"They don't like it up 'em" (Dad's Army - The Complete Ninth Series (DVD))

Member Name: Maximus-Qualitus

Product:	Dad's Army - The Complete Ninth Series (DVD)
Date:	10/11/09 (59 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: TIMELESSLY FUNNY

Disadvantages: NOTHING

Dads army
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I truly have a huge soft spot in my heart for this wonderfully brilliant series.
Written by: Jimmy Perry, David Croft
Ran from 1968 - 1977 and spanned 9 Series.

Location:
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Walmington-On-Sea on the Sussex coast.
(Actually filmed in Thetford, Norfolk although other minor locations around Suffolk and Norfolk where occasionally used).

The cast:
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Arthur Lowe as
Captain George Mainwaring
A pompous bank manager who self appoints himself as the Capt of the Local Defence Volunteers, LDV who are later renamed, The Home Guard. He takes himself far too seriously and often makes up stories to build up his self importance.

John Le Mesurier as
Sgt Arthur Wilson
Chief clerk at Mr Mainwarings bank and Public school educated which gets right up Mr Mainwarings nose. Arthur is a 'Dandy' and a real ladies man and the unspoken father of 'Pike'. Nothing ever gets Arthur flustered except perhaps bad manners.

Clive Dunn as
Lance Corporal Jack Jones
Jack is the local Butcher who had his own catchphrase of "They don't like it up Em" and "Don't Panic!". A stickler for following the chain of command and so, a strong, sycophantic, supporter of Capt Mainwaring.

John Laurie as
Jock Frazier.
The local undertaker and stereotypical dour Scot. Mean with his money and takes every opportunity to put down Capt Mainwarings preening and pompous strutting. Similarly has a catchphrase, "Where doomed"

Ian Lavender as
Frank "Stupid Boy" Pike.
Wet as dishwater and molly coddled by his mum, Mrs Pike and suspected son of Arthur. Pike generally breaks things all falls in any available water.

James Beck as
Joe Walker.
Joe is a bit of a Spiv or 'Wide Boy'. If you need it Joe can get it for you at a price. He is always passing sarcastic comments around Capt Mainwaring.

Arnold Ridley as
Charles Godfrey.
The politest person you will ever meet and in charge of the first aid kit. Godfrey is soft, quiet and gentle and has problems with needing a pee. He is always being caught short or falling asleep at the most inappropriate moments. A bachelor who lives with his two sisters Dolly and Cissy.

Other Characters:
Bill Pertwee as
Warden Bill Hodges
The local Greengrocer and arch enemy of Capt Mainwaring. He often refers to Mainwaring as 'Napoleon'. Always comes a cropper in any plans he makes to make the Home Guard look daft.

Frank Williams as
Rev Farthing
Vicar of the local church and the hall that both the wardens and the Home Guard use for drills and meetings. This often causes ill feeling between them.
A limp and useless Clergy who moans because his bell have been taken to aid the war effort.

Edward Sinclair as
The Verger.
Constantly buzzing around the vicar and buttering up to him at every opportunity.

The premise was as simple as it was funny, following a bunch of aging but caring OAPs as they set up a defence should Hitler reach our shores. Their defences would not have stood up to a good wind!
But their hearts, if not their brains, where always in the right places. And you where never left in any doubt each and every one of them would have laid down their lives in protection of the country they loved.

Series 9
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1: Wake Up Walmington
Mainwaring orders his men to dress up as Germans to shake up the town abit and get them enthused about the war effort.

2: The Making Of Private Pike
Pike 'borrows' Mainwarings new staff car but things go awry and Mainwaring is not happy.

3: Knights Of Madness
The platoon end up taking on the Wardens in a re-enactment on St Georges day.

4: The Miser's Hoard
Everyone thinks that Frazer is hording Gold but he has a plan to outwit them all.

5: Number Engaged
The platoon find an UXB hanging from some telephone wires and all manner of ruses are used to dislodge it.

6: Never Too Old
Finally Jones marries Mrs Fox but things do not go according to plan.


A fitting end to a true Classic Comedy Gold Series.

Opinions:
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Born in 64 I don't remember the original early episodes but do remember some of the later series on TV. A wonderful, gentle and tongue in cheek look at us Brits during the War.
The cast where simply delightful to watch, even their sometimes fluffed lines. Apparently Arthur Lowe sometimes only learnt his lines moments before recording took place. Even the enigmatic John Le Mesurier sometimes 'winged' it.

The interaction between the actors was simply sublime and that grew even more so as time went by.
John Laurie once said that the show would not last a series, how wrong he was, thankfully. John was classically trained and originally only did the show in between film.

For Ian Lavender this was to be only a bit part but soon Arthur was telling him to stand next to him during filming so as to be on film more often and it worked as they gave Pikey a permanent role.
Sadly James Beck died at an early age and 'The Magnificent Seven' where down to only six.
Arnold Ridley played a gentle pacifistic role but in reality had served at the front and in real life suffered dreadful injuries.

Clive Dunn was always my favourite as he was the barmiest and it was he that always ended up ruining all of the well laid plans of Mr Mainwaring, who needs friend like these indeed.

Memorable catchphrases are aplenty,
"Stupid Boy"
"I say, do you mind awfully just falling in"
"They don't like it up 'em"
"We're doomed!"
"I'll 'ave you Napoleon!"
"There is a war on you know"
"Stop mollycoddling the boy"
"I wondered who was going to spot that first!"

Timeless humour mixed in with actual and factual parts of war history give this comedy a status of real comedy gold.
The cast where all, (apart from Pikey and I suppose Jonesy who always acted way older than he really was), getting on in years and to last as long as it did was an achievement not only to the actors determination but to all of the background people as well.

Picture and sound quality are superb and true DVD quality.
Subtitles can be put on and again are accurately transcribed.

Greg.

Summary: WORTH HAVING IN YOUR COLLECTION.