It’s 80s night tonight, with all our programmes coming from that particular dubious decade! But first,a hot sandwich of shredded chicken in hoi sin sauce with spring onions.
First up is the second episode of Big Deal (BBC1, 1984), and after last week’s opener which served to introduce us to the world of Robbie Box, we’re looking forward to getting into the drama proper. Box (played by Ray Brooks, who is ideal in the role) is a lovable rogue of the old school, but in the first episode he had already pawned his girlfriend’s (Sharon Duce) jewellery and gambled away the proceedings. The tension with his gambling nemesis was quite electric. Rare guest appearances, too, in last week’s episode from Peter Dean (Eastenders’ Pete Beale) and Pamela Cundell – a versatile actor whom I remember best from playing Corporal Jones’ lady friend in Dad’s Army. Kenneth Waller (the grandad out of Bread) and Roger Walker out of a pre-Freddy Rod, Jane and Freddy) provided comic relief. I wonder who will turn up this week?
We’re rapidly running out of Beat Club that we haven’t already watched, but the moment is being prepared-for. In the meantime here is Yes, performing Yours Is No Disgrace.
Next we’re going back to the Crown Court (Granada, again, from 1984), and the story we will be watching is called Gingerbread Girl. Sadly the Youtube link seems to have disappeared, so for the duration of the next three weeks I’ll just have to substitute with it with another Crown Court story we have watched in the past.
Next we’re going to watch the penultimate Nightingales (Channel 4, 1989). I told the lads it would be a slow burner, and although it’s not the funniest thing we have ever watched, I haven’t been besieged with requests not to show it.
However, back in 1987 ITV were besieged with requests not to show any more Hardwicke House (Central, 1987) and tonight, after last week’s overlong double-length opener, we are going to watch the second episode, the last to be transmitted.
The room wasn’t exactly awash with laughter last week. Was it the sadistic teachers, whose jarring moral behaviour makes the spine shudder 32 years into a new, culturally aware era? Or was it the lack of ambience? Without audience laughter this programme was dryer than the Sahara, but we certainly got the sense that we were watching something which was brave, new and progressive for its time. And certainly not suitable for that time slot. Maybe it’ll be an easier watch now that the episodes are 25 minutes long; Roy Kinnear was a joy, even if most of the other characters seem somewhat unloveable.
