• RIP, Lynda Baron — a.k.a. Nurse Gladys Emmanuel from ‘Open All Hours’

    RIP, Lynda Baron — a.k.a. Nurse Gladys Emmanuel from ‘Open All Hours’

    Best known for her role as Nurse Gladys Emmanuel in Open All Hours, Lynda Baron has passed away at the age of 82. Created and written by the great Roy Clarke (Keeping Up Appearances, Still Open All Hours), the iconic British situation comedy starring Ronnie Barker, David Jason and Stephanie Cole ran for four series and […]

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  • Happy 93rd, Dame Patricia Routledge!

    Happy 93rd, Dame Patricia Routledge!

    One of the few upsides of another year living under a pandemic cloud is the opportunity to send good wishes for a very happy birthday to the brilliant Dame Patricia Routledge, who turns 93 today. Given Hyacinth would have been appalled at the possibility that I might forget to drop a card in the post […]

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  • Gary Waldhorn — a.k.a. Dibley’s Councillor David Horton, dies at 78.

    Gary Waldhorn — a.k.a. Dibley’s Councillor David Horton, dies at 78.

    Gary Waldhorn, the actor best known for his role of Councillor David Horton in the Dawn French comedy, Vicar of Dibley, has died at the age of 78. Waldhorn’s son Josh confirmed to BBC News that his father died on Monday, saying in a statement: “Classically trained, it was the theatre where he truly flourished and he leaves a legacy […]

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  • “The same procedure every year” — ‘Dinner for One’ continues its annual NYE tradition in Germany

    “The same procedure every year” — ‘Dinner for One’ continues its annual NYE tradition in Germany

    It seems that watching television on New Year’s Eve in Germany is right up there with the tradition of watching the Queen’s Christmas Day message in the UK. Dinner for One is a particularly crucial part of Germany’s festive programming, where it has been broadcast on Das Erste, a public television channel, since 1972. Around half the population still tunes in on New Year’s Eve to watch it with some Germans even recreating the meal served in the skit.

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  • 42 years ago, 42 became the literary answer to life, the universe and everything

    42 years ago, 42 became the literary answer to life, the universe and everything

    It was 42 years ago this month where the literary world learned the answer to life, the universe and everything. While the face of radio comedy changed forever back in March of 1978, it was October of 1979 that Douglas Adams unleashed Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, as a book, on the world. While, as a society, we tend to celebrate anniversaries like 40th or 50th such as high school reunions commonplace, I prefer a 42nd anniversary of H2G2 for obvious reasons. Until next time, so long and thanks for all the fish.

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  • R.I.P. ‘Mulberry’s’ Tony Selby

    R.I.P. ‘Mulberry’s’ Tony Selby

    Sadly, these R.I.P. posts are coming way too frequent and way too fast for my liking these days. This one is another name you may not be familiar with but will definitely know his work. Tony Selby, perhaps best remembered for his starring role as Corporal Percy Marsh in Esmonde & Larbey’s national service comedy Get […]

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  • Remembering Ballard Berkeley, a.k.a. Major Gowen in ‘Fawlty Towers’

    Remembering Ballard Berkeley, a.k.a. Major Gowen in ‘Fawlty Towers’

    Ballard Berkeley, who played the bumbling Major Gowen that seemed to always be locked in an endless quest for the afternoon paper in Fawlty Towers, would have been 117 on Friday. The English actor, who appeared on stage and screen, passed away in 1988. Prior to his professional career, Berkeley served as a Special Constable with the […]

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