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Dad's Army is one
of Britain's most beloved sitcoms.

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The Germans are coming!
Don't panic! The Germans are coming!

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The iconic, energetically delivered
catchphrases alone have become
part of the national lexicon.

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Stupid boy! They don't like it
up 'em! We're doomed!

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Doomed I am, doomed!

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Yes, we love Dad's Army!

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The thing that we loved about it was
it was just always, always funny.

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SHE LAUGHS
Just...just funny.

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It's the character, it's
the writing. Those are the things
that have given it its longevity.

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In fact, we've always loved it.

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It's still shown every day
on the telly somewhere.

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Even my daughter who's 13
finds it hilarious.

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Yes,
Dad's Army's often raucous comedy

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simply transcends age.

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Over the next 90 minutes,
we'll discover the surprisingly
low-key starting point.

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No... Nobody was laughing.

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Reveal what the cast
were really like
when the cameras stopped rolling.

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Arthur the person was as patriotic
as Mainwaring the character.

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Please, do you mind? "Mr Lowe."

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Reminisce about the times
before health and safety.

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You'd wonder whether they'd sit down
and go, "What can we get Clive
to do this week?

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"What absurd thing
can we persuade him to do?

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"And he'll say yes, won't he?"

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Enjoy some rare
behind-the-scenes archive.

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Well, happy birthday, young man.

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And hear the memories
of the youngest member of the troupe

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in an exclusive audio interview.

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Schweinhund!

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'Those were my director's notes.

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'"You've got carte blanche.
Do what you want."'

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As we discover exactly why
we love Dad's Army.

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This is in many ways the perfect
situation for comedy to happen in.

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Still after all these years,
it's probably one of the best
British sitcoms ever made.

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LAUGHTER

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All right, settle down, everyone.

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I love Dad's Army now
because I'm nostalgic

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for that period
when I was a kid growing up

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and watching that show which was
such a huge part of family life.

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There was something amazingly funny
in the series, but also
something very charming about it.

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Godfrey, pick 'em up, pick 'em up!

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I'm afraid they won't go any higher.

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Written by the legendary combination
of David Croft and Jimmy Perry,

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Dad's Army has been gracing
our screens since 1968.

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I can't get enough of it. I'm amazed
that there are 80 episodes

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and 80 episodes are just amazing.

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I think it's so popular
because, A, it's clean and, B,

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people love seeing men in authority
making fools of themselves.

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I shouldn't go too far that way, Mr
Mainwaring. There's a great big...

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Led by the pompous
Captain Mainwaring and his urbane
number two Sergeant Wilson,

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the platoon also featured
Corporal Jones

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and Privates Walker, Godfrey,
Frazer and Pike

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who inspired perhaps
the show's most famous moment.

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This is still one of the best lines
in any sitcom ever.

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It's just an amazingly funny moment
because it really highlights
what's wrong in their leadership.

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Write what you like. You're not
gonna win this war. Oh, yes, we are.

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Oh, no, you're not. Oh, yes, we are!

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# Whistle while you work

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# Hitler is a twerp

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# He's half barmy, so's his army
Whistle while you... #

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Your name will also go on the list.

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What is it?

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Don't tell him, Pike!
Pike, thank you.

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'So, yes, I am at the top
of those steps

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'and the only way I can stop
from laughing

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'is to bite the inside of my cheek.

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'We finished the scene
and I climbed down
and gestured to the make-up girl.

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'She comes over and I said,
"Can I have a tissue, please?"

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'And I spat out the blood from
the inside... It was the only way
I could not laugh on the shot.

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'We didn't know it was gonna be
like that, but we just knew
it was a great line.'

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HE LAUGHS
It's funny every time.

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It tells you everything
you need to know about that man,

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those people, that situation,
all in...in three words.

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Four words.

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The real Home Guard,

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originally the Local Defence
Volunteers, or LDV,

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began life in 1940
with an announcement

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by the Secretary of State for War,
Anthony Eden.

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'We want large numbers of men
between the ages of 17 and 65.'

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Actor, writer and theatre manager
Jimmy Perry served in the Home Guard
as a young man

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and it was these experiences
that later inspired
what became Dad's Army.

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I wrote this script
and I called it The Fighting Tigers.

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And then I was working
for David Croft.

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And he said, "What a great idea!
Let's work on it together."

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And the rest is history.

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# Who do you think... #

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Our love for the show starts
at the very beginning

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with these iconic opening titles.

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I think that's probably the most
watched historical representation

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of the start of the Second World War
that anyone has ever seen.

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It's really, really amazing
and very, very powerful imagery.

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At its peak, 18 million people
were singing along
to Jimmy Perry's catchy theme tune,

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but Dad's Army did not take off
straight away.

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The very first episode,

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um...I remember
Bill Pertwee did the warm-up

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and he was brilliant. The audience
were falling about laughing.

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He was a superb warm-up artist.

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And I thought, "Oh, lovely,
lively audience. Marvellous."

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And we got cracking
and there was dead silence.

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There's certainly
an uncomfortably echoey feel

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to this early exchange.

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Yes, Miss King?
It's Anthony Eden, sir. In person?

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On the wireless.
They say it's very important.

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And when I wasn't in a scene,
sort of peering behind the flats,

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nobody was laughing.

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No... Nobody was laughing.

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And it was such a disappointment.

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And we thought we'd flopped
and everyone was very subdued
going up to the bar afterwards.

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Underwhelming.
I think we felt underwhelmed.

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The less than spectacular response
appeared to confirm concerns
about the subject matter.

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What did the higher-ups think of the
series when you first broached it

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or indeed when you'd had
the first series?

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It didn't take off straight away.

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There was the thought that perhaps
we were taking the mickey

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out of England's finest hour,
so they weren't all that keen.

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It was the same when you started,
wasn't it? Yeah. What?

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You see, a lot of people took
the Home Guard very, very seriously.
It was a serious thing.

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It seemed a silly idea, really.
I was in the Home Guard

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and nothing was so inexpressibly
boring as being in the Home Guard.

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I couldn't see
how you could entertain people.

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In the late '60s when they made
Dad's Army, it wasn't a far-distant
event. It had just happened.

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The effects were still very much
present in British society.

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You had bits of London
that were still bombed out,

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so to go back and have a laugh
about it, that's edgy.

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Yet Dad's Army never hid
from the genuine difficulties
the Home Guard faced.

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From the start,
authenticity was key.

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I researched very fully
and made sure

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that everything
that was on the screen

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as far as I had been concerned in it
was the real thing.

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All Home Guard, when they first
started out, had no weapons at all.

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So, you know, they would have spears
on the end of broomsticks.

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It was historically very accurate,
particularly those early episodes
when they haven't got uniforms,

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they haven't got weapons
and you're in suits, bowler hats

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and a broomstick for a weapon.

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Very sweet.

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What's that supposed to be, boy?
You said, "If you haven't got
anything else,

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"tie a carving knife
to a broom handle."

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I didn't say keep the brush
on the end of it, you stupid boy!

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You should've said!
I don't want any insubordination.

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Take this man's name.
What's your name, lad?

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You should know by now.
You've been a friend of my mum's
since before I was born.

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When it started,
my father was in the Home Guard,

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and he loved it
because it was all so real.

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He had a broom with a knife
tied to it too as a weapon.

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I remember my dad
absolutely loving it

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because it brought back so many
memories for him and my mum.

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I've seen photographs of them with
sharpened sticks and, like, hoes.

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And garden forks!
Make do and mend, you know?

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Croft and Perry loved to imagine
their accident-prone platoon

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learning the same field skills
as the real Home Guard.

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Countryside camouflage was
a particular favourite.

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At the double,
line up for your short briefs!

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I did it in basic training
and I do remember it

153
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because we used to literally get
the trees and the branches

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and stick 'em in all bits of us.

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And this genuine river crossing
exercise is not quite emulated

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by the troupe as Clive Dunn
expertly builds tension

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towards the gloriously inevitable
pay-off.

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Don't look down. Eh?

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Don't look...dow-ow...

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Aagh!

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'The simple idea of Dad's Army,
of laughing at the LDV...'

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I told you not to look at my feet!

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It's funny cos it's true.

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After the break,
we look at the internal squabbles
of the officer class.

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I think it's time I...
LAUGHTER

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That wonderful war
between the petty-bourgeois man

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and the man who has really got
some style and class.

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And we get the lowdown
on Mainwaring's struggles
with the scripts.

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He did become quite well known
for not knowing his lines.

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One day he came in and he didn't
know the words terribly well,
did he, in one episode.

171
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And David said... Only one episode?

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Welcome back to We Love Dad's Army.

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Look me straight in the eyes,
Wilson. Right, sir. Look out!

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Perhaps the key
to why we love Dad's Army

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is how much we enjoy watching the
deliciously fractious partnership

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between the two officers charged
with leading this ragtag platoon.

177
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The relationship between Mainwaring
and Wilson is fascinating

178
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and it's kind of like a marriage.

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I think it's time
I took charge here.

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You've got Mainwaring
who needs everyone to see him
as being the person in charge,

181
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but ultimately he's the one
who needs all the help.

182
00:10:37,010 --> 00:10:40,370
And Wilson is this kind of casual,
relaxed character

183
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which you would have to be to put up
with this blustering nincompoop.

184
00:10:43,930 --> 00:10:47,650
Wilson is rather louche
and public school

185
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and Mainwaring is very much not.
The thing is that Wilson
couldn't care less about it.

186
00:10:51,930 --> 00:10:55,330
I think in one episode he says
to him, "I think you've got a chip
on your shoulder."

187
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I should've known not to trust
that smarmy Captain Stewart.

188
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You can't blame him, sir.
He's got a job to do.

189
00:11:00,850 --> 00:11:02,890
Oh, you'll stick up for him,
won't you?

190
00:11:02,890 --> 00:11:05,250
You both went to public schools,
didn't you?

191
00:11:06,370 --> 00:11:10,650
I can't help feeling, sir,
you've got a little bit of a chip
on your shoulder about that.

192
00:11:10,650 --> 00:11:15,570
There's no chip on my shoulder.
I tell you what is on my shoulder.
Three pips and don't you forget it!

193
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The whole contrast between...

194
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The whole class system, if you like,
is laid bare there.

195
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It's that wonderful class war
between the petty-bourgeois man

196
00:11:26,050 --> 00:11:29,450
and the man who has really got
some style and class to him.

197
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I think that's what's given it
its longevity

198
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because I think that's
as relevant today as it was then.

199
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Where have you been?
I went up to the golf club

200
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and had a bite to eat up there.
The golf club? Yes.

201
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Who took you? Well, I'm a member.

202
00:11:43,650 --> 00:11:45,730
You're a member? Since when?

203
00:11:45,730 --> 00:11:49,410
Well, you see, when the committee
heard about this title thing,

204
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they asked me if I would, you know,
like to join.

205
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I've been trying for years
to get in there.

206
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I believe
they're awfully particular.

207
00:12:05,690 --> 00:12:07,890
The brilliant thing
about the relationship

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00:12:07,890 --> 00:12:10,930
between Wilson and Mainwaring
is Mainwaring's the captain,

209
00:12:10,930 --> 00:12:14,170
Wilson's the sergeant and
it should be the other way round.

210
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In all the military history
you ever read,

211
00:12:17,130 --> 00:12:20,970
it's the sergeants who know
what's going on and the captains
who give the orders.

212
00:12:20,970 --> 00:12:24,490
Croft and Perry knew that
and they're using the comedy
to illustrate that idea.

213
00:12:24,490 --> 00:12:27,530
Most of the junior ranks will listen
to the sergeant, definitely,

214
00:12:27,530 --> 00:12:30,810
so you can see the interaction there
between Wilson and Mainwaring

215
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because whereas Mainwaring's
the captain

216
00:12:33,250 --> 00:12:36,290
and should be kind of the one
that's leading everything,

217
00:12:36,290 --> 00:12:38,850
it's always gonna be the sergeant
that takes over.

218
00:12:38,850 --> 00:12:41,290
"Do you really think
that's wise, sir?"

219
00:12:41,290 --> 00:12:43,810
John Le Mesurier as Wilson,

220
00:12:43,810 --> 00:12:45,970
I mean, it just says it all.

221
00:12:45,970 --> 00:12:48,210
He's not really asking the question.

222
00:12:48,210 --> 00:12:51,450
He's telling him, "That's not wise."

223
00:12:51,450 --> 00:12:55,530
I'll go through first. I won't ask
my men to do anything I can't do.

224
00:12:55,530 --> 00:12:57,810
Do you think that's wise, sir?
Wilson...

225
00:12:57,810 --> 00:13:01,650
just get the rest of the platoon
ready to come through.
All right, sir, yeah.

226
00:13:01,650 --> 00:13:05,970
He never actually calls him a fool.
He just asks him if he's a fool
over and over again. It's brilliant.

227
00:13:05,970 --> 00:13:08,730
They may have been at loggerheads
on screen,

228
00:13:08,730 --> 00:13:11,570
but off screen,
despite press rumours at the time,

229
00:13:11,570 --> 00:13:13,650
the reality was quite different.

230
00:13:13,650 --> 00:13:16,890
John Le Mes and Arthur
got on terribly well

231
00:13:16,890 --> 00:13:19,130
with each other
and they were good friends.

232
00:13:19,130 --> 00:13:22,050
And even on screen,
underneath the bickering,

233
00:13:22,050 --> 00:13:25,010
sometimes we would catch glimpses
of mutual respect,

234
00:13:25,010 --> 00:13:27,210
even friendship between them.

235
00:13:27,210 --> 00:13:32,410
I mean, although Wilson does snipe
rather cleverly at Mainwaring,

236
00:13:32,410 --> 00:13:35,250
there are wonderful scenes
of camaraderie between them,

237
00:13:35,250 --> 00:13:39,850
particularly the scene when they're
trapped in the bank with the bomb.

238
00:13:39,850 --> 00:13:43,290
I don't think I can stand
very much more of this.

239
00:13:44,330 --> 00:13:47,210
Oh, come on, Wilson. Cheer up.

240
00:13:47,210 --> 00:13:52,690
It's a lovely warmth between them
and just such a wonderful pair of
character actors working together.

241
00:13:52,690 --> 00:13:56,170
I'm reminded of the tale
of the Australian soldier.

242
00:13:56,170 --> 00:13:59,330
He arrived up at the front
and was met by a British officer

243
00:13:59,330 --> 00:14:02,210
who said, "Ah, my man,
have you come to die?"

244
00:14:02,210 --> 00:14:04,250
And he said, "No, sir.

245
00:14:04,250 --> 00:14:06,250
"I came 'yester-die'."

246
00:14:13,530 --> 00:14:15,930
It's a play on the words, you see,

247
00:14:15,930 --> 00:14:19,090
on the pronunciation
of the word "die". Yes.

248
00:14:20,610 --> 00:14:22,890
Do you get it?
WILSON CHUCKLES

249
00:14:22,890 --> 00:14:25,690
Yes, I do get it, yes. Yeah.

250
00:14:25,690 --> 00:14:28,210
The two of them
were like old-fashioned,

251
00:14:28,210 --> 00:14:31,090
film star double acts.

252
00:14:31,090 --> 00:14:33,250
They were like Laurel and Hardy.

253
00:14:33,250 --> 00:14:35,290
I mean, they were incredible.

254
00:14:35,290 --> 00:14:38,210
But that partnership
almost didn't happen.

255
00:14:38,210 --> 00:14:43,410
Arthur Lowe had made his name
on ITV as Leonard Swindley
in Coronation Street.

256
00:14:43,410 --> 00:14:45,490
I haven't made the tea yet.

257
00:14:45,490 --> 00:14:49,010
I thought perhaps we ought to wait
until Mr Fairclough arrived.

258
00:14:49,010 --> 00:14:52,570
Yes. Let's hope he'll forgive
the absence of anything stronger.

259
00:14:54,290 --> 00:14:58,730
And Jimmy Perry had trouble
convincing BBC Head of Comedy
Michael Mills

260
00:14:58,730 --> 00:15:01,090
that Lowe should be
their Mainwaring.

261
00:15:02,410 --> 00:15:04,850
When I suggested Arthur Lowe,

262
00:15:04,850 --> 00:15:07,050
he said, "Arthur Lowe?"

263
00:15:07,050 --> 00:15:09,090
This is the BBC 30 years ago.

264
00:15:09,090 --> 00:15:11,410
"We don't know him, do we?

265
00:15:11,410 --> 00:15:14,170
"I mean, he doesn't work for us,
does he?

266
00:15:14,170 --> 00:15:19,770
"Isn't he up north with that Granada
thing in a back street somewhere?"
"Yes."

267
00:15:20,810 --> 00:15:25,730
I think from the first script I read
of Dad's Army, it was obvious

268
00:15:25,730 --> 00:15:27,810
that it was going to be good

269
00:15:27,810 --> 00:15:30,810
and that one could make something
from the character

270
00:15:30,810 --> 00:15:34,810
without trying very hard, really,
because it was there,
it was self-explanatory.

271
00:15:34,810 --> 00:15:39,330
I think to a certain extent he
became the character. He really did.

272
00:15:39,330 --> 00:15:43,210
You could see Mainwaring in him
even at home sometimes.

273
00:15:43,210 --> 00:15:48,450
It's said that Mainwaring felt
that whoever held Walmington-on-Sea
held England.

274
00:15:48,450 --> 00:15:51,250
And that would be Arthur...

275
00:15:51,250 --> 00:15:53,330
That would be Arthur to a T.

276
00:15:53,330 --> 00:15:57,130
Are you anything like your character
in Dad's Army, Captain Mainwaring?

277
00:15:57,130 --> 00:15:59,490
Oh, no, no, no. No, certainly not.

278
00:15:59,490 --> 00:16:03,090
I'm always being asked this question
and the answer's definitely no.

279
00:16:03,090 --> 00:16:07,410
Captain Mainwaring's
a very pompous man, you know.
There's nothing pompous about me.

280
00:16:08,450 --> 00:16:10,490
That's very interesting, Arthur.

281
00:16:10,490 --> 00:16:12,530
Please, do you mind? "Mr Lowe."

282
00:16:12,530 --> 00:16:14,450
LAUGHTER

283
00:16:14,450 --> 00:16:19,850
Arthur Lowe is one of the most
underrated actors, I think, in
the history of British television.

284
00:16:19,850 --> 00:16:22,050
Oh, Mr Plinge! Where?

285
00:16:22,050 --> 00:16:24,650
You. Oh, yes, so I am.

286
00:16:24,650 --> 00:16:29,410
If you analyse how he played
Mainwaring, it is sheer perfection.

287
00:16:29,410 --> 00:16:33,690
He said so much with his face,
just gestures with his face,
just an expression,

288
00:16:33,690 --> 00:16:35,690
just a fleeting thing.

289
00:16:35,690 --> 00:16:37,090
What?

290
00:16:38,370 --> 00:16:42,250
I'll have a double Scotch, please.
'He lived and breathed Mainwaring.'

291
00:16:42,250 --> 00:16:47,930
Even if he doesn't speak,
you just couldn't imagine anyone
else doing it. Perfect casting.

292
00:16:47,930 --> 00:16:50,370
And there are wonderful scenes,
the scene with the wig,

293
00:16:50,370 --> 00:16:54,130
trying to get the wig on because
he's worried about being too old.

294
00:16:59,690 --> 00:17:04,330
If you don't act those scenes well,
they're just silly and slapstick

295
00:17:04,330 --> 00:17:06,970
and to get away with that
is brilliant.

296
00:17:10,490 --> 00:17:16,450
At the end of the day, there's
something wonderful about dead hair
sat on top of a bald head.

297
00:17:16,450 --> 00:17:19,250
But it's great, it's great

298
00:17:19,250 --> 00:17:22,490
because Arthur Lowe is a master
of playing it straight,

299
00:17:22,490 --> 00:17:25,930
an absolute god at playing it
completely straight.

300
00:17:25,930 --> 00:17:27,930
What do you think of this?

301
00:17:30,210 --> 00:17:32,010
Oh, it's awful.

302
00:17:32,010 --> 00:17:33,490
What?

303
00:17:34,730 --> 00:17:37,850
No, no, no, it's awfully good.
Awfully good.

304
00:17:37,850 --> 00:17:40,690
Dear, oh dear.
LAUGHS LOUDLY

305
00:17:40,690 --> 00:17:43,730
Dear, oh dear, oh dear.
LAUGHS LOUDLY

306
00:17:45,290 --> 00:17:47,890
LAUGHTER GETS LOUDER

307
00:17:47,890 --> 00:17:49,930
Watch it, Wilson.

308
00:17:49,930 --> 00:17:51,810
You might snap your girdle.

309
00:17:53,210 --> 00:17:57,450
That whole scene,
you never see him crack at all.

310
00:17:57,450 --> 00:17:59,650
He wrote books and lyrics,

311
00:17:59,650 --> 00:18:03,010
as well as production numbers
with Cyril Ornadel...

312
00:18:03,010 --> 00:18:04,970
LAUGHTER

313
00:18:10,730 --> 00:18:13,170
I wish I'd read this before I came.

314
00:18:13,170 --> 00:18:16,290
LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE

315
00:18:18,570 --> 00:18:23,490
The thing about Arthur, he did
a great deal of other work as well

316
00:18:23,490 --> 00:18:27,290
and he would really focus
on Dad's Army

317
00:18:27,290 --> 00:18:31,810
on the day that Dad's Army was
in the studio.

318
00:18:31,810 --> 00:18:37,130
And he did become quite well known
for not knowing his lines.

319
00:18:37,130 --> 00:18:40,290
One day he came in and he didn't
know the words terribly well

320
00:18:40,290 --> 00:18:42,970
in one episode and David said...
Only one episode?

321
00:18:42,970 --> 00:18:45,210
LAUGHTER

322
00:18:46,010 --> 00:18:49,570
David Croft said, "Now take
the script home and learn it.

323
00:18:49,570 --> 00:18:52,650
"Don't put it in the desk.
Take it home and learn it."

324
00:18:52,650 --> 00:18:56,850
He said, "Certainly not.
I'm not having rubbish like that
in my house."

325
00:18:56,850 --> 00:18:59,090
LAUGHTER

326
00:18:59,090 --> 00:19:01,130
That was what it was like.

327
00:19:01,130 --> 00:19:03,970
He came home and he was at home.

328
00:19:03,970 --> 00:19:06,690
I mean, I have ridden in taxis
with Arthur

329
00:19:06,690 --> 00:19:10,930
where I've been asked not to speak
because he's been reading
the script,

330
00:19:10,930 --> 00:19:13,290
possibly for the first time,
in the taxi.

331
00:19:13,290 --> 00:19:15,610
He was actually a very quick study.

332
00:19:15,610 --> 00:19:20,490
I mean, the reason
he didn't know his lines would be
because he hadn't looked at them.

333
00:19:21,730 --> 00:19:23,930
Now to an actor
without whom no history

334
00:19:23,930 --> 00:19:26,490
of post-war British cinema
would be complete.

335
00:19:26,490 --> 00:19:31,490
It would be quicker, in fact,
to list the films he hasn't been in
than to list the ones he has.

336
00:19:31,490 --> 00:19:34,090
Ladies and gentlemen,
John Le Mesurier.

337
00:19:34,090 --> 00:19:40,410
Like Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier
was a familiar face to
British audiences before Dad's Army,

338
00:19:40,410 --> 00:19:46,250
appearing in dozens of films
and acting with comic legends such
as Peter Sellers and Tony Hancock.

339
00:19:48,370 --> 00:19:52,850
And just as Lowe resembled
Mainwaring, Le Mesurier mirrored
Sergeant Wilson.

340
00:19:52,850 --> 00:19:56,330
In fact, he should have won an Oscar
for being vague,

341
00:19:56,330 --> 00:20:00,570
but he made quite a good life
for himself

342
00:20:00,570 --> 00:20:03,530
by having other people
look after him.

343
00:20:03,530 --> 00:20:05,850
I mean, he didn't even like driving.

344
00:20:05,850 --> 00:20:08,130
Once he got sort of fed up with it,

345
00:20:08,130 --> 00:20:12,050
he just left his car
underneath Wandsworth's flyover
and walked away.

346
00:20:13,730 --> 00:20:16,010
I was fascinated watching them work.

347
00:20:16,010 --> 00:20:18,970
John Le Mesurier was so casual,

348
00:20:18,970 --> 00:20:24,050
very laid-back. He was always first
at the rehearsal room,
sitting quietly in the corner.

349
00:20:24,050 --> 00:20:28,490
The thing about Wilson is, because
he's so laissez-faire and louche

350
00:20:28,490 --> 00:20:32,370
and, you know, it really doesn't
matter, sort of rather languid
about things,

351
00:20:32,370 --> 00:20:35,930
he could be fantastically irritating
because of that, but he's not.

352
00:20:35,930 --> 00:20:38,810
We really like him
just because he's a real character.

353
00:20:38,810 --> 00:20:44,050
Wilson's laid-back nature
perhaps reached its zenith
when he refused to be caught up

354
00:20:44,050 --> 00:20:47,090
in a spot of role play
with Fulton Mackay's Captain Ramsey.

355
00:20:47,090 --> 00:20:49,530
Right, right, right!
BLOWS WHISTLE LOUDLY

356
00:20:49,530 --> 00:20:51,610
Now I'm a Gestapo officer.

357
00:20:51,610 --> 00:20:55,650
Now, you, Sergeant... Hmm, yes?
What are you doing in France?

358
00:20:55,650 --> 00:20:57,850
Well, I'm not in France.
Oh, yes, you are.

359
00:20:57,850 --> 00:21:01,570
You dropped by parachute, I captured
you and now I'm interrogating you.

360
00:21:01,570 --> 00:21:05,330
Oh, I see. Oh, bonjour.
What do you want to know?

361
00:21:05,330 --> 00:21:08,170
You're not supposed
to tell me anything!

362
00:21:08,170 --> 00:21:10,650
Now, what are you doing in France?

363
00:21:10,650 --> 00:21:14,890
I don't know. You were trying
to blow up a munitions factory.

364
00:21:14,890 --> 00:21:18,130
All right, I was trying to blow up
a munitions factory.

365
00:21:18,130 --> 00:21:21,690
So, you admit it.
Oh, really, this is too absurd.

366
00:21:21,690 --> 00:21:25,130
Right, I'll show you
how absurd it is!

367
00:21:26,610 --> 00:21:29,770
I'm putting matches
underneath your fingernails.

368
00:21:29,770 --> 00:21:31,850
I'm setting light to them.

369
00:21:31,850 --> 00:21:34,810
They're burning down.
Now they've reached your fingers.

370
00:21:34,810 --> 00:21:36,810
You're in agony.

371
00:21:36,810 --> 00:21:38,850
How do you like that?

372
00:21:38,850 --> 00:21:40,930
Well, to be absolutely honest,

373
00:21:40,930 --> 00:21:43,290
it isn't really bothering me
very much.

374
00:21:46,010 --> 00:21:48,570
He was born to play Sergeant Wilson,

375
00:21:48,570 --> 00:21:51,610
I mean, at all times reading 9.8
on the meter.

376
00:21:51,610 --> 00:21:55,530
So, how do you occupy yourself
when you're not actually acting?

377
00:21:55,530 --> 00:22:00,410
I don't know. I just sit about
and play music and stare out
of the window from time to time.

378
00:22:00,410 --> 00:22:04,450
People say to me, "What's
the matter, John? You're not upset
or worried or anything?"

379
00:22:04,450 --> 00:22:10,490
And I often find myself saying,
"Well, no, I'm not at all.
I'm all right, you know, OK."

380
00:22:10,490 --> 00:22:15,810
I'm not one of... People have...
You can't help the way your face
is built, can you, really?

381
00:22:15,810 --> 00:22:18,010
He was such a lovely man.

382
00:22:18,010 --> 00:22:21,050
I felt so sorry for him.
He was, um...

383
00:22:22,810 --> 00:22:25,290
He'd had such unhappy marriages,
hadn't he?

384
00:22:25,290 --> 00:22:30,490
I knew of him through my landlady
Peggy Ann who was a great friend
of Hattie Jacques, one of his wives.

385
00:22:30,490 --> 00:22:34,490
Another very important event in your
life, Hattie. In that same year,

386
00:22:34,490 --> 00:22:36,730
on November the 10th, 1950,
to be precise,

387
00:22:36,730 --> 00:22:40,370
you married well-known actor
John Le Mesurier.

388
00:22:41,410 --> 00:22:43,770
I worked with his wife
Hattie Jacques

389
00:22:43,770 --> 00:22:49,570
and at the time, I had no idea
of the menage a trois
which was going on in their home

390
00:22:49,570 --> 00:22:53,330
and the fact that poor John had
to live in the attic upstairs

391
00:22:53,330 --> 00:22:57,770
whilst Hattie was frolicking
downstairs with a much younger man.

392
00:22:57,770 --> 00:23:02,370
By the time Dad's Army started,
John had married third wife Joan,

393
00:23:02,370 --> 00:23:04,650
but that relationship too was rocked

394
00:23:04,650 --> 00:23:08,130
when she had an affair with
John's best friend Tony Hancock.

395
00:23:08,130 --> 00:23:10,850
He was strong in a way as well.

396
00:23:10,850 --> 00:23:12,970
He was, he was, you know, he was...

397
00:23:14,410 --> 00:23:17,770
..very understanding
of what was going on,

398
00:23:17,770 --> 00:23:20,610
but thank God he was working too
at the time.

399
00:23:20,610 --> 00:23:23,570
He just had an air of tragedy
about him

400
00:23:23,570 --> 00:23:27,170
and everybody would rush round
looking after him,

401
00:23:27,170 --> 00:23:29,530
make-up girls powdering him down.

402
00:23:29,530 --> 00:23:33,570
He'd call everyone "dear lady". "Oh,
thank you, dear lady. Thank you."

403
00:23:33,570 --> 00:23:37,250
He was a charming man,
I mean, especially to the ladies.

404
00:23:37,250 --> 00:23:39,530
Like Casanova.

405
00:23:39,530 --> 00:23:41,890
He was just a gentleman.

406
00:23:41,890 --> 00:23:44,490
Kind of suave, sophisticated

407
00:23:44,490 --> 00:23:47,170
and just the way he walked.

408
00:23:47,170 --> 00:23:50,010
He walked so slowly
and so elegantly.

409
00:23:50,010 --> 00:23:53,410
In the episode where he was dressed
as a horse and...

410
00:23:54,490 --> 00:23:58,810
And yet he was
the most elegant horse in the world.

411
00:23:58,810 --> 00:24:01,490
Wilson! Yes, sir? Office. Right.

412
00:24:03,090 --> 00:24:05,130
Do you want me to walk or gallop?

413
00:24:05,130 --> 00:24:07,730
Just come in the office, will you?

414
00:24:12,290 --> 00:24:15,130
Oh, I loved him.
I wish I could have met him.

415
00:24:15,130 --> 00:24:19,130
I wish I could have married him.
Anyway, that's another story.

416
00:24:19,130 --> 00:24:21,410
Coming up... What do you want?

417
00:24:21,410 --> 00:24:26,210
We look at the rest
of the magnificent seven.
They're just perfectly crafted.

418
00:24:26,210 --> 00:24:28,450
The relationships are so well drawn.

419
00:24:28,450 --> 00:24:30,170
Godfrey!

420
00:24:30,170 --> 00:24:35,010
And find out the surprising truth
behind a Private Godfrey
catchphrase.

421
00:24:35,010 --> 00:24:37,450
David and Jimmy were very good

422
00:24:37,450 --> 00:24:40,970
and that's why they kept writing
all these parts, "Can I be excused?"

423
00:24:40,970 --> 00:24:44,930
So that he would have time to rest
and go to the loo.

424
00:24:48,990 --> 00:24:52,350
Welcome back to We Love Dad's Army.

425
00:24:52,350 --> 00:24:54,350
Right turn!

426
00:24:54,350 --> 00:25:00,230
One outstanding element
of this treasured sitcom was
the tremendous ensemble cast.

427
00:25:00,230 --> 00:25:03,230
All of the characters, I think,
are wonderfully done,

428
00:25:03,230 --> 00:25:06,350
even if some are slightly broader
or more pantomimey than the others.

429
00:25:06,350 --> 00:25:09,470
Still there's something sweet
and human about the way
they all interact.

430
00:25:09,470 --> 00:25:11,510
And they became
sort of national icons.

431
00:25:11,510 --> 00:25:14,990
"The magnificent seven," Croft used
to call them. And they were.

432
00:25:16,470 --> 00:25:20,750
This seldom seen archive from
the cine camera of Frank Williams,

433
00:25:20,750 --> 00:25:23,310
who played Dad's Army vicar
Timothy Farthing,

434
00:25:23,310 --> 00:25:26,550
captures the ensemble
in unguarded moments.

435
00:25:28,030 --> 00:25:30,110
That's right, open the champagne.

436
00:25:30,110 --> 00:25:33,670
Of course, you're overacting.
You're overacting, Bill.

437
00:25:33,670 --> 00:25:38,350
The whole cast had decades of
experience behind them, except one.

438
00:25:38,350 --> 00:25:43,150
Ian, of course, he's doing the Times
crossword, as he does. Yes, Ian.

439
00:25:43,150 --> 00:25:47,350
I liked Pike just because he was
sort of a younger character,

440
00:25:47,350 --> 00:25:49,150
a little bit cheeky.

441
00:25:49,150 --> 00:25:51,350
You stupid boy!

442
00:25:52,430 --> 00:25:55,710
And when a 22-year-old Ian Lavender
landed the part,

443
00:25:55,710 --> 00:25:59,110
his agent Ann had
a small confession to make.

444
00:25:59,110 --> 00:26:02,270
She took me out for lunch and said,
"I've got something to tell you."

445
00:26:02,270 --> 00:26:05,310
"What?" She said, "David Croft."
"Yes?" "He's my husband."

446
00:26:05,310 --> 00:26:10,070
She said, "You got the interview
because I'm married to him.

447
00:26:10,070 --> 00:26:12,990
"You got the job
because he wants you."

448
00:26:12,990 --> 00:26:16,670
"Oh, yeah, fine." She said,
"All right then, don't believe me.

449
00:26:16,670 --> 00:26:19,510
"But believe this.
He can always write you out."

450
00:26:19,510 --> 00:26:21,590
IAN LAUGHS

451
00:26:21,590 --> 00:26:26,230
So, I can honestly say my agent
was sleeping with the director.

452
00:26:26,230 --> 00:26:29,670
Ian was lovely. I got on very well
with Ian. We were the youngest.

453
00:26:29,670 --> 00:26:35,430
I used to pick him up on the way to
rehearsals at Hammersmith Broadway,
a little second-hand Mini.

454
00:26:35,430 --> 00:26:37,870
You couldn't park there now,
could you?

455
00:26:37,870 --> 00:26:42,110
I used to pull in, wait for him
coming out of the Tube. Gosh!

456
00:26:42,110 --> 00:26:46,030
He was of the age, Pike,
that I sort of vaguely fancied him,

457
00:26:46,030 --> 00:26:50,350
but he was such
a sort of hilarious mummy's boy
with so many ailments and things

458
00:26:50,350 --> 00:26:52,910
that you couldn't quite.
It was really hilarious.

459
00:26:52,910 --> 00:26:54,350
Pike!

460
00:26:54,350 --> 00:26:57,750
You must not wear a coloured scarf
with your uniform.

461
00:26:57,750 --> 00:27:00,590
How many times do I have
to tell you? Take that off at once.

462
00:27:00,590 --> 00:27:02,910
My mum says I mustn't take it off.
I get croup.

463
00:27:03,950 --> 00:27:05,470
Croup?

464
00:27:05,470 --> 00:27:07,510
Chickens get that, don't they?

465
00:27:07,510 --> 00:27:09,470
Yes, that's right.

466
00:27:09,470 --> 00:27:13,070
He's also there, I think,
to entertain the idea

467
00:27:13,070 --> 00:27:15,910
that some people do think
war is a great big adventure.

468
00:27:15,910 --> 00:27:20,710
He sees the war through the prism
of films and baddies and good guys

469
00:27:20,710 --> 00:27:22,990
and for him, the guns are a prop.

470
00:27:24,190 --> 00:27:27,910
I think that's such a key element
to the sweetness of Dad's Army.

471
00:27:27,910 --> 00:27:30,030
Ian was a very, very bright fellow,

472
00:27:30,030 --> 00:27:34,830
so he could turn his part
to any sort of character acting
that there was.

473
00:27:34,830 --> 00:27:39,390
The fantastic scene with him
and John Le Mesurier, Wilson,

474
00:27:39,390 --> 00:27:43,310
when they were dressed as Germans,
German officers,

475
00:27:43,310 --> 00:27:45,910
was absolutely genius.

476
00:27:48,430 --> 00:27:51,310
'The instructions from my director
when I went...

477
00:27:51,310 --> 00:27:53,550
'"What do you want me to do
with this, David?"

478
00:27:53,550 --> 00:27:56,350
'He just looked at me and said,
"Do anything you want.

479
00:27:56,350 --> 00:27:58,790
'"You've got carte blanche."'

480
00:27:58,790 --> 00:28:00,390
Schweinhund!

481
00:28:06,790 --> 00:28:08,630
So...

482
00:28:08,630 --> 00:28:10,790
we are the masters now, eh?

483
00:28:13,230 --> 00:28:15,710
You have just five seconds
to tell us your plans

484
00:28:15,710 --> 00:28:17,830
or else it is...kaput!

485
00:28:19,270 --> 00:28:21,790
I like being an officer,
don't you, Uncle Arthur?

486
00:28:23,230 --> 00:28:27,430
Pike's "uncle" Arthur was
in a semi-clandestine relationship

487
00:28:27,430 --> 00:28:29,630
with Pike's mum Mavis,

488
00:28:29,630 --> 00:28:33,230
leaving some to wonder if he was
more than just an "uncle"?

489
00:28:34,270 --> 00:28:36,630
Uncle Arthur, his uncle Arthur.

490
00:28:36,630 --> 00:28:39,870
But is he Pike's uncle Arthur,
is he Pike's father

491
00:28:39,870 --> 00:28:45,190
or what is the relationship
between Uncle Arthur and Mrs Pike?

492
00:28:45,190 --> 00:28:47,470
I think you're a proud father.

493
00:28:47,470 --> 00:28:49,910
I don't quite follow you.
Your son becoming an officer.

494
00:28:49,910 --> 00:28:52,270
'There is one episode
where it's alluded to,

495
00:28:52,270 --> 00:28:55,350
'the fact that Wilson and Pike
could be father and son.'

496
00:28:55,350 --> 00:28:57,750
He's not my son, you see.

497
00:28:57,750 --> 00:29:00,790
Because they were touching
their face at exactly the same time.

498
00:29:00,790 --> 00:29:03,990
There were exactly the same
mannerisms that were going on

499
00:29:03,990 --> 00:29:06,830
and it made you think,
"Oh, I wonder?"

500
00:29:06,830 --> 00:29:09,230
What size does the young man take?
What size?

501
00:29:09,230 --> 00:29:11,870
What size, hmm? What? Nines.

502
00:29:11,870 --> 00:29:13,950
Nine. Nine, right.

503
00:29:13,950 --> 00:29:16,750
'My character thought
he was my uncle,

504
00:29:16,750 --> 00:29:19,070
'so that's all I needed to know.

505
00:29:19,070 --> 00:29:22,070
'We'd finished
the last recording ever

506
00:29:22,070 --> 00:29:24,270
'and as we were leaving the studio,

507
00:29:24,270 --> 00:29:27,670
'I said to David, "David,
I've got to ask you one thing.

508
00:29:27,670 --> 00:29:29,750
'"Is Sergeant Wilson my father?"

509
00:29:29,750 --> 00:29:32,230
'He just looked at me and said,
"Of course he is."'

510
00:29:32,230 --> 00:29:34,270
IAN LAUGHS

511
00:29:34,270 --> 00:29:36,270
And that was it!

512
00:29:37,270 --> 00:29:41,350
Mr Laurie, please, Mr Laurie.
What do you want?

513
00:29:41,350 --> 00:29:44,910
Private Frazer,
the doubting Thomas of the troupe,

514
00:29:44,910 --> 00:29:49,670
was played by John Laurie,
a highly respected actor
of stage and screen.

515
00:29:49,670 --> 00:29:53,430
Doomed I am,
doomed to be surrounded by idiots.

516
00:29:53,430 --> 00:29:55,470
Bugger off!

517
00:29:55,470 --> 00:29:59,670
Frazer's brilliant cos I remember
seeing him in The 39 Steps.

518
00:29:59,670 --> 00:30:01,710
He's got that kind of, you know...

519
00:30:01,710 --> 00:30:05,350
He's got a great... He's a master
of the grimace and the...

520
00:30:05,350 --> 00:30:07,430
Go in with the gentleman.

521
00:30:07,430 --> 00:30:09,630
He'll stay with us
till tomorrow morning.

522
00:30:09,630 --> 00:30:11,630
Your daughter?

523
00:30:13,030 --> 00:30:15,430
My wife.

524
00:30:15,430 --> 00:30:17,670
Clearly, a proper actor, you know.

525
00:30:17,670 --> 00:30:20,510
Not like one of us comedy actors.
A proper one.

526
00:30:20,510 --> 00:30:24,070
Before I was 30, I was playing
Hamlet at Stratford-on-Avon.

527
00:30:24,070 --> 00:30:28,510
Also Othello, King Lear,
Richard III.

528
00:30:28,510 --> 00:30:30,910
I played all the parts
in Shakespeare

529
00:30:30,910 --> 00:30:33,710
that anybody could want to play.

530
00:30:33,710 --> 00:30:37,510
Croft and Perry obviously thought
they needed people
who could do super-serious

531
00:30:37,510 --> 00:30:41,510
and that that would be funny.
That's what they do with Frazer.
It's so funny, it's brilliant.

532
00:30:41,510 --> 00:30:45,710
What's amiss? Can we come in
and talk to you for a minute?

533
00:30:45,710 --> 00:30:47,470
WIND WHISTLES

534
00:30:57,990 --> 00:31:00,470
I'm sorry about the candles.

535
00:31:00,470 --> 00:31:04,470
My blinds are a bit thin
for the glare of the gas light.

536
00:31:04,470 --> 00:31:08,430
I like candles.
They're...they're more romantic.

537
00:31:13,110 --> 00:31:15,870
I think John Laurie was very much
like Frazer

538
00:31:15,870 --> 00:31:20,510
and I think he could have
his moments where he could be
maybe a little difficult.

539
00:31:20,510 --> 00:31:23,830
It was just a lousy part. I realised
that, but I was out of work

540
00:31:23,830 --> 00:31:25,910
and actors will take anything.

541
00:31:25,910 --> 00:31:29,070
I'm here, look.
LAUGHTER

542
00:31:29,070 --> 00:31:31,270
Jimmy would write that
into the scene

543
00:31:31,270 --> 00:31:34,670
and have Frazer shouting the odds,

544
00:31:34,670 --> 00:31:39,910
and then going into these
long monologues which, of course,
used his natural theatrical talent.

545
00:31:39,910 --> 00:31:44,910
The great thing, as soon as Frazer
speaks, everybody falls silent
cos he can hold the room.

546
00:31:44,910 --> 00:31:48,070
He's good.
He's a great performer like that.

547
00:31:48,070 --> 00:31:50,070
Captain Mainwaring...

548
00:31:51,150 --> 00:31:56,790
Did...did you ever hear the story
of the old, empty barn?

549
00:31:58,070 --> 00:31:59,590
No.

550
00:32:00,670 --> 00:32:05,030
Would you like to hear the story
of the old, empty barn?

551
00:32:06,910 --> 00:32:08,910
Well, yes.

552
00:32:08,910 --> 00:32:12,950
You're drawn in.
What's he gonna say?
Where's this story going to lead us?

553
00:32:12,950 --> 00:32:17,510
Is he going to frighten the life
out of all of us?
He commands us, he hypnotises us.

554
00:32:17,510 --> 00:32:21,990
The story of the old...empty barn.

555
00:32:23,870 --> 00:32:25,390
Well...

556
00:32:27,710 --> 00:32:29,710
..there was nothing in it.

557
00:32:34,910 --> 00:32:37,670
"There was nothing in it."
"There was nothing in it."

558
00:32:37,670 --> 00:32:43,950
Next to Frazer was Private Walker,
a role Jimmy Perry originally wrote
for himself,

559
00:32:43,950 --> 00:32:47,110
but that was eventually taken
by James Beck.

560
00:32:47,110 --> 00:32:49,630
I always loved Walker.
Walker was such a lovely character.

561
00:32:49,630 --> 00:32:52,710
I think I partly loved him
because I was a big Roxy Music fan

562
00:32:52,710 --> 00:32:56,150
and Bryan Ferry went through a phase
of having slick black hair
and a moustache.

563
00:32:56,150 --> 00:32:59,790
Maybe Bryan Ferry was
a big Dad's Army fan. Maybe that was
his tribute to Walker.

564
00:32:59,790 --> 00:33:02,670
# I'm in with the "in" crowd

565
00:33:02,670 --> 00:33:05,430
# I go where the "in" crowd... #

566
00:33:05,430 --> 00:33:10,150
James Beck pulls off a remarkable
performance, I think, with Walker

567
00:33:10,150 --> 00:33:13,070
because he's
such an iconic wartime character,

568
00:33:13,070 --> 00:33:16,630
the way he dresses, the sort of
zoot suits and the jaunty cap

569
00:33:16,630 --> 00:33:19,430
and the cigarette
and the little spiv moustache,

570
00:33:19,430 --> 00:33:22,710
the ducking and diving, bribing
people, helping the platoon out.

571
00:33:22,710 --> 00:33:27,990
So, he's taking a lot
of cultural images that everybody
still remembered in the '60s.

572
00:33:27,990 --> 00:33:30,070
Good evening, gents. Oh, and lady.

573
00:33:30,070 --> 00:33:32,470
Now then, I've got ten minutes
before the parade begins,

574
00:33:32,470 --> 00:33:35,270
so I've got a few essential items
here that are in short supply.

575
00:33:35,270 --> 00:33:38,630
Come over here. I've got some
hair grips, some chocolate biscuits.

576
00:33:38,630 --> 00:33:41,390
Oh, and some elastic. Oh!
What about that? How much?

577
00:33:41,390 --> 00:33:43,590
Five bob a yard. Five bob a yard.

578
00:33:43,590 --> 00:33:45,830
Not bad, is it?
You can't get it anywhere.

579
00:33:45,830 --> 00:33:50,390
It's so long since it's been in
the shops, some of you ladies must
have been getting a bit desperate.

580
00:33:50,390 --> 00:33:54,310
You couldn't help but like Walker
because he always came up trumps,

581
00:33:54,310 --> 00:33:57,710
he always came up
with some great ideas on what to do.

582
00:33:57,710 --> 00:34:01,950
The interesting thing about
Dad's Army is that Private Walker's
in there saying,

583
00:34:01,950 --> 00:34:04,510
"Come on, let's be honest now.
There was a black market."

584
00:34:04,510 --> 00:34:08,790
It's all part of actually
kind of how, if you want, edgy,
but honest...

585
00:34:08,790 --> 00:34:12,670
The programme's being honest.
There's comedy in honesty.

586
00:34:12,670 --> 00:34:17,110
Mainwaring would be sort of
very sneery as to what he was doing,

587
00:34:17,110 --> 00:34:20,750
but was not averse to taking
the ill-gotten black market goods.

588
00:34:20,750 --> 00:34:23,550
I just wanted to have a word
with Captain Mainwaring. All right.

589
00:34:23,550 --> 00:34:26,550
Psst, oi! Hmm? I've got your cheese.

590
00:34:26,550 --> 00:34:29,110
You've got what?
I've got your cheese! Oh, yes.

591
00:34:30,190 --> 00:34:33,710
A pound of Cheddar. It isn't for me,
of course. No, of course not.

592
00:34:33,710 --> 00:34:37,630
You know I don't approve of
that sort of thing. In that case,
I'll take it away. No, no, leaveit.

593
00:34:38,470 --> 00:34:42,110
Almost the polar opposite
of street-wise Walker...

594
00:34:42,110 --> 00:34:45,230
Godfrey, come along,
quick as you can! For heaven's sake!

595
00:34:45,230 --> 00:34:48,750
..was the oldest member
of the platoon, Private Godfrey,

596
00:34:48,750 --> 00:34:50,910
played by Arnold Ridley.

597
00:34:50,910 --> 00:34:53,110
Could you halt right there, please?

598
00:34:53,110 --> 00:34:55,910
Arnold Ridley, actor and playwright,

599
00:34:55,910 --> 00:34:58,230
tonight, this is your life!

600
00:35:00,030 --> 00:35:01,910
And smile, please!

601
00:35:02,990 --> 00:35:06,630
I kind of liked Godfrey because
he was just sort of dithering.

602
00:35:06,630 --> 00:35:09,670
You just kind of think,
"How are you in the army?"

603
00:35:09,670 --> 00:35:12,910
It's that kind of thing.
"How are you going to protect us?"

604
00:35:12,910 --> 00:35:16,150
I really used to look forward
to seeing Godfrey pipe up

605
00:35:16,150 --> 00:35:19,350
which was maybe only two
or three times an episode,

606
00:35:19,350 --> 00:35:24,670
but he was such a reassuring
presence and it was always so funny
and always so sweet.

607
00:35:24,670 --> 00:35:29,230
Mainwaring was quite tough on him,
really, cos he was such a gentle
soul. "Godfrey, sort that out."

608
00:35:29,230 --> 00:35:33,510
You know, it was all very...
I always sort of felt really sorry
for him.

609
00:35:33,510 --> 00:35:35,950
Godfrey? Where's Godfrey?

610
00:35:35,950 --> 00:35:37,910
Godfrey!

611
00:35:37,910 --> 00:35:40,030
Did someone call?

612
00:35:41,470 --> 00:35:45,830
I'm terribly sorry, sir.
I...I must have dozed off.

613
00:35:45,830 --> 00:35:47,910
Dozed off?

614
00:35:47,910 --> 00:35:51,270
We're guarding a dangerous bunch
of cut-throats and you doze off?

615
00:35:51,270 --> 00:35:55,590
I want you to watch them like
a hawk. You understand? Like a hawk!

616
00:35:55,590 --> 00:36:00,990
When casting,
David Croft's one concern
was whether 72-year-old Ridley,

617
00:36:00,990 --> 00:36:03,990
a distinguished veteran
of both world wars,

618
00:36:03,990 --> 00:36:07,390
could manage the rigours
of a regular filming schedule.

619
00:36:07,390 --> 00:36:12,630
He said, "My only worry about it is
I don't know whether you'll be able
to stand up to it.

620
00:36:12,630 --> 00:36:16,270
"It's not very serious." I said, "I
think I'm as fit as anyone of 72."

621
00:36:16,270 --> 00:36:19,230
He said, "I'll let you know
in two or three days' time."

622
00:36:19,230 --> 00:36:22,070
I didn't realise
what really was at stake.

623
00:36:22,070 --> 00:36:25,190
I didn't realise I'd got
eight years' work ahead of me.

624
00:36:25,190 --> 00:36:27,790
I thought it was about eight weeks
at the most.

625
00:36:28,950 --> 00:36:33,830
He just loved being there, Arnold,
being part of it.
David and Jimmy were very good.

626
00:36:33,830 --> 00:36:36,310
They didn't give him anything
that was too strenuous.

627
00:36:36,310 --> 00:36:40,630
And that's why they kept writing
all these parts, "Can I be excused?"

628
00:36:40,630 --> 00:36:45,670
So that he would have time to rest
and go to the loo.

629
00:36:45,670 --> 00:36:48,670
What is it, Godfrey?
Do you think I might be excused?

630
00:36:48,670 --> 00:36:50,750
Certainly not.

631
00:36:50,750 --> 00:36:53,110
We were an awfully long time
in that boat, sir.

632
00:36:53,110 --> 00:36:55,910
You should have taken advantage
of it, shouldn't you?

633
00:36:57,310 --> 00:37:00,830
Arnold was very kind, very gentle,
but strong,

634
00:37:00,830 --> 00:37:03,590
much, much stronger
than the part he played.

635
00:37:05,150 --> 00:37:08,470
And he and Clive Dunn used
to tell the filthiest jokes

636
00:37:08,470 --> 00:37:10,670
and I was only 22.

637
00:37:10,670 --> 00:37:14,710
I was shocked that this lovely,
sweet old boy, you know,

638
00:37:14,710 --> 00:37:19,630
and out would come
all these very naughty jokes.

639
00:37:19,630 --> 00:37:21,630
HUMS "DAD'S ARMY" THEME TUNE

640
00:37:22,710 --> 00:37:25,070
I stand right behind Arnold
and he goes...

641
00:37:25,070 --> 00:37:26,910
HUMS THEME TUNE

642
00:37:28,270 --> 00:37:30,910
And I know exactly
what he's thinking.

643
00:37:30,910 --> 00:37:34,030
It's ten past ten
and the pubs are still open.

644
00:37:35,630 --> 00:37:38,750
After the break,
the incomparable Clive Dunn.

645
00:37:38,750 --> 00:37:42,350
Clive Dunn really put his neck
on the line for the show.

646
00:37:42,350 --> 00:37:45,830
And a story from the days
before health and safety kicked in.

647
00:37:46,910 --> 00:37:49,550
There was this panic going on
as they realised

648
00:37:49,550 --> 00:37:52,670
that actually Dad for some reason
was still out,

649
00:37:52,670 --> 00:37:55,340
quite a way out in a boat
on his own.

650
00:37:58,140 --> 00:38:01,780
Welcome back to We Love Dad's Army.

651
00:38:01,780 --> 00:38:04,060
BLOWS BUGLE LOUDLY

652
00:38:05,220 --> 00:38:08,700
What are you blowing that for?
They don't work if you suck 'em.

653
00:38:08,700 --> 00:38:14,340
Clive Dunn as Jones, of course,
the most iconic character, I think,
in the show,

654
00:38:14,340 --> 00:38:17,940
certainly the one that everybody had
an impression of at school.

655
00:38:17,940 --> 00:38:21,020
It seemed to be almost as if he was
the oldest, yet he wasn't,

656
00:38:21,020 --> 00:38:22,980
because at the time,

657
00:38:22,980 --> 00:38:25,340
Clive Dunn the actor was
under 50 years of age.

658
00:38:25,340 --> 00:38:30,140
# I've been sitting here all day,
thinking... #

659
00:38:30,140 --> 00:38:34,580
In 1971, Clive Dunn topped
the charts with Grandad.

660
00:38:34,580 --> 00:38:36,860
Aged just 51 at the time,

661
00:38:36,860 --> 00:38:40,500
he had already been charming viewers
with his convincing portrayal

662
00:38:40,500 --> 00:38:43,020
of a slightly decrepit old man
for three years.

663
00:38:43,020 --> 00:38:45,060
# Memories linger on

664
00:38:45,060 --> 00:38:50,740
# Thoughts of when I was a boy... #

665
00:38:50,740 --> 00:38:54,980
He seemed to have carved a career
playing these old men.
He'd done it before.

666
00:38:54,980 --> 00:38:57,900
But in real life,
he was very suave, elegant,

667
00:38:57,900 --> 00:39:01,700
with a suede jacket
and beautiful shirts and trousers.

668
00:39:01,700 --> 00:39:04,180
When I first joined,
he had to have a lot of make-up

669
00:39:04,180 --> 00:39:06,260
to make him look like Jones.

670
00:39:06,260 --> 00:39:10,300
But as the time went by, Make-up
used to laugh and they'd say,

671
00:39:10,300 --> 00:39:15,660
"We need less and less make-up
with him because, you know,
he's growing into the part."

672
00:39:15,660 --> 00:39:18,700
That again was brilliant casting
because it meant, as an old man,

673
00:39:18,700 --> 00:39:21,860
he could do all those wonderful,
wonderful stunts.

674
00:39:21,860 --> 00:39:25,740
He could actually be the clown
of the group.

675
00:39:25,740 --> 00:39:28,780
And, boy, Croft and Perry used that
to great effect!

676
00:39:28,780 --> 00:39:31,100
Take it easy, Jones.
Yeah, all right, sir.

677
00:39:31,100 --> 00:39:33,300
I'm nearly... I'm nearly there, sir.

678
00:39:33,300 --> 00:39:35,780
I'm nearly over.
I'm nearly there, sir.

679
00:39:35,780 --> 00:39:38,740
Yes, all right, sir.
I'm nearly there, sir.

680
00:39:43,060 --> 00:39:46,180
Clive Dunn really put his neck
on the line for the show.

681
00:39:46,180 --> 00:39:48,420
You'd wonder
whether they'd sit down and go,

682
00:39:48,420 --> 00:39:51,300
"What can we get Clive to do
this week?

683
00:39:51,300 --> 00:39:55,140
"What absurd thing
can we persuade him to do
and he'll say yes, won't he?"

684
00:39:55,140 --> 00:40:00,140
"I'll be the one who wants
to be shot, Mr Mainwaring." He'll do
all of that. He'll do anything.

685
00:40:00,140 --> 00:40:03,460
There was no situation
Jonesy couldn't turn into a moment

686
00:40:03,460 --> 00:40:06,780
of laugh-out-loud, slapstick comedy.

687
00:40:06,780 --> 00:40:08,900
Mr Mainwaring! Mr Mainwaring!

688
00:40:08,900 --> 00:40:13,220
It's where the comedy is
at its broadest, really, and that's
perhaps why, as a kid, I loved it.

689
00:40:13,220 --> 00:40:17,780
That's once again a masterstroke,
the reason why it was so popular
with all ages.

690
00:40:17,780 --> 00:40:21,700
Initially, though, Dunn wasn't sure
about taking the role

691
00:40:21,700 --> 00:40:24,660
and it almost went
to a young David Jason.

692
00:40:24,660 --> 00:40:27,740
Did you say yes to that part
immediately?

693
00:40:27,740 --> 00:40:30,340
Oh, no, I didn't say yes. Yeah.

694
00:40:30,340 --> 00:40:33,900
To be honest, I'd just been
in a show that I wasn't very good in

695
00:40:33,900 --> 00:40:37,860
and I thought, "I don't wanna go in
another show I'm not very good in."

696
00:40:37,860 --> 00:40:41,660
Jimmy Perry based Jones
on a character from his days
in the Home Guard

697
00:40:41,660 --> 00:40:45,540
and gave him the privileged position
of the town's butcher.

698
00:40:45,540 --> 00:40:51,300
The thing I like about
the relationship between Jones
and Mainwaring is, um, you know,

699
00:40:51,300 --> 00:40:55,260
he's completely at his beck
and call, a military man
through and through,

700
00:40:55,260 --> 00:40:57,500
but then every now and then,

701
00:40:57,500 --> 00:41:02,820
there's a little threat
of Mainwaring not getting
his ration of meat that week

702
00:41:02,820 --> 00:41:05,660
when Corporal Jones isn't getting
what he wanted.

703
00:41:05,660 --> 00:41:08,260
Oh, sir. Yes? There's, um...

704
00:41:08,260 --> 00:41:11,500
There's a couple of pounds
of steak there, sir.

705
00:41:11,500 --> 00:41:13,540
Compliments of the house.

706
00:41:13,540 --> 00:41:15,220
Oh! Yes, sir.

707
00:41:15,220 --> 00:41:17,980
By the way, sir,
what about my stripe? Your stripe?

708
00:41:20,060 --> 00:41:23,380
I was a Lance-Corporal for 14 years.
Can I keep it?

709
00:41:23,380 --> 00:41:26,740
No, Jones, I'm afraid you can't.
In that case, I'll keep the steak.

710
00:41:28,860 --> 00:41:31,420
I loved that about him.
I loved that steely quality

711
00:41:31,420 --> 00:41:37,420
about him being prepared to use
his valued position as butcher
in the village to get what he wants.

712
00:41:37,420 --> 00:41:43,100
Jones's butcher's van became
a vital tool for the platoon
throughout the series.

713
00:41:45,260 --> 00:41:48,620
# We're on a road to nowhere... #

714
00:41:48,620 --> 00:41:50,820
Here is my van. Here we are.

715
00:41:50,820 --> 00:41:53,300
I'm afraid we don't have a Jonesy
in it.

716
00:41:53,300 --> 00:41:57,620
This rare footage sees the cast
taking the van for a spin

717
00:41:57,620 --> 00:42:00,660
on the London to Brighton
Veteran Car Rally.

718
00:42:00,660 --> 00:42:03,860
Well, I think Clive was
quite nervous about driving it.

719
00:42:03,860 --> 00:42:07,140
It wasn't the easiest vehicle
in the world, being so old,

720
00:42:07,140 --> 00:42:09,780
with a very strange steering wheel,

721
00:42:09,780 --> 00:42:12,260
so it took him a while,
but he got used to it.

722
00:42:12,260 --> 00:42:15,660
You must be very proud
of Corporal Jones.
What a superb job at the wheel!

723
00:42:15,660 --> 00:42:19,460
A marvellous job, a marvellous job
indeed. I think it was excellent.

724
00:42:19,460 --> 00:42:22,300
And how did she behave?
Oh, she behaved very well, sir.

725
00:42:22,300 --> 00:42:25,500
Rather a lot of steam came out.
Yeah, I noticed.

726
00:42:25,500 --> 00:42:29,980
We formed our own smokescreen,
so that nobody could see us
as we came through, sir.

727
00:42:29,980 --> 00:42:34,060
But the legendary van hadn't always
been in such great shape.

728
00:42:34,060 --> 00:42:39,820
The prop buyer and myself
looked around for quite some time
until we found a garage

729
00:42:39,820 --> 00:42:42,580
that had something suitable.

730
00:42:42,580 --> 00:42:45,620
It was in a terrible state.

731
00:42:45,620 --> 00:42:48,860
We had it renovated
and made roadworthy,

732
00:42:48,860 --> 00:42:52,740
then I designed the graphics
for the side of the vehicle

733
00:42:52,740 --> 00:42:57,940
in a way that was...
the same sort of style that
you expected of Jonesy himself.

734
00:42:59,980 --> 00:43:04,580
The van was often at the heart
of Dad's Army's signature
set-piece capers

735
00:43:04,580 --> 00:43:07,740
that Jimmy Perry had encouraged
from the very start.

736
00:43:08,820 --> 00:43:11,620
He said it was adventure comedy

737
00:43:11,620 --> 00:43:15,180
and he said that was the only way
they could really get the laughs

738
00:43:15,180 --> 00:43:18,740
because, I mean, look at it, they
were ridiculous ideas, weren't they?

739
00:43:18,740 --> 00:43:20,740
Jump to it! Hup!

740
00:43:22,300 --> 00:43:25,020
Croft and Perry were unrestrained

741
00:43:25,020 --> 00:43:31,140
by any sense of trying
to either keep it characterful,
real or broad comedy.

742
00:43:31,140 --> 00:43:37,100
They had all of these things
at their disposal and they weren't
afraid to use any of them.

743
00:43:37,100 --> 00:43:42,100
And Mainwaring being dragged
around the countryside strapped
to a barrage balloon, it's just...

744
00:43:42,100 --> 00:43:44,620
They really give their value
for money.

745
00:43:46,020 --> 00:43:47,500
Ruddy hooligans!

746
00:43:47,500 --> 00:43:50,220
What do you think you're playing at?
Cowboys and Indians?

747
00:43:50,220 --> 00:43:54,820
I mean, yes, it was totally
and completely adventure comedy.

748
00:43:54,820 --> 00:43:57,980
Well, Clive, Bill and I

749
00:43:57,980 --> 00:44:02,380
were often the subjects
of this adventure comedy

750
00:44:02,380 --> 00:44:06,900
in that if somebody had to fall
into a river or whatever,
it would be one of us three

751
00:44:06,900 --> 00:44:11,540
to the extent that Wardrobe
just automatically packed wetsuits
for us,

752
00:44:11,540 --> 00:44:13,860
but it was always us
because we were young.

753
00:44:13,860 --> 00:44:16,460
But perhaps the show's
most complex water scene

754
00:44:16,460 --> 00:44:19,220
was bravely shot in studio

755
00:44:19,220 --> 00:44:23,900
and required some breathtaking
ingenuity from the Dad's Army crew.

756
00:44:23,900 --> 00:44:28,260
What am I gonna do
when the water reaches my head?
Oh, don't worry about that.

757
00:44:28,260 --> 00:44:31,300
We'll have thought of something
by then.

758
00:44:31,300 --> 00:44:34,780
We had two sequences
where the water was low down

759
00:44:34,780 --> 00:44:37,940
and then later on, it was higher up

760
00:44:37,940 --> 00:44:40,900
and we did that
by lowering the set into the water

761
00:44:40,900 --> 00:44:44,580
which was done behind closed screens
in front of the audience.

762
00:44:44,580 --> 00:44:49,100
Uncle Arthur... Yes?
If you don't let me up on that bunk,
I'll tell Mum.

763
00:44:50,180 --> 00:44:53,220
The set itself got applause
from the audience.

764
00:44:53,220 --> 00:44:57,860
I don't think that's ever happened
to me before or since, actually.

765
00:44:57,860 --> 00:45:00,420
Give us a hand. Give us a pull.
It's different now, isn't it?

766
00:45:00,420 --> 00:45:02,940
When I wanted to get in your bath,
you didn't want to know.

767
00:45:02,940 --> 00:45:05,860
Now you want help!
Hurry up! Get over there!

768
00:45:05,860 --> 00:45:09,620
'It also meant that Bill Pertwee and
I, instead of standing in the water,

769
00:45:09,620 --> 00:45:12,460
'now had to kneel so that the water
was at our shoulders.

770
00:45:12,460 --> 00:45:15,820
'That's when you suddenly realise
your bodies are quite buoyant

771
00:45:15,820 --> 00:45:21,540
'and somebody had to be in there
holding Pertwee down
in his water tank,

772
00:45:21,540 --> 00:45:24,260
'so he didn't fall over.'

773
00:45:24,260 --> 00:45:26,060
Aaagh!

774
00:45:28,340 --> 00:45:32,340
I think one of the reasons
people love Dad's Army
is you get the feeling

775
00:45:32,340 --> 00:45:37,180
that there's nothing Croft and Perry
wouldn't do to one of their
characters if it got them a laugh.

776
00:45:37,180 --> 00:45:39,260
Oh, it's someone's birthday.

777
00:45:39,260 --> 00:45:41,540
As Frank Williams's home movie
shows,

778
00:45:41,540 --> 00:45:45,740
the popular Bill Pertwee was nothing
like his warden character.

779
00:45:45,740 --> 00:45:47,860
Well, happy birthday, young man.

780
00:45:48,900 --> 00:45:53,580
But he was often the one asked
to be the fall guy
in the name of comedy.

781
00:45:53,580 --> 00:45:56,620
David and Jimmy said,
"The great thing about Bill,

782
00:45:56,620 --> 00:45:59,860
"we could throw anything at him,
he didn't mind a bit.

783
00:45:59,860 --> 00:46:03,660
"We'd throw barrels of horrible
old manure all over him or water

784
00:46:03,660 --> 00:46:05,860
"and chuck him in this lake here."

785
00:46:05,860 --> 00:46:09,260
I remember Dad was forever
in the water.

786
00:46:09,260 --> 00:46:11,460
Clear off! Aaagh!

787
00:46:12,980 --> 00:46:15,180
Aaagh!

788
00:46:15,180 --> 00:46:17,300
Oh, here we go again!

789
00:46:17,300 --> 00:46:22,580
He used to come back after doing the
rehearsals and say, "Isn't it all
marvellous? Aren't we alllucky?"

790
00:46:22,580 --> 00:46:26,580
It was fine with him.
He didn't mind. There was
no health and safety then.

791
00:46:26,580 --> 00:46:30,380
That lack of health and safety
wasn't usually an issue

792
00:46:30,380 --> 00:46:35,620
until one night
when life began imitating art
for the unfortunate Pertwee.

793
00:46:35,620 --> 00:46:41,500
They'd gone out to do a scene
in the sea off the pier and it was
a night shoot, pretty late.

794
00:46:41,500 --> 00:46:44,300
And Dad is in a boat on his own.

795
00:46:44,300 --> 00:46:47,900
I wonder what it is? It ain't half
making a lot of splashing.

796
00:46:47,900 --> 00:46:50,540
Hey! Put that light out!

797
00:46:50,540 --> 00:46:56,180
And the two guys who were filming
thought Dad had been taken back
in another boat,

798
00:46:56,180 --> 00:46:58,700
so everyone came back
to the Thetford hotel

799
00:46:58,700 --> 00:47:01,980
and there was
this sort of slight panic going on

800
00:47:01,980 --> 00:47:05,700
as they realised that actually Dad
for some reason was still out,

801
00:47:05,700 --> 00:47:08,900
quite a way out in a boat on
his own, paddling back to the pier,

802
00:47:08,900 --> 00:47:11,260
but that was a bit hairy,
he told me.

803
00:47:11,260 --> 00:47:13,940
Um...and we were
a little bit worried.

804
00:47:13,940 --> 00:47:16,500
I could sense the atmosphere,

805
00:47:16,500 --> 00:47:19,340
but it all ended OK.

806
00:47:19,340 --> 00:47:24,180
Captain Mainwaring and the platoon
would no doubt have had
little sympathy

807
00:47:24,180 --> 00:47:27,820
for Hodges being cast adrift
in the North Sea,

808
00:47:27,820 --> 00:47:30,100
but he was a vital part of the show.

809
00:47:30,100 --> 00:47:35,980
They obviously needed in the series,
they needed an antagonist
because we do never see the Germans,

810
00:47:35,980 --> 00:47:40,220
so as the ARP Warden, he's there
for them to bump up against.

811
00:47:40,220 --> 00:47:43,940
He was the perfect foil
for Mainwaring in Dad's Army.

812
00:47:45,020 --> 00:47:48,020
And Hodges could call
on some heavenly back-up.

813
00:47:48,020 --> 00:47:52,100
It's supposed to be Hitler,
but it's actually the ARP Warden

814
00:47:52,100 --> 00:47:55,780
or the vicar or the verger
he's really fighting against
most of the time.

815
00:47:55,780 --> 00:48:00,020
They represent the dark side,
but they're just jobsworths,
aren't they?

816
00:48:00,020 --> 00:48:03,180
That's it. They're just annoying,
idiotic jobsworths.

817
00:48:03,180 --> 00:48:07,460
And we love to see these jobsworths
get their comeuppance.

818
00:48:07,460 --> 00:48:11,900
There were some iconic moments
or seconds, if you like,

819
00:48:11,900 --> 00:48:14,860
and there's the one
with the grenades going off.

820
00:48:14,860 --> 00:48:18,900
And it's just perfectly timed and
you see Walker with his cigarette

821
00:48:18,900 --> 00:48:22,780
throw it into the box of dynamite
and there's this lovely pause.

822
00:48:24,100 --> 00:48:26,900
Then Dad just comes out
and reveals himself

823
00:48:26,900 --> 00:48:28,900
with this angst look on his face.

824
00:48:31,340 --> 00:48:33,700
I'll get you, Mainwaring!

825
00:48:35,020 --> 00:48:39,380
All sorts going on.
As Clive would probably say,
"Bill overacting again."

826
00:48:39,380 --> 00:48:43,060
Still to come,
the mysterious Mrs Mainwaring.

827
00:48:43,060 --> 00:48:45,780
Fear, terror, anger.

828
00:48:45,780 --> 00:48:47,740
Just so many emotions.

829
00:48:47,740 --> 00:48:52,500
And we get a rare peek behind the
scenes of Dad's Army on location.

830
00:48:53,740 --> 00:48:56,540
They'd be up all night.
They wouldn't get to bed.

831
00:48:56,540 --> 00:48:59,370
They'd still be word-perfect
the next day. God knows how!

832
00:49:02,050 --> 00:49:05,490
Welcome back to We Love Dad's Army.

833
00:49:05,490 --> 00:49:07,570
If you ask someone about Dad's Army,

834
00:49:07,570 --> 00:49:10,610
I don't think they're ever gonna say
one of the female characters

835
00:49:10,610 --> 00:49:13,210
because they were essentially
non-existent.

836
00:49:13,210 --> 00:49:15,290
# This is a man's world... #

837
00:49:15,290 --> 00:49:18,610
The cast of Dad's Army
was overwhelmingly male.

838
00:49:19,930 --> 00:49:22,770
Nevertheless,
women weren't completely absent.

839
00:49:22,770 --> 00:49:26,530
Wendy Richard had a recurring role
as Walker's girlfriend.

840
00:49:26,530 --> 00:49:32,370
Jonesy constantly lusted after
Pamela Cundell's wonderfully brassy
Mrs Fox,

841
00:49:32,370 --> 00:49:36,610
while Barbara Windsor once appeared
as a theatrical crack shot

842
00:49:36,610 --> 00:49:40,610
in a typically risque role that
chimed with her Carry On persona.

843
00:49:40,610 --> 00:49:42,610
How's that? A transformation!

844
00:49:44,210 --> 00:49:46,530
Squad...'shun!

845
00:49:47,570 --> 00:49:49,530
Stick your chest out.

846
00:49:49,530 --> 00:49:50,810
God!

847
00:49:52,890 --> 00:49:56,370
Producer and writer David Croft
certainly saw it

848
00:49:56,370 --> 00:49:59,450
as a very male comedy
from the start.

849
00:49:59,450 --> 00:50:04,370
When I arrived for the interview, he
told me straight out he didn't want
me. He didn't want a girl in it.

850
00:50:04,370 --> 00:50:07,810
He wanted just men.
He didn't want any women at all.

851
00:50:07,810 --> 00:50:13,250
Michael Mills, who was then Head of
Comedy, had insisted you can't have
a comedy without a blonde.

852
00:50:13,250 --> 00:50:17,250
One regular female character,
however, was Pike's mum Mavis,

853
00:50:17,250 --> 00:50:19,330
played by Janet Davies.

854
00:50:19,330 --> 00:50:23,290
She's sort of blonde. She's managing
to dye her hair through the war.

855
00:50:23,290 --> 00:50:25,850
She's sort of the epitome
of womanhood

856
00:50:25,850 --> 00:50:27,850
outside of this bunch of men.

857
00:50:27,850 --> 00:50:31,090
She's clearly having an affair
with Sergeant Wilson.

858
00:50:31,090 --> 00:50:34,810
He is on a knife edge all the time.
He can't be obvious

859
00:50:34,810 --> 00:50:37,610
about their relationship,
but he wants to keep it,

860
00:50:37,610 --> 00:50:39,850
so he can't be that rude to her,
you know?

861
00:50:39,850 --> 00:50:43,090
I really think you're being
rather silly. Oh, I'm silly, am I?

862
00:50:43,090 --> 00:50:45,170
You're very silly if you think
I'm only here

863
00:50:45,170 --> 00:50:48,450
to administer to all
your little comforts every evening.
Now, Mavis, please.

864
00:50:48,450 --> 00:50:51,650
You think you've only got to knock
on my door and I shall come running.

865
00:50:51,650 --> 00:50:53,650
I've never asked you to run, Mavis.

866
00:50:55,210 --> 00:50:57,970
'She plainly runs the relationship.'

867
00:50:57,970 --> 00:51:02,170
It's a wonderful thing to watch
and comically rich.

868
00:51:02,170 --> 00:51:04,410
At least we saw Mavis.

869
00:51:04,410 --> 00:51:09,930
Captain Mainwaring's
domineering wife Elizabeth
remained defiantly off screen.

870
00:51:09,930 --> 00:51:12,450
You always knew
you were never gonna see her,

871
00:51:12,450 --> 00:51:14,690
but it didn't matter
cos you felt you knew her

872
00:51:14,690 --> 00:51:17,090
and you knew that all of the platoon
knew her

873
00:51:17,090 --> 00:51:21,090
and they all knew
how terrified he was of her.

874
00:51:21,090 --> 00:51:26,290
I think many other comedies
have lifted the idea
that you never see a character,

875
00:51:26,290 --> 00:51:29,650
but you only ever hear them talked
about and the reaction to them.

876
00:51:29,650 --> 00:51:31,690
It's your wife, sir.
What? Your wife.

877
00:51:31,690 --> 00:51:35,610
Tell her I'm not here. I'm sorry,
sir, but she heard you shouting.

878
00:51:35,610 --> 00:51:38,050
WILSON CHUCKLES
Really? Yes.

879
00:51:41,930 --> 00:51:44,010
Hello, Elizabeth.

880
00:51:44,010 --> 00:51:47,450
Arthur Lowe's face when Elizabeth
phones him to tell him off

881
00:51:47,450 --> 00:51:51,850
is fear, terror, anger,
just so many emotions.

882
00:51:51,850 --> 00:51:54,610
I might have a little surprise
for you tonight.

883
00:51:56,850 --> 00:51:58,890
No, no, I've bought...

884
00:51:58,890 --> 00:52:02,650
One episode did have more
of a gender balance, however.

885
00:52:02,650 --> 00:52:08,250
Mum's Army took its inspiration
from women being recruited
into the Home Guard.

886
00:52:11,010 --> 00:52:16,690
The Mum's Army sticks in my mind
because of the drill
that you just get it wrong.

887
00:52:16,690 --> 00:52:19,050
I remember my sergeant shouting
in my ear,

888
00:52:19,050 --> 00:52:21,450
"Private Holmes,
get off the parade ground now!"

889
00:52:21,450 --> 00:52:23,650
I'm going, "Oh, I'm in trouble!"

890
00:52:23,650 --> 00:52:25,290
Left turn!

891
00:52:26,370 --> 00:52:29,970
There seems to be some confusion
as to which is which.

892
00:52:29,970 --> 00:52:31,970
Yes, I know, I know.

893
00:52:31,970 --> 00:52:34,610
I can just imagine if all
those women were on a parade ground.

894
00:52:34,610 --> 00:52:37,450
They've all got their lipstick on
and their hair over

895
00:52:37,450 --> 00:52:40,970
and, you know, kind of all dressed
normally, like... Nah.

896
00:52:42,050 --> 00:52:45,370
Croft and Perry used this tale
of female recruitment

897
00:52:45,370 --> 00:52:47,610
to show a different side
to Mainwaring

898
00:52:47,610 --> 00:52:50,210
as they delivered
a heartbreaking love story.

899
00:52:51,250 --> 00:52:53,690
This is the beauty of the writing

900
00:52:53,690 --> 00:52:57,410
whereby Mainwaring falls in love

901
00:52:57,410 --> 00:53:01,690
and he's putty in the hands of
this lady who he meets called Fiona,

902
00:53:01,690 --> 00:53:04,010
played by the actress
Carmen Silvera,

903
00:53:04,010 --> 00:53:07,130
and he falls for her
hook, line and sinker.

904
00:53:07,130 --> 00:53:11,050
I was very lucky to get
Carmen Silvera to play Mrs Gray.

905
00:53:11,050 --> 00:53:14,570
Of course, ultimately,
I used her in 'Allo 'Allo!

906
00:53:14,570 --> 00:53:16,650
She's a lovely actress

907
00:53:16,650 --> 00:53:21,050
and she was so retiring and
so delicate, the way she played it.

908
00:53:21,050 --> 00:53:23,130
'It was a beautiful performance.'

909
00:53:23,130 --> 00:53:26,250
Captain Mainwaring, may I ask you
something awfully personal?

910
00:53:26,250 --> 00:53:28,210
Yes.

911
00:53:28,210 --> 00:53:30,370
Do you always wear glasses?

912
00:53:31,410 --> 00:53:33,330
Yes. Yes, I always have.

913
00:53:33,330 --> 00:53:36,170
Would you take them off
for a moment?

914
00:53:37,570 --> 00:53:39,570
If you wish.

915
00:53:40,610 --> 00:53:43,090
Oh, that's so much better.

916
00:53:43,090 --> 00:53:45,170
Do you know, I think spectacles...

917
00:53:45,170 --> 00:53:48,930
Well, they take away the warmth
in a person's eyes,

918
00:53:48,930 --> 00:53:52,050
just as a fireguard takes away
so much of the heat.

919
00:53:54,490 --> 00:53:59,250
I think it's the first time
you see his vulnerability
and you see him fall in love.

920
00:54:00,290 --> 00:54:02,530
And so did she.

921
00:54:02,530 --> 00:54:05,330
But you knew it was doomed.

922
00:54:06,410 --> 00:54:11,530
While the family life of the platoon
may have been largely absent
from the screen,

923
00:54:11,530 --> 00:54:14,530
behind the cameras it was different,

924
00:54:14,530 --> 00:54:18,970
particularly when it came
to the annual trips to film
on location in Norfolk.

925
00:54:18,970 --> 00:54:21,570
Well, we all saw it
as a family holiday.

926
00:54:21,570 --> 00:54:25,850
We'd all arrive at Television Centre
and get on the buses,

927
00:54:25,850 --> 00:54:30,890
including Arthur, and Arthur
always had to sit at the front
because he was head of the team.

928
00:54:30,890 --> 00:54:33,210
We were like a family
when we went away filming.

929
00:54:33,210 --> 00:54:35,770
No responsibility
of telephones ringing at home,

930
00:54:35,770 --> 00:54:37,970
letters to answer,
anything like that.

931
00:54:37,970 --> 00:54:40,890
We became a family up there for
over nine years, so it was great.

932
00:54:40,890 --> 00:54:45,570
I remember going up to Thetford
several times
in the school holidays.

933
00:54:45,570 --> 00:54:47,770
They used to call it Croft's Summers

934
00:54:47,770 --> 00:54:51,610
because it was just
glorious sunshine the whole time.

935
00:54:51,610 --> 00:54:55,290
This intimate,
behind-the-scenes cine footage

936
00:54:55,290 --> 00:54:58,730
shows how the family of the cast
were allowed to mingle

937
00:54:58,730 --> 00:55:02,490
in the relaxed atmosphere
encouraged by Croft and Perry.

938
00:55:02,490 --> 00:55:06,130
David Croft was tremendous
to work with.

939
00:55:06,130 --> 00:55:10,090
"One take" David.
He loved to do just one take

940
00:55:10,090 --> 00:55:12,370
if he possibly could
and go straight on.

941
00:55:12,370 --> 00:55:18,010
Then Sound would come through and
they'd say, "David, we've got the
mic in shot. We need to redo it."

942
00:55:18,010 --> 00:55:21,650
And he said, "We're not redoing it
because it was very funny.

943
00:55:21,650 --> 00:55:24,730
"If people at home see the mic,
they've missed the joke."

944
00:55:24,730 --> 00:55:27,570
Dad was very impressed
with the way they were.

945
00:55:27,570 --> 00:55:32,570
They weren't the type of creators
that shouted and screamed
at everyone.

946
00:55:32,570 --> 00:55:38,330
That niceness, if you like,
or pleasantness seemed to spread
throughout the whole thing.

947
00:55:38,330 --> 00:55:40,290
They all got on so well.

948
00:55:40,290 --> 00:55:43,130
When they were shooting on location
in Thetford,

949
00:55:43,130 --> 00:55:46,170
they were like, you know,
best of pals.

950
00:55:48,290 --> 00:55:51,610
To me as a young actor
that was just starting out,

951
00:55:51,610 --> 00:55:53,690
I got these seven other people,

952
00:55:53,690 --> 00:55:56,850
who came from seven
totally different backgrounds

953
00:55:56,850 --> 00:56:00,210
socially and professionally,
to watch and to learn from.

954
00:56:00,210 --> 00:56:05,250
It was like going back
to summer school every year.
It was wonderful. And I got paid.

955
00:56:05,250 --> 00:56:09,770
I think one of the joys
of Dad's Army was you felt
that they all loved each other.

956
00:56:09,770 --> 00:56:14,090
And you felt that, this incredible
sense of camaraderie,

957
00:56:14,090 --> 00:56:17,850
both in the situation
their characters were in
of fighting the war,

958
00:56:17,850 --> 00:56:19,850
but also as actors.

959
00:56:19,850 --> 00:56:24,770
It was good fun. The one episode
that I particularly liked,

960
00:56:24,770 --> 00:56:28,330
it was where the harvester was used.

961
00:56:28,330 --> 00:56:30,610
I had a harmonium at home

962
00:56:30,610 --> 00:56:34,010
and actually it was that harmonium
that I brought

963
00:56:34,010 --> 00:56:36,050
for the lady to play in the field.

964
00:56:36,050 --> 00:56:38,050
"Raise the song of harvest home

965
00:56:38,050 --> 00:56:40,090
"All is safely gathered in

966
00:56:40,090 --> 00:56:42,490
"'Ere the winter storms begin."

967
00:56:42,490 --> 00:56:46,850
At this point, the platoon
is sloshed on potato wine,

968
00:56:46,850 --> 00:56:50,450
a state authentically captured
by the entire cast

969
00:56:50,450 --> 00:56:53,850
as they begin drunkenly bickering
amongst themselves.

970
00:56:53,850 --> 00:56:56,690
You staggered against me.
You can't hold your liquor.

971
00:56:56,690 --> 00:57:00,930
Don't you talk to me like that,
you...you drunken old snob!

972
00:57:03,570 --> 00:57:07,090
All right, all right, Frazer,
I can look after myself.

973
00:57:12,130 --> 00:57:16,010
The day's work was serious.
It was long, it was arduous.

974
00:57:16,010 --> 00:57:18,530
But when we got back and relaxed,

975
00:57:18,530 --> 00:57:24,810
those two or three hours
over supper, dinner and a drink
in the bar were great fun.

976
00:57:24,810 --> 00:57:29,490
If there was a time when we bonded,
then that's when we did truly bond.

977
00:57:30,570 --> 00:57:35,530
John Le Mesurier and Jimmy Beck,
you know, they'd be up all night.

978
00:57:35,530 --> 00:57:38,970
They wouldn't get to bed.
They'd be drinking companions.

979
00:57:38,970 --> 00:57:43,130
And they'd still be word-perfect
the next day. God knows how!

980
00:57:44,210 --> 00:57:48,450
In the final part of the show, we
look at the longevity of Dad's Army.

981
00:57:48,450 --> 00:57:52,370
One of those rare things, the time
was right, the cast was right,

982
00:57:52,370 --> 00:57:54,530
the script was right
and the idea was right.

983
00:57:55,610 --> 00:57:59,050
And discover the origin
of Mainwaring's most uttered phrase.

984
00:58:00,170 --> 00:58:03,330
Dad never said "you stupid boy"
to me,

985
00:58:03,330 --> 00:58:08,130
but I sort of heard the line
in my own head, "You stupid boy,"

986
00:58:08,130 --> 00:58:12,210
and I think that...
HE LAUGHS
..it was pretty close.

987
00:58:15,090 --> 00:58:17,170
Welcome back

988
00:58:17,170 --> 00:58:20,730
as We Love Dad's Army makes
its final push.

989
00:58:21,890 --> 00:58:26,290
It's time to celebrate an element
of the series that we all adore.

990
00:58:26,290 --> 00:58:30,050
Ah, a pelican crossing.
The light's green. Carry on then.

991
00:58:30,050 --> 00:58:35,970
The catchphrases. Don't panic,
don't panic! Captain Mainwaring, the
light's flashing. What do we do?

992
00:58:35,970 --> 00:58:38,370
Don't panic, don't panic!
They don't like it up 'em.

993
00:58:38,370 --> 00:58:41,170
Excuse me. Stupid boy!

994
00:58:41,170 --> 00:58:43,170
You stupid boy!

995
00:58:43,170 --> 00:58:45,650
We're doomed. He's doomed!

996
00:58:45,650 --> 00:58:50,130
All you really want Frazer to do
is say, "We're all doomed,"
and everyone's happy.

997
00:58:50,130 --> 00:58:53,490
All of these catchphrases
have just travelled for decades

998
00:58:53,490 --> 00:58:57,530
and that is the sign of a piece of
universal, timeless art, isn't it?

999
00:58:57,530 --> 00:59:00,090
"Don't panic," in particular,
I think,

1000
00:59:00,090 --> 00:59:03,250
it's just burned into us,
into our sort of comic retina.

1001
00:59:03,250 --> 00:59:07,250
The Germans are coming! Don't panic!
The Germans are coming!

1002
00:59:07,250 --> 00:59:09,290
Don't panic! Don't panic!

1003
00:59:09,290 --> 00:59:11,970
There's a mine under the pier!

1004
00:59:11,970 --> 00:59:16,010
It's part of British society,
it's part of the fabric of life,

1005
00:59:16,010 --> 00:59:19,370
as is that TV series
and always will be.

1006
00:59:22,170 --> 00:59:26,890
The catchphrase "they don't like it
up 'em" was when I was in the army.

1007
00:59:26,890 --> 00:59:29,250
The proper army.
It was the bayonet drill.

1008
00:59:29,250 --> 00:59:33,970
"They don't like it up 'em,
you know. They do not like it
up them." Who does?

1009
00:59:33,970 --> 00:59:37,650
That was probably the biggest
catchphrase to come out of the show.

1010
00:59:37,650 --> 00:59:40,130
I mean, everyone loved that.

1011
00:59:40,130 --> 00:59:43,010
And it kind of works
in most situations, bizarrely.

1012
00:59:43,010 --> 00:59:47,770
That was, I think, a tribute
not only to the writing, but also
to Clive Dunn's performance.

1013
00:59:47,770 --> 00:59:50,010
There's no substitute
for the cold steel.

1014
00:59:50,010 --> 00:59:53,490
They do not like it up 'em.
They don't like it up 'em!

1015
00:59:53,490 --> 00:59:56,970
You actually believe that he did
at some point stick one up 'em

1016
00:59:56,970 --> 00:59:59,890
because he says it
with such joy and glee.

1017
00:59:59,890 --> 01:00:05,730
When three episodes lost from the
BBC archives were re-made in 2019,

1018
01:00:05,730 --> 01:00:10,090
the huge popularity
of the catchphrases was obvious.

1019
01:00:10,090 --> 01:00:13,090
It was a problem for us
in the lost episodes

1020
01:00:13,090 --> 01:00:17,370
because we got to a moment
where Kevin Eldon had to say,

1021
01:00:17,370 --> 01:00:21,570
"I'll give 'em a bit of the cold
steel and they don't like it up 'em,
they don't like it up 'em."

1022
01:00:21,570 --> 01:00:25,130
And the audience went crazy.

1023
01:00:25,130 --> 01:00:28,250
I'm the right man for the job, sir.
I'm a man with fine potential.

1024
01:00:28,250 --> 01:00:31,050
What is more, I would let them have
a taste of cold steel

1025
01:00:31,050 --> 01:00:35,570
because they don't like it up 'em,
sir, they do not like it up 'em!
AUDIENCE CHEER

1026
01:00:35,570 --> 01:00:40,250
You had to ask them,
could they not quite respond
to that particular line, uh...

1027
01:00:40,250 --> 01:00:42,690
so...so enthusiastically?

1028
01:00:42,690 --> 01:00:48,010
When Dad's Army was rebooted as a
movie in 2016... Bravo, Mainwaring.

1029
01:00:48,010 --> 01:00:51,890
..the catchphrases were inevitably
part of the trailer,

1030
01:00:51,890 --> 01:00:55,530
reassuring fans that their favourite
lines would not be overlooked.

1031
01:00:55,530 --> 01:00:59,250
It's all hands on deck.
An enemy spy is operating
somewhere near here.

1032
01:01:01,210 --> 01:01:03,410
I'll catch him, sir.
What does he look like?

1033
01:01:03,410 --> 01:01:06,970
We don't know, Frank. That's rather
the point with spies. Stupid boy!

1034
01:01:06,970 --> 01:01:10,770
Captain Mainwaring's
withering put-down of poor Pike

1035
01:01:10,770 --> 01:01:14,330
was probably the most uttered
catchphrase of the show.

1036
01:01:14,330 --> 01:01:16,690
When I was a boy,

1037
01:01:16,690 --> 01:01:19,450
I had a terrible school report
and my father said to me,

1038
01:01:19,450 --> 01:01:22,490
"This is awful. You've got to have
some qualifications."

1039
01:01:22,490 --> 01:01:24,690
I said, "I don't need
any qualifications.

1040
01:01:24,690 --> 01:01:27,450
"I'm gonna be a famous film star
or a great comedian."

1041
01:01:27,450 --> 01:01:30,850
And he looked at me and said,
"You stupid boy."

1042
01:01:30,850 --> 01:01:34,730
I know Jimmy and David never set out
initially to write catchphrases.

1043
01:01:34,730 --> 01:01:39,010
Catchphrases write themselves.
If a catchphrase happens
that the character uses,

1044
01:01:39,010 --> 01:01:44,410
a line that they use a few times
and the public latch on to it,
then you've got your catchphrase.

1045
01:01:44,410 --> 01:01:48,450
That's the great thing about
a really good actor. A catchphrase
doesn't seem like a catchphrase

1046
01:01:48,450 --> 01:01:51,810
because he always says it
slightly differently
in the context of the line.

1047
01:01:51,810 --> 01:01:54,850
It's very often a throwaway
at the end of what he's said,

1048
01:01:54,850 --> 01:01:59,610
so he incorporates it into the sense
of whatever the scene is.

1049
01:01:59,610 --> 01:02:01,890
Is he fighting you, Mr Mainwaring?

1050
01:02:04,330 --> 01:02:07,170
Of course he isn't fighting me,
you stupid boy.

1051
01:02:08,730 --> 01:02:11,130
Well, it's easily solved, isn't it?

1052
01:02:14,810 --> 01:02:17,210
Stupid boy.

1053
01:02:21,090 --> 01:02:23,210
You stupid boy.

1054
01:02:24,250 --> 01:02:26,330
It wasn't repeating "stupid boy".

1055
01:02:26,330 --> 01:02:28,850
It was sometimes anger,
sometimes humorous,

1056
01:02:28,850 --> 01:02:31,970
and that was what was brilliant
and he delivered it so well.

1057
01:02:31,970 --> 01:02:35,410
If you're gonna have a catchphrase,
deliver it well. Arthur did.

1058
01:02:35,410 --> 01:02:40,250
Dad never, ever said
"you stupid boy" to me,

1059
01:02:40,250 --> 01:02:43,490
but I often saw him looking at me

1060
01:02:43,490 --> 01:02:45,570
and I heard...

1061
01:02:45,570 --> 01:02:50,290
I sort of heard the line
in my own head, "You stupid boy."

1062
01:02:50,290 --> 01:02:54,090
And I think that...
HE LAUGHS
..it was pretty close.

1063
01:02:54,090 --> 01:02:56,090
APPLAUSE

1064
01:02:57,530 --> 01:02:59,890
You ruddy hooligan!

1065
01:02:59,890 --> 01:03:03,690
# Thank you for the days

1066
01:03:03,690 --> 01:03:08,010
# Those endless days,
those sacred days you gave me... #

1067
01:03:08,010 --> 01:03:12,730
But perhaps the one thing
that makes Dad's Army stand out
amongst the crowd

1068
01:03:12,730 --> 01:03:14,810
is its utter Britishness.

1069
01:03:14,810 --> 01:03:17,610
# I won't forget a single day,
believe me... #

1070
01:03:17,610 --> 01:03:20,330
The reason that Dad's Army
has endured for half a century

1071
01:03:20,330 --> 01:03:23,090
through 80 episodes,
Christmas specials,

1072
01:03:23,090 --> 01:03:27,810
is because it is a beautifully
played, beautifully written comedy
that has heart.

1073
01:03:27,810 --> 01:03:32,130
One of those rare things, the time
was right, the cast was right,

1074
01:03:32,130 --> 01:03:34,370
the script was right
and the idea was right.

1075
01:03:34,370 --> 01:03:36,450
# Days I'll remember
all my life... #

1076
01:03:36,450 --> 01:03:41,450
I think you absolutely
could describe Dad's Army as
the quintessential British sitcom.

1077
01:03:41,450 --> 01:03:45,810
This is the sitcom which reflects
aspects of our character
and our personality

1078
01:03:45,810 --> 01:03:47,930
that we would like to have.

1079
01:03:47,930 --> 01:03:52,290
Even though we're a bit crap
in some things, we will carry on
and do our best.

1080
01:03:52,290 --> 01:03:54,450
No!
LAUGHTER

1081
01:03:54,450 --> 01:03:56,530
Shall I carry on? Hold on, hold on.

1082
01:03:56,530 --> 01:03:59,490
The reason it's endured
is because it's darned funny.

1083
01:04:00,570 --> 01:04:03,610
And nothing survives like stuff
that's properly funny

1084
01:04:03,610 --> 01:04:07,370
with characters who we can laugh at
and feel affection for.

1085
01:04:07,370 --> 01:04:11,650
We know people
like those people in that cast

1086
01:04:11,650 --> 01:04:14,210
that we can relate to
and that's what comedy is.

1087
01:04:14,210 --> 01:04:17,610
I think the British especially love
the underdog. It's very endearing

1088
01:04:17,610 --> 01:04:19,690
to see a little man triumph.

1089
01:04:19,690 --> 01:04:23,330
It sums up nostalgia, it sums up
the best of us, it sums up winning.

1090
01:04:23,330 --> 01:04:27,210
It never fails to make me smile,
usually with a warm glow.

1091
01:04:27,210 --> 01:04:31,610
There's very little
that makes me laugh out loud

1092
01:04:31,610 --> 01:04:35,490
and Dad's Army is just one
of those programmes that does.

1093
01:04:35,490 --> 01:04:38,850
Dad's Army made us laugh
for 80 episodes,

1094
01:04:38,850 --> 01:04:41,730
but the final scene made
a serious point

1095
01:04:41,730 --> 01:04:46,170
as the platoon saluted the
inspiration for the whole series.

1096
01:04:46,170 --> 01:04:48,930
It ends on a wonderful moment

1097
01:04:48,930 --> 01:04:52,290
when they all agree
that they will stand and fight

1098
01:04:52,290 --> 01:04:55,210
and they make a tribute
to the Home Guard to camera

1099
01:04:55,210 --> 01:04:59,970
and what an amazing end
to nine years of Dad's Army.

1100
01:04:59,970 --> 01:05:03,810
If anybody tries to take our homes
or our freedom away from us,
they'll find out what we can do.

1101
01:05:03,810 --> 01:05:05,890
We'll fight.

1102
01:05:05,890 --> 01:05:08,970
And we're not alone. There are
thousands of us all over England.

1103
01:05:08,970 --> 01:05:11,130
And Scotland. And Scotland.

1104
01:05:11,130 --> 01:05:13,330
All over Great Britain, in fact.

1105
01:05:13,330 --> 01:05:16,250
Men who will stand together
when their country needs them.

1106
01:05:16,250 --> 01:05:21,170
Excuse me, sir. Don't you think
it might be a nice idea if we were
to pay our tribute to them?

1107
01:05:22,210 --> 01:05:24,490
For once, Wilson, I agree with you.

1108
01:05:24,490 --> 01:05:26,610
To Britain's Home Guard!

1109
01:05:28,490 --> 01:05:30,810
ALL:
To Britain's Home Guard!

1110
01:05:34,570 --> 01:05:38,810
Dad's view on it was that he just
absolutely felt pretty privileged,

1111
01:05:38,810 --> 01:05:43,010
I think, that he was in such a show
and that it had given him

1112
01:05:43,010 --> 01:05:45,490
such a happy time in his life.

1113
01:05:45,490 --> 01:05:48,970
I think Johnny would be
pleasantly surprised, really.

1114
01:05:48,970 --> 01:05:51,050
He wouldn't be jumping up and down.

1115
01:05:51,050 --> 01:05:56,130
He would just go, "I can't believe
people are still watching it."

1116
01:05:56,130 --> 01:05:59,050
He loved it, yeah.

1117
01:05:59,050 --> 01:06:03,370
They were brothers in arms
by the end of shooting Dad's Army

1118
01:06:03,370 --> 01:06:08,410
and, uh...this showed in the way
they were knitted as a team, yeah.

1119
01:06:08,410 --> 01:06:13,930
The only reason why it stopped
was because we lost three
of our leading characters

1120
01:06:13,930 --> 01:06:18,490
and we were all getting rather old,
so we stopped
while the going was still good.

1121
01:06:18,490 --> 01:06:20,690
Somehow we belonged to the country.

1122
01:06:20,690 --> 01:06:22,890
It seemed as though
we were part of the fabric

1123
01:06:22,890 --> 01:06:26,930
and people liked having us around
like a favourite armchair,

1124
01:06:26,930 --> 01:06:30,930
um...which was a very,
very lovely feeling to have.

1125
01:06:30,930 --> 01:06:33,170
Hey, it's a living.

1126
01:06:33,170 --> 01:06:35,610
Or it was.

1127
01:06:35,610 --> 01:06:41,410
Yeah, I miss it terribly.
It was to me the finest kind
of pension an old man could have.

1128
01:06:41,410 --> 01:06:43,530
LAUGHTER

1129
01:07:08,370 --> 01:07:10,370
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