Life With The Lyons
Encyclopedia
Life with The Lyons was a British
radio
and television
domestic sitcom dating from the 1950s (broadcast 1955-1960).
and his wife Bebe Daniels
settled in London
during the Second World War and featured with the comedian Vic Oliver
in the radio series Hi, Gang! that ran from 1940 to 1949. Life With the Lyons followed on from this and, together with Ben and Bebe, featured their children Richard
and Barbara Lyon
. Although scripted, it expanded on real-life events.
Writers on the series included Bob Block
, who would later go on to create the BBC television series Rentaghost
.
Molly Weir
was their Scottish housekeeper Aggie Macdonald, Doris Rogers was the nosey neighbour Florrie Wainwright and Horace Percival played Mr Wimple. Two cinema films were produced and the show then transferred to BBC
television. It later transferred to ITV
.
A 1955 episode of the series was shown on BBC Four
on 27 March 2005 as part of the "TV on Trial" season. The episode was not shown "in the clear" - viewers had the choice of a version without commentary but with several on-screen logos, or a version with commentary by Roy Hattersley
and Kathryn Flett.
Many of the radio episodes were not kept by the BBC and as of 2011 only three episodes were known to exist in the archives; these were aired on BBC Radio 7 in early 2011. Following this broadcast, the BBC were alerted to a privately-held collection of over 200 episodes built up by Graeme Stevenson in Scotland, and a selection of these programmes are set to be rebroadcast on Radio 7's successor BBC Radio 4 Extra at a later date.
1 from the frist series, 2 from the third and fourth each and 1 from the final series, making this a total of only 6 sole surviving episodes to date.
and Yoko Ono
paid tribute to the show in the naming of their second album, Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions
.
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...
radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
domestic sitcom dating from the 1950s (broadcast 1955-1960).
Overview
Life with The Lyons was unusual in that it featured a real-life American family. Ben LyonBen Lyon
Ben Lyon was an American film actor and a 20th Century Fox studio executive.-Life:Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Lyon entered films in 1918 after a successful appearance on Broadway opposite Jeanne Eagels. He attracted attention in the highly successful film Flaming Youth , and steadily developed into...
and his wife Bebe Daniels
Bebe Daniels
Bebe Daniels was an American actress, singer, dancer, writer and producer. She began her career in Hollywood during the silent movie era as a child actress, became a star in musicals like 42nd Street, and later gained further fame on radio and television in Britain...
settled in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
during the Second World War and featured with the comedian Vic Oliver
Vic Oliver
Vic Oliver was an actor and radio comedian.He was born in Vienna, Austria, the son of Viktor von Samek and came to England via America....
in the radio series Hi, Gang! that ran from 1940 to 1949. Life With the Lyons followed on from this and, together with Ben and Bebe, featured their children Richard
Richard Lyon
Richard Lyon may refer to:*Richard F. Lyon , Confederate Georgia jurist*Richard Francis Lyon , co-founder of Foveon Inc., inventor of Xerox optical mouse...
and Barbara Lyon
Barbara Lyon
Barbara Bebe Lyon was a singer of popular songs and actress, born in the United States but primarily active in the United Kingdom....
. Although scripted, it expanded on real-life events.
Writers on the series included Bob Block
Bob Block
Bob Block was a British radio, television and film comedy scriptwriter.-Career:His earliest work was for radio, best known for co-writing the domestic sitcom Life with the Lyons for Ben Lyon, as well as working with Arthur Askey and Frankie Howerd.Block was best known for writing television...
, who would later go on to create the BBC television series Rentaghost
Rentaghost
Rentaghost is a British children's television comedy show, broadcast by the BBC between 6 January 1976 and 6 November 1984. The show's plot centred on the antics of a number of ghosts who worked for a firm called Rentaghost, which rented out the ghosts for various tasks.-Background:The company,...
.
Molly Weir
Molly Weir
Mary Weir, better known as Molly Weir, was a Scottish stage actress, most notable for her role as the long-running character Hazel the McWitch in the BBC TV series Rentaghost. She was the sister of naturalist and broadcaster Tom Weir.Born in Glasgow and brought up in the Springburn area of the...
was their Scottish housekeeper Aggie Macdonald, Doris Rogers was the nosey neighbour Florrie Wainwright and Horace Percival played Mr Wimple. Two cinema films were produced and the show then transferred to BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television. It later transferred to 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...
.
A 1955 episode of the series was shown on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
on 27 March 2005 as part of the "TV on Trial" season. The episode was not shown "in the clear" - viewers had the choice of a version without commentary but with several on-screen logos, or a version with commentary by Roy Hattersley
Roy Hattersley
Roy Sydney George Hattersley, Baron Hattersley is a British Labour politician, author and journalist from Sheffield. He served as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1983 to 1992.-Early life:...
and Kathryn Flett.
Many of the radio episodes were not kept by the BBC and as of 2011 only three episodes were known to exist in the archives; these were aired on BBC Radio 7 in early 2011. Following this broadcast, the BBC were alerted to a privately-held collection of over 200 episodes built up by Graeme Stevenson in Scotland, and a selection of these programmes are set to be rebroadcast on Radio 7's successor BBC Radio 4 Extra at a later date.
Missing Episodes
Only 6 episodes of this 50's British sitcom survive within the Television archives (as most of the other episodes sadly no longer exist, as of November 2011).1 from the frist series, 2 from the third and fourth each and 1 from the final series, making this a total of only 6 sole surviving episodes to date.
In popular culture
John LennonJohn Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
and Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
paid tribute to the show in the naming of their second album, Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions
Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions
Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions is an album of noise music released by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969, and the successor to 1968's highly controversial Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins...
.