Dad's Army
Dad's Army is a BBC television sitcom about the British Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBCtelevision from 1968 to 1977. The sitcom ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio version based on the television scripts, a feature film and a stage show. The series regularly gained audiences of 18 million viewers and is still repeated worldwide.
The Home Guard consisted of local volunteers otherwise ineligible for military service, either because of age or by being in professions exempt from conscription. Dad's Army deals almost exclusively with over age men, and featured older British actors, including Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier, Arnold Ridley and John Laurie. Younger members in the cast included Ian Lavender, Clive Dunn (who played the oldest guardsmen, Lance Corporal Jones), Frank Williams, James Beck (who died suddenly during production of the programme's sixth series in 1973), and air raid warden Bill Pertwee.
In 2004, Dad's Army was voted fourth in a BBC poll to find Britain's Best Sitcom. It had been placed 13th in a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000 and voted for by industry professionals.[1] The series has influenced popular culture in the United Kingdom, with the series' catchphrases and characters being well known. It highlighted a forgotten aspect of defence during the Second World War. The Radio Times magazine listed Captain Mainwaring's "You stupid boy!" among the 25 greatest put-downs on TV.[2] In 2014 it was announced that Bill Nighy, Sir Michael Gambon, Toby Jones and Sir Tom Courtenay are among the stars who will appear in a big-screen remake, set to be released in 2016.[3]
| Written by | Jimmy Perry and David Croft |
|---|---|
| Directed by | David Croft Harold Snoad Bob Spiers |
| Starring | Listed in closing credits: Arthur Lowe John Le Mesurier Clive Dunn John Laurie James Beck Arnold Ridley Ian Lavender Bill Pertwee Frank Williams Edward Sinclair Janet Davies Colin Bean |
| Opening theme | Bud Flanagan "Who do you think you are kidding, Mr Hitler?" |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of series | 9 |
| No. of episodes | 80 (3 missing) + shorter sketches. |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | David Croft |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original channel | BBC1 |
| Original release | 31 July 1968 – 13 November 1977 |
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