Last Of The Summer Wine: An Appreciation

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Wintertea

Well-Known Member
Last year, I started revising and updating my book and asked for your thoughts about why LOTSW had been so successful. A number of you sent me some wonderful contributions, which I will be using.
Alas, personal circumstances dictated that work on the book had to be postponed. But I resumed work some weeks ago and hope to have it completed before too long. (I am re-writing, adding new photos, a new interview or two, lots of alterations, all of which involves a completely new layout.)
I intend to devote a chapter to your views and would welcome more contributions. The more, the better.
Here are some questions which might inspire you!
1: Did you get to meet any of the cast? If so, what are your memories of the occasion?
2: Was the BBC right or wrong to axe the series? Whichever you plump for, why do you feel this way?
3: Would you welcome the return of LOTSW? If not, why? If yes, how should the 'gap' be handled and who would you like to see join the cast?
4: Spin-off series were considered? Which would you favour? Cooper and Walsh? Barry and Glenda? Or something/somebody else?
Write as much or as little as you like. I am happy for contributions to be anonymous.
Finally, if anyone has any relevant photos, I would love the opportunity to use them in the book.
Best wishes to you all.
 
If LotSW were to return it should be handled as it always was, those still with us and able/willing return, others have moved in and Roy writes funny stories about them.:)

I like Cooper & Walsh, they are great characters for the screen-time they were used, I'm not sure they wouldn't wear thin on me as principles though. It would be nice if they could have been worked into another show, transferred to a different police department.

Barry and Glenda would need a premise to have an eclectic ensemble, both because if played by their original actors given their age others would be needed to fill out the physical comedy and Barry and Glenda would become annoying characters without a lot of in-between. I'd rather see them as part of the older set in a LotSW revival.
 
I think by restarting now would be a mistake, mostly because the vast majority of the cast have past away. To introduces new characters would make it a totally different show. Roy Clarke can only ever be the writer of Summer Wine and with his advancing years he may not be as sharp as he was, I'd love to see his work remain as perfect as it was. In my opinion and yes this might not go down well with some but his new work on Still open all Hours is no where near as brilliant as it was, I know a lot of people like it but I'm not one of them. The original is classic but the reuse of scenarios and old jokes just don't work in the long run. I was gutted when they finished Summer Wine but looking back I think it was the right thing to do. Hobbo was atrocious and the rambling plotlines weren't as sharp as they used to be. Summer Wine for me was a great bonding half an hour on a Sunday evening with my dad who was ill and in constant pain from when I was 10 years old but to watch him belly laughter for half an hour every week made watching him crying in pain the rest of the week that little bit easier because I knew deep down my old dad was still in there somewhere and for that I'm truly grateful to Roy Clarke.
 
I concur look when BBC made remake one off episodes of classic comedy Are You Being Served, Porridge , Keeping up Appearances, Til Death do us part , Steptoe and son and Porridge . Of all the shows I thought Til Death got pretty close but none of them were great and then they afforded Porridge to be remade as a series with Kevin Bishop as Fletch's grandson I thought it was dire , so please NO don't even think about it just leave us with the memories of the great show we all love so much .
 
I would settle for a one-off pilot episode of Cooper and Walsh, made this year, to be shown next year to mark 50 years since the LOTSW pilot.

Wouldn't want to see a whole series unless the pilot was good.
 
Wintertea said:
Last year, I started revising and updating my book and asked for your thoughts about why LOTSW had been so successful. A number of you sent me some wonderful contributions, which I will be using.
Alas, personal circumstances dictated that work on the book had to be postponed. But I resumed work some weeks ago and hope to have it completed before too long. (I am re-writing, adding new photos, a new interview or two, lots of alterations, all of which involves a completely new layout.)
I intend to devote a chapter to your views and would welcome more contributions. The more, the better.
Here are some questions which might inspire you!
1: Did you get to meet any of the cast? If so, what are your memories of the occasion?
2: Was the BBC right or wrong to axe the series? Whichever you plump for, why do you feel this way?
3: Would you welcome the return of LOTSW? If not, why? If yes, how should the 'gap' be handled and who would you like to see join the cast?
4: Spin-off series were considered? Which would you favour? Cooper and Walsh? Barry and Glenda? Or something/somebody else?
Write as much or as little as you like. I am happy for contributions to be anonymous.
Finally, if anyone has any relevant photos, I would love the opportunity to use them in the book.
Best wishes to you all.
Click to expand...
The only thing I can think of is having Cooper and Walsh transferred to another area, they do their usual thing of ploys of escaping from their duties and in the process, get caught up in something big and then they manage to with their normal aplomb straighten things out, sometimes without even realizing the fix they've been in.
 
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