video projects
The sitcom ‘George and Mildred’ was written by Brian Cooke and Johnnie Mortimer and first aired between 1976 and 1979. It starred Brian Murphy and Yootha Joyce as the constantly-sparring married couple George and Mildred Roper.
In this video, we’re going to pay tribute to the brilliant cast members who are no longer with us – from the heart-breaking loss of sitcom icon Yootha Joyce just as series six was about to be made, to the shocking, film-set accident that claimed the life of Roy Kinnear.
This is a bonus, thirteenth episode of ‘The TV Pilot Graveyard’ – and it’s only fitting that we look at the genre the TV industry considers cursed: The Music Sitcom. From Frank Skinner’s heavy metal mid-life crisis; via Arthur Mathews’ pub band who believe they’re just one big break away from stadium glory; to the alternate story of John Lennon if the Beatles hadn’t released ‘Love Me Do’.
From the chaotic dynamics of Brian Wilde as an ineffectual football club manager, to the challenges faced by a Gordon Jackson as a household help, and even the disastrous antics of a highly sexed but utterly useless X Factor-style boyband staring some TV Soap favourites – these sitcom pilots tried to capture the moments that define our closest relationships. Join me as we uncover the shows that aimed to be your next comfort watch but never made it past the pilot stage.
Stephanie Cole, has sadly passed away at the age of 84 following several years with Alzheimer’s. From internment camps to sleepy corners of Yorkshire, from West End stages to the world’s smallest airline on Radio 4, her career wasn’t just long – it was foundational to British drama and comedy. In this video, we look back at the remarkable life and career of a true icon.
We have already explored some never-broadcast pilots based in the workplace. Now, get ready to punch in again.
There’s Neville Buswell as a lazy and lascivious insurance rep, Derek Nimmo trying to sell his relish to the French, chaotic cartoon airline staff, Rob Rouse trying to stop pub hooligans, and ‘Private’ shop owner Rich Fulcher, who thinks The Internet will just be a fad! Join me as we uncover the shows that aimed to be your next water-cooler conversation, but instead, just gathered dust in the network vaults.
This episode is a bit different, as we’re focusing on one specific, persistent attempt, to bring a concept to the small screen. We’re diving deep into the multiple efforts to adapt a radio comedy pilot about a layabout who takes a job as a monk because it includes free meals and accommodation.
How many times did they try to make this premise work for radio and television? What went wrong each time? So why did it never get commissioned for a tv series. I spoke to one of the writers to find out what happened…
Richard O’Sullivan has passed away at the age of 82. Before he became a central figure of prime-time television he was a child stage and film actor and acted with stars like Sir Cliff Richard, Elizabeth Taylor, and Richard Burton. A master of charm, a true TV icon, and a beloved performer.
We’re delving into a universally relatable, often humorous, and sometimes painful phase of life: the mid-life crisis. Get ready to meet characters who are questioning everything, making debatable choices, and desperately trying to recapture their youth or find a new purpose. These are the pilots that aimed to capture the messy, funny, and sometimes poignant reality of getting older and realising life hasn’t quite turned out as planned.
This video revisits ITV’s 1977 sitcom ‘Mind Your Language’ and its talented international cast. Though its broad cultural stereotypes sparked debate, the show’s huge ratings owed much to the performers who brought it to life – especially Barry Evans as English teacher, Mr Jeremy Brown. Evans later years were troubled, and his mysterious death left a career cut short. Join me as we remember Barry Evans and the late cast members behind this controversial classic.
A year ago, when I ranked the sitcoms loved by viewers and hated by critics, there was never really any doubt about number one. Mrs. Brown’s Boys wasn’t just near the top of the list. It was number one. The one show that seemed to sum up the whole argument in a single title. Critics have spent more than a decade treating it like the death of comedy itself, but millions of viewers still turned it into a Christmas institution.
But this time, I don’t just want to repeat the case against it. I already made that video. I already covered the basic contradiction: massive ratings, savage reviews, public-voted awards on one side, critical disgust on the other. What makes this follow-up more interesting is that the show now feels like it has reached its endgame. The audience is smaller. The criticism has changed. And the question is no longer simply, “How did this become a hit?” It is, “How did this survive for so long – and what exactly is it now?”