Private Frank Pike
Encyclopedia
Private Frank Pike is a fictional
Home Guard
platoon member and junior bank clerk portrayed by Ian Lavender
in the BBC
television sitcom Dad's Army
. He is frequently referred to by Captain Mainwaring
as "stupid boy".
platoon. Aged 17 when the series begins, he is not old enough to join the army, although presumably he has reached, or is nearing, his 18th birthday when he is about to receive call-up papers in "When You've Got To Go"; in the event, it is revealed that he possesses a rare blood type that excludes him from military service. He lives in the shadow of his bossy and over-protective mother, Mavis Pike, who is in a relationship with Sergeant Arthur Wilson
, referred to by Pike as "Uncle Arthur" and who is hinted to be Pike's father. If so, he also has an older half-sister by Wilson's estranged wife. (The writers, Jimmy Perry
and David Croft, confirmed after the series that Wilson was Pike's father.) It is common for Pike to threaten to set his mum on either Captain George Mainwaring, his commanding officer, or Sergeant Wilson if he is shouted at or forced to do something. Although naive, Pike is aware something is going on with his mother and Wilson:
Pike is naive and acts childishly, possessing limited grasp of adult issues. He is frequently found with confectionery, is upset in "The Big Parade" to leave a cinema early because he had "missed the Donald Duck
" and can be petulant to superiors. This annoys Captain Mainwaring
, who refers to him as a "stupid boy" due to his carelessness and mistakes. Mainwaring himself treats Pike as a child, threatening to send him home from meetings if he does not behave. Pike is also as a dogsbody
by Mainwaring, who gives Pike menial, demeaning, dangerous or undignified tasks, refusing to 'mollycoddle' Pike. Pike frequently ends up wet, covered in mud or otherwise humiliated. In Things that Go Bump in the Night
, he was stripped several times and had to run naked through a field to escape dogs.
Although Pike comes up with sensible solutions to problems encountered by the platoon, he treats "everything as if it's a game", to quote Mainwaring in "All is Safely Gathered In
". Notably, in "The Deadly Attachment
", Pike was put on an ominous 'list' by a German U-Boat captain due to Mainwaring's incompetence at preventing the German from learning Pike's name ("Don't tell him, Pike!"), spelling his doom should the Germans win the war; however, as Pike had sung a childish song about Adolf Hitler
in front of this officer, it is his own fault in refusing to take the situation seriously. He would rather play at being a Chicago
gangster
with the platoon's grenades or Tommy gun
. He exasperates Mainwaring but he is humoured by other members (particularly Lance Corporal Jack Jones, Private Charles Godfrey
and Private Joe Walker
. Pike one of the most timid members of the group but first in the series to fire on a suspected enemy (The Enemy Within The Gates) even though it turned out to be a swan.
Pike is sickly and unhealthy. An army doctor proclaimed him healthy when he received his calling up papers, though it then appears that he has a rare blood type that excludes him from military service. But most 'illnesses' stem from his mother's protectiveness . Pike wears a scarf, usually claret and blue, with Home Guard uniform. This is because it prevents his croup
, even though only infants and, apparently, chickens are supposed to get it ("Menace from the Deep
").
Pike is a fan of the cinema
and relates the plots of films that relate to the platoon , even if the relationship is hazy. When the film example does mirror reality, he picks scenarios which end in death.
Pike makes pointless comments while attempting to help; this is illustrated by "Absent Friends". Jones, Mainwaring, Pike and Wilson are searching for an escaped convict, with the help of the police.
Pike's name is a reference to the spear-like weapons
issued to the Home Guard in 1942, generating 'an almost universal feeling of anger and disgust from the ranks'.
Ian Lavender was invited to choose Pike's scarf from the BBC costume department. As a supporter of Aston Villa F.C.
, he chose the team's colours.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
Home Guard
British Home Guard
The Home Guard was a defence organisation of the British Army during the Second World War...
platoon member and junior bank clerk portrayed by Ian Lavender
Ian Lavender
Arthur Ian Lavender , better known as Ian Lavender, is an English stage, film and television actor, best known for his role as Private Frank Pike in the BBC comedy series Dad's Army.-Early life and career:...
in the 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 sitcom Dad's Army
Dad's Army
Dad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
. He is frequently referred to by Captain Mainwaring
Captain George Mainwaring
Captain George Mainwaring is the bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during the Second World War...
as "stupid boy".
Personality
Pike is the youngest of the Walmington-on-SeaWalmington-on-Sea
Walmington-on-Sea is a fictional seaside resort where the BBC Television sitcom, BBC radio series and film Dad's Army was based.Located on the channel coast of England in the county of Kent, the national "front line" following the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk during...
platoon. Aged 17 when the series begins, he is not old enough to join the army, although presumably he has reached, or is nearing, his 18th birthday when he is about to receive call-up papers in "When You've Got To Go"; in the event, it is revealed that he possesses a rare blood type that excludes him from military service. He lives in the shadow of his bossy and over-protective mother, Mavis Pike, who is in a relationship with Sergeant Arthur Wilson
Sergeant Arthur Wilson
Sergeant The Honourable Arthur Wilson is a fictional Home Guard platoon sergeant and bank clerk portrayed by John Le Mesurier on the BBC television situation comedy Dad's Army....
, referred to by Pike as "Uncle Arthur" and who is hinted to be Pike's father. If so, he also has an older half-sister by Wilson's estranged wife. (The writers, Jimmy Perry
Jimmy Perry
Jimmy Perry OBE is an English writer, scriptwriter, producer, author and actor, most famous for devising and co-writing the BBC sitcoms Dad's Army with David Croft.-Education:...
and David Croft, confirmed after the series that Wilson was Pike's father.) It is common for Pike to threaten to set his mum on either Captain George Mainwaring, his commanding officer, or Sergeant Wilson if he is shouted at or forced to do something. Although naive, Pike is aware something is going on with his mother and Wilson:
- Pike: "By the time we finish supper, it's always so late, you never leave our house until after I've gone to bed and then you're back early for breakfast before I'm awake. But what I can't understand is that I never hear you leave at night and I never hear you come back in."
- Wilson: "Well I let myself in and out very quietly"
- Pike: "You don't do anything else very quietly!"
Pike is naive and acts childishly, possessing limited grasp of adult issues. He is frequently found with confectionery, is upset in "The Big Parade" to leave a cinema early because he had "missed the Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
" and can be petulant to superiors. This annoys Captain Mainwaring
Captain George Mainwaring
Captain George Mainwaring is the bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander portrayed by Arthur Lowe on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army, set in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during the Second World War...
, who refers to him as a "stupid boy" due to his carelessness and mistakes. Mainwaring himself treats Pike as a child, threatening to send him home from meetings if he does not behave. Pike is also as a dogsbody
Dogsbody
A dogsbody, or less commonly dog robber in the Royal Navy, is a junior officer, or more generally someone who does drudge work. A rough American equivalent would be a "gofer" or a "grunt", a "lackey", or "toady".-History:...
by Mainwaring, who gives Pike menial, demeaning, dangerous or undignified tasks, refusing to 'mollycoddle' Pike. Pike frequently ends up wet, covered in mud or otherwise humiliated. In Things that Go Bump in the Night
Things that Go Bump in the Night
Things That Go Bump in the Night is the sixth episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom Dad's Army that was originally transmitted on the 12 December 1973.-Synopsis:...
, he was stripped several times and had to run naked through a field to escape dogs.
Although Pike comes up with sensible solutions to problems encountered by the platoon, he treats "everything as if it's a game", to quote Mainwaring in "All is Safely Gathered In
All is Safely Gathered In
"All is Safely Gathered In" is the eighth episode of the fifth series of the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on the 24 November 1972...
". Notably, in "The Deadly Attachment
The Deadly Attachment
"The Deadly Attachment" is the first episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom Dad's Army which was originally transmitted on Wednesday 31 October 1973...
", Pike was put on an ominous 'list' by a German U-Boat captain due to Mainwaring's incompetence at preventing the German from learning Pike's name ("Don't tell him, Pike!"), spelling his doom should the Germans win the war; however, as Pike had sung a childish song about Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
in front of this officer, it is his own fault in refusing to take the situation seriously. He would rather play at being a Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
gangster
Gangster
A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Some gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from mob and the suffix -ster....
with the platoon's grenades or Tommy gun
Thompson submachine gun
The Thompson is an American submachine gun, invented by John T. Thompson in 1919, that became infamous during the Prohibition era. It was a common sight in the media of the time, being used by both law enforcement officers and criminals...
. He exasperates Mainwaring but he is humoured by other members (particularly Lance Corporal Jack Jones, Private Charles Godfrey
Private Charles Godfrey
For the American football player see Charles Godfrey Private Charles Godfrey MM is a fictional Home Guard platoon member and retired shop assistant portrayed by Arnold Ridley on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army.-Personality:Godfrey is a gentle, mild-mannered and kindly - though more complex...
and Private Joe Walker
Private Joe Walker
Private Joe Walker is a fictional black market spiv and Home Guard platoon member portrayed by actor James Beck on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army. James Beck died suddenly in 1973, and is featured in just under three-quarters of the episodes...
. Pike one of the most timid members of the group but first in the series to fire on a suspected enemy (The Enemy Within The Gates) even though it turned out to be a swan.
Pike is sickly and unhealthy. An army doctor proclaimed him healthy when he received his calling up papers, though it then appears that he has a rare blood type that excludes him from military service. But most 'illnesses' stem from his mother's protectiveness . Pike wears a scarf, usually claret and blue, with Home Guard uniform. This is because it prevents his croup
Croup
Croup is a respiratory condition that is usually triggered by an acute viral infection of the upper airway. The infection leads to swelling inside the throat, which interferes with normal breathing and produces the classical symptoms of a "barking" cough, stridor, and hoarseness...
, even though only infants and, apparently, chickens are supposed to get it ("Menace from the Deep
Menace from the Deep
"Menace from the Deep" is the tenth episode of the third series of the British comedy series Dad's Army that was originally transmitted on Thursday 13 November 1969.-Synopsis:...
").
Pike is a fan of the cinema
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and relates the plots of films that relate to the platoon , even if the relationship is hazy. When the film example does mirror reality, he picks scenarios which end in death.
Pike makes pointless comments while attempting to help; this is illustrated by "Absent Friends". Jones, Mainwaring, Pike and Wilson are searching for an escaped convict, with the help of the police.
- Jones: "Perhaps they're hidin' behind the bushes, sir. They do a lot of hidin' behind bushes, do policemen. Especially when they're knockin' people off."
- Mainwaring: "I don't think that's very likely, Jones."
- Pike: "In that film, "Public Enemy Number One", they hid behind cars. But there aren't any here."
Pike's name is a reference to the spear-like weapons
Pike (weapon)
A pike is a pole weapon, a very long thrusting spear used extensively by infantry both for attacks on enemy foot soldiers and as a counter-measure against cavalry assaults. Unlike many similar weapons, the pike is not intended to be thrown. Pikes were used regularly in European warfare from the...
issued to the Home Guard in 1942, generating 'an almost universal feeling of anger and disgust from the ranks'.
Ian Lavender was invited to choose Pike's scarf from the BBC costume department. As a supporter of Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
, he chose the team's colours.