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Arthur Daley and Minder

Started by maett, April 04, 2019, 11:20:51 PM

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Quote from: Sebastian Cobb on April 05, 2019, 10:16:20 PMOne of the first drama/comedies to use portable video (essentially the same kit that was used for electronic news gathering) on location was Auf Wiedersehn Pet. I watched it a while back and it doesn't look great in places.

Oh, there are much earlier examples than that.  The BBC did a serial adaptation of Jude The Obscure, with Robert Powell, in 1971, and that was all on VT, including location.

Some episodes of Public Eye around the same time also had OB video for exteriors, and there's at least one episode of Man About The House, circa 1974 - 5, that did as well.

Interesting that the early episodes are quite violent but then it was turned into a fairly genial ensemble piece in which the dialogue was more important than the plot.

It had its own long Scrappy Doo era, though.

DrGreggles

Quote from: Sebastian Cobb on April 05, 2019, 10:16:20 PM
One of the first drama/comedies to use portable video (essentially the same kit that was used for electronic news gathering) on location was Auf Wiedersehn Pet. I watched it a while back and it doesn't look great in places.

Series 1's site was actually where the BBC were building the Eastenders set at the time.

#FactAttack


Quote from: Bennett Brauer on April 06, 2019, 01:25:54 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAtQOLnj7Ok  RIP PC Brigade.

"I didn't say they were case" - closet case?

It's still great dialogue in historical context. My objection would be how Alun Lewis* plays the gay character in a dehumanizing way, as was the norm in 1980.

*Daryll in 'Birds Of A Feather'

biggytitbo


I always associate that film/video split with the BBC, theres even a joke about it in Monty Python isnt there? Always seemed ITV had better budgets and productions, and more stuff all on film - presumably with an eye on international sales.


Even at the time Auf Wiedersehen Pet looked weird because it was all on video. It has the advantage of giving it a more consistent look, but unfortunately its a more cheap consistent look. At some point in the mid 80s Doctor Who made the switch to using video for exteriors and it was a great shame because the atmospheric 16mm film inserts from earlier series still look great today, and really help to mask the cheapness. Look at how well Spearhead from Space holds up today, it's the only classic series Who that benefits from a blu ray release because it's all on film.




Twed


Sebastian Cobb

Quote from: biggytitbo on April 06, 2019, 11:26:39 AM
I always associate that film/video split with the BBC, theres even a joke about it in Monty Python isnt there? Always seemed ITV had better budgets and productions, and more stuff all on film - presumably with an eye on international sales.

2:30 onwards
https://archive.org/details/MontyPythonRoyalSocietyForPuttingThingsOnTopOfOtherThingsLegendas

ITV like the BBC will have used pure film for drama's usually. The difference is probably in comedies where ITV generally wouldn't have bothered shooting things outside of the studio at all.

There were certainly quite a few ITV sitcoms that were studio only.  Rising Damp, Only When I Laugh and The Bounder never went on location, for example, other than the feature film for the former, and a brief shot on OB video for the title sequence of the last one.

Those that did tended to have film for exteriors though, with a few exceptions.  Apart from the ones that I mentioned yesterday, Oh No It's Selwyn Froggitt and The Gaffer were also both on VT/film.

Bobtoo

Quote from: Satchmo Distel on April 06, 2019, 10:13:04 AM
"I didn't say they were case" - closet case?


Case of beer I think.

I managed to download all of them a couple of months ago and I'm up to the second last episode of series 5 at the moment.

As with The Sweeney part of the fun is spotting now-famous actors turning up in bit parts. June Brown is in the episode I'm on just now, which must be one of the last things she did before Eastenders. The court scene posted earlier in the thread has Gwyneth Strong (Cassandra from Only Fools and Horses) in it.

Quote from: gilbertharding on April 05, 2019, 12:52:57 PM
A pedant writes:  Of course, although Dennis Waterman has sung the theme tune to four of the shows he also starred in, the 'Waterman' credited with writing the words to I Could Be So Good For You was the then Mrs Waterman, Patricia.

As everybody knows, obviously.

Four? I know about Minder, New Tricks and On the Up (IIRC these were the only ones mentioned in the Comic Relief sketch he did with Little Britain), what was the fourth?

Captain Crunch

Quote from: Twed on April 05, 2019, 08:16:36 AMMinder is a treasure, and anybody looking back on it with disdain probably hasn't watched it recently.

Yes, vastly underrated.

An early character sketch of Arthur:

Quote
The script called for someone 'the same age as some good-looking American film star [Arthur Daley often announced proudly that he was the same age as Paul Newman].  He's totally behind the Home Secretary as far as law and order is concerned.  His favourite film is The Godfather and he dresses like a dodgy member of the Citizens Advice Bureau'.

steveh

Last time I rewatched it I was amused by how at least half of the plots would be rendered pointless due to the availability of mobile phones.

The Minder website's locations section is a good way of wasting time: http://www.minder.org/locations/index2.htm.

studpuppet

Quote from: steveh on April 07, 2019, 10:13:59 AM
The Minder website's locations section is a good way of wasting time: http://www.minder.org/locations/index2.htm.

That's a thing of joy - thanks for posting! A perfect companion to http://avengerland.theavengers.tv

Jockice

I interviewed George Cole once when he was doing a tour visiting those building societies he did adverts for (and definitely wasn't playing the part of Arthur Daley in because he was wearing a different hat). He wasn't very nice. Not actively unpleasant but more than a bit disdainful. Now I can imagine he was a bit fed up of doing those adverts (although I should imagine the money was pretty good) and having to stand in the places being asked the same questions every day by regional reporters, but still...

I loved Minder so that was one of the great disappointments of whatever career I had.




Quote from: Bobtoo on April 07, 2019, 12:44:49 PM
Nothing like Arthur Daley at all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPtU6oAeCa8

I used to love 80s adverts.  They were so amiably bouncy and fun, a lot of them.

imitationleather

Quote from: Phoenix Lazarus on April 07, 2019, 12:49:13 PM
I used to love 80s adverts.  They were so amiably bouncy and fun, a lot of them.

Definitely. A personal favourite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SqRNUUOk7s

Twed

Quote from: Phoenix Lazarus on April 07, 2019, 12:49:13 PM
I used to love 80s adverts.  They were so amiably bouncy and fun, a lot of them.
They were my introduction to the character.

Away with work the last week, so ended up watching a decent chunk of the Minders from, oh, 1988-89? Post 87 election, London on its uppers.

It's rather good, decent word play throughout, and the guest stars are very well chosen.

By Wednesday, the episode featured Ian McShane, Rula Lenska, Brian Blessed and a young Ray Winstone (guessing the latter was a semi-regular thing, tbh). Just when I'd calmed down from that, Milton Johns walks in, has a delightful cameo and walks off again. Lovely.

Earlier in the week, we had George Baker, Thorley Walters and Tony Selby. Can't complain with that.

Liked the focus on the coppers, tbh, that came as a surprise to me.

poodlefaker

I always associate ITV's Rumpole of the Bailey with that film/VT split thing. Wobbly interior scenes, then the occasional shot of him walking along Fleet Street, looking like it was filmed ten years earlier.

Nola Carveth

Quote from: A Hat Like That on April 14, 2019, 10:25:32 AM
Away with work the last week, so ended up watching a decent chunk of the Minders from, oh, 1988-89? Post 87 election, London on its uppers.

It's rather good, decent word play throughout, and the guest stars are very well chosen.

By Wednesday, the episode featured Ian McShane, Rula Lenska, Brian Blessed and a young Ray Winstone (guessing the latter was a semi-regular thing, tbh). Just when I'd calmed down from that, Milton Johns walks in, has a delightful cameo and walks off again. Lovely.

Earlier in the week, we had George Baker, Thorley Walters and Tony Selby. Can't complain with that.

Liked the focus on the coppers, tbh, that came as a surprise to me.

Add Peter Capaldi to that list of cameos.

One of the reasons I really love Minder is for the amount of new(ish) talent it introduced. Lovely stuff.

JesusAndYourBush

I saw an episode a couple of nights ago and it starred Billy Connolly.

Glebe

Quote from: JesusAndYourBush on April 16, 2019, 02:13:38 AM
I saw an episode a couple of nights ago and it starred Billy Connolly.

Yeah, glimpsed that. Just watched a little bit of one about half an hour ago with Simon Cadell and Paul Eddington.

Twed

There were some good episodes starring Raffles. One of those had Troi in it too.

Gulftastic

Quote from: Satchmo Distel on April 05, 2019, 10:53:03 PM
Interesting that the early episodes are quite violent but then it was turned into a fairly genial ensemble piece in which the dialogue was more important than the plot.

It had its own long Scrappy Doo era, though.


That's why we loved it at my school. Each episode seemed to lead up to Terry having a massive dust up with some heavy.

Twed