Comedy Firsts
| Comedy Firsts | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom/Sketch |
| Starring | Various |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 10 July – 14 August 1995 |
Comedy Firsts is a short-lived British television series consisting of five unrelated sitcoms and one sketch show that aired in 1995. Two of the episodes later led to full series, Barbara and Sometime, Never.
Background
Comedy Firsts followed on from ITV's Comedy Playhouse that had aired in 1993. It followed the same format of a series of one-off comedy pilots. Each episode of Comedy Firsts aired on Monday at 8pm and had a different cast and writers.
Episodes
| Title | Airdate | Writers | Overview | IMDb link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbara | 10 July | Mark Bussell, Rob Clark, Ramsay Gilderdale & Graham Mark Walker | Barbara Liversage (played by taxi driver. Her son Neil (Benedict Sandiford) still lives at home, while her daughter Linda (Caroline Milmoe) is married to chef Martin Benson (Glen Davies). Barbara's sister is Jean (Shirley Anne Field) who is married to Phil (John Arthur) while her colleague is Doreen (Madge Hindle). Three series of Barbara aired from 1999 to 2003.
|
[1] |
| Sometime, Never | 17 July | Jenny Lecoat | Maxine Bailey (played by Sara Crowe) is a single, acid-tongued liberal drama teacher at an inner-city comprehensive. On her 31st birthday she reflects on her life, and annoyed that fellow teacher Louise Kilgarith (Lucinda Fisher) got a promotion she wanted and generally annoyed with her ex-boyfriend Ian (Harry Burton). Her best friend Bernice (Ann Bryson) lives in the flat above her. Also starring Saeed Jaffrey as headteacher Harry and Sean Carnegie as Jason Williams. One series of Sometime, Never aired in 1996. | [2] |
| Sardines | 24 July | Gareth Edwards, Chris Langham & Ben Miller | Davy Kotowski (played by Alexander Armstrong as Alastair Simpson and Jake Abraham as Mickey Davis.
|
[3] |
| Waiting | 31 July | Jim Hitchmough | The NHS Hillcroft Medical Centre has a vacancy for a practise manager. The receptionist Beryl Oldham (played by Brigit Forsyth) is the favourite for the job, but then pompous ex-Army officer Maurice Ribley (Patrick Barlow) arrives and he is given the job. Also starring Peter Jones as Dr. Roger Capstick, Ashley Jensen as Amanda Cookson, Simon Slater as Dr. Duncan Pettifer and Sarah Lam as Dr. Anna Chen. | [4] |
| The Smiths | 7 August | Julian Roach | Clive (played by pub. Also starring Jackie Downey as Linda, Sonia as Doona, Geoffrey Hughes as Dooley and Angus Lennie as Wilf.
|
[5] |
| Now What | 14 August | Various | A Alan D. Marriott, Curtis Walker and Angela Wynter. It included a character called Triviaman and a spoof of Casualty called Casually.
|
[6] |
References
- Mark Lewisohn, Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy, BBC Worldwide Ltd, 2003
- Comedy Firsts at British TV Comedy