Episode of the classic BBC Radio Comedy Show Round The Horne
The Series
The programme follows the work of a special police team that investigates “cold cases”, which usually concern murders that took place a number of years ago, and were never solved. The team, composed of head officer Detective Superintendent Peter Boyd (Trevor Eve), psychological profiler Grace Foley (Sue Johnston), Detective Inspector Spencer Jordan (Wil Johnson), as well as a number of other supporting characters, uses evidence which has recently come to light, as well as contemporary technology to examine former evidence.
Initially, Boyd, Grace and Spence were accompanied by junior DC Mel Silver (Claire Goose), and stern forensic scientist Frankie Wharton (Holly Aird), however both left after the end of the fourth series. Felix Gibson (Esther Hall) and Stella Goodman (Félicité du Jeu) replaced them in the fifth series, before Eve Lockhart (Tara Fitzgerald) replaced Felix from the sixth series onwards. Katarina Howard (Stacey Roca) replaced Stella in series eight, while Sarah Cavendish (Eva Birthistle) replaced Katarina in series nine. Although the plotlines generally centre around the case, other storylines have been incorporated across the years, including Boyd’s anger management issues and his being re-united with his son, Grace suffering from cancer, Spencer being shot at the hands of one of his former colleagues, and Mel’s death, which creates a chain of events lasting across two series.
The show also addressed sensitive issues such as fanaticism within different religions, international organised crime, child abuse within the Catholic Church, war crimes in Bosnia, forced child labour, torture, homophobia and racism. The BBC issued disclaimers twice on the show when it touched upon issues sensitive to the Labour government of the time (once about banking frauds within the City of London establishment and once about the involvement of the UK in the Iraq war). Some of the issues were dealt with through the conflicting views of Peter Boyd (a white middle-class liberal) and Spencer Jordan (a black working-class conservative).
Harry is the proprietor of a small, provincial news agency. Michael Elphick heads an excellent cast as Harry.
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Wycliffe is a British television series, based on W. J. Burley‘s novels about Detective Superintendent Charles Wycliffe. It was produced by HTV and broadcast on the ITV Network, following a pilot episode on 7 August 1993, between 24 July 1994 and 5 July 1998. The series was filmed in Cornwall, with a production office in Truro. Music for the series was composed by Nigel Hess and was awarded the Royal Television Society award for the best television theme.] Wycliffe is played by Jack Shepherd, assisted by DI Doug Kersey (Jimmy Yuill) and DI Lucy Lane (Helen Masters).
Each episode deals with a murder investigation. In the early series, the stories are adapted from Burley’s books and are in classic whodunit style, often with quirky characters and plot elements. In later seasons, the tone becomes more naturalistic and there is more emphasis on internal politics within the police.
The Cornish setting is an important feature of the series, providing both picturesque landscapes and glimpses into the local way of life. Many characters work in the tourist industry. Problems of the region such as the struggling fishing industry, long-term unemployment, and prejudice against new age travellers are shown in various episodes. Wycliffe and his team are responsible for a large geographical area and often have to spend time away from home during an investigation. This can cause problems for Wycliffe, who is shown as a contented family man, married to a teacher (Lynn Farleigh) and with two teenage children; it also makes it difficult for Lane and Kersey, who are both single, to form relationships outside work.
Wycliffe’s beat appears to cover mainly central and west Cornwall. There are frequent mentions of certain major towns, including the city of Truro, Newquay, Camborne and Penzance (these places were also used as locations). But others in the same area, such as Falmouth, St Austell and St Ives, figure much less frequently. It is reasonable to assume that, as a Detective Superintendent, Wycliffe is the head of CID for one division, the boundary of which appears to run approximately from Padstow on the north coast to St Austell and Carlyon Bay on the south. He does not deal with places in north and east Cornwall, such as Bude or Launceston. Bodmin (actually mainly Bodmin Moor) features strongly in one episode, about the so-called Beast of Bodmin (which is said to be a big cat), but that’s about as far east as Wycliffe ever gets. In the final episode (“Land’s End”) Wycliffe refers to Wadebridge, near Bodmin, as being on “the other side of the county”.
(Devon and Cornwall Constabulary is no longer organised as Divisions. In real life, the Major Crime Investigation Team in Cornwall, which would presumably be headed by Wycliffe, was based at Newquay during the period in which the stories are set, but his Divisional HQ appears to be somewhere in the Camborne area
After a game of football, Foggy experiences a great pain and says his real forte is playing golf, although he admits he has not played since 1939
Last of the Summer Wine is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of Comedy Playhouse on 4 January 1973, and the first series of episodes followed on 12 November 1973. From 1983 to 2010, Alan J. W. Bell produced and directed all episodes of the show. The BBC confirmed on 2 June 2010 that Last of the Summer Wine would no longer be produced and the 31st series would be its last. Subsequently, the final episode was broadcast on 29 August 2010. Since its original release, all 295 episodes, comprising thirty-one series — including the pilot and all films and specials — have been released on DVD. Repeats of the show are broadcast in the UK on Gold, Yesterday, and Drama. It is also seen in more than twenty-five countries, including various PBS stations in the United States and on VisionTV in Canada. Last of the Summer Wine is the longest-running comedy programme in Britain and the longest-running sitcom in the world.
Last of the Summer Wine was set and filmed in and around Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, England, and centred on a trio of old men and their youthful misadventures; the membership of the trio changed several times over the years. The original trio consisted of Bill Owen as the mischievous and impulsive Compo Simmonite, Peter Sallis as easy-going everyman Norman Clegg, and Michael Bates as uptight and arrogant Cyril Blamire. When Bates dropped out due to illness in 1976 after two series, the role of the third man of the trio was filled in various years up to the 30th series by the quirky war veteran Walter “Foggy” Dewhurst (Brian Wilde), who had two lengthy stints in the series, the eccentric inventor Seymour Utterthwaite (Michael Aldridge), and former police officer Herbert “Truly of The Yard” Truelove (Frank Thornton). The men never seem to grow up, and they develop a unique perspective on their equally eccentric fellow townspeople through their stunts. Although in its early years the series generally revolved around the exploits of the main trio, with occasional interaction with a few recurring characters, over time the cast grew to include a variety of supporting characters and by later years the series was very much an ensemble piece. Each of these recurring characters contributed their own running jokes and subplots to the show and often becoming reluctantly involved in the schemes of the trio, or on occasion having their own, separate storylines.
After the death of Owen in 1999, Compo was replaced at various times by his real-life son, Tom Owen, as equally unhygienic Tom Simmonite, Keith Clifford as Billy Hardcastle, a man who thought of himself as a descendant of Robin Hood, and Brian Murphy as the cheeky-chappy Alvin Smedley. Due to the age of the main cast, a new trio was formed during the 30th series featuring somewhat younger actors, and this format was used for the final two installments of the show. This group consisted of Russ Abbot as a former milkman who fancied himself a secret agent, Luther “Hobbo” Hobdyke, Burt Kwouk as the electrical repairman, “Electrical” Entwistle, and Murphy as Alvin Smedley. Sallis and Thornton, both past members of the trio, continued in supporting roles alongside the new actors.
Although many feel the show’s quality declined over the years, Last of the Summer Wine continued to receive large audiences for the BBC and was praised for its positive portrayal of older people and family-friendly humour.Many members of the Royal Family enjoyed the show. The programme was nominated for numerous awards and won the National Television Award for Most Popular Comedy Programme in 1999. There were twenty-one Christmas specials, three television films and a documentary film about the series
New Tricks: #29 – S04 E06 – Buried Treasure
Good cast Amanda Redman, Alun Armstrong, James Bolam, Dennis Waterman with excellent supporting cast
Midsomer Murders #54 – S10 E03 – King’s Crystal – John Nettles, Jane Wymark, Jason Hughes
On a business trip to China, Alan King suddenly dies. The family firm, King’s Crystal, is in financial uncertainty, with plans to close its factory in Midsomer Magna. Six months later Alan’s widow Hilary and his brother Charles are married, much to the chagrin of Alan’s son Ian. With family feuds and factory workers angered by the loss of their jobs, motives abound when Peter Baxter, the firm’s accountant, is found dead, stabbed with a Masonic poniard, and Ian is fatally poisoned. Barnaby and Jones suspect a disgruntled employee is guilty. With so many things to investigate, they will need to explore both the Freemasons and the family, and find that the play of Hamlet may hold the key to the case.
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https://youtu.be/MRllD3zPH-A?si=fLYGO7iLWpQEEl9s
Midsomer Murders is a British crime drama television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the Chief Inspector Barnaby book series (created by Caroline Graham), and broadcast on two channels of ITV since its premiere on 23 March 1997. The series focuses on various murder cases that take place within small country villages across the fictional English county of Midsomer, and the efforts of the senior police detective and his partner within the fictional Midsomer Constabulary to solve the crime by determining who the culprit is and the motive for their actions. It identifies itself differently from other detective dramas often by featuring a mixture of lighthearted whimsy and dark humour, as well as a notable soundtrack that includes the use of the theremin instrument for the show’s theme tune.
The programme has featured two lead stars—from its premiere in 1997, John Nettles as Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Tom Barnaby, until his retirement from the drama in February 2011; then Neil Dudgeon as DCI John Barnaby, Tom’s younger cousin, since March 2011. Both main stars have featured a list of supporting actors who worked alongside them, including Jane Wymark, Barry Jackson, Daniel Casey, John Hopkins, Jason Hughes, and Gwilym Lee, with Nick Hendrix as the current co-star working with Dudgeon. Midsomer Murders remains a popular feature in British television schedules and has been broadcast internationally in over 200 countries and territories. MORE AT LINK
The fuss by progressives over Konstantin Kisin’s appearance on BBC Question Time is absurd
The fuss by progressives over Konstantin Kisin’s appearance on BBC Question Time is absurd. However progressives are illiberal repressives, not liberals in any real sense
And this from KK
UK Today: #148 – If these are NHS employees why are they allowed to parade in NHS uniform
Does their presence in hospital garb not suggest that the NHS tolerates these thugs and their aberrant, repulsive behaviour!
Classic Comedy: French Fields – #8 – S02 E02 – Inside Story – Julia McKenzie and Anton Rodgers
Topics include Chagos, Labour Leadership, Police Reform
Link below
https://www.youtube.com/live/rimZAjWHeo0?si=PphK9l8Pn88UU0vb
Britain’s Shrinking Military
Mark Felton – Mark Felton Productions – March 20,2025 – From Cold War Colossus to Cash Strapped Shadow
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers ‘Zero Night’ and ‘Castle of the Eagles’, both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. He has written extensively on Japanese war crimes, POW camps, Nazi war criminals, the Holocaust, famous escapes, Hitler and other Nazi leaders. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Fe…
Spitting Image: S02E08 (2021)
Emily Maitlis Exposes Racist ICE Agents
Parody by The Intel Lady of the News Agents
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The Inquiring Mind 
