Feared by the bad, loved by the good
We remember how ITV brought Robin Hood and his band of men to television screens 65 years ago
THE rousing theme tune of The Adventures Of Robin Hood let young viewers know they were in for swashbuckling fun. The catchy song featured the lyrics: “Robin Hood, Robin Hood, riding through the glen. Robin Hood, Robin Hood with his band of men.”
The theme was heard on British television for the first time on September 25, 1955, and Dick James, who sang the title song, later became John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s music publisher.
The series saw Richard Greene as the legendary outlaw of folklore who stole from the rich to give to the poor. Donald Pleasence played the evil Prince John, with Archie Duncan as Little John, Alexander Gauge as Friar Tuck, Alan Wheatley as the Sheriff of Nottingham and Bernadette O’Farrell as Maid Marian – with Patricia Driscoll taking over the role two years later.
Paul Eddington, who later found fame in The Good Life and Yes, Minister, picked up a bow and arrow and joined Robin’s band of Merry Men as Will Scarlet. Comedy star Leslie Phillips also appeared, playing a character called Count de Waldern. Hollywood actor Ian Hunter, who played King Richard opposite Errol Flynn in the 1938 Robin Hood film reprised the role for the TV series.
The opening episode saw Sir Robin of Loxley returning home from the Crusades to find his family land and castles confiscated and himself declared an outlaw and forced to flee into Sherwood Forest.
It marked the start of 143 episodes across five series which proved a hit on both sides of the Atlantic.
The half-hour black and white episodes were made at Nettlefold Studios, Walton-on-Thames, with each adventure being filmed in just over four days. Many of the scripts were written by blacklisted Hollywood writers under pseudonyms.
The Blacklist was started by American Senator Joe McCarthy who instigated a campaign against people he claimed were Communists or sympathizers who were then denied work in the USA.
Actor Richard Greene later said of his Robin Hood role: “This swashbuckler stuff is rough on the anatomy, but I find it more exhilarating than whispering mishmash into some ingenue’s pink little ear.”