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As Super Bowl 2023 gets underway tonight, American football fans the world over will be waiting to see who will come out on top: the Kansas City Chiefs or the Philadelphia Eagles. Then you'll get the people like me who are just there for the halftime entertainment show! This year the honour goes to Rhianna and no doubt she'll an amazing show. But the halftime show from last year is still in my mind, and it was the best Super bowl halftime show I'd see in a long time... And never did I think I'd get all emotional during the Super Bowl! While the man eagerly awaits the Super Bowl every year regardless of whether his team's playing or not (they never are but let's not talk about that!) for me it's all about the halftime show. Naturally my favourite will always be the New Kids' performance back in 1991 (Come on, I'm a Blockhead!) But last year's halftime show was beyond awesome! The mini concert was performed by legendary hip hop icons, with the show being opened by superstars Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, with performances by 50 Cent; Mary J. Blige; Kendrick Lamar and Eminem. It was the stuff hip hop dreams are made off. My friends and I watched it constantly for weeks afterwards and we couldn't stop talking about it. If only you all could've heard the WhatsApp chats - anyone would have thought we were managers for Dre, Snoop and Co. Although we loved the performance, we all talked in depth about what could have been done differently, what could have been added, and whether any more acts could have and should have been added to the lineup. And I don't mind admitting - we all got a bit emotional watching it... Why? Because it took us back. Way back! Last year's halftime show reminded us of our teen years; our uni days; those endless house parties; clubbing it up like there was no tomorrow... And all the excuses we'd frantically be trying to come up with on the way home to explain why we'd come home five hours later than we said we would! 😕 As we know only too well here, nostalgia is indeed a very powerful force and the closest thing we have to a time machine. I defy anyone of my generation who was heavily into hip hop and RnB at that time to watch that performance and not feel moved; to not remember the people who are now part of a very distant past; to not remember a different time and a very different you. And to focus on a time when music was generally a hell of a lot better than it is now! Looking at the music scene now, it's hard to determine who will go on to claim iconic status like Dre, Snoop, Eminem, Miss Mary J, Fiddy, and Kendrick. The soundtrack to my youth indeed. And while I've no doubt that Rhianna will knock it out of the park, or in this case kick it off the field, for me there'll never be another Super Bowl halftime show like it. 💖🎼🎵🎶🎤💖 #superbowl #superbowlhalftimeshow2022 #superbowlhalftimeshow #superbowlhalftime2022 #eminem #maryjblige #drdre#snoopdogg#50cent#kendricklamar#hiphop#hiphopmusic#americanfootball#nostalgia#childhoodmemories#teenyears#thosewerethedays#thesoundtrackofmylife#soundtracktomylife#soundtracktomyyouth#backintheday#musicicon#musicidol#hiphoplegend#rapsuperstar#hiphopsuperstars#newkidsontheblock#newkidsontheblockhalftimeshow Photos: Youtube GIFs: Wix Blog graphics: Angel Noire

Year: 1985 Time: 96 mins Country: UK & USA Channel: ITV (UK) NBC (USA) Genre: Romance/Drama Written by: Jan Worthington Directed by: Lawrence Gordon Clark Executive producer: Frank von Zerneck Production companies: Frank Von Zerneck Films and Yorkshire Television Starring : Cheryl Ladd     - Lily Parker Stuart Wilson  - Alex Woodward Ruby Wax      - Susan Lawson Julian Sands   - Sandy Betsy Brantley - Stacey Sir John Gielgud   - Theodore Woodward Barry Stokes         - Flavio Danielle Tylke     - Alexandra It's St Valentine's Day tomorrow - a day that is all about love and romance. So amid all the chocolates and flowers, candlelit dinners, and Valentine's Day proposals, there'll be couples snuggling up as they watch all kinds of movies that are very hearts and flowers and have that much longed-for happy ending! And here at Nostalgia Pie, one of our fave romantic movies is Romance on the Orient Express, starring Cherly Ladd, Stuart Wilson, and the formidable Ruby Wax. Romance on the Orient Express may not be a film that instantly rings a bell. Despite its stellar cast, it wasn't a Hollywood blockbuster but a made-for-TV that may only have aired in Britain the one time. But for some of us, Romance on the Orient Express made quite an impression... THE PLOT Former lovers meet up again after being apart for ten years. There's still a spark between them but can they pick up where they left off? And what about the big secret that one of them is keeping... THE STORY SO FAR The story centres around Lily, a glamorous and sophisticated American magazine editor who is traveling on the famous Orient Express train from Venice to Paris with her friend, the quirky, adventure-seeking Susan. The trip brings back bittersweet memories for Lily when she first travelled to Europe ten years earlier with her friend Stacey. It was on this trip that they met two handsome young Englishmen, Alex and Sandy. Lily and Alex began a relationship and their story is told through a series of flashbacks. Their relationship ends abruptly when Alex walks out on Lily without saying a word leaving the devastated young woman to return to the States. Fast forward ten years and the former lovers are reunited once again as Lily comes face to face with the man who broke her heart a decade ago. Alex, having tracked Lily down and knowing that she had booked a trip on the Orient Express, had booked himself on the same trip in a bid to explain to Lily what happened all those years ago. When the couple meet again, the pain and the anguish of the last ten years is still very raw, and Lily understandably doesn't want to listen to anything that Alex has to say - but for how long can she resist him? A girls' trip - not a Ladd's holiday! And Alex's reappearance plunges Lily into further turmoil as she now has to wrestle between her feelings for Alex and her obligation to her boyfriend back in the States. It is later revealed that her break up with Alex left Lily damaged and unable to form successful relationships with other men. And now she doesn't know whether she should accept her boyfriend's proposal or not - even though it's very evident that she doesn't love him. So therefore... She probably shouldn't! Alex convinces Lily to meet him and the couple catch up on the last ten years and discover that they'd each been married and are now divorced, although it appeared that Lily's was the only marriage that produced a child. As the story unfolds, we soon learn that Alex isn't quite the cad that we thought he was and that his feelings for Lily were genuine. We also learn that when he left Lily, she wasn't exactly alone... THE CAST Romance On The Orient Express featured a host of talented and well-known actors who were familiar to British and American audiences. Cheryl Ladd had an extensive acting career having appeared in American TV shows such as The Partridge Family; Policewoman; Happy Days and The Streets of San Francisco. But it was as Kris Munroe in iconic seventies show Charlie's Angels that she found worldwide fame. In Britain 'the most delicious thing on television' Ruby Wax is very well known as a presenter and TV personality, but she's also a film and TV actress, having appeared in Girls on Top; The Professionals; Not The Nine O'Clock News, and Chariots of Fire. Stuart Wilson has appeared on screens since the late sixties. Prior to Romance on the Orient Express, Wilson had appeared in Nostalgia Pie favourite Thriller; I, Claudius; The Sweeny and Crown Court among many other TV productions. Since his role in Romance on the Orient Express, Wilson has starred in Lethal Weapon; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III; Prime Suspect, and The Mask of Zorro. THE WRITER The writer who worked her magic on Romance on the Orient Express, Jan Worthington, has had a long career in writing for television that goes back thirty years. Her works have included Who's the Boss? as well as it's British remake The Upper Hand, and two TV films based on Danielle Steele novels, Heartbeat and The Perfect Stranger - two favourites of Danielle Steele fan, Angel! A Massachusetts native and one time LA resident, Worthington is now based in Truro, Massachusetts where the prominent Worthington family have had a long history, and she is still involved in the arts. WHY WE LOVE ROMANCE ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS Even though Romance On The Orient Express is a made-for-TV movie and not a Hollywood blockbuster, there's something so beautifully moving and poignant about this film which has shades of Casablanca about it. You couldn't fail to be dazzled by the luxury of the Orient Express and the stunning on-location scenes in Venice and Paris. The story, the setting, the scenery, the acting, the wardrobe... fantastic! There is great chemistry between the lead actors Stuart Wilson and Cheryl Ladd, and we absolutely loved the riverboat scene with the significantly beautiful song, Time In A Bottle by Jim Croce. We found the subplot of the romance between Susan and Flavio, a staff member on the train intriguing. Even though it started off as just a bit of light-hearted fun for Susan who was looking for Mr. Right-Now more than she was looking for Mr. Right, towards the end of the film, Susan had a change of heart and admitted that she does care for Flavio very much but decided to end it because there was no future in it: "He's Italian, he lives in Rome. I'm American, I live in New York... I finally meet someone and geography kills it." But there is hope for the couple as Lily convinces Susan that if she loves Flavio then they'll find a way, and you can't help rooting for the pair hoping that they will indeed find a way because they seem like such a cute couple. There are some who might find Romance On The Orient Express to be a little saccharine and predictable but we think it is a very memorable, romantic movie, with a simple, easy to follow yet entertaining storyline that keeps you watching til the end because you just have to know what happens to Alex and Lily. A delightfully charming, heart-felt tale about lost love, long-held secrets and second chances all bound together with the themes of friendship, family loyalty, and surprise revelations. If you're a Mills and Boon fan, you'll feel as though you've just seen a classic Mills and Boon novel come to life on screen. Will we watch Romance On The Orient Express again? Mais oui! Enjoy your St. Valentine's Day! Photos: YouTube Blog graphics: Angel Noire

Last year we featured the post 5 Soap Character Recasts That Worked. While there are many people out there who don't like change, sometimes the recasting of a soap character can be one of the best things ever to happen to a particular role not to mention the show, as the late Barbara Windsor so brilliantly demonstrated when she took of the role of Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders, turning the character into a soap legend. The changing faces of the Mitchell mum and daughter But Peggy wasn't the only member of the Mitchell family to be played by another actress. As we wrote in the same post, Peggy's daughter Sam also underwent a face transplant! After having been played by Danniella Westbrook for years, the role eventually went to Kim Medcalf. At the time, EastEnders' fans were expecting the return of Sam Mitchell to be a complete flop. Westbrook was synonymous with the soap character. How were viewers supposed to get used to a relative unknown playing such a well-known character? Well as it happens, we got used to is very quickly indeed as Kim absolutely nailed it, and viewers loved her portrayal of the Mitchell minx. And seventeen years after Kim quit the soap, fans were delighted when she rather unexpectedly reprised the role of Sam last week. It's great to have her back on the Square. But unfortunately not all soap recasts have been as successful. Character recasts are all part of the nature of TV shows. From time to time, a role needs to be recast, and as surprising as this may sound, they generally seem to work. But you're skating on very thin ice when you try to recast an iconic character that is closely associated with a particular actor/actress - it's almost always doomed to failure (with with the Mitchell ladies being two exceptions!) Neighbours' Charlene Robinson can only ever be played by Kylie Minogue, and as actor Leslie Grantham passed away four years ago, there's no chance of Den Watts ever finding his way back to Walford (even if wife Chrissie hadn't killed him with a door stop!) Can you ever imagine a Dirty Den propped up behind the bar of the Vic played by someone who isn't Leslie Grantham? Exactly! Before we take a look at less-than-brilliant recasts, please remember we are NOT at all having a go at the actors who had taken over the respective roles, and we're certainly not criticizing their talent and acting abilities. In fact had they been cast as completely different characters, it may well have been a success. But die-hard soap fans are not the easiest to please and are skeptical whenever there's a character recast; we're used to seeing certain faces in our living room several times a week and we feel we know them better than we know know most of our extended family! Following in the footsteps of another actor and winning over an audience, is a pretty tough gig, and sometimes for whatever reason, it just doesn't work out as well as hoped. We take a look at recasts where viewers just couldn't get their heads around the fact that an old character had a new head! 1. Michelle Fowler (EastEnders) Susan Tully (1985-1995) Jenna Russell (2017-2018) Oh dear - what can we say here that hasn't already been said about a million times before! The recasting of EastEnders' Michelle Fowler has got to be the worst decision in the history of recasts. EastEnders' fans were delighted when they first heard that mouthy Michelle Fowler - a character from the early days - was heading back to the Square after twenty years but they were more than a little dubious when they discovered that the role would now be played by actress Jenna Russell. Could this character be played by anyone other than the original actress, Susan Tully, who had made Michelle Fowler so iconic in the first place? Well we soon got our answer! Despite Jenna acting her socks off for the part, fans didn't take to the new Michelle, and while part of the reason was because the character wasn't played by Susan Tully, but Michelle Fowler #2 seemed to have undergone a complete personality transplant. This isn't so shocking as people do change over the years but these changes just didn't ring true of the Michelle Fowler viewers knew and remembered. Gone was the feisty, gobby lady who thought nothing of taking on the likes of Grant Mitchell (mind you, there are some who'd say she underwent a personality transplant by getting it on with Mr. Mitchell before she left Walford all those years ago!) and in her place was a woman who had the personality of a dishcloth! Despite the old Michelle having a tongue every bit as acerbic as her mother Pauline's, and the two women regularly sporting the sucked-on-an-entire-lemon-grove look, Michelle had always wanted to be as far removed from her mum as possible. And here was the new Michelle trying to do everything 'like Mum did' from boiling shirts to making a beef and onion pie. Furthermore the bond that Michelle had with her best friend Sharon didn't seem to be as strong as it had been back in the old days which was quite disappointing, as the two women were more like sisters and their friendship was lovely to watch. It's believed that Susan Tully was approached to reprise the role of Michelle Fowler, but as she retired from acting a long time ago and has no desire to return to the soap that made her a household name, the character had to be recast. Incidentally Susan is much happier on the other side of the camera as she is now a director and producer, and has even directed episodes of EastEnders. As it's now been proved that Susan Tully is the only actress who can successfully play Michelle Fowler, we think it's safe to say that we will not be seeing Chelle in Walford any time soon! 2. Fallon Carrington (Dynasty) Pamela Sue Martin (1981-84) Emma Samms (1985-89, 1991) When Dynasty first began back in 1981, the role of Blake Carrington's spoilt, self-centred daughter was played by Pamela Sue Martin. But after three years of starring in the glitzy American soap opera, Pamela Sue - who admitted that she had struggled with the whole fame phenomenon - decided to bow out in a move that shocked cast and crew. Joan Collins had publicly admitted that she thought Pamela Sue was crazy! This meant that the hunt was on for a new actress to take over the role. The part eventually went to actress Emma Samms, who was known to American audiences due to her role in General Hospital as Holly Sutton but was relatively unfamiliar to British viewers - despite being a fellow Brit! Samms made her first appearance as Fallon Carrington during the Dynasty spin-off, The Colbys. There was a bit of a mixed reaction to Emma Samms playing the role of Fallon. People magazine thought that she had successfully picked up where Pamela Sue had left off. But David Hofstede, author of What Were They Thinking? The 100 Dumbest Events in TV History believes that the recast was a flop, although he lay the blame at the producers and not at the actress. And the British thing did cause a bit of a problem for viewers because they couldn't get over the fact that Fallon now spoke with a completely different accent. And that she was a few inches shorter. And had a completely different physique! Another problem was that the character just didn't seem the same. Samms is believed to have said that she didn't watch hours of Pamela Sue playing Fallon because she wanted to interpret the character in her own way as actors naturally do. Reviews might be mixed but as far as recasts go, the recasting of Fallon Carrington was not exactly disastrous. And Emma Samms did actually stay in the role a lot longer than the original actress and she did do a great job of playing Fallon but there's still a lot of people who are fans of Pamela Sue's version of the character. 3. Miss Ellie Ewing (Dallas) Barbara Bel Geddes (1978-84, 1985-1990) Donna Reed (1984-85) When Barbara Bel Geddes stepped down from her role as the Ewing matriarch and Donna Reed was cast as the new Miss Ellie, viewers (in Britain at least) were led to believe that the recast was only meant to be temporary as Bel Geddes had been suffering from ill health and was taking time out to recuperate. But it would appear that someone forgot to give Reed the memo... When Donna Reed, an established actress who had starred in classics such as It's a Wonderful Life and From Here to Eternity, as well as starring in her own show The Donna Reed Show, took over the role, she was under the impression that it was on a permanent basis. And indeed there are insiders who claim that Bel Geddes had actually quit the role and wasn't just taking a break. But when Bel Geddes agreed to reprise the role that made her a household name, Reed was abruptly fired. The furious actress sued the production company for breach of contract, and tried unsuccessfully to prevent her season as Miss Ellie from being broadcast, but she later settled out of court. There were rumours of tensions behind the scenes between Reed and other cast members which might explain why Bel Geddes was very much in demand. Nostalgia Pie liked Reed's portrayal of Miss Ellie and felt it was every bit as good as Bel Geddes version. But that doesn't seem to be a popular opinion as many viewers felt that Reed's Miss Ellie was way too glam and coiffed to be the homely, grandmotherly Miss Ellie that we all knew and loved. And we get that. We look at Reed's version of Miss Ellie and think that she resembles a Texan Peggy Mitchell! And incidentally, when Barbara Windsor took over the role of Peggy, she also insisted that her character glammed up a bit and looked more upmarket. But while it worked for Windsor, it didn't turn out well for Reed. 4. Lucy Beale (EastEnders) Melissa Suffield (2004-10) Hettie Bywater (2012-2015) Even though Melissa Suffield was the third actress to play Ian Beale's wayward daughter, Lucy, it is Suffield's incarnation of the character that is best remembered. When Lucy was played by Suffield, she was very much her mother's daughter and something of a mini Cindy: scheming, unrepentant... but there were flashes of kindness and she really loved her family, especially her brothers. Perhaps she should have been given the name Cindy instead of her half-sister! But despite acting her socks off for the part of Lucy Beale, Suffield was supposedly fired due to unruly behaviour, and Hetti Bywater was brought in to continue the role. It's not known if it was at this stage that bosses decided to axe the character but Bywater's 'Lucy' was very different to Suffield's. This Lucy came across as older and less teen rebel (ironic as Bywater is actually younger than Suffield!) but she was more of a watered-down version of what Lucy used to be: less tough, and always speaking as though she were about to start crying. And even though the decision for Lucy to have an affair with resident chick-magnet, Max Branning, was obviously due to the writers and not the actress, fans really couldn't envisage the previous Lucy getting romantically involved with Max - not even to get back at her dad. Laugh in Max's face maybe bit not jump into bed with him! By the time Lucy was killed-off in a classic EastEnders' whodunnit, viewers stopped caring about the character. It's just a pity the irritating Cindy jnr. wasn't written out at the same time too! 5. Cody Willis (Neighbours) Amelia Frid (1989-91) Peta Brady (1993-96) When Ramsay Street's Cody Willis left Erinsborough to go on a student exchange program in America, she looked about eleven years old and had a high pitched voice. When she returned from America nearly three years later, she'd morphed into an grunger, had corkscrew curls, and sounded as though she was smoking forty a day. Peta Brady did a great job and played the role well - the problem was that in most people's minds it felt as though they were watching two different characters. Out of all the soap recasts you've ever seen, which did you think just didn't work and why? Photos: YouTube Word cloud: Angel Noire

Soap fans who have watched a show from the beginning are always delighted when a character from back in the day makes a return, even if it is only briefly. And in recent years Neighbours fans have been pleased to see Clive Gibbons and Beverly Robinson return as recurring characters, as well as Des Clarke, Lucy Robinson, Sky Mangel and Mark Gottlieb to name just a few. So fans of the soap are thrilled to see Amy Greenwood and Melanie Pearson make a long-awaited return to Ramsay Street. Both characters were very popular back in the nineties, although Amy and Melanie were never neighbours because they both lived on Ramsay Street at different times. Melanie first appeared in the eighties as a recurring character - a girlfriend of Henry Ramsay with a laugh that made most people think she was in need of oxygen! A couple of years later, after Henry had moved to New Zealand and married Bronwen Davies, Melanie became a Ramsay Street regular when she moved into number 32 as Joe Mangel's housemate. She then went on to become Joe's wife (thus Jane Harris' aunt!) and the Mangels left Erinsborough to start a new life - although the marriage did not last long and Joe returned to Ramsay Street on the lookout for wife number four. Amy was a popular character back in the mid-nineties who was part of the Erinsborough High group of friends who were made up of Toadfish Rebbechi, Billy Kennedy, and twins Lance and Anne Wilkinson. One of the most popular girls at high school, Amy ended up dating geeky Lance Wilkinson and had an on-off relationship with him before cheating on him with her colleague Damien and becoming pregnant with Damien's baby which inevitably put paid to her relationship with Lance. But being the gent that he was, Lance got Amy and Damien to reconcile, and Amy left the street to start a new life with Damien and their baby. Both Amy and Melanie appeared on Annalise Hartman's documentary (as part of the show's twenty fifth anniversary celebrations) but this is the first time both characters have returned to Ramsay Street since leaving. We've just seen Melanie catch up with Des and Jane - and have Paul running and hiding from her in terror - and Amy has just started dating Shane Rebbechi. Despite being a little on the annoying side, and we see not much has changed, both characters injected so much fun into the show when they were around the first time - it would be so great to see them back as regulars. We take a look at other characters, who much to the delight of fans, couldn't keep away from Erinsborough! JANE HARRIS (Annie Jones) Neighbours' fans were delighted when it was announced back in 2018 that actress Annie Jones would be reprising her role as Ramsay Street favourite Jane 'Superbrain' Harris after an absence of twenty nine years. However it was a bit of a shock to see that the glamourous Lassiter's Girl had been replaced with a younger version of her stickybeak grandmother Nell Mangel! Annie made three guest appearances over a period of two years before finally being brought back as a regular this year. It's just a pity her overbearing daughter Nicolette came along too, who definitely has Nan Mangel's malicious streak. 2. CAROLINE AND CHRISTINA ALESSI (Gayle and Gillian Blakeney) It was quite an accomplishment getting the Alessi Twins to make a return as the actresses who played them back in the early nineties, Gayle and Gillian Blakeney, had actually given up acting and were enjoying life in California. But thankfully for the long-time fans of the show, Gayle and Gillian agreed to reprise the roles that made them household names in Britain, and return for a storyline involving Paul Robinson. Their time on screen was definitely not long enough and we definitely hope they'll be asked to return again soon - and this time stay a little longer. 3. GAIL LEWIS (Fiona Corke) While no one can deny that Paul has met his match in the current Mrs. Robinson, Therese, wife number two Gail Lewis is still a firm favourite with fans. Like Therese, Gail didn't take much nonsense from Paul Robinson, but she couldn't get him to give up his workaholic ways, and viewers were saddened when Gail walked out on him while pregnant with their much-longed for triplets. Over the years, Fiona Corke has returned to Ramsay Street for brief stints as Gail - she made her last appearance in 2019. We cannot wait to see Gail make another return to Erinsborough and as her granddaughter Harlow is now living on the Street, Gail has a very good reason for paying a visit. 4. GEMMA RAMSAY (Beth Buchanan) The last time viewers saw Madge Bishop's niece Gemma on the show, she was saying a tearful goodbye to her boyfriend Adam Willis before boarding a bus to Newcastle to start attending veterinary school. The couple then married off-screen before moving to Darwin. Then last spring, after an absence of thirty years, Gemma made a surprise visit to Ramsay Street with her wayward daughter Roxy in tow, in the hope that her former sister-in-law Therese would take Roxy in. Gemma then made another visit to Erinsborough, disappointing fans with the news that she and Adam had split up. Perhaps this won't be the last we see of Gemma... But what most of us want to know is how does Beth Buchanan who played Gemma look exactly the same thirty years later? Incidentally Simone Buchanan, Beth's equally talented sister, also made a return to the soap as lawyer Sam Fitzgerald, eager to settle some old scores with the Kennedys. Good genes clearly run in that family. 5. JIM ROBINSON (Alan Dale) Now this was a comeback nobody could have predicted - Jim Robinson back from the dead! Well as a figment of son Paul's conscience anyway. Twenty seven years ago, horrified viewers watched as Street stalwart Jim collapsed and died of a heart attack while his shady girlfriend, Fiona, took the opportunity to fleece him. Fans didn't know it at the time but Jim had been written out of the show after a disagreement between actor Alan Dale and the powers that be on the show. Clearly Dale and Neighbours' bosses eventually agreed to let bygones be bygones, and Jim Robinson made his comeback, warning Paul to change his ways. Obviously Alan Dale could never return to the soap as anything other than a ghost, but seeing as his career has gone from strength to strength, especially in America, we don't think he's too fussed! Who would you like to see back in Ramsay Street? Photos: YouTube Word Cloud: Angel Noire

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom GENRE: Sitcom First Aired: 8 September 1981 CHANNEL: BBC1 Produced by: Ray Butt Years: 1981-91, With Christmas specials until 2003 NUMBER OF SERIES: 7 NUMBER OF SPECIALS: 16 EPISODES: 64 CREATED BY: John Sullivan THEME MUSIC: Ronnie Hazlehurst DIRECTED BY: Various STARRING: David Jason Nicholas Lyndhurst Lennard Pearce Buster Merryfield Roger Lloyd-Pack Paul Barber Patrick Murray Sue Holderness Kenneth MacDonald John Challis Tessa Peake-Jones Gwyneth Strong Could there ever be a sitcom more beloved to British audiences than Only Fools and Horses? The term 'Classic comedy' gets bandied about a lot but it's one that fits Only Fools & Horses perfectly. If you were around in the eighties, chances are you never missed an episode of Only Fools. Not only did we laugh out loud at the antics of Del, Rodney and co. but the sitcom did what Friends did much later on for the English language by giving us words and phrases that are still uttered today and have become synonymous with the show. Lovely Jubbly! As the sitcom celebrates forty years since it first aired on British television, we reminisce over the comedy show that made three-wheel vans look cool in the first part of this cos-mic (hands up all of you who read that in Rodney's voice!) post about Only Fools and Horses. Cushty! Plot A Cockney South London market trader who dreams of the high-life while living in a high rise with his grandfather and younger brother, dives head first into one disastrous enterprise after another in his quest to become a millionaire - often with side-splittingly hilarious results! The Writer If you've never heard of John Sullivan, you've probably never laughed a day in your life! John Sullivan is to comedy what Mary Berry is to baking. He was responsible for Just Good Friends, Citizen Smith, and the charming Dear John. Those sitcoms were and still are magnificent but Only Fools - that was Sullivan's great masterpiece. David Jason, the man who breathed life into Only Fools' Del Boy, believed that the success of the show lay in the characters being real people who just happened to be funny. And Sullivan knew all about being real. A man from a working-class background who left school at fifteen, and took on various jobs before getting his big break in comedy writing. Sullivan received more than his fair share of rejection when he was trying to get started in the business, and there's probably something of his real-life experiences that comes through in his work: ordinary people striving towards their goals; showing determination and resilience, and determined to make it, even when the odds are stacked against them. Only Fools is a show that people can laugh along with, containing characters they can relate to - created by a writer who knew his audience and knew how to write for them. So When They Say 'Only Fools and Horses' - What Are They On About? Back in 1979, John Sullivan, working on his hit sitcom, Citizen Smith, wrote an episode entitled 'Only Fools and Horses'. That must have given Sullivan an idea because when he started work on his next project about a tax-evading market trader from Peckham and needed a name for the sitcom - guess what he came up with? The show's title originated from the saying, "Only fools and horses work for a living," Sullivan quite liked the saying and felt the name was bang on the money for his new sitcom with regards to the lead character's wide boy ways. But before that, Sullivan had actually given the show the working title of Readies (British slang for money) and rumour has it that the show might have been called Big Brother (but they couldn't fit the diary room into the Trotters' flat!) The powers that be at the BBC weren't convinced that Only Fools was the right title for the sitcom because they didn't think that viewers would understand the meaning behind it. It's weird to think that one of the nation's favourite comedy shows might very easily have been known by another name. But Sullivan stuck to his guns, and the rest, as they say, is history... So How Did The Only Fools Sitcom Come About Then? When John Sullivan's hit show Citizen Smith was coming to an end in 1980, he tried to come up with a new project that he could sink his teeth into. Certain ideas were rejected by the BBC - including his proposal for a sitcom about a high-rise living Peckham market trader and his family, who dreamt of getting rich. But nevertheless, Sullivan drafted a script and sent it to John Howard Davies, the BBC's head of comedy at the time - and Sullivan was commissioned to write a whole series. Storyline Meet Derrick 'Del Boy' Trotter; a charming market trader who lives in Peckham, South London and deals in 'hooky' (dodgy or illegally obtained) gear which is often stacked to the rafters in his flat in Nelson Mandela House tower block. At least it hides his taste in tacky décor if nothing else! Del is a charmer with the gift of the gab, who will stop at nothing to persuade his friends and unsuspecting members of the general public to pay for useless goods or services they don't need, or get them to part with large sums of money for the latest doomed enterprise du jour. You know it makes sense! But for all of his slightly roguish ways, Del Boy is very likeable, very popular and has a heart of gold - which might explain why his friends and family forgive him when yet another one of his schemes falls flat. And while Del makes no secret of the fact that he wishes to be a millionaire, part of it is so that he can take care of his grandfather and brother Rodney; both of whom Del has looked after since his mother died and his dad walked out on the family. The Core Cast The main Only Fools characters consisted of Del, Rodney and Grandad, although after Grandad passed away in the fourth series, they were joined by his estranged brother, Albert, who lived with Del and Rodney until the show ended. The three characters contrast greatly but they work very well as a trio. There's Del, who fancies himself as a bit of a yuppie, indicated by his mobile phone, brief case, and his desire to be seen in the right places and rub shoulders with the right people - despite driving around in a battered three-wheeled van that's clearly seen better days. And let's hope the initials of his company's name - Trotter's Independent Traders - aren't highlighted on the letterheaded stationary! His younger brother Rodney is quieter, more reserved and socially awkward, often reluctantly dragged into his brother's schemes with slightly humiliating results. But he's the more principled one and regarded as the more intelligent member of the family thanks to his two GCSEs! Just don't mention his conviction for smoking his funny cigarettes! Then there's Grandad; with a penchant for burning rather than cooking, and spends much of his time watching not one but two TVs - at the same time! After Grandad passed away, Del and Rodney were joined by their great-uncle Albert, whose experiences in the Navy made for stories that bored anyone who he had the misfortune to corner. "During the war..." Grandad and Uncle Albert both fulfilled the role of the older, sometimes wiser guardian of the two young men, although the older gentlemen often do get roped into Del's schemes and get bossed around and used as a general dogsbody by him. But despite the bickering and sibling rivalry, the Trotter family's bond is unmistakable and unbreakable. Although Lennard Pearce who played Grandad sadly passed away during the fourth series, the core cast of the Trotter family remained pretty much the same until the sitcom ended with none of key players leaving the show. David Jason DID however plan on leaving the show after the fifth series - which would have been the show's last had he gone through with his plan. But thankfully for fans, Jason decided to stay. And Only Fools continued on it's journey to becoming one of the best loved sitcoms in British TV history. Don't believe us? The final episode where Del and Rodney became millionaires was watched by almost a third of the population! Now how's that for popular??? The Supporting Cast The Trotters had a fantastic group of friends who viewers took to their hearts as much as they did the Trotters. Del's old schoolfriends, nice but dim roadsweeper, Trigger; long-distance lorry driver, Denzil; snooty businessman Boycie and his flirtatious wife, Marlene, as well as Mike, the publican at The Nag's Head, and Sid from the cafe. Then there were Rodney's friends Micky Pearce and Jevon. It is astounding that in an industry where actors are happy to jump ship when the next big break comes along, the same actors returned throughout the years and contributed towards this fantastic sitcom - which was great for us viewers who had not only become well-acquainted with these characters but also emotionally invested in their stories. While the Trotter family may have been the lead characters, it's so hard to think of the other characters as supporting cast because they were so much more than that and we fell in love with them as much as we fell in love with the Trotters. They all added something to the show, and were integral cogs in the Only Fools machine - even if they didn't always make regular appearances. When Buster Merryfield and Kenneth MacDonald passed away, their absence was very much felt by the show's fans during the comeback episodes. We know that there's no chance of any new episodes now, and with the loss of Roger Lloyd-Pack (Trigger) and more recently John Challis (Boycie) it's inconceivable to think that the show could ever go on. With most TV shows, it's often said that the show is bigger than any of the stars of the characters, so if a character is written out, the show will still go on. But with Only Fools, it's the characters and the talents of the actors who played them that helped to make the show what it is, so the absence of a character will most definitely be felt whether it's the lead or supporting cast. Where Are All The Ladies??? Actress Cheryl Hall, who played Shirley in Sullivan's other comic hit Citizen Smith, revealed after leaving the show that Sullivan was incapable of writing strong roles for women. Those who were avid viewers of Only Fools and Horses might have recalled her words and believed she was right after looking at the predominately male cast. Sure there were lots of actresses in guest roles who played barmaids or Del's latest conquest but with the exception of Boycie's wife Marlene, there weren't any regular female characters. Thankfully Sullivan decided that Only Fools needed more of a female presence so he introduced Raquel Turner and Cassandra Parry - love interests for Del and Rodney respectively. The introduction of Raquel and Cassandra divided viewers a little as there were some who felt that the characters of Del and Rodney and the show's dynamic had changed once the boys became 'domesticated' and had settled into committed relationships with long-term partners - especially with Del going on to become a father. But for the most part, the show's fans welcomed the arrival of the two women as they felt the ladies brought a different element to the show; they gave the Trotter boys stability and more of a home life. And far from being boring, the laughs were still there. Sullivan could have, if he wished to, intensified the drama by having Raquel and Cassandra constantly at loggerheads but instead they were as supportive to each other as they were to their partners, and the bond between the Trotter wives was a delightful thing to watch. Opening and Closing Themes The opening and closing theme tunes - no they were not the same pieces of music - were composed by well-known British composer and conductor Ronnie Hazlehurst, who worked on many theme tunes for TV shows in the seventies and eighties including Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em; The Liver Birds; Butterflies and The Generation Game among many, many others. The show opened up to Only Fools and Horses while the closing number was Hooky Street. Now hands up all those who thought it was Nicholas Lyndhurst who played Rodney, who sang the show theme tune? Well you're all wrong! Because it was none other than the show's creator, John Sullivan, proving that he really was a man of many talents! Though funnily enough, Sullivan very nearly didn't get to sing two of the most recognizable theme tunes to a TV sitcom. He actually wanted Cockney duo Chas and Dave to do the honours and perform the theme tunes for the opening and closing credits. It's not totally clear why it didn't happen. Whether it was because Chas and Dave had other commitments or because Sullivan himself was persuaded to sing, one thing's for certain - it definitely wasn't Nicholas Lyndhurst! Chas and Dave did however sing the song Margate to the closing credits of the episode entitled Jolly Boys' Outing. What's all this about another actor playing Del Boy? We know, we know, it's so hard to believe that another actor may well have played the iconic role that David Jason was just born to play! The role of Del Boy could have been played by either Jim Broadbent or Enn Reitel but both had work commitments so the search for Del Trotter went on. Oh and at one point, Billy Murray was also a name in the frame. But if he'd got the role he'd never have got to play Don Beech in The Bill, or Johnny Allen in EastEnders where he delivered the ultimate insult to Phil by calling him Filth Mitchell - to his face! And lived to tell the tale (actually on second thoughts - he didn't!) But anyway, when producer Ray Butt saw an episode of Open All Hours with David Jason playing Granville - a character as far removed from Del Boy as you can get - he considered Jason for the role. Nicholas Lyndhurst had already been cast as Del's younger brother Rodney, and there were doubts that the two could convincingly play brothers due to the lack of similarity in physical appearance. Furthermore there were concerns over Jason's suitability as he had never had a high-profile lead role on a TV show. Moreover with both Jason and Lyndhurst sounding a lot more elocuted in real life, could they convincingly play true Sarf London boys? Well apparently so - and that's testament to their great acting abilities. Oh a la brochette! It seems hard to believe now, but Only Fools was not the big hit it went on to become when it first aired. It received mixed reviews from critics and the first episode pulled in just over nine million viewers. The first series as a whole managed to attract an average of seven million viewers. Oh Mon Dieu! Viewing figures began to soar after the third series and it soon became clear that the Beeb had another hit on their hands. But then two setbacks occurred. Sadly Lennard Pearce who played Del and Rodney's grandad suffered a heart attack and passed away in December 1984, leaving the cast and crew devastated. They had, at the time, been filming the fourth series, and Grandad's passing was written into the show in the episode entitled Strained Relations (also the episode where Grandad's estranged brother, Uncle Albert, makes his first appearance.) Then David Jason announced that he wanted to leave at the end of series five in order to pursue other projects. We know right - Only Fools without Del? Was that even possible??? Well the episode Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? was meant to be the final Only Fools episode as Del swaps Peckham for a new life and business venture in Australia. There were plans for a spin -off called Hot-Rod which would see Rodney come into his own as he deals with life without his big brother ordering him around. But then thankfully, Jason changed his mind and decided to stay in the show (cue much rejoicing from the show's fans) and the ending of what should have been the final ever episode was changed to Del declining rather than accepting his friend's offer to join him in his Aussie business venture. Check out the rest of the Only Fools story in the upcoming second part of the post God Bless Hooky Street: 40 Years Since Only Fools and Horses Began. Photos: YouTube Word Cloud: Angel Noire

How many of you remember cherry cake as a teatime treat? How many of you still whip up a mean cherry cake for teatime? At some point in our childhoods, most of us will have encountered this fine example of classic, old-school baking. Different versions of cherry cake exist around the world. In America, cherry cake is generally a frosting-covered, layered, pink sponge, made with maraschino cherries, with the the maraschino juice from the jar giving the cake it's candy-floss pink colour. But the British version is a much simpler affair. A traditional British cherry cake is generally a madeira sponge cake that contains halved or quartered glacè cherries - that are usually red - which is then topped with icing or a glaze, flaked almonds and more glacè cherries. Or just left plain! We said it was simple! It is a very old-fashioned, very traditional English cake and so versatile that it fits the bill for just about everything: picnics; afternoon tea; lunch boxes; bake sales, and it is the staple of many traditional tearooms. And at one time, cherry cakes were one of the most popular cakes to be baked among the members of the Women's Institute. It may sound simple to make, but quite often it's a mission to prevent the cherries from sinking to the bottom of the cake. However people have their own methods for preventing this from happening. One of them being to rinse off the sticky syrup from the cherries before dusting them with flour. Delia Smith believes in mixing two-thirds of the cherries into the cake mixture before poking the remaining third through the top of the cake just before it goes into the oven. Sounds like a great idea! For those of us who aren't into glacè cherries (hands up all those who knew that they were actually real cherries?) and are wondering if they can use fresh or frozen cherries instead, well you can - but there's a good chance they might sink to the bottom of the cake. That's why glacè cherries are used instead of the juicy, fresh stuff because the lack of moisture in the glacè cherries means that they won't sink as much as the other variety. You might have better luck with dried cherries though. Give it a go For those of you who would like to have a go at making this classic bake, here's a recipe for you to try. Usually cherry cake is made with ground almonds but with this one, we've used desiccated coconut - and included the addition of dates! You know - just to mix it up a little! For those of you who wish to use a glaze, there's also an additional super-simple recipe for creating the glaze. And if you want something a lot closer to the classic cherry cake recipe (but with a slight Nostalgia Pie twist!) then check out our downloadable FREE recipe card for cherry cake. It can also be printed out and put into your recipe box. It's only available to Nostalgia Pie members, so if you haven't signed up to join our community... why ever not??? Ingredients 6oz glacé cherries, extra if using to decorate 3oz dates, chopped 4oz self-raising flour 3oz. plain flour 6oz softened butter, plus extra for greasing 6oz caster sugar 3oz desiccated coconut 1tsp Vanilla essence 3 eggs You Will Need 7" square OR 8" round cake tin Greaseproof paper Skewer (to test cake) Wire cooling rack This is how we do it! Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease cake tin and line base with greased greaseproof paper. Rinse and dry cherries well. Cut the cherries into halves or quarters. Then toss in a little of the plain flour. Cream butter, sugar and vanilla essence in a bowl until fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and add a little at a time. Stir in desiccated coconut. Combine the remaining flours and add to mixture a little at a time. Stir in cherries and dates - do not beat. Spoon mixture into tin. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or bake until skewer inserted into centre of the cake comes out clean. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for ten minutes, then turn out and cool on a wire rack. If you wish, add glaze and decorate with remaining cherries. Top Tips: If using almonds, add 2-3 drops of almond extract to intensify the flavour. You can use the grated zest of a lemon instead of vanilla essence if you wish. Glaze for cherry cake Ingredients 150g icing sugar 2 tbsp lemon juice 2 water This is how we do it! Mix the icing sugar together with the lemon juice and water to a thick paste. If too runny, add a little extra icing sugar. Drizzle over the cooled cake using the back of a spoon. Sprinkle over the toasted almonds and reserved cherries (optional.) Photos from Pixabay Wordcloud by Angel Noire

NAME: Kaz aka Pancakes. Aka Dave! AGE: 45 FROM: Earth LIVES: Earth OCCUPATION: Annoying Family and Friends (she's not joking!) FAVE PASTIME: Stitching and Reading (and annoying family and friends!) We're all gearing ourselves up for when that final episode of Neighbours airs, and for those of us who have been watching Neighbours from the time it began, it's going to be like saying goodbye to an old friend. Don't be surprised if you visit the supermarket and discover that they're all out of tissues. No, it's not panic-buying because there's another world pandemic... it's all due to the ending of a thirty seven year love affair with a soap opera! So for this A Slice of Pie With... feature, we thought we'd share happy Neighbours memories with someone who's been a fan of the show since it began and remembers Neighbours mania as it really was - Angel's bestie, Kaz also known as Pancakes (although Angel calls her Dave. Long story!) When Angel lived in London, she and Kaz were always meeting up for cake, coffee and a natter. Now that they've got this big whopping ocean between them, this is the closest they're going to get to that! Everyone who knows Pancakes knows she's a nut! And those of us who know her best know that she's a nostalgia nut, and everything you'd expect from a seventies' baby, an eighties' child and a nineties teen growing up in Britain. Pancakes grew up during a time when it was posters on the bedroom wall; Listening to the Top Forty every Sunday; Viennetta was considered a posh dessert; Top of the Pops was must-see TV on a Thursday night... and Neighbours just had to be watched after school every weekday. Pancakes gets all nostalgic on us as she remembers those early years of Neighbours... Help yourself to a slice of pie and a drink. What are you having? Going to be honest, I don’t eat pie! Drink would be hot chocolate with either chocolate cake or Victoria sponge. At the moment I am just chillaxing and watching the best of Saturday Live Kitchen best bites. You don't like pie? Always knew there was something wrong with you! Tell us a bit about yourself. Well I was born and bred on Earth; the youngest of seven children; I work in the community and have a degree in psychology (20+ years ago and nope I can’t read minds... I can’t even remember half the stuff I learnt!) I love reading murder mystery books (locked room mystery is my thing at the moment). And I also love cross stitching while watching crime shows. Just like I enjoy crocheting and watching Midsomer Murders! What would you define as ‘your era’ and why? I really don’t have 'an era' but I guess every era (I've lived through) is my era as I've learnt something from each of them. Child of the 70/80s; teenager of the 90s (NKOTB & love of books – remember puffin/penguin book club) and an adult of the noughties to date! Although, I do believe music was better in the 80s/90s. Much more meaningful lyrics. TV was better too (but every generation says that right?). They certainly do. I know I do! When did you first start watching Neighbours? Since it was on BBC1 and I was 9. I remember the Des and Daphne scene, when they first met. Can’t remember much else in that episode apart from that. I just thought Des was funny. As someone who was around in the eighties and nineties, you will remember Neighbours in its hey day. What can you recall about Neighbours mania? Our after school, younger days TV consisted of the BBC Broom Cupboard shows, Neighbours, Home & Away, EastEnders and The Bill! So Neighbours was never missed! Practically everyone I knew watched it. The whole of Ramsey Street was one big happy, sad, dysfunctional family. Who were your favourite characters and who were you not so crazy about? Fav characters Charlene, Scott, Jane, Mike, Henry, Des, Daphne, Sky, Harold, Joe and a few others. Least Favourite – Paul Robinson such a horrible and self centered character. I'm also a big fan of the original Erinsborough High gang! What were your favourite storylines and why? ‘The wedding’ – Charlene and Scott...do I need to say why! The whole world was invited to the wedding. Not a favourite but I also still remember when Daphne died! I cried! I think a lot of people's hearts broke when Daphne died. Why do you think that Neighbours was such a phenomenal success in Britain? Let’s face it we only had four TV channels to choose from, so BBC had a number of good shows at that time. Also, Neighbours was a good family show. It had something for all ages. It’s been said that nostalgia is one of the key reasons why Neighbours has lasted so long. What would you say about that? It’s part of our childhoods and brings back good memories for a lot of people, especially those aged forty and above. It’s an escape route to remember the good old times. The family around the TV. Nowadays, everyone is watching their own shows on different apps etc. Aren't they just! My mum always complains about that. What do you think about the decision to pull the plug on this long-running TV show that has lasted a whopping 37 years? Sometimes, it is good to leave on a high note. True... But it doesn't mean we have to be pleased about it! There have been reboots of defunct soaps such as Crossroads, Dynasty and Dallas. Could a Neighbours reboot work years from now? No, leave it! Totally agree with you there. What special Neighbours’ memories will you be taking with you when the show ends? The weddings, the arguments, the theme tune, the song. The actors, we will see on other shows/movies but the characters they created will be with us forever. I mean we all know a neighbour that acts like ‘Mrs Mangel’. This or That: ⦁ 1980s or 1990s? Both ⦁ Pizza Hut or Deep Pan? Pizza Hut ⦁ New Kids or Take That? New Kids (good answer!) ⦁ Neighbours or Home and Away? Both ⦁ Coffee Republic or My Old Dutch? Lol MOD ⦁ Pancakes or waffles? Pancakes ⦁ Romcom or action? Action ⦁ Kylie or Dannii? Kylie ⦁ Museum or art gallery? Museum ⦁ Neons or pastels? Neons And Finally… You’ve bought yourself a time machine. Where would you go in it and why? Back to uni, I would need to go back and give a particular mate a map of London, so in the future she would not get lost in a city she was born and bred in! Dave mate, it's been a pleasure! x Photos: YouTube, Pixabay and Angel's own Blog graphics: Angel Noire

It's 5th November so that can only mean one thing - Guy Fawkes Night! Unfortunately we won't be able to celebrate tonight, but the fella and I hope to have a very small, socially-distanced gathering at the weekend, and I can't wait to show our friends how a traditional Bonfire Night in England is done. Or perhaps I should say used to be done..? It's left me wondering just how much of a big deal folk back in Britain make of this day. Even when I lived in England, the last few years before arriving in America, hardly anyone made a fuss of the fact that it was Bonfire Night. In fact the last public fireworks display I went to was back in 2012. So what's going on - do people not celebrate Bonfire Night anymore? Oh no, this is not another thing we can blame on the pandemic. It seems people have lost their enthusiasm for rockets and Catherine wheels for a while now. I have very fond memories of Guy Fawkes Night when I was a child. The shops would be jampacked with fireworks which didn't stay on the shelves for very long; people would be having bonfires in their gardens and having the neighbours round; over at my grandad's house, my aunts and uncles - who have always been a bunch of big kids - eagerly set off fireworks from a bumper selection box of delights. And at our house, my sister and I were excitedly awaiting the return of our dad from work - as we knew he'd be bringing back at least a couple of packets of sparklers. And because we liked having him home, of course! Mum would make sure we were well wrapped up as we headed out into the garden for the only time we were ever to see our name in lights courtesy of the sparklers. Oh and Mum'd be on stand-by with a bucket of water - just in case! Although I have great memories of celebrating Bonfire Night, I'm well aware that the popularity of this great British event has declined over the years. Part of the reason is concerns over safety; for a long time there have been petitions to ban the sale of fireworks to the general public, and for public fire work displays to be cancelled. And as the world becomes more and more Americanized, Halloween seems to have replaced Guy Fawkes Night as the main autumn event. Furthermore, with just about everyone working longer, more unsociable hours these days (I know I did and still do sometimes!) Bonfire Night has become something people literally don't have the time for - especially if it falls on a weekday. Check out our post on Bonfire Night traditions that we all used to delight in back in the day. Happy Bonfire Night! Photos: See Description GIF: Wix Blog graphics and word cloud: Angel Noire

It was around eight years ago that The Fella, who hails from the good old U.S of A, watched his first ever Eurovision Song Contest. He laughed at the tactical voting; thought the entertainment during the interval was cheesy; cringed at some of the ridiculous acts; questioned whether or not some of the countries were technically part of Europe; wondered what the hell the wardrobe department were thinking; expressed surprise at the low placing of the United Kingdom and marvelled at how next year’s show would coincidentally be held in the country of the winning entry. Er well… Welcome to the wonderful, weird and wacky world of Eurovision - an annual song contest where various European nations compete to see which music act is the best on the continent, with the following year's event taking place in the country of the winning act. Tomorrow will be the grand final of the sixty fifth Eurovision Song Contest, held in Rotterdam, and we get to see not only who the winner will be, but where the contest will be held next year. And we will also see which countries earned themselves the dreaded 'nul points'. It must be like Christmas for die-hard fans who had to miss out on the musical extravaganza last year due to Covid. I have to admit that these days I'm not the big Eurovision fan that I used to be, and only tune in to watch the voting – if at all! But I didn't always feel like that. Growing up, Eurovision was a big deal in our house. Well many households around Europe, I would imagine. And every year my mum’s enthusiasm would rub off on all of us. Dinner would be out of the way and we would all be huddled on the sofa as we prepared for three hours of what was then great family entertainment. Snacks would have been bought at least a week in advance and we would all chomp our way through the United Kingdom’s latest non-winning number; Ireland’s new victory and yet another 'nul points' for Norway. Eurovision always took place on a Saturday and we couldn't very well not watch it because we knew it would be the talk of the form room come Monday. Today there are a lot of people who think of the Eurovision Song Contest as a bit of a cheesefest, but there were lots of highlights, and I’m glad that I was able to witness some classic moments: Michael Ball’s dad dancing; Frances Ruffelle’s sexy dancing; Sonia’s vibrant performance; the first ever entry by a transsexual artist; seeing the same artist take the most amusing tumble on stage a year later; the powerful vocals of Niamh Kavanagh and ‘Mr. Eurovision’ himself, Johnny Logan; a rap entry from the UK; a hard rock entry from Finland; the United Kingdom bringing it home with Katrina and the Waves in 1997… and losing it abysmally in 2003 by getting their first ever nul points courtesy of Jemini. And who could forget Riverdance - the most famous thing to come out of Eurovision, aside from Abba. It's incredible to think that what was meant to be a filler for the song contest went on to become a worldwide phenomenon. Riverdance, I mean. Well Abba too. Except Abba was never a filler! Moreover I am sorry that Abba's winning entry was before my time, and that I can't remember that classic Bucks Fizz performance. One of my favourite entries was back in 1988 when Scott Fitzgerald represented the UK with the tear jerking ballad Go. I may have been very young at the time but even I couldn’t mistake the power, emotion and meaning in the song. Anyone who watched Eurovision that year will also remember how fierce the voting was and the nail biting race to the finish line as it looked as though a well deserved victory for the United kingdom was imminent. Sadly victory belonged to Switzerland that year as we were beaten by one measly point. The singer who secured Switzerland’s win was a Canadian girl with a dodgy perm and we all believed that once the fuss died down, she’d just fade into obscurity. However the singer, Celine Dion, had other ideas… And furthermore, whenever I think of Eurovision, I still remember the dulcet tones of the show's great commentator, the late Terry Wogan, who was to Eurovision what Noel Edmonds was to Christmas. Wogan had been the commentator for Eurovision for pretty much most of my life up until 2008. In addition to this, Wogan also presented the selection show - which underwent a few name changes but I knew it as A Song For Europe - in which the entry for the United Kingdom was chosen. Then in 1998 when the song contest was being held in England, thanks to the win by Katrina and the Waves, Terry Wogan co-hosted the event with Ulrika Jonsson, making him the third person in the event's history to act as both commentator and host. Very talented bloke, that Terry! I'm still reminded of Terry Wogan whenever I think of the Eurovision Song Contest. Graham Norton, of whom I am a big fan, is doing a great job as the current commentator. But Terry will always have a special place in my heart, and I'm sure that can be said for anyone who's watched the event over a period of thirty-odd years, and to this day, he is still deeply missed. Rest in Peace Terry xx Who do you think will be the winner of Eurovision 2021? Photos: Youtube Word Cloud; Angel Noire

The word legend often gets thrown around a lot. But when the legend we're talking about is Dame Barbara Windsor, how could she be considered anything else? A little lady with a big presence, the world of showbiz was in mourning recently when Dame Barbara lost her brave battle against Alzheimer's, with her funeral being held last week. When the news of her passing broke, tributes came flooding in from stars who had been fortunate to have worked with the talented actress during her seventy year career. Reading them was lovely because it showed just how much Dame Barbara was loved. And for those of us who didn't know Barbara Windsor personally... well we certainly wished we had! Our screens are going to be a little less brighter now that she's gone. For many of us, Barbara Windsor was a very familiar face on TV. We watched her in everything from those 'Naughty but Nice' ads for fresh cream; shows like Blankety Blank; as Saucy Nancy in Worzel Gummidge; Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; Supergran; You Rang M'Lord? and a whole host of other films and TV shows. But of course it was through the Carry On films that Dame Barbara first made her name and was familiar to audiences as the petite blonde who appeared in much of the British film series. But after the Carry On series ended, there were what were described as 'lean years' before a role came along that completely and utterly changed her life. Barbara Windsor played a pub landlady and mum to two hard men in some soap or other... what was it called again??? When it was announced back in 1994 that Barbara Windsor was being cast in EastEnders as the Mitchell brothers' mum Peggy Mitchell, nobody but nobody could have predicted what this role would do for the character, the soap, or for the actress herself. And Dame Barbara did have some input in shaping the character of Peggy Mitchell, turning her into the Walford icon we know and love. The chemistry that Barbara had with her screen family was epic, and it was a bond that spilled over into real-life with Steve McFadden and Ross Kemp, who play the Mitchell brothers, having great affection for their screen mum. And nobody could ever deliver the line 'Get outta my pub!" quite like she could! It sometimes takes a while for a soap character to make an impact. But when Barbara Windsor took over the role of Peggy Mitchell from original actress Jo Warne - who had played the Mitchell matriarch for around ten episodes - she arrived in Albert Square with an almighty bang that made viewers sit up and take notice. And during the twenty two years - on and off until her death from cancer - that Peggy had been in Albert Square, she was in the midst of a lot of drama: so many memorable storylines with great dialogue and many of those scenes being hailed by EastEnders fans as iconic. So it goes without saying that for this post, it was almost impossible to limit ourselves to just five epic storylines. But somehow we managed to choose the five that seemed the most poignant to us. 1. PEGGY HITS WALFORD... AND SHARON! "If I catch you anywhere near my two sons... I'll do time for you. I'll kill you with my bare hands..." When Peggy returned from Spain to be at son Phil's bedside after hearing he'd been badly injured, she didn't know the full story of how he had come to be hospitalized. She didn't know that it was her younger son Grant who had put him in there. Or that Grant had discovered that his wife Sharon had been having an affair with Phil. But when Peggy discovered the truth, all hell broke loose! Her very public confrontation with Sharon in the Square set the scene for Peggy's reign over Walford for the next twenty two years or so, and let the locals know just what they were in for. For Peggy, family always came first no matter what. She was also never afraid of a confrontation (the more public the better!) with many a spat taking place in the Vic, and neither was she shy about dishing out one of her legendary slaps if she felt someone deserved it. And as it turned out, she was always going to lock horns with Sharon - a woman she more often than not loathed with a passion. If they weren't arguing over Sharon's involvement with one of the Mitchell brothers, then it was over their beloved Queen Victoria pub. But the two women did manage to make their peace just before Peggy passed away. 2. MARK AND PEGGY'S ILL HEALTH "If you swim in the sewer, you catch something!" Nobody could accuse Peggy of being sweetness and light all the time - she was a Mitchell after all. But when she declared war against the Fowlers because she'd discovered that Mark was HIV positive, even Peggy's family were stunned at just how vicious she could be - and it was a storyline that made the character very unpopular with viewers. But Peggy remained unrepentant, especially when she feared that her grandson Ben's illness was due to the little one having come into contact with Mark and his wife Ruth. That was until she faced her own battle with a life threatening illness and realized what poor Mark must have been going through. When Peggy discovered a lump in her breast, she didn't tell anyone. But her daughter-in-law Tiffany found out and agreed to keep Peggy's secret, while providing support and accompanying Peggy to her hospital visits. Sadly it was confirmed that Peggy did indeed have breast cancer, enabling the character to display a vulnerability that had never been seen before. Peggy needed to have a lumpectomy, although she went on to have a mastectomy when the cancer returned a couple of years later. But Peggy's illness was the push she needed to head over to the Fowlers' to make a very heart-felt apology to a very gracious and supportive Mark. Barbara Windsor had revealed how much she hated the storyline involving Peggy's bigoted feud with Mark, but the two subplots intertwined in this storyline - the revelation of Mark's HIV and Peggy discovering she had cancer - showed many facets to Peggy's character. And furthermore both plots were effective in raising awareness of breast cancer; highlighting people's ignorance about HIV and AIDS, as well as demonstrating the prejudice faced by HIV sufferers. 3. EXPOSING PAT AND FRANK'S AFFAIR "...So why they're still here is a bit of a mystery. But one thing I've learned while I've been married to Mr. Butcher is never underestimate his capacity to make a cock-up of things!" Peggy was devastated when she realised that not only was her husband Frank having an affair with his ex-wife Pat, but the pair were also planning on leaving their spouses and running off together. Just as Peggy and Frank were planning to renew their wedding vows! Frank had explained everything in a letter that Peggy was meant to have read after Pat and Frank had sailed off into the sunset together. But Peggy had found the letter and after talking to her son Phil, she decided that she would teach the cheating pair a lesson... In the Vic, in what is now a classic and very well-acted scene, Peggy gathered everyone around as she read Frank's letter out to a stunned pub including an embarrassed Pat and Frank, as well as Pat's horrified husband, Roy. Peggy then went on to do what she was famous for - dishing out two almighty slaps to her unfaithful husband and his mistress, proving that unlike with Pauline Fowler, frying pans really weren't necessary! Although Roy eventually forgave Pat and the two remained married until Roy's death, it spelled the end of Frank and Peggy's marriage. But ironically, even though she did often clash with Pat, the two women went on to form quite a strong friendship. 4. CHRISSIE WATTS! MURDERER!!! "Tell Den you're sorry. Tell Den!" After finding out that the person who killed Den Watts was his wife, Chrissie, and that she was intent on letting Peggy's daughter Sam take the blame for it, Peggy wasted no time in heading over to the cemetery and confronting the weeping widow. Den's coffin had just been lowered into the ground, and Chrissie was about to read a Bible passage when an irate Peggy charged up to the group furiously yelling that she knew what Chrissie had done. Terrified that her secret might come out, Chrissie had tried to get Peggy to stop, helped by her new lovesick boyfriend Jake Moon. But Peggy was having none of it, and when Chrissie tried to walk off, Peggy pushed Chrissie into Den's grave demanding that she tell her dead husband she was sorry for putting him in there. It was definitely one of the most memorable funeral scenes from a soap. But what we want to know is, that why was it when a horrified Chrissie was wriggling around on her husband's coffin desperately wanting to get out, none of the mourners moved a muscle, and just stood around the edge of the grave - more motionless than the graveyard statues and stared in complete silence? 5. MARRIAGE TO ARCHIE MITCHELL "I don't think you know who you're dealing with here. I'm not some cuddly, little old lady. I'm Peggy Mitchell. I'm old East End. Real East End, proper! You don't mess with me." Well said, Peggy! For years viewers had been hearing all about "Daad's bruvver, Archie." And while we all knew that Peggy's husband, Eric Mitchell, was no choir boy, Archie proved that anything his brother could do, he could go one better - or worse! But Peggy, proving that some girls always fall for the bad boy, couldn't resist Archie's charms, much to the concern of Archie's daughter Ronnie who knew exactly what her dad was like. But Peggy refused to listen to Ronnie's warnings, and when Archie proposed, Peggy accepted. But the marriage was extremely short-lived as the reception descended into chaos when the extent of Archie's deception and devious ways were revealed, culminating in the death of Ronnie's long-lost daughter, Danielle. Peggy knew she could never stay with a man like that and had to endure the humiliation of her marriage ending before she'd even tossed the bouquet. She probably even beat Ian and Melanie Beale's record for the shortest Walford marriage ever! That didn't stop Archie from trying to win his bride back but Peggy made it clear that he didn't stand a chance. And when his attempts to reconcile didn't work, Archie grew nasty, eventually ousting Peggy out of her beloved pub. But he made one last-ditch effort to win back his bride in a very moving scene - their last one together before Archie was killed. And it looked as though Peggy might just be swayed... But we'll never know what Peggy would have done because just moments later, Archie was murdered after being hit over the head with the famous Queen Victoria bust. And upon hearing that Archie had been murdered at The Vic, Peggy was distraught. But seven years later when talking to Archie's killer - Stacey Branning - Peggy said in typical Mitchell style that Stacey had saved Peggy the job of killing Archie herself! What are your favourite memories of the formidable Peggy Mitchell and the amazing Dame Barbara Windsor? Barbara Windsor, you'll be missed. Rest in peace x Photos: YouTube Word cloud: Angel Noire

It's the whodunit that's gripped EastEnders' fans and at Christmas, we discovered the identity of who attacked Ian Beale - none other than his 'best mate' and new wife Sharon along with her ex-husband Phil Mitchell as retribution for the death of Sharon's son, Denny. Ian has never really been the Square's Mr. Popular. But ever since his accidental role in Denny's death last year, he's been an even greater prat that usual, and has really succeeded in rubbing a long list of people up the wrong way. Will this man ever learn? Probably not! EastEnders' love their mysteries and whodunnits just as much as they love their 'who's the daddy' storylines - which we suppose are another kind of whodunnit! And these mysteries are guaranteed to keep viewers tuning in to discover the identity of the culprit and their motives. Think back to the very first EastEnders scene, and that involved a murder - that of local resident, Reg Cox. If Hercule Poirot lived on The Square, he'd never be out of work with all the murders, attacks, thefts and mayhem that takes place there! We're taking a look at some of the most memorable mysteries ever to occur on the Square, with some going as far back as the early days of the show. They definitely had us on the edge of our seats! 1. DEBBIE'S PHONE PEST (1985) After getting several obscene phone calls, Debbie Wilkins suspected café owner Ali Osman of being the phone pest. Her enraged boyfriend Andy wanted to have it out with him but Debbie had other ideas: she decided to invite Ali and his wife Sue over for dinner in order to confront him. It was a very tense dinner as Sue worked out that Debbie and Andy were blaming Ali for the phone calls... and then the phone rang... You guessed it - it was the phone pest! And a horrified Debbie realized that she had made a mistake and still didn't know the identity of the person making the malicious calls. It was during a visit from Debbie's friend Naima that the identity of the caller was revealed. Naima had answered the phone when it rang and despite Debbie's attempts to take the phone from her, Naima insisted on speaking to the caller herself. So she did - in Bengali. Naima realized that the caller was her own husband, Saeed. 2. FOWLER BREAK-IN (1986) When Pauline and Arthur invited a group of friends and family back to theirs, they weren't expecting to be greeted by the sight of a ransacked home. Furthermore the Christmas club fund that Arthur had recently withdrawn from the bank was gone. The question was... who could have done it? As far as mysteries goes, this was pretty tame stuff. But then again it was back in the eighties when EastEnders was just getting warmed up. And far from it dragging on and on, the culprit was revealed within a couple of episodes as loveable Arthur Fowler who'd used the Christmas club money to pay for his daughter Chelle's wedding and then staged the break-in to explain the missing money to all his friends, family, and neighbours. Wife Pauline had already sussed it out, and this incident lead to Arthur's eventual breakdown and imprisonment. 3. WHO'S VICKI FOWLER'S DAD? (1986) Drama didn't follow anyone around as much as it followed Michelle Fowler, and it all began when she got pregnant at sixteen and refused to name the father. This storyline occurred very early on for EastEnders and it is still one of the most memorable and often talked about storylines today. There were several characters who were in the frame for being the father of the yet-to-be-born Vicki Fowler. On the day of the big reveal, viewers saw Andy O'Brien, Tony Carpenter, Den Watts, and Ali Osman hurriedly getting into their vehicles and driving away - just as Michelle was on her way to the canal to meet the father, leaving viewers excitedly guessing which one of the four was the baby's dad. A car appeared at the canal, with an unidentified figure stepping out before going to open one of the rear doors - and out jumped Roly! Yes, the father was none other than the Queen Vic's landlord 'Dirty' Den Watts - who also happened to be the father of Michelle's best friend, Sharon. 4. WALFORD SERIAL ATTACKER (1987) An unknown man was terrorizing and attacking the local women of Walford, stalking them at night. Some of the Square's female residents had had close calls with the Walford Attacker, including Sue Osman and Sharon Watts but both had escaped unharmed. Unfortunately Pat Wicks didn't fare so well. She was brutally attacked and left for dead. Her ex-husband Pete became a suspect as he loathed Pat with a passion, but although he had a motive for attacking her, there was no reason why he should go after the other women. Eventually the Walford attacker was caught when he tried to assault Debbie Wilkins after finding her alone in the launderette. Unfortunately his capture was a bit of a let-down because instead of being a well-known or at least recognizable character, the attacker just turned out to be some random guy called Oxley who no one had ever heard of before! Still not bad for a soap that was pretty much just starting out. 5. MURDER OF EDDIE ROYLE (1991) Ex-policeman Eddie Royle hadn't been landlord of The Queen Vic for long when he had been found knifed to death in The Square's gardens. Dot stumbled across his body when she found Roly stranded in the Square who led her to Eddie's body. But what Dot didn't know was that she wasn't the first person to discover Eddie's body... Viewers saw Clyde Tavernier standing over the body with a knife in his hand before wiping the blood from his hands and fleeing. He then set about acting very suspiciously: tiptoeing back into his house before burning a shirt with Eddie's blood on it - unknowingly under the watchful eye of his suspicious grandfather, Jules. However Clyde was innocent. He'd found Eddie lying in the gardens and foolishly picked up the murder weapon thus incriminating himself. Not only that but Clyde also had a motive for killing Eddie after they fell out over a boxing betting scam. But then Eddie was hardly a popular man in The Square with a few of the residents including Grant, Phil and Sharon holding grudges against him. Then the ever-trustworthy Nick Cotton told police that he had witnessed Eddie's murder - and that the killer was Clyde. Nick's statement caused a terrified Clyde to go on the run with his son Kofi, on-off girlfriend Michelle Fowler and her daughter Vicki. Thankfully Joe, a friend of Michelle's brother Mark, came forward and told police that he had seen Nick Cotton in the Square that night, and had even witnessed Nick shin down the drainpipe outside his bedroom window. A recovering drug addict, Nick had been locked in his bedroom by his desperate mum, Dot. But after escaping, Nick was seen by Eddie who tried to do the right thing in escorting Nick home - and he paid for it with his life. Hardly known for his angelic behaviour, it probably didn't come as much of a shock to viewers that Nick was Eddie's murderer. But despite being arrested and tried for the murder, Nick was found not guilty due to lack of evidence, leaving him free to wreak havoc in the Square for years to come. 6. WHO FRAMED ARTHUR FOWLER? (1996) After getting elected as the new allotment committee secretary, Arthur Fowler began fundraising for the Flowering Wilderness Fund: a new initiative to create an eco-friendly, urban garden in Walford. It was Arthur's old friend and fellow allotment owner, Willy Roper who took a keen interest in Arthur's fundraising and set about advising a very trusting Arthur on how to handle the money. But when it appeared that there was fraudulent activity, Arthur was questioned by police - and imprisoned. Distraught at going to prison for a second time - this time for a crime he didn't commit - Arthur had a breakdown, refusing to his see family. By now viewers had got an inkling of what had happened but it was Arthur's son Mark who was the first person to become suspicious of Willy. Alarmed at the amount of time Willy was spending with Pauline, Mark confided his fears to his mum but Pauline dismissed Mark's concerns believing Willy to be a dear friend and a tower of strength. Then Pauline and Willy went on a break to Jersey much to Mark's dismay who by now had figured out that Willy must have moved the stolen money to an off-shore account in a fake name. It was only when Pauline discovered credit cards in a different name, that she realized that Mark had been right about Willy all along. So setting a trap in order to get to the truth, Willy fell for the ruse and was subsequently arrested and eventually imprisoned. Willy had come up with this elaborate plan in order to steal the money to pay for a place at a care home for his mum. Although Arthur was released from prison, it sadly came too late for him. A shell of his former self when he returned from prison, Arthur was working on his beloved allotment, when he collapsed and died due to a head injury he sustained in prison, leaving his family - and viewers - heartbroken. 7. WHO SHOT PHIL MITCHELL? (2001) EastEnders' very own version of the 'Who shot JR?' saga was 'Who shot Phil Mitchell? With the number of residents Phil had cheesed off, it could've been anyone! On the evening he got shot, a very drunken Phil was irritated by what he thought were kids playing knock down ginger. So he went outside and hollered in typical Phil fashion that if they did it again, he'd 'tan their backsides'. Then as he turned around to walk back inside, he was shot in the back. But before losing consciousness, Phil caught a glimpse of his assassin fleeing... and we all - twenty two million of us - waited until Phil was out of hospital for that humdinger of an episode where Phil confronted the person who shot him. Steve Owen, Lisa Shaw, Dan Sullivan, and Ian Beale were all suspects - but it turned out that it was little Lisa who pulled the trigger. 7. DENNIS RICKMAN'S MURDER (2005) Who didn't have the biggest crush ever on Dennis Rickman? So we were absolutely heartbroken when Walford's hottest resident was killed off, especially as it was in an extremely brutal manner. After marrying Sharon, the woman of his dreams, the newlyweds were thrilled beyond belief to discover that they were going to have the one thing that they didn't think was possible - a baby. Who still remembers the scene where Sharon broke the news of their very own Christmas miracle to Dennis and how jubilant they both were? But sadly their happiness wasn't to last... Local gangster, Johnny Allen, was furious with Sharon for meddling in his relationship with his daughter, Ruby, and with Dennis for having crossed him. So he threatened Sharon and told her that if she and Dennis didn't leave Walford before the new year, her baby was going to grow up without a father. Sharon managed to talk Dennis into leaving for a new life in America but on the day they were due to leave, Phil Mitchell told Dennis that Johnny Allen attacked and threatened Sharon, and that he had killed Dennis's friend, Andy Hunter. A furious Dennis went over to Johnny's, where he beat him half to death. But then Dennis made the mistake of throwing Johnny a phone so that he could call for help, thinking it wouldn't matter as he and Sharon would be long gone by the time help arrived. But Johnny didn't call for an ambulance; he called for someone to take care of Dennis in revenge for the vicious attack. As Dennis and Sharon looked for each other among the crowds of New Year's Eve revellers, they caught sight of each other - and as they did so, someone brutally stabbed Dennis leaving him to die in a hysterical Sharon's arms. It was in Spring 2006 that we found out that the man ordered to kill Dennis was Alfie Moon's cousin, Danny. 9. WHO KILLED ARCHIE MITCHELL (2009) Even for a Mitchell, Archie was a thoroughly unlikeable character. A philanderer, narcissist, liar, control freak, rapist and trouble maker, Archie Mitchell made a lot of enemies - even among his own family. So when he was murdered at Christmas, after being hit over the head with the Queen Victoria bust, there were many possible suspects including Ian Beale, Bradley Branning, Ryan Malloy, Stacey Branning, and practically the entire Mitchell clan. Archie Mitchell's killer was unmasked during EastEnders' first ever live episode to mark the show's twenty fifth anniversary. It appeared that the murderer was a panic-stricken Bradly who was fleeing from the police and was killed as he fell from a roof. But it wasn't him... …The murderer turned out to be Bradley's wife Stacey. 10. KAT'S MYSTERY MAN (2012) They may have originally started out as one Walford's greatest love stories... but when it came to ups and downs, Dow Jones had nothing on Kat and Alfie! It seemed as though they had finally put the past behind them, and were settling down to family life with their three kids, when a mystery man managed to catch Kat's eye... Not only did Kat have an affair but she fell head-over-heels in love with this man, wanting to leave Alfie and start a new life with her secret love. The question we all wanted answered was - who was he? And so did Alfie! After realizing that his wife was playing away, Alfie set about trying to discover the identity of Kat's mystery man, suspecting almost every man in Walford. He eventually worked out that it was one of the Branning brothers. During a very tense, public showdown at The Vic between Alfie and the Brannings, Kat made a very frantic call to one of the brothers - Max! After rushing in to the pub and finding Max and Alfie brawling, Kat was forced to reveal the truth about the identity of her mystery man. Much to the relief of Max's wife Tanya, it wasn't Max after all... …It was Derek Branning! Most of us would have opted for Jack but whatever floats Kat's boat! What's your favourite EastEnders' mystery? Photos: YouTube Word Cloud: Angel Noire

Prince Akeem... Prince Akeem... Prince Akeem... Ridicule is nothing to be... Oops, wrong prince! But you have to admit, Zamunda's Prince Akeem is pretty damn charming! When I learned that there was going to be a sequel to Coming To America, the 1988 romantic comedy starring Eddie Murphy as the Prince and Arsenio Hall as his sidekick, Semmi, it immediately brought back memories of having watched it as a kid back in the early nineties with my parents when it was shown by the BBC. I was very interested to know what this sequel was going to be like and how the storyline would go. I also wanted to see how many of the original characters and actors would return in Coming 2 America almost thirty-three years after Coming To America was first released But before watching Coming 2 America, The Man insisted that we should make it a double bill by watching the original as he also hadn't watched Coming To America since he was a child. And I'm very glad he did as we'd both forgotten how much we enjoyed the movie back in the day. We totally forgot that Eriq La Salle had a starring role before he went on to become ER's Dr. Benton. I remembered the McDonald's rip-off McDowell's (Big Mic on a non-sesame seed bun, anybody?) We didn't know that music legend Nile Rodgers was responsible for the 'Soul Glo' jingle, and The Man was excited when he saw the cameo by Mortimer and Randolph Duke - played by Don Amici and Ralph Bellamy - from the 1983 movie Trading Places. I did wonder why I didn't remember that famous bath scene. But then I remembered that the first time I watched Coming To America, it was with my parents! So I quite clearly blocked out the memory. And who can blame me? Cringe! I do, however, love a fairytale ending so I was pleased that Prince Akeem got the girl in the end, and I do remember that wedding scene. While I knew that watching Coming To America again would be taking a step back in time, I didn't expect Coming 2 America to transport me back to the nineties - but that's exactly what it did! There was a starring role by Wesley Snipes, who I had the biggest crush on back in the day. I would make it my mission in life to watch everything that he starred in! Then there were cameos by Salt-N-Pepa, with En Vogue performing Whatta Man (although for the movie it was reworked to be Whatta King!) And then there was a rendition of my most favourite Prince song ever, Gett Off, which for me definitely made the whole movie! Mr. D and I agreed that Coming 2 America made for interesting viewing and while it may have made a good stand-alone movie, for those of us who have a habit of comparing sequels to the original movies (listen out for the inside joke about sequels in Coming 2 America...) well let's just say we definitely preferred Coming To America because despite all the highlights of Coming 2 America, we just felt the storyline of the previous offering was a lot stronger, and we liked the contrast between the urban grittiness of Queens and the luxuriousness of the royal palace. Coming To America is funny, well acted, well scripted, and it's a love story to boot. What's there not to like? Furthermore, back in the late eighties, it was very unusual for a movie that featured a predominantly black cast to attract mainstream audiences the way that it did and be such a hit. So the original was definitely a tough act to follow . But check out Coming 2 America for yourselves and tell us what you think. Photos: YouTube Word Cloud: Angel Noire

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom GENRE: Psychological thriller CHANNEL: BBC1 (USA - PBS) PRODUCER: Ken Riddington YEARS: 1989 (USA - 1990) NUMBER OF SERIES: 1 EPISODES: 4 SCREENPLAY BY: Andrew Davies ADAPTED FROM: Mother Love by Domini Taylor THEME MUSIC: Patrick Gowers DIRECTED BY: Simon Langton STARRING: Diana Rigg James Wilby Fiona Gillies David McCallum Isla Blair James Grout Holly Aird Liliana Komorowska Amelia Shankley Ann Firbank Jeffry Wickham Today marks thirty two years since the haunting drama, Mother Love, was first broadcast on BBC1. A disturbing tale of obsessive love, betrayal and toxic family ties in which Dame Diana Rigg absolutely stole the show as the spurned wife and deranged mother who will stop at nothing to avenge those who have wronged her (a true Avenger indeed!) So if you know you've upset Helena Vesey in even the smallest of ways... Don't accept any baked goods from her! Mother Love was first shown on BBC1 on 29th October 1989, and was screened on US television almost a year later as part of PBS's Masterpiece Mystery anthology series - with the Mother Love episodes hosted by Dame Diana herself! We take a look at this classic BBC drama that suddenly made everyone appreciate their mothers-in-law a little bit more! PLOT Kit Vesey and Angela Turner are madly in love, engaged to be married, and ready to embark on the next stage of their lives together. There's just the small matter of Kit's overbearing, emotionally unstable mother, Helena... Helena Vesey is a woman for whom loyalty is everything and she cannot bear what she might consider to be the slightest bit of betrayal. Furthermore she is a woman who is not afraid to dish out the severest of punishments to anyone she feels may have crossed her... THE NOVEL Mother Love was adapted for television from the 1983 novel of the same name, written by Domini Taylor (one of the few aliases of Scottish author Roger Longrigg.) THE SCREENWRITER The novel was adapted by former teacher and Welsh writer Andrew Davies, who has written for TV, stage, film and radio since the 1960s. Davies is best known for his TV adaptions of literary classics including Pride and Prejudice, Vanity Fair, and Sense and Sensibility, with his first adaptation being To Serve Them All of Their Days, based on the novel by R.F. Delderfield. But that's not even the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Davies' work, so even if the name isn't overly familiar to you, you're bound to have watched something he's worked on at least once in your life! As well as Mother Love, Davies is also well known for the political thriller House of Cards, and although not his usual genre, he also co-wrote the sitcom Game On. And us kids of the eighties will forever be grateful to him for Marmalade Atkins, and the Look and Read series Dark Towers and Badger Girl, watched by pupils at schools around the country during the eighties and nineties - before filling out the accompanying worksheets! Remember those, anyone? THEME TUNE and CREDITS The theme tune composed by Patrick Gowers is reminiscent of a parent humming a lullaby to a child. But far from sounding soothing it sounds quite melancholy and slightly eerie. There's a feeling of loneliness and overwhelming sadness that's just perfect for the series. For the opening credits, the theme tune plays over images of a an open eye in which a young child can be seen at different stages of his young life. The message appears to be that the child is quite clearly the apple of the mother's eye. But the opening images combined with the haunting theme tune creates an atmosphere that is cold, dark and macabre and thus quite fitting for Mother Love. FAMOUS FACES The most famous face of all was Dame Diana Rigg whose portrayal of the obsessive mother earned her a well deserved BAFTA award for best actress. A young Holly Aird also starred as the eldest of the Vesey girls, and we were very excited to have spotted Amelia Shankley as Harriet Vesey who had previous played the lead role in ITV's A Little Princess. David McCallum has had an extensive and successful acting career, particularly in America, that goes back to the early fifties, and prior to Mother Love, he had starred in The Man From U.N.C.L.E, Colditz, and Sapphire and Steel. His career is still going strong and these days he's better known as Donald Mallard in NCIS. James Wilby has been acting steadily since the early eighties and after Mother Love went on to star in Crocodile Shoes, Casualty and Poldark. The very beautiful Fiona Gilles has starred in Holby City, Casualty and Coronation Street. Isla Blair has been a very familiar face on British TV having appeared in The Darling Buds of May, Taggart, and Casualty among many, many other shows. The late James Grout has been in countless TV shows since the late forties including A Very Peculiar Practice (also written by Andrew Davies) Z Cars and an episode entitled File it Under Fear of one of Nostalgia Pie's fave shows - Thriller! But the role he was best known for was Chief Superintendent Strange in Inspector Morse. STORYLINE When promising young barrister, Christopher 'Kit' Vesey proposes to his girlfriend Angela Turner - an art gallery receptionist who loves shared baths and bath toys just as much as he does, after a whirlwind romance of just three weeks - neither of them know that taking this step towards the next chapter of their lives will threaten to blow open a secret that Kit has been keeping for fifteen years... and that it will have devastating consequences for so many of those close to them... Since the age of eleven, Kit - whose parents divorced when he was a baby - had secretly been in contact with his father, Sir Alex Vesey, a well-renown music composer, and his new family. The reason for the secrecy is Kit's very controlling, unstable mother Helena, who has never forgiven Alex for walking out on her and Kit after only two years of marriage to set up home with the woman he'd been having an affair with - photographer Ruth, known to Helena as 'the tart with a camera' - who Alex later married and had three more children with. A failed suicide attempt by Helena when Kit expressed an interest in meeting his father only further convinced the boy and the rest of the Veseys that they had to keep their relationship a secret from Kit's mother. The Veseys are a great success story, both in their professional and personal lives, and live in very luxurious surroundings which further adds to a jealous Helena's fury, who is very resentful at having to struggle, scrimp and save in order to raise Kit on her own - while not actually realizing the role Alex had secretly been playing in their son's life. After their engagement, Kit reveals the details of his childhood to his new fiancée and tells her that in order to be a part of his life, she will also have to keep this secret from Helena. Although initially appalled at the level of dishonesty from the Veseys, Angela reluctantly agrees to to keep this secret and is thus drawn into the Veseys' web of secrets and lies. Viewers might initially feel sympathy for Helena, thinking that she is quite simply a woman scorned whose cheating husband and his mistress pushed her over the edge. She seems to have nobody in her life other than her beloved 'Kitten' and her cousin, George, who also acts as her chauffer, and eventually her daughter-in-law Angela and her granddaughters. But as Helena's story is told in a series of flashbacks going back to when she was ten years old, a shocking act she carried out as a child reveals that Helena had always been dangerously vindictive towards anyone who she perceived to be disloyal and treacherous, bordering on psychopathic, no matter how small the misdemeanour. Perhaps Alex was right to get out while he could! Though it was too bad he had to leave little Kit behind. After their initial meeting, Helena feels that Angela is a woman that she can control so doesn't oppose the impending marriage between her and Kit. But Angela isn't quite the pushover Helena thinks she is, and as the wedding day approaches, Helena is very disheartened to know that Kit and Angela would be moving into a flat of their own rather than live with her. She'd be even more disheartened if she knew that Alex had helped them to buy the flat and not Angela's father as they had led Helena to believe! Unfortunately married life doesn't provide any respite from Helena who is forever phoning a harrassed Kit and Angela, and tries to spend as much time in their home as she can. And her interference in their lives only increases when Kit and Angela have children of their own. When Kit becomes seriously ill later on in the series and ends up in a coma, Helena seizes this opportunity and Angela's anguish to move into their home. A move that proves to be distasterous as this is when Helena gets her first inkling that secrets are being kept from her, and takes it upon herself to uncover the truth... Part one of Helena's vendetta against the Veseys occurs after Helena learns that Alex is to receive a knighthood. There's a magazine spread about the Veseys, and Ruth takes part in a documentary about her work. Enraged at their picture perfect life, and at Ruth for taking what Helena feels should have been hers, she decides to make them pay. So when a terrible tragedy occurs that shatters the Vesey family and sees an innocent man go to prison, no one realises that it was Helena who was behind it all. And when she sees the Veseys rebuild their lives and come back from the tragedy, a vengeful Helena decides to destroy them once and for all with an even greater act of malice... WHAT WE THINK We had an absolute blast watching Mother Love all over again. For those of you who thought Glenn Close struck fear into the hearts of any man who ever fancied a bit on the side, or anyone who thought that they had the mother-in-law from hell, well... you've clearly never watched Mother Love! There's never been any doubt that one of Britain's best loved actresses, Dame Diana Rigg was talented to the core, but she really did give the performance of her life as the out-of-control Helena Vesey. When it came to those she despised, Helena was pure venom, and what we'd like to know is who Dame Diana was thinking of when she had to film those scenes! Because she really was quite chilling - and we don't mean in a relaxed way either! Diana Rigg may have been the star of the show but that does not at all mean that the rest of the cast did not excel in this series - because they all absolutely nailed it and worked very well together. Initially we weren't sure about the inclusion of the character Jordan Tennyson - we just didn't see her as a good fit in the Vesey household - but come the final episode, we definitely saw her as part of the family and she provided some much needed support to the Veseys. The script is incredibly well written and like the cast's performance - faultless. We love how the tension just builds and for those who are watching Mother Love for the first time, you wait for that explosive moment where you know Kit is bound to be rumbled. And when it happens, Helena's reaction is a thousand times worse than what you thought it would be when the realization that the most precious person in the world to her has betrayed her in what she perceives to be the most cruel way possible. There are no moments of boredom during this series and the viewers interest is held throughout every episode as we wait to see what Helena will do next. As TV adaptations have a more limited time structure than novels, a lot of the more seemingly mundane parts are cut out so we go straight to the action. Therefore babies are born without there ever being a baby bump in sight. Romantic relationships are established without viewers witnessing the initial period of courtship. The grief-stricken have miraculously recovered from their loss within a couple of scenes, and newborns reach infant school age in next to no time. In Mother Love, there's the sensation of time moving by very quickly so we get to the crux of what the viewer needs to see. But it's so skillfully written, that we don't feel that we're missing out on anything and everything still makes perfect sense. EastEnders' writers take note! Because the of sinister storyline, you wouldn't expect Mother Love to have laugh out loud moments but it does. The scene where Helena became hysterical after being scared half to death by the Turner family's dogs at Kit and Angela's wedding was just the first. Her imitating her love rival Ruth's voice in order to convincingly dupe her cousin George over the phone was also amusing, especially her overuse of what she considered to be key 'Ruth' phrases. How many times can you use the words 'dreaded' and 'muddle' in a sixty second phone call? But what did it for us was the scene where Helena spies on Angela while in the back of a cab and sees her daughter-in-law and grandchildren with Alex and his wife. The faces she was pulling in the back of the cab that indicated that she was about to throw up alarmed the cab driver who had seen that expression from his passengers on many Saturday nights but he tried to remain composed. The entire scene was hilarious. We don't know if these comedic moments were intentional but they provided a pleasant change from the rather heavy subject matter. We learn of what Helena did to her childhood friend, Maureen, very early on so we know that she is no angel. But despite this there is a very small part of you - perhaps because you're more human than she is - that feels sorry for her when you witness her growing isolation and you know before she does that her small but tranquil little world isn't what she thinks it is. Kit, Angela, and George are not only firmly ensconced within the Vesey household but they seem to prefer being there than with Helena. Even Kit and Angela's friend Danuta and their cleaning lady are in on the secret. Furthermore they genuinely adore Ruth, whereas with Helena, even though George and Kit obviously love her, it's more about tolerance and obligation; having to give into the demands of a very seemingly-fragile woman. Helena may have pet names for everyone, and play the doting mother/mother-in-law/grandmother but she comes across as rather cold and false. She doesn't possess Ruth's warmth and exuberance that draws everyone towards her. There is never a dull moment in Ruth's home which is always filled with the sound of music, people talking, laughing and joking - a far cry from Helena's staid home and existence. TEST-OF-TIME TEST There is so much about Mother Love that just screams 'the eighties,' and that's great if you love the eighties as we so obviously do. But you don't have to be an eighties aficionado to enjoy this fabulous piece of drama. Good writing, a compelling storyline, strong characters, great acting, and over-the-top dialogue never goes out of style... darling! So despite the fact that Mother Love was made in the late eighties, we don't think it has aged at all. Mother Love is very much a show of it's time - the yuppy era as personified by Kit and Angela - when everyone was hooked on soaps like Dallas and Dynasty with it's glitz and glamour; flash lifestyles and bucketloads of cash. And the more glamourous characters like Helena or Danuta with their shoulder pads and boxy suits wouldn't look out of place in Southfork or Denver. In fact the first time Helena appears, we couldn't help but think how much like Alexis Colby she was. If Joan Collins had turned down the role of Alexis, they could have asked Diana Rigg instead! One thing viewers today may not recognize is the London that's represented here. It's one with spacious homes in St. Johns Wood; people purchasing artwork or looking to own galleries; where the streets don't look as dirty or crowded as they do now, and where even a receptionist can live more than comfortably without having to rent a room in a shared house! A very different London indeed! It's ironic to see a very coiffed, very polished Helena with her exquisite home and taking taxis everywhere complain about how she had to scrimp and save to get by when bringing up Kit as a single mother. We think a lot of people living in London today would have something to say to Helena about scrimping and scraping! We thoroughly enjoyed watching Mother Love again. This really is a marvellous piece of classic TV drama. Diana Rigg did such a phenomenal job of playing the possessive mother and we really can't see anyone else in that role. She effortlessly glided between the elegant charmer to doting mother and grandma to manipulative schemer until she finally unraveled at the end. And as much as we're not a fan of sequels, in this case we'd take our chances as we'd love to know what became of Helena and the Veseys. Photos: Dailymotion Blog graphics and Word Cloud: Angel Noire

The second part of our look at legendary comedy sketch show The Two Ronnies which celebrates fifty years since it was first broadcast on BBC1 in 1971. Iconic Sketches There are some very famous Two Ronnies' sketches that are much-loved and still talked about today. Four Candles (1976) - A series of misunderstandings causes a shopkeeper to become fed up with the requests of a very vague customer. The Two Ronnies most iconic and talked-about sketch. A round of drinks (1976) - A man tries to order a round of drinks for a large party while becoming increasingly drunk each time he attempts to order. Mastermind (1980) - A contestant on the quiz show Mastermind answers each question before last. One of the greatest pieces of comedy ever created with the duos comedic timing being on point. Sheer genius! The Sweet Shop (1980) - Never say 'nothing is too much trouble' unless you really mean it! Barker's sweet shop owner realizes he may have to change his catchphrase after his encounter with Corbett's awkward customer. Anyone who's ever worked in retail will relate! Crossed Lines (1981) - Two men using payphones next to each other, making two separate calls, sound as though they're having the same conversation with each other. Hilarious! The Name Guessing Game (1982) - A party guest insists on guessing the name of a man he's just met. If he gets it right, he gets to spend the night with the man's wife. The Sheikh in the Grocery Store (1985) - Chocolate mouse, anyone?A sheikh struggles with the pronounciation of the items on his shopping list, making the grocer really work for his money. Solo sections Most of The Two Ronnies sketches involved both performers, but most episodes would feature solo skits from each of them. Barker's would often be a fast-paced, word-play sketch, where he was the head of a ridiculously-named organization in an effort to send up authority figures. And Corbett would have his 'armchair monologue' in which he would sit in a darkened set with the spotlight on him, facing the camera while he told a humorous story to the audience, in which he would often digress on the way to the amusing denouement of the story and by the time he got there, Corbett would have told a handful of unrelated anecdotes. Continuing Sagas One of the highlights of The Two Ronnies were the various continuing spoof serials which ran throughout many of the series which would often feature special guests. Hampton Wick (1971) The first serial of The Two Ronnies was a humorous costume drama about a governess called Henrietta Beckett. Barker played a randy aristocrat called Sir Geoffrey, and Corbett played his son Edward, though as the serial progressed, Barker and Corbett played a variety of different characters as well as their main roles. Done to Death (1972) Featuring the characters of Piggy Malone (Barker) and Charley Farley (Corbett) these private detectives investigate a mass murder in this serial. The first seven episodes of Done to Death ended with the same phrase: "Only one thing was for certain. There would be very little sleep for anyone that night." Death Can Be Fatal (1975) In the second serial to feature Piggy and Charley, a frogman delivers a note, and the private detectives are sent in search of the formula for the Clumsy Drug. Corbett and Barker also played the roles of the two villains in the story, Mr Greensleeves and his Japanese henchman Bobjob. The endings of each episode of Death Can Be Fatal had a Dick Barton-esque vibe to them. The Phantom Raspberry Blower of Old London Town (1976) The writers are credited as "Spike Milligan and a Gentleman" - with the "Gentleman" being Ronnie Barker! A Jack the Ripper parody in which a mysterious figure goes wondering around Victorian London late at night and terrorizes members of the establishment... by blowing raspberries at them! The raspberry-blowing sound effects were said to have been done by another legend - David Jason; Granville to Barker's Arkwright in Open All Hours. Stop! You're Killing Me (1977–78) Another case for Piggy and Charley as they investigate the murder of Devonshire yokels whose bodies are discovered in London The Worm That Turned (1980) A bit of feminist sci-fi here in this very memorable serial in which it's women who rule the country and gender roles are completely reversed - which prompts Barker and Corbett's characters to want to escape to Wales along with a lot of other disgruntled men. Band of Slaves (1981–82) Piggy Malone and Charley Farley on the case again where an all-girls orchestra is sold into slavery. Not only was this the final Piggy and Charley mystery serial but it was also the last in The Two Ronnies collection of serials as the following series of the show did not include any. A real shame if you ask us! Famous Faces There were a whole host of famous faces from seventies and eighties TV who had guest roles in The Two Ronnies. These included Carol Hawkins; Diana Dors; Kate O'Mara; Julia McKenzie; John Cleese; Joan Sims; Barry Cryer and Patricia Routledge to name but a few. Special Guests There were often special well-known guests invited to the show to perform and these included Elaine Paige; Barbara Dickson; Pan's People and Elkie Brooks. What We Think We think you know what we think - that The Two Ronnies is comedy gold! There are so many things that made this show a hit, and since it left our screens with no new series being made, there has never been anything quite like it. And certainly nothing that has endured or made a lasting impression on viewers the way The Two Ronnies did. First of all there was the unmistakable chemistry between Barker and Corbett which makes you wonder if the double act ever could have worked half as well as it did if either of the two had teamed up with another entertainer. Barker and Corbett had a strong friendship that came through in their work - even if the characters they were playing were meant to be mean to each other! Another thing that came through was their love and enthusiasm for their work and you could see that they thoroughly enjoyed what they did. And where the public were concerned, they just loved Barker and Corbett! There was something sweet and lovable about these two and even though we didn't know them, we felt as though we did. And how endearing was it that Corbett often poked fun at his lack of height! There was no ego; no arrogance, and no scandal - you felt that with them what you saw was what you got. It's no surprise then that the public felt the loss of Barker and Corbett very deeply when the two comedy legends passed away in 2005 and 2016 respectively. Then there was the writing! The Two Ronnies had some of the best writers in the business working on this show and this came through in scenes that were well-written, sharp, and absolutely hilarious - in fact many of these sketches can't be described as anything other than sheer genius. The comedy was always centered around the dialogue and the character, with Barker and Corbett being spot on with their comic timing, and many of these scenes were laced with lots of funny double- entendres. The Test-of- Time Test Fans of the show will say that The Two Ronnies are as watchable today as it was fifty years ago due to it being so well-written and acted. It's as laugh out loud now as it was back then. The magic of the show and of the partnership of Barker and Corbett cannot be compared to anything that's around today. Back then there was quality and real craftsmanship. But today there's a never-ending churning out of boring soaps; dire reality TV shows and talent contests where viewers will probably never see or hear from the winner after a couple of months! We'd rather have The Two Ronnies than any of that drivel! But while those of us who grew up watching The Two Ronnies will always see the magic of this show, there are many others, especially those who didn't experience the programme the first time around, who will see The Two Ronnies as typical of its time. And we can't argue with that as the show just screams seventies and eighties! But as we all know viewing habits and preferences change as the years go by, and the whole comedy sketch genre isn't really en vogue right now. And neither are comedy double acts (unless you're Ant and Dec!) So admittedly there are those who will find it all a little old hat. And many other features of the show - the gags, the musical finales, the musical acts etc. - will seem a little dated to modern ears and eyes. Furthermore the non-PC material which is so typical of comic material from back in the day will not go down well with audiences today - and that's putting it mildly. So fifty years later, it will be very difficult to repeat the show. By the time The Two Ronnies had come to an end, comedy had started to move on to satire and alternative humour anyway, and was beginning to leave Barker and Corbett's brand of comedy behind. But to the die hard fans, even fifty years later it's comedy heaven. That's all we have time for tonight so it's good night from us! What are your favourite memories of The Two Ronnies? Photos: YouTube Word Cloud: Angel Noire

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom GENRE: Comedy Sketch Show CHANNEL: BBC1 Produced by: BBC Years: 1971-87 NUMBER OF SERIES: 12 EPISODES: 93 CREATED BY: Bill Cotton THEME MUSIC: Ronnie Hazlehurst DIRECTED BY: Robert Knights STARRING: Ronnie Barker Ronnie Corbett Plus special guests And In A Packed Programme Tonight... In a packed post tonight we look at a comedy sketch show that began fifty years ago with two British comedy legends who both have the same first name. Mr. Barker uses it from Monday to Friday while Mr. Corbett takes over at the weekend! OK, OK, we're not Mr. Ronnie Barker or Mr. Ronnie Corbett so you can't expect us to be hysterically funny. You can't compete with legends - especially not two who have written and starred in one of the most iconic comedy sketch shows on British television. If you were a child of the seventies and eighties, there's a good chance that The Two Ronnies was compulsive viewing in your house. When the show first aired on 10th April 1971, who knew that it would take off the way that it did? Or that fifty years later The Two Ronnies would still be such a comic institution? From the moment each episode opened with the bespectacled pair talking about 'a packed programme tonight' and ending with a 'goodnight from him,' they had audiences up and down the country howling! Barker and Corbett bid a permanant goodnight to the show in December 1987, and well - TV was a little less brighter and a lot less funnier. The Two Ronnies, when first broadcast in 1971, was given the prime-time slot of 8pm on a Saturday night (when telly was fab!) and it soon went on to become one of the most successful, long running British light entertainment programmes. At its peak, The Two Ronnies pulled in audiences of just under nineteen million viewers per episode. There were Christmas specials (yep, when Christmas telly was fab!) shows reworked for the Australian audience where the show was regularly screened, and after the series ended in 1987, there were the occasional compilation episodes hosted by Barker and Corbett and these continued until Barker's death in 2005. As The Two Ronnies celebrates fifty years since it first aired, we take a look at what went into making the show such a spectacular and why Barker and Corbett were such a class act. When Ronnie Met Ronnie In 1963, a diminutive actor - between acting jobs - was working at the bar of the Buckstone Club in London where he met a larger than life, more established radio and West End actor. Nobody knew that this was the beginning of an enduring - and endearing - comedy double act that would rival Laurel and Hardy or Morecambe and Wise. But as well as their comedy partnership, Barker and Corbett were also very good friends. And when Barker decided to retire from showbiz and call time on The Two Ronnies, the only person who was aware of his plans (other than Mrs. Barker of course) was Ronnie Corbett. After Ronnie Barker passed away in 2005, Corbett said that in all the years they'd been friends, there had never been a cross word between them - even though they both worked in a very high pressured industry. How's that for friendship! But despite the success of the show, Barker and Corbett didn't work exclusively as a double act. Aside from The Two Ronnies they did star in a number of car adverts together from the late seventies, but in their celebrated and extensive careers, both stars were also known for their individual projects and for roles in shows such as Porridge; Open all Hours, and Clarence (Barker) and Now Look Here; Sorry! as well as hosting Small Talk (Corbett, where in the latter the children sometimes referred to him as Mr. Cornet!) The Beginning of Something Great... After meeting at the Buckstone Club, the pair met up again at an audition for David Frost's new show The Frost Report. But the two Ronnies big break came unexpectedly, when totally unprepared and unscripted, the unflappable pair had to fill in at the 1970 British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards with an improvised piece during a whopping eleven minute technical hitch. As if this wasn't enough of a testament to their true talent and wit, it was all the more amazing because Ronnie Barker was always known for being shy and uncomfortable in the spotlight unless he was portraying a character. But somehow Barker, along with Corbett, gave a performance that secured their destiny as one of Britain's best-loved comedy duos. In the audience that night controller of BBC1, Sir Paul Fox, and Head of Light Entertainment, Bill Cotton - who had worked on a number of shows including Monty Python, The Generation Game, and Parkinson, and is also a relative of presenter Fearne Cotton - were impressed by the pair and decided to snap them up. And before Barker and Corbett knew it, they were given their own show by the Beeb! The Writers As well as Barker and Corbett, there were many well-known writers involved in the writing process for The Two Ronnies, including writers John Cleese, Eric Idle, John Sullivan, Barry Cryer, Michael Palin, and Spike Milligan among others. So if anyone is wondering why some of The Two Ronnies' sketches often had something of a Monty Python vibe to them - now you know! Oh and there was also a Gerald Wiley who wrote for some fantastic sketches too... Who is Gerald Wiley? The BBC began getting material from a writer called Gerald Wiley for sketches. No one knew who he was, and he never turned up for any meetings. The mysterious Gerald Wiley turned out to be Ronnie Barker under a pseudonym who didn't want to push his ideas on to others. Self-effacing as ever! Opening and Closing Themes The distinctive and now wonderfully retro opening and closing themes were composed by another Ronnie - British composer and conductor Ronnie Hazlehurst, who worked on many theme tunes for TV shows in the seventies and eighties including Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em; The Liver Birds; Butterflies and The Generation Game among many, many others. It appeared that the theme music for the opening and closing credits were two completely different compositions but in actual fact they were two parts of a longer piece of music. The theme that was used for the show's serial Charlie Farley and Piggy Malone was called The Detectives and was the work of composer Alan Tew. Fans of seventies telly would also know that the same track was the theme for the TV series The Hanged Man. The Format The Two Ronnies was more than just your average sketch show as it took on the appearance of a mini variety show. The show's format was comprised of sketches, solo sections, serial stories, musical finales and sometimes musical performances from other artists. But it always began and ended with the 'newsdesk' feature... News desk The Two Ronnies always began with Corbett and Barker parodying newsreaders, reading spoof news bulletins. As a child watching the show, you always knew when each episode had reached the end because the pair would be back at their desks reading 'the news'. It was evident during the news desk section of the show, that the two Ronnies would always be trying to stifle their laughter as they read each item. Whether this was them in character or because they were genuinely trying not to laugh, we don't know. But if it was the latter, who could blame them? And The Two Ronnies always ended on the same note with the same catchphrase: Corbett: That's all we've got time for, so it's "Goodnight" from me. Barker: And it's "Goodnight" from him. Both: Goodnight! Sketches Well written, well acted, and well directed - that's how you could describe the sketches in The Two Ronnies. Maybe that's why they were so well received! The show consisted mainly of a series of comic sketches, many of them where Barker and Corbett appeared in together. The sketches often involved complex word-play, the ridicule of eccentrics, officials and establishment figures. Some of the jokes and dialogue could be quite bawdy, veering on downright raunchy - but they still weren't quite Benny Hill or Kenny Everett! Much of the material for The Two Ronnies had a slight surreal Monty Python feel about it which isn't a surprise considering who was writing a lot of the scripts and sketches. And of course the double act, routine and skits drew obvious comparisons with Morecambe and Wise. Musical finales Just before the final newsdesk feature of the episode, there would be a grand musical finale where Barker, Corbett and other singers and musicians would sing a melody of songs to suit the comic situation they were portraying. Check out the second part of the post And It's Good Night From Him: 50 Years of The Two Ronnies. Photos: YouTube Word Cloud: Angel Noire