Arthur's Treasured Volumes was a black-and-white

Black-and-white

Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...

 British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 television series

Television program

A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...

 that aired on ITV

ITV

ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

 in 1960. Starring Arthur Askey

Arthur Askey

Arthur Bowden Askey CBE was a prominent English comedian.- Life and career :Askey was born at 29 Moses Street, Liverpool, the eldest child and only son of Samuel Askey , secretary of the firm Sugar Products of Liverpool, and his wife, Betsy Bowden , of Knutsford, Cheshire...

, it was written by Dave Freeman

Dave Freeman (writer)

Dave Freeman was a British film and television writer, working chiefly in comedy.As well as writing sketches for comedians such as Tony Hancock and Arthur Askey, Freeman wrote screenplays for comedies including Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon and Carry On Behind as well as being a regular...

 and was made for the ITV

ITV

ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

 network by ATV

Associated TeleVision

Associated Television, often referred to as ATV, was a British television company, holder of various licences to broadcast on the ITV network from 24 September 1955 until 00:34 on 1 January 1982...

.

All episodes are missing having been presumed wiped

Wiping

Wiping or junking is a colloquial term for action taken by radio and television production and broadcasting companies, in which old audiotapes, videotapes, and telerecordings , are erased, reused, or destroyed after several uses...

 during the 1960s, although part of the first episode "A Blow In Anger" was recovered by Paul Stroud and shown at the National Film Theatre in November 2003.

Cast

• Arthur Askey
  Arthur Askey
  Arthur Bowden Askey CBE was a prominent English comedian.- Life and career :Askey was born at 29 Moses Street, Liverpool, the eldest child and only son of Samuel Askey , secretary of the firm Sugar Products of Liverpool, and his wife, Betsy Bowden , of Knutsford, Cheshire...
  
   - Various
• Anthea Askey
  Anthea Askey
  Anthea Shirley Askey was an English actress who was a popular television actress of the 1950s.Anthea Askey was born in Golders Green, London to the comedian and actor Arthur Askey, and his wife Elizabeth May Swash . In many of her television roles she would star with him...
  
   - Herself/Narrator
• Sam Kydd
  Sam Kydd
  Sam Kydd was an Ulster-born English actor. An army officer's son, he was born in Belfast, but moved to London, England when he was a child. He was educated at Dunstable Grammar School in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England....
  
   - Various
• Arthur Mullard
  Arthur Mullard
  Arthur Ernest Mullard, original surname Mullord was an English comedy actor.- Early life :...
  
   - Various

Plot

Arthur's Treasured Volumes was a series of one-episode sitcoms. At the beginning of each episode, Anthea Askey, Arthur's daughter, takes down a book from a shelf and the story begins. All the 'books' are in fact scripts written by Dave Freeman. In each episode, Arthur Askey, Sam Kydd and Arthur Mullard play different roles. Amongst those who made guest appearances were Wilfrid Brambell

Wilfrid Brambell

Henry Wilfrid Brambell was an Irish film and television actor best known for his role in the British television series Steptoe and Son. He also performed alongside The Beatles in their film A Hard Day's Night, playing Paul McCartney's fictional grandfather.- Early life :Brambell was born in Dublin...

, Patrick Newell

Patrick Newell

Patrick David Newell was a British actor known for his large size. It is reputed he gained weight as a deliberate attempt to boost his career, marking him out for some niche roles...

, June Whitfield

June Whitfield

June Rosemary Whitfield, CBE is an English actress, well known in the United Kingdom since the 1950s for roles in radio and television comedy series....

 and Geoffrey Palmer

Geoffrey Palmer (actor)

Geoffrey Dyson Palmer, OBE is an English actor, best known for his roles in sitcoms such as Butterflies and As Time Goes By.-Career:...

.

Episodes

1. "A Blow In Anger" (2 May 1960)
2. "The History of Mr Lacey" (9 May 1960)
3. "The Command Performer" (16 May 1960)
4. "Pilbeam of Twickenham" (23 May 1960)
5. "A Slight Case of Deception" (30 May 1960)
6. "The Curse of the Bellfoots" (6 June 1960)