Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em - Ch5, 7.55pm.
crazychris12
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Jessica's First Christmas, from 1975. Great comedy classic.
I'm Frank's biggest fan and have all the DVD's. This may be ruined by ads. Hope 5 show it without ads.
The 1974 Christmas special is on tomorrow night.
I'm Frank's biggest fan and have all the DVD's. This may be ruined by ads. Hope 5 show it without ads.
The 1974 Christmas special is on tomorrow night.
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Fraid not its probably been hacked to bits by the same idiot that does the tapes for GOLD
according to my tv guide it says they are showing the 1974 one tonight and the 1975 on the 30th
It'll spoil it with ads though. Ruin the continuity of it. Any programme made without ads should be shown WITHOUT ADS.
Sadly Chris that will never happen this show was made by the BBC and is being shown by a commerical station more than likely its a DVD they are using and got a YTS kid to hit pause:D
The 1975 special is an early hint of how bad the show would be when it returned in 1979.
The first series appeal was based largely around how timid Frank Spencer was and how he would not say boo to a goose but by 1979 he was an aggressive idiot who's voice was like a poor Yarwood impression of the 1973 Frank.
The 1975 special features Spencer in an argument with George Sewell which is its only connection to Xmas.
The rest of the special is in 2 parts.
A dire visit to the Spencer household by David Jacobs investigating the DIY handiwork of Frank and a completely unrelated section of Frank learning to drive that looked like it had been tacked on to boost the running time.
Hilarity ensues as Frank narrowly misses killing a Mother and her baby in a pram :rolleyes:
People may have differing opinions on whether the later series was "bad" or not. In fact series three was aired in November and December 1978(the first two series both aired in 1973 and were repeated endlessly) and drew huge ratings- the highest averaging 20 million.
Clearly the show was a huge hit and Frank probably the most mimicked character in tv history-I didnt know anyone at the time who didnt come out with an "ooh Betty" now and again.
Luckily both turned it down!
Michael Crawford has said that he played the character as a child as if everything that happened to him was surprising confusing and full of wonder. It was also I think deemed imperative that he had a wife presumably to add in an element of conventionality.
I dont think the show would work today as it did in the seventies. The audience is largely more streetwise than back then and I would think they would find the character as it was somewhat unbelievable.
Like any hit show at that time that had been off for 4 years viewers would watch in expectation.
Opinions from 1979 are as relevant today as using the info that Love Thy Neighbour topped the ratings on numerous occasions when it was on in the 70's to promote that show today.
We have the benefit of being able to see all 3 series whenever we want and there is no doubt that series 3 is completely different from series 1 and the Frank Spencer character is not the one we fell in love with in 1973 - which is why series 3 is crap in comparison.
Series 3 does have some funny moments but it speaks volumes that the funniest is actually an unintended moment in the Richard Wilson episode when Michele Dotrice starts to laugh at Wilson sinking in the chair when she shouldn't and she actually covers her face and the entire scene basically draws to a halt for a good length of time while all the actors try to compose themselves to carry on without laughing.
Its incredible they didn't stop and do another take.
Series 3 overdid the stunts which were well done but pushed the show beyond the realms of credibility way too far .
But compared to series 1 the final series was not very good at all
In contrast,the character is portrayed as rather shy and unlucky in series one and two.He tries his best yet things go very wrong.
I feel it's unfortunate people combine the two versions of Frank into how they remember the show.There are a number of perfectly written and expertly performed episodes in series 1 and 2.
I'm glad somebody else spotted it too.
IN series 1 he is a shy timid man.
In series 2 he is slightly less timid.
IN the 1975 special and in series 3 he is an aggressive idiot bearing little resemblance to the Frank of series 1.
If you listen to the soundbites used on the dvd menus for series 3 and the specials he sounds like Mike Yarwood's impression of Spencer from 1973 - and Yarwood got the mannerisms but he never got the voice
Made me lol every time!
Think my fave ep is where he makes a wendy house for Jessica and gets stuck in it, thats from the same series as the episode above ,the last series, which people have slated lol.Also like it when Frank starts singing 'Early One Morning'
Watch it more than once and you can see Frank deliberately undoing his kilt at the end before the big reveal of his bum.
The stories and situations of the 3rd series are nearly as good as the earlier shows but its Crawfords portrayal of Spencer that spoils it.
Watch a first series episode then one from the 3rd and you'll see the change immediately.
Frank gets the rope caught round his leg which pulls him up in the air when the Wendy house falls down.
Watch closely and you'll see that there is no rope around his leg at all , but when it cuts to the shot of him being pulled over the rope is suddenly attached .
Not too difficult to see that the shot of the house falling on top of him was actually a sequence of the house being lifted off of him then played in reverse in the show itself.
His "early one morning" renditions reach their zenith in the Christopher Timothy episode in which Frank auditions to work as an entertainer and his Vesuvius explodes at the end as an excuse for filling the studio with soap bubbles.
Series 2 IIRC
I didn't notice it until I watched it as a adult...years after enjoying it as a kid.
Amazed me so much I read up on some interviews with MC.He admits to honing the character after the introduction of Jessica.Amiable but it didn't work IMO.
I remember he then grabbed a large tablecloth off the table in front of him to cover his modesty after his kilt fell to the floor,sending food and drink flying all over the guests