We called the police ‘fascist pigs’ and they loved it
IT WAS the anarchic 80s cult comedy which mocked the police as violent ‘fascists’ and ‘pigs’.
Yet the BBC series The Young Ones was ‘hugely popular’ with real-life officers, its makers reveal today. Co-writer Lise Mayer says: ‘We were quite surprised because it was huge with the police.
‘We’d been horrible about the police. We’d called Vyvyan’s hamster SPG [after the Met’s notoriously violent Special Patrol Group]. We’d satirised them – at every opportunity they’d come in and smash things up – and yet it was hugely popular with the police force.’ Particular favourites were the two stupid officers played by Stephen Frost and Mark Arden. Frost said: ‘The phone calls Mark and I got from the Metropolitan Police to do benefit gigs! They loved it!’
The revelations come in interviews for Radio 4’s The Reunion at 11.15am today.
Nigel Planer, who played hippy Neil, said that he discovered the police’s obsession with the show when he was mugged. He added: ‘The police came along and knew the jokes – they were all doing Neil impersonations.’ Planer also recalled being impressed with Sir Cliff Richard, whose hit song gave the comedy its title and who was always being mocked in the show.
In 1986 the cast, including Adrian Edmondson, Rik Mayall and Christopher Ryan, joined the singer to record a version of Living Doll for charity.
Mayer said Sir Cliff spent most of the session arguing with Hank Marvin and, when the clean-living singer swore, it was ‘the biggest excitement of the night’.