Last of the Summer Wine
Season 1
Last of the Summer Wine Series 1 & 2 DVD
Country of originUK
No. of episodes6
Release
Original networkBBC1
Original release
  • Pilot:
    4 January 1973 (1973-01-04)
  • Series:
    12 November 1973 (1973-11-12)–17 December 1973 (1973-12-17)
Additional information
Filming dates
  • Pilot: 1972
  • Series 1: 1973
Series chronology

Last of the Summer Wine's first series originally aired on BBC1 between 4 January 1973 and 17 December 1973.[1] All episodes from this series were written by Roy Clarke and produced and directed by James Gilbert.[2]

The pilot episode, alternately known as "The Last of the Summer Wine" and "Of Funerals and Fish," originally premiered on the BBC's Comedy Playhouse on 4 January 1973 "The Last of the Summer Wine" was the first episode of that show's fourteenth series.[3] The pilot received a positive enough reaction that the BBC ordered a full series of episodes, premiering on 12 November 1973.[4]

Outline

The trio in this series consisted of:

Actor Role
Michael Bates Blamire
Bill Owen Compo
Peter Sallis Clegg

First appearances

Episodes

No.No. in
series		Original title (top)
Alternative title (bottom)		Original airdateProd. codeDisc
114011
(Pilot)		"The Last of the Summer Wine"
"Of Funerals and Fish"		4 January 1973 (1973-01-04)TBA4*
Compo, Clegg and Blamire go around town, discussing life and death, watching their fellow townspeople with their problems in the process.[5]
21"Short Back and Palais Glide"
"The Lost Key"		12 November 1973 (1973-11-12)LLC1042E1
The trio go to the gloomy and pessimistic Judd's (Frank Middlemass) barber's shop for a haircut, then to the library where Blamire and Clegg hold Compo upside down to rid him of evil spirits. Compo realises he has lost his key and the trio go to find Mr Wainwright, the librarian. They find he has gone to a formal dinner dance, so Sid sneaks them into the back room where a game of cards ensues.[5]
32"Inventor of the 40-foot Ferret"
"Compo goes to Church"		19 November 1973 (1973-11-19)LLC1044S1

Blamire wants Compo to visit church and he is persuaded to go by Sid and Ivy but claims the only thing he felt was an itchy nose.[6]

  • The title of this episode on the menu of the UK DVD release is mislabelled as simply ‘Ferret’
43"Paté and Chips"
"They don't make sandwiches like that any more"		26 November 1973 (1973-11-26)LLC1043Y1
The trio decide to visit a local Stately Home with Compo's nephew, Chip (Tony Haygarth), and his family. They travel in Chip's crowded van and are left to look after the children, before eventually being thrown out after Compo and Chip's dog make an appearance to visitors, instead of the duke and duchess.[6]
54"Spring Fever"
"Compo's Suit"		3 December 1973 (1973-12-03)LLC1045L2
Nora is panic-stricken when Compo cleans his house rather than go to the library with Clegg and Blamire. The next day, he buys a suit, and Clegg and Blamire discover Compo is advertising for a housekeeper. The trio meets Compo's new housekeeper (Liz Smith) at the bus stop and Compo treats her to a meal at Sid's Café. She soon realises Compo has nothing to offer her and leaves.[7]
65"The New Mobile Trio"
"The 30s car"		10 December 1973 (1973-12-10)LLC1163H2
Clegg buys a car from a man named Walter (Ronald Lacey) who attempted to teach a dog how to ride a bicycle. The test drive is unsuccessful when the brakes fail and Walter collides with a tractor. Clegg tries buying a car from a reputable dealer but is equally unsuccessful this time when they collide with the tractor all over again.[8]
76"Hail Smiling Morn or Thereabouts"
"The Art of Photography"		17 December 1973 (1973-12-17)LLC1046F2

Blamire decides to take up photography. He and Compo go to Clegg's house and discover Clegg sorting out his camping equipment. Blamire takes pictures of the others and Clegg suggests they camp out and photograph the sunrise. While camping, a thunderstorm comes in and the trio are forced to shelter in a barn, where they oversleep and miss the sunrise.[8]

  • The title of this episode on the menu of the UK DVD release is misspelled as ‘Hail Smiling Moron’

1Comedy Playhouse episode number.

DVD release

The first and second series were released by Universal Playback as a combined box set in September 2002. The pilot episode is not included and some episodes have been altered from their original broadcast, prompting criticism from the show's fan base, however a rerelease of the box set in 2011 had the altered episodes restored to original episodes, however the pilot still was not included in the rerelease. The pilot episode was released on the final boxset series 31 & 32 as an extra on disc four on 15 August 2016.[9]

The Complete Series 1 & 2
Set Details[10]
  • 13 episodes
  • 4-disc set
  • Language: English
Release Date
Region 2
2 September 2002

Notes

  1. ↑ Bright and Ross (2000), pp. 165–167
  2. ↑ Bright and Ross (2000), p. 164
  3. ↑ Bright and Ross (2000), p. 16
  4. ↑ Bright and Ross (2000), p. 17
  5. 1 2 Bright and Ross (2000), p. 165
  6. 1 2 Bright and Ross (2000), p. 166
  7. ↑ Bright and Ross (2000), pp. 166–167
  8. 1 2 Bright and Ross (2000), p. 167
  9. ↑ "Last of the Summer Wine Series 31 & 32 [DVD]". Amazon. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  10. ↑ "Last of the Summer Wine Series 1 & 2 [DVD]". Amazon. Retrieved 21 August 2016.

References

Bright, Morris; Robert Ross (2000). Last of the Summer Wine: The Finest Vintage. London: BBC Worldwide Ltd. ISBN 0-563-55151-8.

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