Open All Hours

Open All Hours
Series title card
Format	Comedy
Created by	Roy Clarke
Written by	Roy Clarke
Directed by	Sydney Lotterby
Starring	Ronnie Barker David Jason Lynda Baron Barbara Flynn Stephanie Cole Kathy Staff Maggie Ollerenshaw
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of series	4
No. of episodes	26
Production
Producer(s)	Sydney Lotterby
Running time	30 minutes per episode
Broadcast
Original channel	BBC Two (1973 & 1976) BBC One (1981 - 1985)
Original run	25 March 1973 (pilot) 20 February 1976 – 6 October 1985 (series)

Open All Hours was a BBC sitcom written by Roy Clarke which ran for four series (26 episodes in all) between 1976 and 1985, with a pilot episode from the Seven of One series in 1973. In 2004, the series was voted eighth in Britain's Best Sitcom.^[1]

Plot

The series features a small grocer's shop in Balby, a suburb of Doncaster in South Yorkshire. The owner, Arkwright (Ronnie Barker), is a middle-aged miser with a stammer and a knack for being able to sell anything . His nephew Granville (David Jason) is the put-upon errand boy, whose attempts at a love-life or even just a meaningful social life fall flat. He blames his uncle, in particular that he has to be up early to open the shop and stay late to close it. Almost every mistake Arkwright makes is followed by a cry of "Gr-Granville! F-fetch yer cloth!". A recurring joke revolves around Arkwright's claim that Granville's estranged father was Hungarian — an issue never resolved. Arkwright made cracks about the sexlife of his late sister (Granville's mother).

The shop is crowded and most goods can only be reached from behind the counter — allowing Arkwright a chance to hawk more goods. The till is old, and a spring on its drawer terrifies Granville and Arkwright, who is too much a miser to buy a new one.

Across the road lives Nurse Gladys Emmanuel (Lynda Baron), Arkwright's long-standing fiancée; much of the skinflint's time is dedicated to trying to persuade he to marry him, or at least sleep with him. Nurse Gladys has her rounds and her elderly mother to occupy her. She is protective of Granville and tries to use her influence with Arkwright to get him a better life. In the pilot episode, Nurse Gladys was played by Sheila Brennan with an Irish accent, and the character was slimmer than the buxom creature she became, played by Lynda Baron.

Other regulars included the milkwoman (Barbara Flynn) for whom Granville had the hots; Mavis (Maggie Ollerenshaw) a young woman who could not make up her mind what to buy; Mrs Blewett (Kathy Staff), with a critical word for everyone; and Mrs Featherstone (Stephanie Cole), the Black Widow, a sour-faced miser who admired Arkwright for being likewise.

Episodes generally involve some plan by Arkwright to wed Nurse Gladys, save money or sell more stuff, and end with Arkwright shutting shop for the night with his reflection on the day.

A few complaints were registered over humorous use of a speech impediment but Arkwright was so amiable and the humour so good-natured that most deemed it a portrayal without malice. The part was originally written without the stammer — Barker suggested it and it became part of Arkwright's character. Similarly, the dangerous cash-register was created mostly by Barker.

Two of Ronnie Barker's fake moustaches (donated by the BBC) used in the show were auctioned at the British Stammering Association conference in London, September 2005.

The show's theme tune is a song called Alice, where art thou? music written by Joseph Ascher .^[2] It was played in an arrangement for brass band by Max Harris, who also wrote incidental music for the series.^[3]

The programme can be quite reflective and at times has moments of pathos. Whilst everyone else in the programme is practical and shows no emotion or sentimentality, Granville is quite the opposite and throughout the series Granville often reflects on life passing him by. Occasionally characters he would have known as a teenager are brought in and whilst they have all gone on in life and had some success, Granville has remained his uncle's errand boy — the ageing Granville is still treated like a child, in particular by Arkwright, but also by customers in the shop, even those sympathetic towards his predicament.

Locations

The exterior shots were in Lister Avenue in Balby, a suburb of Doncaster; the shop itself is a hairdresser's salon.^{[citation needed]}

Gladys Emmanuel's house was 34 Lister Avenue, Balby, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, in the first series, but moved to number 32 in the second series.

The local council considered demolishing the shop used in Open All Hours ^[4] and a web site has been set up for fans of the show to post messages in support of saving the shop.^{[citation needed]} The shop was to be auctioned in Leeds on 24 November 2008, and was expected to fetch between £120,000 and £130,000^[5], however it failed to meet its reserve price.^[6]

All four series of all 26 episodes have now been released on VHS and DVD.

Political reference

While Arkwright does not seem to have any particular political convictions, he is an avid political commentator, usually not in a serious capacity. In the earlier episodes the series makes many references to the policy of the Labour governments of Harold Wilson and James Callaghan, with comments like My top lip went all stiff and dead, as if it had been nationalised and When Wales get home rule, do you think they'll nationalise Clive Jenkins. By the time the later series were made the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher was in power, and fewer political observations were made against government or opposition.

Cast

Lynda Baron, Ronnie Barker, and David Jason.

The following have appeared in more than one episode.

Episode list

Pilot

Air Date: 25 March 1973

Main Cast: Ronnie Barker (Albert Arkwright), David Jason (Granville)

Synopsis: Part of the Seven of One series

Series 1

Air Date: 20 February 1976 - 26 March 1976

Main Cast:

Ronnie Barker (Albert Arkwright)

David Jason (Granville)

Lynda Baron (Nurse Gladys Emmanuel)

Synopsis: Ronnie Barker stars as Arkwright, the stuttering grocer. Arkwright's urge to take money from customers is second only to his need to prevent his nephew, Granville, from discovering a world beyond the shop bell... And, of course, his passion for nurse Gladys Emmanuel.

Series 2

Air Date: 1 March 1981 - 19 April 1981

Main Cast:

Ronnie Barker (Albert Arkwright)

David Jason (Granville)

Lynda Baron (Nurse Gladys Emmanuel)

Synopsis: Arkwright continues to risk amputation rather than replace his till. As Nurse Gladys Emmanuel, the owner of an awesome bosom and an old Morris Minor, deflates his amorous advances, Arkwright seeks solace in bullying his over-worked, sexually and socially-frustrated nephew and errand boy, G-G-G-Granville.

Series 3

Air Date: 21 March 1982 - 25 April 1982

Main Cast:

Ronnie Barker (Albert Arkwright)

David Jason (Granville)

Lynda Baron (Nurse Gladys Emmanuel)

Synopsis: Ronnie Barker's stuttering shopkeeper Arkwright lives for just three things - a regularly ringing till, a glimpse of Nurse Gladys Emmanuel's more than ample bosom and making the life of his nephew and errand boy, G-G-G-Granville ever more miserable...

Series 4

Air Date: 1 September 1985 - 6 October 1985

Main Cast:

Ronnie Barker (Albert Arkwright)

David Jason (Granville)

Lynda Baron (Nurse Gladys Emmanuel)

Synopsis: Ronnie Barker's great creation Arkwright continues to mind the store where the only thing going cheap is talk. The elusive Nurse Gladys Emmanuel is still there to drive him to distraction, while delivery boy Granville just yearns for a trendy girlfriend, a high-powered executive job, a sports car or even a new bell on his bicycle.

DVD releases

All four series have been released in regions 2 & 4 individually and in a box set. Region 1 has released the box set but the series have not been released individually.

References

External links

• Open All Hours at the bbc.co.uk Guide to Comedy
• Open All Hours at the British Film Institute
• Open All Hours at the BFI's Screenonline
• Open All Hours at the Internet Movie Database
• Image of Arkwright's shop in April 2007