Elizabeth Benson

Series23

• TV4.8

  CrimeDrama

  No Hiding Place is a British television series that was produced at Wembley Studios by Associated-Rediffusion for the ITV network between 16 September 1959 and 22 June 1967. It was the sequel to the series Murder Bag and Crime Sheet, all starring Raymond Francis as Detective Superintendent, later Detective Chief Superintendent Tom Lockhart.

  No Hiding Place

  1959 · 4 votes

• TV5.0

  DramaSoap

  Compact was a British television soap opera shown by the BBC between 1962 and 1965. The series was created by Hazel Adair and Peter Ling, who together went on to devise Crossroads. In contrast to the kitchen sink realism of Coronation Street, Compact was a distinctly middle-class serial, set in the more "sophisticated" arena of magazine publishing. An early "avarice" soap, it took the viewer into the business workplace, and aligned the professional lives of the characters with more personal storylines. The show was scheduled for broadcast on Tuesdays and Thursdays, thus avoiding a clash with ITV's Coronation Street on Mondays and Wednesdays. When Compact began, the editor was a woman, Joanne Minster, yet it was not long before she was replaced by Ian Harmon, the son of the magazine's owner. Despite being largely criticised by reviewers, Compact was popular with the general public, and in 1964 a regular omnibus edition was introduced, broadcast on Sundays. Morris Barry, a some-time actor and BBC director – he directed several Doctor Who stories in the 1960s – took over as producer and was given a brief to spice the series up in view of the criticism it had received from the national press. But the BBC, never comfortable with the concept of soap opera, quietly dropped the series in 1965.

  Compact

  1962 · 3 votes

• TV6.0

  Drama

  Dixon of Dock Green was a BBC television series following the activities of police officers at a fictional Metropolitan Police station in the East End of London from 1955 to 1976. Some episodes were later remade as a BBC radio series in 2005 and 2006.

  Dixon of Dock Green

  1955 · 4 votes

• TV8.1

  Comedy

  Only Fools and Horses.... Is a British sitcom created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally transmitted on BBC One from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas specials aired until 2003. In working-class Peckham in south-east London, ambitious market trader Derek 'Del Boy' Trotter and his younger half-brother Rodney, explore their highs and lows in life, in particular their attempts to get rich. Initially not an immediate hit and receiving little promotion early on, it later achieved consistently high ratings, and the 1996 episode "Time on Our Hands" (originally billed as the series finale) holds the record for the biggest UK audience for a sitcom episode, attracting 24.3 million viewers. The series bears a significant influence on British culture, contributing several words and phrases to the English language.

  Only Fools and Horses

  1981 · 318 votes

• TV7.1

  Drama

  A story of two sisters attempting to find happiness in the tightly structured society of 18th century England. Elinor, disciplined, restrained and very conscious of the manners of the day, represents sense. Outspoken, impetuous, emotional Marianne represents sensibility.

  Sense and Sensibility

  1981 · 15 votes

• TV8.0

  Drama

  In Victorian London, Louisa Leyton works her way up from servant to renowned cook to proprietress of the upper-class Bentinck Hotel in Duke Street, St James's.

  The Duchess of Duke Street

  1976 · 14 votes

• TV8.3

  Comedy

  Owner Basil Fawlty, his wife Sybil, a chambermaid Polly, and Spanish waiter Manuel attempt to run their hotel amidst farcical situations and an array of demanding guests.

  Fawlty Towers

  1975 · 855 votes

• TV7.7

  Drama

  London's Burning is a British television drama programme produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV network that focused on the lives of members of the London Fire Brigade, principally those of the Blue Watch at a fictional fire station called Blackwall.

  London's Burning

  1986 · 6 votes

• TV6.8

  Action & AdventureMystery

  This ten episode program was based on ten short stories written by Agatha Christie but with wide-ranging themes. Some were romances, some had supernatural themes and a couple were adventures. The common link was that all came from the talented pen of Agatha Christie, all were entertaining and each drama was carefully crafted and well cast with many of Britain's best known actors of the time represented.

  The Agatha Christie Hour

  1982 · 18 votes

• TV7.0

  Comedy

  Never the Twain is a British sitcom that ran for eleven series from 7 September 1981 to 9 October 1991. It was created by Johnnie Mortimer, and was the only sitcom he ever created without his usual writing partner, Brian Cooke. Mortimer wrote the entirety of the first two series and four episodes out of six of the eighth, with the rest being mainly written by Vince Powell and John Kane. It starred Windsor Davies and Donald Sinden as rival antique dealers, and also starred Derek Deadman, Zara Nutley, Robin Kermode, Tacy Kneale, Julia Watson, Honor Blackman, Teddy Turner and Maria Charles. The title is taken from the Rudyard Kipling poem; The Ballad of East and West.

  Never the Twain

  1981 · 11 votes

• TV7.7

  Comedy

  James Shelley, an educated, sardonic, permanently unemployed "professional freelance layabout," has many battles with authority, the tax-man, his landlady, and his girlfriend Fran.

  Shelley

  1979 · 11 votes

• TV6.1

  Comedy

  The Liver Birds is a British sitcom set in the city of Liverpool, in the north-west of England, which aired on BBC1 from 1969 to 1978, and again in 1996. It was created by Carla Lane and Myra Taylor. These two Liverpudlian writers had met at a local writers club and decided to pool their talents. Having been invited to London by Michael Mills and asked to write about two young women sharing a flat, Mills brought in sitcom expert Sydney Lotterby to work with the writing team. Lotterby had previously worked with Eric Sykes, Sheila Hancock and on The Likely Lads. Carla Lane in fact wrote most of the episodes, Taylor co-writing only the first two series. The pilot was shown as an episode of Comedy Playhouse, the BBC's breeding ground for sitcoms, in April 1969.

  The Liver Birds

  1969 · 9 votes

• TV6.6

  Comedy

  A bittersweet sitcom about a couple who meet again five years after he jilted her at the altar.

  Just Good Friends

  1983 · 16 votes

• TV6.7

  Comedy

  After Henry is a British sitcom written by Simon Brett, and starring Prunella Scales and Joan Sanderson. Originating as a radio programme on BBC Radio 4 from 1985 to 1989, it was adapted for television by Thames Television. Sarah is the 42-year-old widow of GP Henry France. She lives in an often volatile family situation with her elderly mother Eleanor Prescott, and her daughter, 18-year-old Clare, with both of whom she shares a house. Following Henry's death, the family have to find a way to cope with each other as best they can. The BBC was initially hesitant to produce a series but after three successful runs on BBC Radio 4, it was commissioned for the small screen. The series was surprisingly popular, attracting over 14 million viewers. Four seasons were made, with the last transmitted after the death of Sanderson, who died on 24 May 1992.

  After Henry

  1988 · 6 votes

• TV6.7

  Drama

  A divorced woman decides to train as a Nanny in 1930s England.

  Nanny

  1981 · 3 votes

• TV6.3

  Terry is a youngish bachelor who lives with his mother (Vi Stevens). He's a bit of a dreamer who wants to get rich as quickly and as easily as possible. Terry comes up with one grand "get rich quick" scheme after another, causing endless problems for himself and his friend, Hugh.

  Hugh and I

  1962 · 3 votes

• TV6.7

  Rosie is a British situation-comedy television series, written by Roy Clarke that was broadcast between 1977 and 1981. It was filmed and set in Scarborough in North Yorkshire. The central character was PC Penrose, the titular "Rosie", a young and inexperienced police officer, played by Paul Greenwood. For the first series of seven episodes, broadcast in 1975, it was called The Growing Pains of PC Penrose, but it underwent a revamp with a new title, setting and signature tune.

  Rosie

  1977 · 3 votes

• TV4.4

  Drama

  Hold the Dream is a two-part 1987 television serial based on Barbara Taylor Bradford's 1985 novel of the same name, a sequel to the 1984 miniseries A Woman of Substance. Deborah Kerr reprises her role of Emma Harte, with Jenny Seagrove, who played the young Emma, taking the lead role as Paula Fairley. Paula Fairley, now head of the Harte chain of department stores, has taken on the burden of preserving Emma's legacy. However, she suffers dissent within her extended family, in particular from her devious cousin Jonathan Ainsley. In the United Kingdom, the series aired in four one-hour episodes, although it was initially created as two two-hour parts.

  Hold the Dream

  1987 · 7 votes

• TV5.0

  Sob Sisters

  1989 · 1 votes

• TV6.8

  Comedy

  Earnest new recruit PC Penrose has left his hometown and joined the force in the Yorkshire town of Slagcaster. He's young and naive but seasoned officer Sergeant Flagg takes him under his wing and shows him the ropes, though his methods can be a little unconventional.

  The Growing Pains of PC Penrose

  1975 · 4 votes

• TV6.7

  CrimeMystery

  Cover Her Face is the debut 1962 crime novel of P. D. James. It details the investigations into the death of a young, ambitious maid, surrounded by a family which has reasons to want her gone – or dead.

  Cover Her Face

  1985 · 6 votes

• TV8.0

  Drama

  A story of the joy and sorrow of young love that recreates late 1920s and early 1930s England in exquisite detail, tracing heiress Lydia Aspen's evolution from bashful teen to wild jazz-age flapper.

  Love for Lydia

  1977 · 1 votes

• TV7.5

  Comedy

  Affairs of the Heart is a British sitcom that aired on ITV from 1983 to 1985. Starring Derek Fowlds, it was written by Paul Daneman. It was made for the ITV network by Granada Television. The series followed Peter Bonamy, who, upon being discharged from the hospital following a heart attack, attempts to adopt a brand-new outlook on life. He is determined to prove there is vibrant life after a cardiac event, which leads to comedic struggles as he tries to convince his skeptical family, friends, doctor, and wife of his new philosophy.

  Affairs of the Heart

  1985 · 2 votes