Remembering and wishing Mollie Sugden a happy heavenly 101st birthday!

Mollie Sugden would have been 101 this past Friday. We, at Tellyspotting, wish her the best heavenly birthday, albeit a bit belated. For almost thirty years, Mollie Sugden brought smiles and outright laughter to not only the North Texas area, but to the world, as Mrs. Slocombe on Are You Being Served. One can’t help […]

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A 2022 Labor Day salute to the employees of Grace Brothers Department Store!

In the United States, Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement, dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of their country. We simply can’t let the long weekend pass by without paying tribute to some of the hardest working friends across the pond…the staff of the ladies’ and gentlemen’s clothing departments of Grace Brothers Department Store.

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London’s Grace Brothers Department Store set to re-open after 30+ years

While it’s been more than three decades since we last were able to walk into the retail ladies’ and gentlemen’s clothing department of London’s Grace Brothers department store, the doors appear ready to re-open in the not-too-distant future. The classic BBC comedy series, which ran from 1971 to 1985, is set for a re-boot as part […]

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Are You Being Served…Again!

As part of their Landmark Sitcom Season celebrating 60 years of British Comedy on the BBC in 2016, the Beeb announced recently that they would be commissioning 21st century remakes of several classic British comedies including Porridge, Up Pompeii, Are You Being Served?, Good Neighbors and Keeping Up Appearances. While, unfortunately, many of the actors associated with these decades old comedy […]

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R.I.P. – Jeremy Lloyd

Jeremy Lloyd, the co-creator/writer of such British comedy classics as Are You Being Served? and ‘Allo, ‘Allo, passed away on 23 December at the age of 84. These are getting harder and harder to write and, sadly, they seem to be coming around more frequently in recent years. This one, however, had an added level of […]

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A Labor Day salute to the employees of Grace Brothers Department Store

In the United States, Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement, dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of their country. As we settle in for the […]

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Happy Christmas from Tellyspotting!

A Very Carson Christmas It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the latenight commercials for the Ronco Inside the Shell Electric Egg Scrambler, Ron Popeil’s Pocket Fisherman or the Ginsu knives that could cut a metal can in half and still be sharp enough to slice a tomato to perfection. We’ve all seen the […]

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'Industry Insights' from a few greats of British comedy

Probably a bit of an overkill statement, but even with its ups and downs, British situation comedy is still king of comedy on telly….bar none.  A big part of which I attribute to the writers. The concept of good writing has never been more important…and needed…than it is today competing in an over-saturated world of […]

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Jeremy Lloyd to BBC: Good comedy is good writing and acting, %$@#&*

New BBC controller, Danny Cohen, lobbed the first grenade with his desire for the Beeb to “…curb middle class comedy” and add more “…blue-collar comedy shows“. Series like the long-running My Family and Outnumbered seem to not reflect the country as a whole. According to Cohen, the UK needs more shows like Only Fools and […]

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Book of Minutiae – Chapter 1

From the Tellyspotting book of little known facts….. Next time you feel the need to amaze your friends with some British comedy trivia, here are some great starters that will have them, well, amazed. Guaranteed. Or, if you find yourself at a pub quiz and one of these questions pops up…you can thank me later. […]

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