A Bit Of A Do, 1989
Comedy Drama based on the books of David Nobbs (The Fall and Rise Of Reginald Perrin).
Produced by Yorkshire Television (co-incidentally the show was set in Yorkshire) for ITV, the show ran for two series, totalling thirteen episodes in 1989.
Pat Sandys who had produced one of David Nobbs’ plays – Cupid’s Darts was looking for plays for a series called Love and Marriage. Nobbs put three ideas put forward: a dentists’ dinner dance, a Miss Ball Bearing competition and a diamond wedding.
Although the ideas were not used, Nobbs came up with the idea of having the same characters in different do’s, hence the title A Bit Of A Do.
Gwen Taylor was cast first playing Rita came. Despite the popularity of Only Fools And Horses, writer David Nobbs wanted John Thaw and several others to play Ted Simcock, before David Jason was cast.
Summary
Set in a fictional Yorkshire town. Each episode takes place at a different social function and follows the changing lives of two families, the working-class Simcocks (David Jason, Gwen Taylor, David Thewlis and Wayne Foskett) and the middle-class Rodenhursts (Nicola Pagett, Paul Chapman, Sarah-Jane Holm and Nigel Hastings), together with their respective friends, Rodney and Betty Sillitoe (Tim Wylton and Stephanie Cole), and Neville Badger (Michael Jayston).
The series begins with the wedding of Ted and Rita Simcock’s son Paul to Laurence and Liz Rodenhurst’s daughter Jenny; an event at which Ted and Liz begin an affair. The subsequent fallout from this affair would form the basis for most of the first series.
Clips
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Starring
David Jason
Nicola Pagett
Gwen Taylor
Details
Channel: ITV
Written By: David Nobbs
Executive Producer: Vernon Lawrence
Producer: David Reynolds
Original Transmission Dates: 13th January – 17th February 1989 (series 1), 2nd October – 1st December 1989 (series 2)