Are You Being Served? [DVD]

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Candy Davis as Miss Belfridge (series 9–10); Mr Rumbold's last and longest-running secretary, admired by the male staff on the shop floor. The plot line that brought the cast from the store to the manor was considered remarkably topical, since it aired just a few months after the death of British publishing tycoon Robert Maxwell, who was revealed to have borrowed heavily against his own employees' pensions. Harold Bennett as "Young" Mr Grace (series 1–8): the elderly but stingy owner of Grace Bros, often portrayed with attractive young women and a running joke of him being respected despite being slightly too old for his position. Bennett passed away following the eighth series, prior to the broadcast of the 1981 Christmas special; his character was referenced in the first episode of the spinoff series Grace & Favour.

Arthur Brough as Mr Ernest Grainger (series 1–5): a 40-year veteran of Grace Brothers, a senior sales assistant and head of the gents' department. Croft devised the character as being somewhat dislikeful and displaying his age such as sleeping during opening hours. Brough made his final appearance as Grainger in the 1977 film, dying before filming began on the sixth series. The series was successfully screened in Australia. It began on ABC Television in 1974 and was repeated by ABC in Australia several times. [27] By 1978, the rights to early episodes had been acquired by the commercial Seven Network who gained a larger audience than it had received on the ABC. [28] Are You Being Served? was ranked as the top-rated show on Australian television for 1978, being watched by 2,255,000 people in five cities. [29] New episodes were aired on ABC until 1984. After that, the last series was broadcast on the Seven Network.

DEFECTIVE ITEMS

In a recurring joke on the radio show Get This, it was stated that only the loss of the master tapes for the series is preventing its release on DVD. The National Film and Sound Archive does in fact contain copies of each episode in its vault. Selected items are only available for delivery via the Royal Mail 48® service and other items are available for delivery using this service for a charge. In addition, the cast performed in character for a stage sketch on the BBC1 programme Variety on 19 June 1976. A remix of the theme was released in 1996 by a dance act calling itself "Grace Brothers", [6] and featured samples of John Inman and Frank Thornton. When some original cast members had to leave for one reason or another (death being a common one), their replacements had a hard time filling the shoes of their predecessors; but, I'm grateful that they kept the series going as best they could. Even new cast members contributed to some memorable moments.

Guide, British Comedy (22 February 2016). "New Are You Being Served? cast revealed". British Comedy Guide . Retrieved 8 October 2016. The series has become very popular in the United States on PBS stations and on BBC America, as well as in many Commonwealth nations around the world. A US adaptation pilot episode called Beane's of Boston aired on 5 May 1979 on CBS, but it didn't make it through a full season. An Australian version, also called Are You Being Served?, ran for sixteen episodes from 1980 to 1981. It starred John Inman as Mr. Humphries, June Bronhill as a character similar to Mrs. Slocombe, and Shane Bourne. The store's name was changed to Bone Brothers, as Grace Brothers was the name of an actual department store chain in Australia. The show was aired in Canada during the late night on YTV. I discovered AYBS on a PBS station during law school. It was a pleasant, homey program that greatly helped me unwind at bedtime (no mean feat, at the time) so I could eventually fall asleep. I don't want to imply that it's like a sleeping pill-- it's more like a massage.

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Mollie Sugden as Mrs Betty Slocombe, the head of the ladies department and the film's main female protagonist. With Mr Humphries forced by circumstance to share a bed with Mavis, he finds that she develops a bit of a crush on him. This series of events leads all of the cast to assume they are having an affair, which flatters Mr Humphries, though he denies any such goings-on. Despite these events, Mr Humphries continues to be rather ambivalent to the idea of a relationship with anyone. A young man from the village vies with Humphries for Mavis' affection, and frequently attempts to intimidate him by threatening him with violence.

The series was shown in the United States on PBS stations and on BBC America, as well as in many Commonwealth nations around the world. PBS first began airing it (on 24 stations) in 1987, and viewership steadily climbed as more stations carried it. By the early 1990s, it had gained such a loyal following that American viewers of the show formed fan clubs and were in large attendance wherever cast members made guest appearances. An attempt to revive it in the early ’90s, as Grace and Favour, didn’t really do them any favours. Audiences had moved on, and even with a prime slot of starting the winter seasons in January 1992 and 93 didn’t work. Enjoy all 69 episodes in this Are You Being Served complete box set. You cant help but laugh while watching this zany british comedy series. Set in a British department store enjoy the antics of each salesman and their managers. This british comedy complete dvd series is a must watch for any comedy lover!

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In 1992, most of the original cast reunited for a spin-off show called Grace & Favour. This series was called Are You Being Served? Again! in the United States and Canada. Other events include the staff putting on a traditional harvest festival dance for octogenarian American visitors and putting on a showcase of British arts and culture for a tour group from Mongolia. Mr. Cuthbert Rumbold, the autocratic, obsequious (to Young Mr. Grace), easily confused department manager. The TROS, the Dutch broadcaster that showed AYBS? in the Netherlands, invited over the key faces of the original cast twice to reprise their characters on Dutch television (albeit not for a full, half-hour episode). First in 1976, Dutch comedian André van Duin entered a shop and ran into Mr Humphries, Miss Brahms and Mrs Slocombe. [24] A different special was made 1994, on the occasion of the 30 years jubilee of the TROS. This time, the search was for a replacement for Mrs Slocombe, with Mollie Sugden, John Inman, Frank Thornton, Wendy Richard, and Trevor Bannister all reprising their roles. [25] In 1985 John Inman also assisted in character as co-presenter for a quiz. [26] Reception [ edit ]

Buoyed by the huge success of the series in the United States, BBC America commissioned a special straight-to-VHS compilation in 1992. Running at 78 minutes, The Best of Are You Being Served featured newly shot scenes of Mr Humphries reminiscing with his elderly mother, Annie, about his time working at Grace Brothers. Both roles were played by John Inman. The additional sequences were filmed in America, and directed by Don Hopfer. Of the other surviving Are You Being Served? cast members who had either left or joined the cast during the programme’s run, only Trevor Bannister (Mr Lucas) was reportedly asked to join Grace & Favour, but declined. Mr Humphries is taking advantage of a staff discount on a blue rinse in the hairdressing dept. Mr Harman is demonstrating a new inflatable bikini to Miss Brahms and Mrs Slocombe.

DAMAGED ITEMS

Collier, Shayne. Again and again and again. The Sydney Morning Herald – The Guide: 2 June 1986, p.1, 6. [1] Are You Being Served? was one of several series, predominate of the period that was adapted to a feature film release with the 1977 film of the same name, as well as earning a spin-off series Grace & Favour with the same main cast in 1991–1992. In 2004, it was ranked 20th in a television countdown of Britain's Best Sitcom. [2] A one-off episode with a new cast was created in 2016. Both the sitcom - including its pilot and Christmas specials - the spin-off and the film have since been released on DVD. Christine Amor said of the series that " Are You Being Served? is one of the few TV comedies we are making in Australia and that's sad. In the days of My Name's McGooley, What's Yours? we had real Australian humour. But we have been very much influenced by overseas countries. Are You Being Served? is popular because people identify with a department store. It has no Australian idioms and it is a take off of the English series, but there is this sort of colonial thing where people enjoy English humour. I've always enjoyed it. I like English comedies, I think they're far superior to American comedies." It was Amor's first acting job before a live television audience. "I look at John Inman because he's been doing TV comedy for 10 years and been a comedian for 25 years. He's got it down to a fine art. But it is an accomplished skill which you keep on learning. I've learnt a lot from John. The basic hint he gave me was to enjoy it and to have a rapport with the audience." [4] The theme song, written by the show's co-writer David Croft and composer Ronnie Hazlehurst, consists of a lift girl (whose voice was provided by Stephanie Gathercole) announcing each floor over the musique concrète sounds of a cash register (which basically serves as the only percussion instrument) and a simple musical accompaniment. Are You Being Served? was initially broadcast from 1973 to 1985. Each series had between five and nine episodes. Counting the pilot episode, all episodes and specials from the series, and the film, the show ran for sixty-nine episodes and ten series. Each episode was self-contained, with no continuing story or theme throughout the series.