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Comedy classics unearthed
Source:
Daily Mail, June 2nd 2001
LONG-LOST episodes of Dad's Army have been unearthed in a hunt for missing gems from the BBC archives.
A heap of rusting film cans handed in to the BBC after an appeal launched last week included two episodes of the wartime comedy which had been lost for more than 30 years.
Both The Battle of Godfrey's Cottage and Operation Kilt, made in Black and white and first shown in 1969, were complete. They have now been transferred to digital format for permanent storage.The 19 film cans are thought to have been rescued from a skip at the BBC's TV studio's at Elstree, Hertfordshire, by an employee in the 1970's. He later gave them to a friend, who came forward after hearing about the appeal. Three more episodes of the show, based around the exploits of the Home Guard are still missing.
Missing Dad's Army shows fall in at last
Source:
Daily Express, June 2nd 2001
Two missing episodes of the classic television comedy Dad's Army have been found after 30 years.
The Programmes went AWOL, shortly after they were first broadcast in March 1969. Contained in 19 film cans they somehow found their way into a skip at Elstree studio in the early 1970's.
A man working there rescued them and stored them at home for many years until his daughter insisted he get rid of the rusty old cans. He passed them onto a friend who, now in his eighties, saw the BBC's recent appeal for the return of old material and contacted the corporation. The film was found to be in good condition.
The episodes are Operation Kilt in which Mainwaring's men take on a Highland regiment, and The Battle of Godfrey's Cottage where the platoon mistakenly think the Germans have invaded.
The head of BBC information and Archives. Paul Flander said: "This is a smashing discovery. It's all we hoped for and more. There is even a book about the missing episodes. They can now be preserved for future generations."
BBC
treasure hunt turns up Dad's Army gold
Source:
The Guardian, June 2nd 2001
Matt
Wells, Media Correspondent
A BBC "treasure hunt" for lost archive material has led to the recovery of two episodes of the classic comedy Dad's Army, missing for more than 30 years.
The two programmes featuring the familiar adventures of Captain Mainwaring and the Walmington-on-Sea Home Guard were lost shortly after they were first broadcast in March 1969.
The episodes contained in 19 film cans, found their way into a skip at Elstree Studio in the early 1970's. A man working there rescued them and stored them at home for many years until his daughter insisted he get rid of the rusty old cans. He passed them onto a friend who, now in his 80's, saw the BBC's recent appeal for the return of old material and contacted the corporation. While the containers were in a poor state, the film inside was in good condition and has been transferred in digital format for permanent storage. They may be broadcast at a later stage.
The two episodes are Operation Kilt, where the Home Guard take on a Highland regiment in Manoeuvres with the aid of a pantomime cow, and The Battle of Godfrey's Cottage, where the troop mistakenly think the German's have invaded. Eighty episodes were originally made but five went missing.
David Croft, who produced and co-wrote the show, said he had been seeking the missing episodes for many years and once conducted a television appeal. "It's been a long time, but I always knew they would turn up some day. Dad's army is still finding new fans among younger viewers, and I think the public will be as happy as I am if they get a chance to see these two episodes."Paul Flander, head of BBC information and archives, said: "This is a smashing discovery. It's all we hoped for and more. People have been looking for those missing Dad's Army episodes for years - there is even a book about them."
The appeal for old material was launched last month with the BBC asking the public to send in pre-1980 recordings of shows no longer in its vaults. Missing episodes of The Likely Lads have already been found. Much archive material has been lost because broadcasters did not foresee the long-term value of TV programmes - or their commercial potential. Many programmes went out live until the 1970's; even when videotape was introduced, it was expensive but often reused.
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