Wodehouse Playhouse (BBC 1975-78, John Alderton, Pauline Collins)

Anthology series Wodehouse Playhouse used the stories of P.G. Wodehouse (naturally enough) for it’s episodes. Husband and wife team Pauline Collins and John Alderton starred in each (although Collins didn’t appear in the third batch of episodes.

Mostly set in the 1920’s the series was popular with critics but suffered somewhat by scheduling, the first two season were shown on BBC1 but series three was shown on BBC2.

Guest stars included the likes of Colin Jeavons, Julian Holloway, Raymond Huntley, Sydney Tafler, Josephine Tewson, A young Phil Daniels (as an office boy in A Voice From The Past), Cyril Luckham, Desmond Llewellyn, Joan Sanderson, fellow Upstairs Downstairs alumni Simon Williams, Gabrielle Drake, Fulton Mackay, Liza Goddard and Susan Jameson.

The Reverent Wooing of Archibald went out under the Wodehouse Playhouse banner on 9 July 1974 but this didn’t feature Alderton or Collins and is not treated as part of the series here.

production details
UK | BBC1 and BBC2

RUNNING TIME: 30 minutes (some episodes ran to 35 minutes) | NUMBER OF EPISODES: 20 | AIRDATES: 23 April 1975 – 12 December 1978

WRITER: David Climie | STORIES: P.G. Wodehouse | PRODUCERS: David Askey, Michael Mills, Gareth Gwenlan

THE EPISODES
SERIES ONE 23 April – 4 June 1975
1. THE TRUTH ABOUT GEORGE
2. ROMANCE AT DROITWICH SPA
3. PORTRAIT OF A DISCIPLINARIAN
4. UNPLEASANTNESS AT BUDLEIGH COURT
5. THE RISE OF MINNA ORDSTROM
6. RODNEY FAILS TO QUALIFY
7. A VOICE FROM THE PAST

SERIES TWO 26 March – 7 May 1976
1. ANSELM GETS HIS CHANCE
2. MR POTTER TAKES A REST CURE
3. STRYCHNINE IN THE SOUP
4. FEET OF CLAY
5. THE NODDER
6. THE CODE OF THE MULLINERS

SERIES THREE 31 October – 12 December 1978
1. THE SMILE THAT WINS
2. TROUBLE AT TUDSLEIGH
3. TANGLED HEARTS
4. THE LUCK OF THE STIFFHAMS
5. THE EDITOR REGRETS
6. BIG BUSINESS
7. MULLINER’S BUCK-U-UPPO