British Comedy Guide

All Gas and Gaiters

I've just been watching All Gas and Gaiters, and have to say that I am really enjoying it. Stands up to the passing of time remarkably well in my opinion, is very sharply written, and full of laughs. Criminally, it's one of those which the archivists failed to save - out of 33 episodes over 5 series', just 11 are still in known existence. :(

So has anyone else seen - or, dare I say, remember - it (or indeed the sequels Oh Brother! and Oh Father!)? I'd definitely recommend it! :)

See Amazon product listing

I haven't seen the show in question, but it is mentioned on "Missing Believed Wiped" a documentery about things that don't exist in the archieves. This is an extra on Dads Army series 1 and the lost episodes of Series 2.

I do remember it from when I was very young. I seemed to remember enjoying it but I would have been too young to understand some of it.

A friend of mine told me about a Radio 4 play today about the writers of this show; one of the writers was - shock, horror! - a woman.

Here's the iPlayer link.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0787dm6

Quote: Chappers @ 27th April 2016, 7:27 PM BST

A friend of mine told me about a Radio 4 play today about the writers of this show; one of the writers was - shock, horror! - a woman.

Here's the iPlayer link.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0787dm6

I listened to it today.

Not bad at all.

Was there ever such a fearsome couple as the Dean and Mrs Pugh-Critchley

Before the DVD was released I had never seen this show or even heard of it. I bought the DVD not expecting it to be very good but I was amazed how funny and enjoyable it was. It has a spooky style theme tune played on a organ and footage of the cathedral that is supposed to be ST.Oggs with a crooked spire. It's very annoying that so many episodes are missing from the archives and I have collected a lot of the radio series to get an idea what some of the missing episodes were about. I also bought Oh Brother! again with Derek Nimmo in the cast but this also has episodes missing due to the series being wiped. And of course I also just had to have Oh Father! and enjoyed that as well.
Derek nimmo appeared in another sitcom as a member of the clergy called Hell's Bell's in the 1980's as the Dean but sadly it's not available on DVD.

Quote: marac @ 1st May 2016, 2:10 PM BST

It's very annoying that so many episodes are missing from the archives and I have collected a lot of the radio series to get an idea what some of the missing episodes were about.

You'll be interested in this book then!

https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/all_gas_and_gaiters/shop/4448/all_gas_and_gaiters_the_lost_episodes_i/

I met Pauline and Edwin last year - both utterly lovely. All Gas And Gaiters is really underrated.

*hums the theme tune to himself*

It was very different from Rev. in that it was a genuinely funny sitcom evidently, almost never talked about and never repeated which is a bit odd. I don't know if I've ever seen it at all although I recognise the faces.

If it has a catchy theme tune I possibly did see it but I only clearly emember the Nimmo spin off vehicle, Oh Brother!, which I'm sure also had a catchy theme tune. That was all Nimmo with his posh stammering voice and I have to say I loved it although I was a very young sprat. Probably where my love of sitcom began, marvelling at this beguiling character, him and Albert Steptoe.

I feel sure you'd love it, Alfred.

Here is the original Comedy Playhouse pilot episode, sadly without the theme tune:

And S01E01, with: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQ3vRzp7Xws

Yes that was a good intro, liked the Beatles gag especially. Something familiar about it, I may have seen one two although I was surprised to see CJ in it. That's beyond my memory's limits I think, probably 3 when this aired. Only clearly remember Nimmo as a monk in Oh Brother.

I read years ago in a book about MPFC that this sitcom was a source of conflict within the writing teams. I think it was Jones who loved it and Cleese who hated it.

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