Ooh, You Are Awful... But I Like You! Dick Emery and Saturday Night Television

Ooh, You Are Awful... But I Like You! Dick Emery and Saturday Night Television

Welcome back to My 70s TV Childhood! This week, I'm looking back at one of the biggest stars of Saturday night television, a man who entertained millions with a remarkable gallery of comic characters. Dick Emery was a fixture on BBC One for over a decade, and his catchphrases entered everyday conversation across the country. From the unforgettable Mandy to the Toothy Vicar, the Bovver Boy to the controversial Clarence, his characters were as familiar as members of our own families. Before we start, a reminder that the My 70s TV Childhood Theme Tune Game is launching very soon. It is a nostalgic family game based on the classic British TV theme tunes we all remember, designed to be played around the table with family and friends. The perfect gift for anyone who grew up with 1970s British television. Our launch date is drawing closer and there will be more details to follow very shortly. If you would like to hear more, visit www.my70stvchildhood.com and pop your name on the waitlist. 💬 What to Expect: Saturday Night Television: I set the scene for what Saturday nights were really like, with one television set, three channels, and the whole family watching together. The Man Behind the Characters: Dick Emery's extraordinary early life, from music hall parents to the RAF Gang Show, where he invented his first character, Vera Thin, and discovered he was "far better in drag than in combat gear." Mandy: The glamorous blonde who gave us one of Britain's greatest television catchphrases. "Ooh, you are awful, but I like you." The Toothy Vicar, Hetty and the Bovver Boy: I revisit the gallery of characters that made the show essential Saturday viewing, including the one that went down particularly well in our house, given that my father was a vicar. Clarence and Comedy That Changes: I look at the character that raises the most questions today, and explore why some 1970s comedy has aged differently from others. A Legacy of Laughter: Dick Emery's influence on later character comedians, from The Fast Show onwards, and why his greatest strength was making us all laugh together as a family. Do you remember watching Dick Emery with your family on a Saturday night? Can you still hear those catchphrases? Get in touch and let me know! Take care, Oliver 📲 Connect & Follow 👍 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood] 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/ [https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/] 🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/home [https://twitter.com/home] ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood [https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood] This has been a Worth A Listen Production for Lucky Table Media. Get in touch! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1324933/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/olivercolling]

Quiz #74: Seaside Special

Welcome back to the My 70s TV Childhood Quiz. This week Round One is all about the summer variety show Seaside Special, a fixture of Saturday night television throughout the mid to late 1970s, plus a few other seaside-related questions. After that, we have our regular Marathon/Fil Rouge round, the Wheel of Fate landing on 1975 for Name That Tune, and the TV Times general trivia round to finish. What to Expect: * Round 1: Seaside Special Five questions about the summer variety show and a few other seaside-related favourites. * Round 2: Marathon/Fil Rouge Questions drawn from over 200 episodes of the podcast. Regular listeners may have a slight advantage. * Round 3: Name That Tune (1975) Five theme tunes from shows first broadcast in 1975. You'll need to listen to the podcast to play this one. * Round 4: TV Times General 70s TV trivia. Anything goes. * Bonus Question One final challenge to separate the casual viewers from the true obsessives. Grab a pen and paper, settle in with your favourite brew, and let's see how many you can get right. Send your score to quiz@my70stvchildhood.com [quiz@my70stvchildhood.com] or drop me a comment on social media. Take care, Oliver 🎲 The My 70s TV Childhood Board Game – launching very soon! Our playable version of the theme tune round is coming very soon. Our launch date is drawing closer and there will be more details to follow shortly. If you might be interested in getting the game, you can register your interest on our blog and we will keep you updated. Register your interest at: https://my70stvchildhood.com/ [https://my70stvchildhood.com/] Connect & Follow 👍 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood] 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/ [https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/] 🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/home [https://twitter.com/home] ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood [https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood] This has been a Worth A Listen Production for Lucky Table Media. Get in touch! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1324933/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/olivercolling]

The Flashing Blade: A Summer Holiday Classic

🎲 The My 70s TV Childhood Board Game is launching very soon! We are launching a playable version of our regular theme tune quiz, and we are planning some extremely special events that you may have the opportunity to take part in. More details to follow shortly. If you are interested in finding out more about the game, please do register your interest and we will be in touch. Register your interest at: https://my70stvchildhood.com [https://my70stvchildhood.com/] This week, we're diving into one of the most beloved and gloriously chaotic pieces of 70s children's television - The Flashing Blade! Originally a serious French historical drama called "Le Chevalier Tempête," this tale of dashing French spy Chevalier de Recci became a British TV legend thanks to some wonderfully eccentric dubbing. Recording from Melbourne during the Australian winter, Oliver explores how this big-budget French production about the War of Spanish Succession became a summer holiday staple for British children. The show followed François de Recci and his loyal servant Guillot as they attempted to break through Spanish lines during the siege of a French castle. What made The Flashing Blade so memorable wasn't just the swashbuckling action and gorgeous Loire Valley cinematography - it was the hilariously limited dubbing. With apparently just three or four British voice actors voicing every single character, from heroic colonels to crying peasants, the result was glorious chaos. Our dashing hero sounded like a suave graduate while his sidekick Guillot emerged as a comedy cockney chimney sweep spouting lines like "Shall I bash him with me baguette?" The show's enduring appeal lies in this unintentional comedy gold - a serious historical drama transformed by budget constraints and questionable voice acting into something uniquely British and utterly unforgettable. Add to this the mystery of the missing final episode (thanks to technical faults that plagued Episode 12's broadcasts) and you have a perfect storm of nostalgic television. From the iconic theme tune to the endless sword fights and galloping horses, The Flashing Blade epitomized those long summer holiday mornings when the BBC filled time with cheap foreign imports that somehow became more memorable than expensive homegrown productions. Do you remember The Flashing Blade? Can you solve the mystery of who provided those unforgettable voices? Share your swashbuckling memories with us! Connect & Follow Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/ [https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/] X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/home [https://twitter.com/home] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood [https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood] This have been a Worth a Listen production for Lucky Table Media Get in touch! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1324933/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/olivercolling]

The Quiz #73: Commercial Break

Welcome back to the My 70s TV Childhood Quiz. This week Round One takes us back to the golden age of 1970s television advertising. I will give you some information from a famous advert and you have to tell me the product or brand it was for. After that, we have our regular Marathon/Fil Rouge round, the Wheel of Fate landing on 1971 for Name That Tune, and the TV Times general trivia round to finish. What to Expect: * Round 1: Commercial Break Five famous 1970s TV adverts. Can you name the product or brand? * Round 2: Marathon/Fil Rouge Questions drawn from over 200 episodes of the podcast. Regular listeners may have a slight advantage. * Round 3: Name That Tune (1971) Five theme tunes from shows first broadcast in 1971. You'll need to listen to the podcast for this one. * Round 4: TV Times General 70s TV trivia. Anything goes. * Bonus Question One final challenge to separate the casual viewers from the true obsessives. Grab a pen and paper, settle in with your favourite brew, and let's see how many you can get right. Send your score to quiz@my70stvchildhood.com [quiz@my70stvchildhood.com] or drop me a comment on social media. Take care, Oliver 🎲 The My 70s TV Childhood Board Game is launching very soon! We are launching a playable version of our regular theme tune quiz very soon, and we are planning some extremely special events that you may have the opportunity to take part in. More details to follow shortly. If you are interested in finding out more about the game, please do register your interest and we will be in touch. Register your interest at: https://my70stvchildhood.com/ [https://my70stvchildhood.com/] 📲 Connect & Follow * 👍 Facebook: www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood] * 📸 Instagram: www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/] * 🐦 X/Twitter: twitter.com/home [https://twitter.com/home] * ▶️ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood [https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood] This have been a Worth a Listen production for Lucky Table Media Get in touch! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1324933/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/olivercolling]

Ronnie Le Drew: The Man Behind Zippy, Sweep and the Goblins

Welcome back to My 70s TV Childhood! This week, I'm delighted to welcome a very special guest, a man I can only describe as a legend of children's television. He's the puppeteer behind Zippy on Rainbow, he was Sweep alongside Harry Corbett, he worked with Jim Henson on Labyrinth, he performed on the Muppet films, and he even became a rave star in the 1990s touring university discos with Zippy and George. Welcome to the podcast, Ronnie Le Drew. But first, our My 70s TV Childhood theme tune quiz game is about to go into manufacturing. If you'd like to register your interest, head to www.my70stvchildhood.com and join the waitlist. There's no commitment at this point, but it helps us get our production numbers right. 💬 What to Expect: From Pelham Puppets to the Puppet Guild: Ronnie tells us how it all began with three Pelham puppets, a wind-up gramophone, and kids sitting on a freezing concrete staircase in a South London block of flats. The Little Angel Theatre: How a 15-year-old Ronnie wrote to the legendary John Wright asking for an apprenticeship, and the extraordinary conversation his parents had in the kitchen that changed his life. Muffin the Mule and the Park Shows: Working with Jan Bussell and Anne Hogarth, performing three shows a day from a caravan in London's parks. Rainbow and Zippy: How Ronnie joined Rainbow for a six-week contract on a massive £125 a week and stayed for 20 years, lip-syncing to Roy Skelton's voice as the most lovably naughty character on children's television. Sweep and the Corbetts: Ronnie's time working with Harry and Matthew Corbett, and the little reed in the mouth that gave Sweep his voice. Labyrinth and David Bowie: Auditioning for Jim Henson with a fake American accent, working as a goblin puppeteer at Elstree Studios, and the moment David Bowie walked onto set in a dressing gown and said hello. The Rainbow Rave Years: When Thames Television lost its franchise in 1992, Ronnie took Zippy and George on a three-year tour of university discos. A generation that had grown up watching Rainbow was now old enough to buy them drinks. What are your memories of Rainbow, Zippy, Sweep, and the characters that Ronnie brought to life? Get in touch and let me know! Take care, Oliver 📲 Connect & Follow * 👍 Facebook: www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.facebook.com/my70stvchildhood] * 📸 Instagram: www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood [https://www.instagram.com/my70stvchildhood/] * 🐦 X/Twitter: twitter.com/home [https://twitter.com/home] * ▶️ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood [https://www.youtube.com/@my70stvchildhood] Get in touch! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1324933/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.patreon.com/olivercolling]