Hughie Green Most Sincerely (BBC-4 2008, Trevor Eve, Mark Benton)

Most Sincerely picks up on Hughie Green’s life in 1958 when he meets Elaine (wife of Jess) Yates for the first time. Hughie is busy travelling the country with the stage version of his big hit TV show Double Your Money (the forerunner of Who Want’s To Be A Millionaire, with a thousand pounds as the big prize), following a brief affair Elaine gives birth to a daughter, Paula Yates (yes that Paula) and it isn’t until she is an adult that Hughie discovers he his her real father.

Trevor Eve was excellent (but then again he always is) as Green, captured the voice and mannerisms well. There were also some great recreations of moments from both Double Your Money and Opportunity Knocks, some major inventions though, surely Hughie didn’t come up with the term “reality tv” did he? And even though it appears he was one its hard to imagine Green as a major lothario.

Most Sincerely was one of the four Curse of Comedy dramas focusing on popular personalities of the 1960’s, all of whom had somewhat troubled lives, all four were fantastic but all made you like the people involved a whole lot less than you did before you started watching.

production details
UK / BBC Four / 1×80 minute episode / Broadcast 2 April 2008

Writer: Tony Basgallop / Based on the book Hughie and Paula by Christopher Green and Carol Clerk / Music: Joe Walker / Production Design: Patrick Bill / Producer: Ben Evans / Executive Producer: John Yorke / Director: Daniel Percival

cast
TREVOR EVE as Hughie Green
MARK BENTON as Jess Yates
KIM THOMSON as Claire Green
KATE WILLIAMS as Mrs Carr
DANNY WEBB as Noel Botham
JACK ARMSTRONG as Young Hughie
EMMA STANSFIELD as Elaine Yates
IAN CAIRNS as Major Green
VICTORIA PUGH as Young Housewife
CHRISTOPHER GILLMAN-WELLS as Young Christopher
MARED SWAIN as Female Fan
MEGAN CONVERY as Young Linda
NICK DUNNING as Vic Hallums
VICKY OGDEN as Ordinary Housewife
GEORGE POTTS as Male Contestant
WILL THORP as TV Executive
TAET CHESTERTON as Lena Zavaroni
JASPER JACOB as Jeremy Isaacs
CARMEN DU SAUTOY as Christina Shaples
JULIA FORD as June Laverick
DEBORAH CORNELIUS as Linda Green
TIM WALLERS as Christopher Green
JOHN WARNABY as Dr Halshaw
RIVER GEORGE as Paula Yates
LAURENCE BELCHER as Boy Contestant
GLYNNE STEELE as Mr Reed
OLIVIA DARNLEY as Receptionist