David Croft Movies

The British sitcom You Rang, M'Lord was a wicked lampoon of the popular drama series Upstairs, Downstairs. The pilot episode, telecast December 29, 1988, endeavored to explain the curious relationship between the upper-crust Meldrum family and their rather disreputable servants. It seemed that during WWI, a pair of larcenous "Tommies," Alf (Paul Shane) and James (Jeffrey Holland), attempted to steal the valuables from a "dead" officer. As it turned out, the corpse was very much alive -- and better still, he was the Hon. Teddy Meldrum (Michael Knowles), brother of fabulously wealthy Lord George Meldrum (Donald Hewlett). Laboring under the misapprehension that James was trying to save his life, Teddy rewarded the man with a job for life as a servant in the Meldrum household. Several years later, who should resurface but James' old chum Alf. Promising to keep secret the truth about the "rescue" in exchange for certain favors, Alf was installed as the Meldrum's butler at the behest of the disgruntled James. Later on, Alf's daughter Ivy (Su Pollard) was hired as a maid, though she kept mum about her family ties with Alf. Lasting 50 episodes, You Rang, M'Lord was seen from January 14, 1990 to April 24, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Lewis Flander and Carol Hawkins star in the hectic British farce Not Now Comrade. Flander plays a Russian ballet dancer who decides to defect. Unable to reach the British embassy, Flander hides out with London stripteaser Hawkins. There's an abundance of female flesh in this one, a fact that necessitated numerous snips in the TV version that made the UHF rounds in the 1980s. Watch for Not Now Comrade codirector Ray Cooney and veteran British funster Roy Kinnear in cameo roles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Written by Irish dramatist Hugh Leonard, the British anthology series Tales From the Lazy Acre consisted of seven half-hour comedy playlets, each one based on a different Irish myth and/or urban legend. The first episode, telecast over BBC1 on April 10, 1972, was "The Pick-Pocketer." This was followed in rapid succession by "Judgment Day," "Stone Cold Sober," "The Bitter Pill," "The Last Great Pint-Drinking Tournament," and "The Culchie" -- all of which, like the opening episode, starred Milo O'Shea, with David Kelly as the Narrator (known only as "Dead Man"). Tales From the Lazy Acre ended its run on May 22, 1972 with "The Travelling Woman," a Hibernian spin on the old "Vanishing Hitchhiker" legend. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

For fans of the British television series Dad's Army, this film is a bonanza. Including the entire cast from the television series, it is a comedy about the Walmington-on-Sea contingent of the Home Guard, set in 1940. These men are part-time soldiers, and their civilian situations often impinge on their defense duties, much to the exasperation of the (retired) regular military men in their group. Their mettle is tested when they must capture three German aviators who have parachuted into their midst. The Home Guard, or Local Defense Volunteers, consisted of people who, for a variety of reasons (usually age) were unable to serve in the regular military, and wanted to help with the war effort. At the time the Home Guard was formed, a German invasion was expected to occur almost any day. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Roy Kinnear, the diminutive British comic actor who gained international fame in the films of Richard Lester, followed his first TV triumph That Was the Week That Was with this weekly, 25-minute sitcom. Kinnear starred as Stanley Blake, a gormless young man who regularly escaped his humdrum existence by retreating into the world of his vivid imagination. Anne Cunningham co-starred as Stanley's wife Helen, who played a variety of "alternate reality" roles in her husband's Mitty-esque dreams. Created by Dave Freeman, A World of His Own debuted in 1964, lasting two seasons and 13 episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide