It Ain't Half Hot Mum features on Mastermind

The 1970s sitcom It Ain't Half Hot Mum was chosen as one of the specialist subjects in this year's Mastermind Grand Final.

Retired catering supervisor Sandra Piddock was asked a number of questions about the classic BBC sitcom in tonight's final. She scored 12 points and 1 pass, resulting in her being joint last at the end of the first round. However, after the general knowledge round, she regained ground and scored 27 points and 2 passes in total. She finished fourth out of six.

The winner, David Clark, scored 30 points with the help of his specialist subject, the history of London Bridge. The other specialist subjects were Steve McQueen, the history of Venice, the D-Day landings and The Godfather trilogy.

It Ain't Half Hot Mum, written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, ran from 1974 to 1981. The series focused on an army concert party stationed in Deolali (pronounced 'Doolally'), India. The comedy starred Windsor Davies as Sergeant Major 'Shut Up' Williams, Michael Bates as Bearer Rangi Ram, Melvyn Hayes as Bombardier 'Gloria' Beaumont, and Don Estelle as Gunner 'Lofty' Sugden. The sitcom, while popular in its day, is now viewed negatively by some who claim it contains racist humour.