About Just William
Richmal Crompton's timeless Just William short stories are a children's classic - the humour still striking a chord today and the series' characters bywords for a particular and precise portrait of British family life. Simon Nye (Men Behaving Badly) has taken Richmal Crompton's original stories and written new scripts faithful to her vision for this new 2010 series of Just William, which is set in the 1950s.
This new four-part series follows the mischievous William and his gang - who like nothing better than wreaking havoc in the local woods. Dedicated to dastardly doings, William embroils his pals in a spot of boggy bother with new neighbour Mr Bott; causes a menagerie mix-up with a pair of parrots; sets up a spot of blackmail; and takes to the stage to perform his own rendition of Hamlet.
Simon Nye says: "I grew up reading the Just William books and William's fearlessness was always a bit of an inspiration. He is very good at exposing the pomposity of adults, which can make reassuring reading to children. He's a great grumbler with a full set of working grudges children can all share. Above all, the books are consistently funny, putting their fingers on a lot of truths about Britain and the British."
Producer John Chapman adds: "Richmal Crompton started writing William long before this production is set and continued writing her stories well into the Sixties, but the Fifties felt right to the team for this current production. As a period in which children had a great freedom and where, in spite of post war austerity, there was a sense of optimism for a better future and a climate of real change."
"The production is delighted to have received the wholehearted support of Richmal Crompton's family and the final icing on the cake, a narration by the voice most closely associated with William - Martin Jarvis."
"Other long-term fans involved in the show include Stephen Warbeck, the Oscar-winning composer for Shakespeare In Love, who has written a score featuring many of the instruments popular in orchestras of the Fifties."
And talking about the illustrations seen on the show, John Chapman explains: "Ed McLachlan, referred to by Trog as the 'cartoonist's cartoonist' and longtime contributor to The Oldie, Punch and Private Eye, has devised his own take on the William stories, supplying amazing individual illustrations for the titles of all the episodes of the series."