DON’T PANIC!
Dad’s Army is back with three new episodes... and they ARE as good as the originals
They are the most famous catchphrases in British TV history, and there are so many of them: ‘Stupid boy!’ ‘Don’t panic!’ ‘We’re doomed, I tell ye!’ ‘My sister Dolly . . .’ ‘Do you think that’s wise, sir?’ ‘Uncle Arthur . . .’ ‘They don’t like it up ’em!’
But how will these immortal words sound, spoken by new actors?
Judge for yourself, when three lost episodes of Dad’s Army recreated for TV are screened from Sunday — and, thanks to these previously unseen, behind-the-scenes images, you can see how the beloved old characters are being brought back to life.
every one of those classic catchphrases earned a cheer during recording at Pinewood Studios earlier this year in front of a live audience. ‘The cheering was so loud,’ says Kevin eldon, who plays Corporal Jones (originally played by Clive Dunn), ‘we had to stop the recording and politely ask them to try to tone down their reaction.’
The recreated episodes will be aired on the Gold channel, one a day at 8pm this Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. But can a new generation of comedy actors really capture these characters who, over five decades, have become part of our national fabric?
you can decide for yourself, from these production pictures.
Anyone with even a slight knowledge of the show will be able to spot Jonesy, Walker and Pike on their bicycles. While Kevin McNally (in pyjama bottoms) is
the spitting image of Arthur Lowe as Captain Mainwaring.
True, it’s strange at first to view those rumpled home Guard uniforms in high definition. But throughout every episode you’ll be laughing, not just at the accuracy of the portrayals but at the brilliance of dialogue unheard for 50 years.
The first episode charts the platoon’s frantic efforts to prevent wide-boy Walker from being called up into the regular Army — because losing him means losing the black market sugar, whisky and ladies’ nylons he supplies.
The second pits Private Frazer, the dour Scottish undertaker, against gung-ho Lance-Corporal Jones as they vie for promotion.
The third sees an incendiary bomb come crashing through the roof of the church hall.
While the cast are new, the scripts
are authentic, unchanged from their first production in 1969. Of the 80 episodes filmed over nine series between 1968 and 1977, three of the earliest were wiped after broadcast — the third, fifth and sixth instalments of the second series.
The idea of remaking them was fraught with danger. Many felt it was akin to repainting a lost Michelangelo. So this was a bold venture...and it really pays off. And, of course, the titles have not been altered. It’s still Bud Flanagan singing, ‘Who do you think you are kidding, Mr Hitler?’ Some things are simply sacred.