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Post by stephen68 on Mar 24, 2014 4:18:00 GMT 12
I was reading up on Hi De Hi on Wiki, just passing the time, and have only found out that Simon Cadell was the son in law of David Croft, and Diane Holland who played the ball room dancer was the brother in law of Jimmy Perry, nepotism alive and well  |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Mar 24, 2014 21:39:01 GMT 12
Well, yes, but they were both fantastic actors in their own rights, and I doubt either could be replaced in their roles with the same success. In fact Simon Cadell's actual replacement in the series couldn't hold a candle to Simon's performances as Jefrey Fairbrother in my opinion.
It's actually the case that most of the cast in the Croft and Perry hits had previously worked with or for either Jimmy or David previously in the theatre and on TV, so some might say that's 'jobs for the boys' too?
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Post by stephen68 on Mar 25, 2014 4:26:16 GMT 12
Another family connection, Guy Siner ( Lt Gruber) in Allo Allo, was the cousin of Simon Cadell.
I do not think i have ever seen a brother and sister look so much alike than Simon and Selina Cadell.
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 23, 2019 22:28:51 GMT 12
I'm currently enjoying a full rewatch of Hi-de-Hi! on DVD - probably more than five years since I watched it last.
So many good things about it - as is the case with all Croft and Perry shows - but my highlights are certainly Simon Cadell, quite wonderful as Jeffrey Fairbrother, with the remaining cast being excellent and highly watchable. Su Pollard again shows her talents as the manic but lovable Peggy Ollerenshaw and the writing is spot on.
I was dreading the departure of Simon Cadell, and while he's not equalled by David Griffin, I do like that Croft and Perry tried a different tack with his character and it works very well.
If only shows of this quality were made today...
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Post by Dave Homewood on May 24, 2019 11:02:09 GMT 12
Wow, that is seriously a coincidence, I have been watching Hi-De-Hi this week too for the first tie since the 1990's. I'd forgotten how funny it is, and also how dark some of it is. I am up to series two. Most of the episodes so far I have no memory of and probably never saw them in the 1990's TV run, so won't have seen them since I was a kid in the 1980's.
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Post by Dave Homewood on May 24, 2019 17:08:12 GMT 12
Speaking of the actors in Hi-De-Hi, it's hard to believe but of those still living:
- Ruth Madoc is now 76
- Jeffrey Holland is 73
- Su Pollard is 69
- Nikki Kelly (Sylvia) is 68
- Linda Regan (April) is 70
and David Griffin is 75
So hard to believe! They're all around or approaching Leslie Dwyer's age when he played Mr Partridge!
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 24, 2019 22:07:57 GMT 12
That's what time does to you, sadly... and to other people.  I think what makes it hard to believe is that people like me still think of the 80s as recent when in fact Hi-de-Hi! ended more than 31 years ago (which feels pretty shocking!). |
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 24, 2019 22:13:37 GMT 12
Wow, that is seriously a coincidence, I have been watching Hi-De-Hi this week too for the first tie since the 1990's. I'd forgotten how funny it is, and also how dark some of it is. I am up to series two. Most of the episodes so far I have no memory of and probably never saw them in the 1990's TV run, so won't have seen them since I was a kid in the 1980's.
It's terrific - and, as we have come to expect from Croft and Perry shows, the cast and the characters written for them are top notch. For something with such a big cast, it's remarkable how memorable all the characters are, and also how they all get good stuff to do. Often in series like this, you get the central characters written well but the supposedly supporting ones get the scraps and are less well defined. That doesn't happen here, or in Dad's Army, You Rang M'Lord or It Ain't Half Hot Mum. Croft and Perry were probably unique in that, and their series are legendary as a result. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on May 24, 2019 22:22:50 GMT 12
Yes, they were absolute masters of the large ensemble cast, and of creating memorable, realistic and relatable characters, and of course casting them with brilliant actors.
I see a similarity in the relationship between Ted and Spike with Fletch and Godber in Porridge. One's the old hand who knows all the tricks and the fiddles, the other is the newbie who's finding his feet and learning the ropes. They live together in a small room and try not to get on each other's nerves. Spike even seems to be from the same part of the world as Godber if I have picked the accents right.
I love how these two Hi De Hi characters became so ingrained in our minds and hearts as great pals, but when You Rang 'Lord came along they were quite the opposite, rivals who despised each other's attitudes to life. To pull that off sowell in both series shows great writing and brilliant acting.
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 25, 2019 3:01:36 GMT 12
I see a similarity in the relationship between Ted and Spike with Fletch and Godber in Porridge. One's the old hand who knows all the tricks and the fiddles, the other is the newbie who's finding his feet and learning the ropes. They live together in a small room and try not to get on each other's nerves. Spike even seems to be from the same part of the world as Godber if I have picked the accents right. Jeffrey Holland and Richard Beckinsale were born about 50 miles apart so it sounds like your ears are on good form. |
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 25, 2019 3:06:01 GMT 12
I love how these two Hi De Hi characters became so ingrained in our minds and hearts as great pals, but when You Rang 'Lord came along they were quite the opposite, rivals who despised each other's attitudes to life. To pull that off sowell in both series shows great writing and brilliant acting. It's a really nice twist - in both Paul Shane is a bit of a twister but as Ted he has much more of a good side.
It's interesting that in both Hi-de-Hi! and You Rang M'Lord that, despite the like/dislike twist between his and Holland's character, Shane's very much the top dog in both, the one with all the cards - and yet in Oh Doctor Beeching it's Holland's character that is in control.
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Post by jonboy on May 25, 2019 6:44:34 GMT 12
Also Diane Holland - Yvonne, was Jimmy Perry's sister-in-law..
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 25, 2019 6:50:17 GMT 12
Actually, silly question time of the why-didn't-this-occur-to-me-before type - were the two Hollands in the cast (Diane and Jeffrey) related or was it coincidental they shared the same surname?
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Post by jonboy on May 26, 2019 0:10:36 GMT 12
I am pretty sure it was just a coincidence..
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 26, 2019 22:12:42 GMT 12
You'd be right, it seems:
Found online... "They are not related. The late Diane was born in Melbourne, Australia and got her big break in Hi-de-Hi! when offered a part by her brother-in-law Jimmy Perry who wrote the show. Jeffrey is English and played Spike in the show."
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Post by jonboy on May 27, 2019 4:03:00 GMT 12
I recall Nikki Kelly who played Sylvia had a brief affair with David Croft and sold the story to the Sunday People, David's wife, Ann Calendar, who was an agent, made sure Nikki never worked on TV again..
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Post by Dave Homewood on May 27, 2019 14:10:30 GMT 12
Crikey! I had no idea about that! So David and Jimmy were both at it. Least said, soonest mended, is what Mrs Lipton always says. I also had no idea that Dianne Holland was an Aussie. |
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 28, 2019 0:31:52 GMT 12
News to me too, but then I never paid much attention to the gutter press. Or any press for that matter!
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Post by jonboy on May 28, 2019 6:44:54 GMT 12
The story about Nikki is from David Croft's autobiography - You having been watching.
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Post by Alan Hayes on May 28, 2019 10:04:33 GMT 12
...which I have on my shelf waiting to be read. What the heck - it's now next up. |
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