A very similar theme was used far more successfully in the ITV sitcom '' In Loving Memory''. BBC One Scotland and BBC One Northern Ireland dropped the show to accommodate their regional programmes in the same timeslot ''That's Your Funeral'' aired on the network

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

and BBC One Wales.

Film

In 1972, the sitcom was adapted into a film version by Hammer Films. It was one of a series of big screen adaptations of sitcoms at the time. The plot concerns two rival undertakers whose firms are used as fronts for drug smuggling. Directed by John Robins, as well as the usual cast it featured well known actors

Roy Kinnear Roy Mitchell Kinnear (8 January 1934 – 20 September 1988) was an English character actor and comedian. He was known for his acting roles in movies such as Henry Salt in the 1971 film ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory'', Algernon in The Be ...

, Dennis Price,

Sue Lloyd Susan Margery Jeaffreson Lloyd (7 August 1939 – 20 October 2011) was an English model and actress, with numerous film and television credits. She may be best known for her long-running role (1979 to 1985) as Barbara Hunter ( Brady) in the Br ...

Richard Wattis Richard Cameron Wattis (25 February 1912 – 1 February 1975) was an English actor, co-starring in many popular British comedies of the 1950s and 1960s. Early life Richard Cameron Wattis was born on 25 February 1912 in Wednesbury, Staffords ...

, John Ronane and

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

. However, the film performed poorly at the box office.

References

External links

* * BBC television sitcoms Comedy Playhouse Films shot at Pinewood Studios 1972 comedy films Films based on television series Hammer Film Productions British comedy films Funeral homes in fiction Television shows about death Television shows adapted into films 1970s British films Television shows set in funeral homes {{1970s-UK-comedy-film-stub

Film

See also

References

External links