Then Churchill Said to Me
Encyclopedia
Then Churchill Said To Me is a television comedy series starring Frankie Howerd
and Nicholas Courtney
. Made in 1982, the series was not screened until 1993.
's secret underground wartime bunker. Howerd plays a soldier named Private Potts who according to the DVD's cover "acts as a batman to a group of officers" who, like the character of Lurcio in the popular Up Pompeii!
is hell-bent on avoiding work and gets into various scrapes as a result.
The premise of the show was similar in content to the previous Howerd vehicles (see also Whoops Baghdad
) but in a more contemporary setting. In one episode Private Potts is revealed to be a doppelganger
of a high-ranking general, also portrayed by Howerd, echoing storylines from these series and their big screen adaptations.
, the programme was deemed unsuitable for transmission owing to its setting. It was first broadcast by the satellite channel UK Gold in 1993, and was finally broadcast on BBC2 in 2000.
Three episodes were released by the BBC
on VHS
in 1993 and subsequently in its entirety on DVD
in 2006 as part of a box-set also including Up Pompeii! and a compilation of Howerd's best moments including clips and interview material.
Frankie Howerd
Francis Alick "Frankie" Howerd OBE was an English comedian and comic actor whose career, described by fellow comedian Barry Cryer as "a series of comebacks", spanned six decades.-Early career:...
and Nicholas Courtney
Nicholas Courtney
William Nicholas Stone Courtney was an English television actor, most famous for playing Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who.-Early life:...
. Made in 1982, the series was not screened until 1993.
Outline
The comedy is set is Winston ChurchillWinston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
's secret underground wartime bunker. Howerd plays a soldier named Private Potts who according to the DVD's cover "acts as a batman to a group of officers" who, like the character of Lurcio in the popular Up Pompeii!
Up Pompeii!
Up Pompeii! is a British television comedy series broadcast between 1969 and 1970, starring Frankie Howerd. The first series was written by Talbot Rothwell, a scriptwriter for the Carry On films, and the second series by Rothwell and Sid Colin. Two later specials were transmitted in 1975 and...
is hell-bent on avoiding work and gets into various scrapes as a result.
The premise of the show was similar in content to the previous Howerd vehicles (see also Whoops Baghdad
Whoops Baghdad
Whoops Baghdad is a BBC television comedy programme first broadcast from 25 January to 1 March 1973.It stars Frankie Howerd, and was similar to his earlier programme Up Pompeii!, with the setting moved from Ancient Rome to mediaeval Baghdad...
) but in a more contemporary setting. In one episode Private Potts is revealed to be a doppelganger
Doppelgänger
In fiction and folklore, a doppelgänger is a paranormal double of a living person, typically representing evil or misfortune...
of a high-ranking general, also portrayed by Howerd, echoing storylines from these series and their big screen adaptations.
Transmission and commercial release
The series was made in 1982 but was not shown at the time owing to the outbreak of the Falklands WarFalklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
, the programme was deemed unsuitable for transmission owing to its setting. It was first broadcast by the satellite channel UK Gold in 1993, and was finally broadcast on BBC2 in 2000.
Three episodes were released by 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...
on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
in 1993 and subsequently in its entirety on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in 2006 as part of a box-set also including Up Pompeii! and a compilation of Howerd's best moments including clips and interview material.