The everyday lives of working-class residents of Albert Square, a traditional Victorian square of terrace houses surrounding a park in the East End of London's Walford borough.
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The everyday lives of working-class residents of Albert Square, a traditional Victorian square of terrace houses surrounding a park in the East End of London's Walford borough.
Series of single made-for-television dramas.
The BBC's answer to Dynasty, Howards' Way was launched in 1985 with an enormous 1 million pound budget. The main characters in the show were 'best boat designer in the world' Tom Howard, his boutique running wife Jan Howard, 'I'll have a drink' Jack Rolfe and a nasty man called Ken Masters. It starred Maurice Colbourne.
Dempsey and Makepeace is a British television crime drama made by London Weekend Television for ITV, created and produced by Ranald Graham. The leading roles were played by Michael Brandon and Glynis Barber, who later married each other on 18 November 1989. The series combined elements of previous series such as the mis-matching of British and American crime-fighters from different classes as seen in The Persuaders! and the action of The Professionals.
The life of Emma Harte, from kitchen maid at the beginning of the 20th-century, to respected businesswoman and grandmother in the 1980s. From humble beginnings, Emma Harte starts her business with a small shop, but over the next twenty years, she expands her stores and invests in the growing textile industry in Leeds.
Adapted from Forrest Wilson's books, the children's programme revolves around a grandmother with super powers and her arch nemesis, The Scunner Campbell.
This final follow-up to 'Till Death Us Do Part' follows an aged Alf Garnett, now dealing with his wife Else's declining health and mobility, as well as the challenges of navigating the social security system and other everyday situations.
Blind Date was a British dating game show produced by London Weekend Television. An unscreened pilot was made with comic Duncan Norvelle as presenter but it was eventually hosted by Cilla Black, who already hosted the LWT series, Surprise, Surprise. Blind Date ran on Saturday nights from 30 November 1985 to 31 May 2003. Blind Date will return for a one-off special in late 2013, to celebrate Black's 50-year career in the entertainment industry. This special one-off will be part of another programme, The One and Only Cilla Black, presented by Paul O'Grady. Blind Date producers are aiming to bring back some of the show's most memorable contestants who are still single, giving them a second chance to win a date.
C.A.T.S. Eyes is a British television series made by TVS for ITV between 1985 and 1987. A spin-off of the series The Gentle Touch, Maggie Forbes leads an all-female detective agency called "Eyes" that secretly operates as a Home Office team known as C.A.T.S. (Covert Activities Thames Section).
Environmental activist Emma Craven is murdered in front of her father, local police inspector Ronald Craven. Investigating the death leads him through a haunting revelation of the murkiness of British nuclear policy of the 1980s.
Telly Addicts is a game show hosted by Noel Edmonds, that was first broadcast on BBC1 from 3 September 1985 until 29 July 1998 and produced at the BBC's Pebble Mill Studios. All questions were based on television programmes past and present, and generally took the form of a short clip being shown followed by a series of questions either specifically about the clip or more generally about the programme from which it had been taken. Two teams sat opposite each other on sofas. The final series in 1998 had three teams of two players.
When a handful of grain is found in the pocket of a murdered businessman, Miss Marple seeks a murderer with a penchant for nursery rhymes.
The residents of a quiet English village begin to receive nasty, threatening letters. The wife of the local vicar calls in her friend Miss Marple to investigate.
The rise and fall of Italy's fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. Recounting his life with his wife, children and mistress, this biography (based on the recollections of Mussolini's eldest son, Vittorio) chronicles Il Duce's tyranny as he plunges Italy into the dark days of World War II.
Home to Roost is a British television sitcom produced by Yorkshire Television in the 1980s. Written by Eric Chappell, it starred John Thaw as Henry Willows and Reece Dinsdale as his 18-year-old son Matthew. The premise is that Henry Willows is forty-something, who has been divorced from his wife for seven years and is perfectly happy living alone in London. That is, until his youngest child, Matthew arrives to live with him, after being thrown out by his mother. The plots generally revolved around Henry's annoyance at having his solitude disturbed, and the age gap clash. Henry employed two cleaners throughout the show's life; first Enid Thompson, and, in the third season, Fiona Fennell.
When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin known as the Artful Dodger and his criminal mentor, Fagin. When kindly Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver in, Fagin's evil henchman Bill Sikes plots to kidnap the boy.
Lytton's Diary is a 1985–86 British comedy-drama programme created and written by Peter Bowles and Philip Broadley. Produced by Thames Television for ITV, it originated as a single play on the anthology programme Storyboard before expanding into two popular series, known for their mix of glamour, intrigue, and social commentary. Bowles stars as Neville Lytton, a suave and successful Fleet Street gossip columnist for the Daily News. Lytton navigates the world of high-society scandals, political corruption, and personal challenges, balancing his professional life with his love life and his ambition to write a novel.
Tandoori Nights is a Channel 4 sitcom broadcast in two six-episode series from 1985 to 1987. The programme focuses on the rivalry between two Indian restaurants in East London: The Jewel in the Crown and The Far Pavilions.
In the French Riviera of the 1920s, wealthy expatriate Nicole Warren's mental illness strains her marriage to psychiatrist Dick Diver. A young American actress named Rosemary Hoyt arrives and is drawn into their circle, becoming romantically involved with the older Dick and disrupting the fragile balance of the group. The thought of Dick possibly being attracted to another sends Nicole on an emotional downward spiral that threatens to consume them all. Tender Is the Night is a 1985 television drama miniseries co-produced by Showtime, 20th Century Fox Television, BBC, and 7 Network. Based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1934 novel of the same name, the six-part series focuses on themes of love, ambition, mental illness, and the decline of the American Dream.
Crosswits is a British television quiz show produced by Cove Productions and Action Time in association with Tyne Tees and filmed from their City Road studios in Newcastle upon Tyne. It ran from 1985 to 1998. It was originally hosted by Barry Cryer for the first 2 series, then comedian Tom O'Connor took over from series 3 until the show ended. The show consisted of two members of the public competing against each other to solve simple crossword puzzles. Each member of the public was helped out by a "celebrity" partner. The announcers for the show were generally Tyne Tees continuity announcers such as Judi Lines, Jonathan Morrell and Bill Steel.
Four girls share a flat together in London. Having nothing in common aside from their gender, they barely manage to co-exist.
Comedy series about Nick and Angie, a young married couple, Angie's snobbish mother Daphne, and Nick's cockney father Sam. Much of the humour arises from the fact that the mismatched Daphne and Sam are forced by circumstances to share the flat below that occupied by their children.
T-Bag is a witch-like character who appears in a television series that ran from 1985 to 1992 on Children's ITV. Written by Grant Cathro and Lee Pressman, each season adopted a different title and features a single story told over several episodes.
A series of dramas featuring staged theatre plays.
The Last Place on Earth is a 1985 Central Television seven part serial, written by Trevor Griffiths based on the book Scott and Amundsen by Roland Huntford. The book is an exploration of the expeditions of Captain Robert F. Scott and his Norwegian rival in polar exploration, Roald Amundsen in their attempts to reach the South Pole. The series ran for seven episodes and starred a wide range of UK and Norwegian character actors as well as featuring some famous names, such as Max von Sydow, Richard Wilson, Sylvester McCoy and Pat Roach. It also featured performances early in their careers by Bill Nighy and Hugh Grant. Subsequently Huntford's book was republished under the same name. The book put forth the point of view that Amundsen's success in reaching the South Pole was abetted by much superior planning, whereas errors by Scott ultimately resulted in the death of him and his companions.
Bulman is a 1985–87 police procedural created and principally written by Murray Smith. Produced by Granada Television for ITV, it is the second and final spin-off from The XYY Man (1976–78), and following Strangers (1978–82). Don Henderson reprises his iconic role as former DCI George Bulman, ostensibly retired from and repairing old clocks but active as a private investigator, with Lucy McGinty as his assistant. The duo are frequently drawn into the clandestine world of the secret service through the machinations of security chief Bill Dugdale or Bulman's former superior Jack Lambie.
Presented by Mike Smith Stars in the spotlight, personalities at play, and famous faces in unexpected places. Sarah Greene, Jan Ravens, and Tom Brook report the show-business events of the week.
Mapp & Lucia is a British television comedy, based on E. F. Benson's novels, beginning with the eponymous 1931 entry for series 1, with Lucia's Progress and Trouble for Lucia for series 2. Mrs Emmeline Lucas (nicknamed Lucia) has just moved to the small English town of Tilling where she comes into conflict with the social ambitions of Miss Elizabeth Mapp. Until now, Miss Mapp has led (and controlled) the social life of Tilling, but that was before they met Lucia.
Bleak House is BBC television drama first broadcast in 1985. The serial was adapted by Arthur Hopcraft from Charles Dickens' novel Bleak House and it was the second adaptation by the BBC.
An advertisement announcing the time and place of a forthcoming murder appears among the ads of the paper in the small village of Chipping Cleghorn.
The Max Headroom Show started life in the UK in 1985. The show featured actor Matt Frewer playing the role as computer-generated talk-show host Max Headroom.
Albion Market is a short-lived British soap opera, intended as a companion to Coronation Street on ITV.
Trevor Chaplin teaches woodwork and likes to listen to jazz. Jill Swinburne teaches English and wants to help save the planet. Trevor tries to buy some jazz records but this leads to meeting a 'dazzlingly beautiful platinum blond'.
Time for Murder is a 1985 British anthology crime series produced by Granada Television, featuring six standalone, hour-long mystery episodes with twists, dark humour, and macabre elements, starring popular actors like Charles Dance and Claire Bloom. Each episode presents a different story, such as a tutor becoming a murder suspect or a writer's spa vacation turning sinister, all united by the theme that 'there is always a time for murder'.
Happy Families was a rural comedy drama written by Ben Elton which appeared on the BBC in 1985 and told the story of the dysfunctional Fuddle family. It starred Jennifer Saunders as Granny Fuddle, Dawn French as the Cook and Adrian Edmondson as her imbecilic grandson Guy. The plot centred around Guy's attempts to find his four sisters - also played by Saunders, for a family reunion.
Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV is a British sketch comedy series created by and starring comedian Victoria Wood with Julie Walters, Celia Imrie, Duncan Preston, Susie Blake and Patricia Routledge. The show broadcast on BBC Two between 1985 and 1987, and included sketches that became famous in the United Kingdom; these included one-offs like Two Soups and regular features such as Acorn Antiques, as well as musical performances by Wood including her most well-known number, The Ballad of Barry and Freda.
Jonny Briggs centers on the exploits of a young boy, the eponymous hero, his pet dog, Razzle, and his eccentric family members.
Black and white half-brothers Wesley and Cyril McGregor run an extremely dodgy secondhand car business out of Liverpool. A comedic spin-off from ITV's soap opera Coronation Street, the producers were unable to get Tony Osoba and Carl Chase to reprise the roles, so Paul Barber and Philip Whitchurch were cast instead. For two characters who appeared in a single May 1982 episode, The Brothers McGregor was very popular, running for four series.
A British television series based on the book of the same name written by Sue Townsend.
A series of Plays for BBC2
Busman's Holiday is a British television game show produced by Granada for the ITV network from 26 February 1985 to 28 June 1993. Its hosts over the years were Julian Pettifer, Sarah Kennedy and Elton Welsby. Charles Foster was the announcer.
Exhaustive 13-part survey of the television medium from its hesitant beginnings in the 1920s to the multi-million dollar extravaganzas of today and the cable and satellite technologies of the future [relative to 1985]. Tackling the medium as a worldwide phenomenon, the series examines each of the principal areas of programming - news, drama, documentaries, and light entertainment - and the unique impact of "live" coverage.
Metropolitan Police Commander Ken Crocker investigates corruption in high places.
Chronicles the lives of brothers Jonathan and Harold Dakers, in the Black Country, focusing on their close bond and the challenges they face, particularly during World War I.
Drummonds was a British television drama produced for the ITV by London Weekend Television, ehich ran for two seasons between 1985 and 1987. Set in a mid-1950s boys' boarding school, the series follows the lives of the students and staff, particularly headmaster George Drummond and his wife, Mary.
Mog was a British television comedy from 1985 and 1986 about a cat burglar living in a psychiatric hospital. It starred Enn Reitel as the title character, who is only faking insanity. It was based on Peter Tinniswood's 1970 novel of the same name. It was made for the ITV network by Central.
British sitcom in which Reverend Philip Lambe, after becoming bored in his wealthy Oxfordshire parish, asks for a transfer to a more difficult assignment. Sent to Edendale, a fictional urban town in the Midlands, he is accompanied by his wife Emma, sixteen-year-old daughter Miranda and twelve-year-old son Peter.
A thwarted Lady Maud runs off to her solicitor to start divorce proceedings and that gives Sir Giles his bright idea-why not run the proposed bypass for the area through their very own Cleene Gorge, thereby wrecking Lady Maud's ancestral home and copping rather a lot of compensation from the government to boot? Witness the frolics of the bumbling dundridge - the Y-front clad man from the ministry, Sir Giles' versatile Mrs Forthby - Mediterranean harlot and naughty schoolgirl extraordinaire, not forgetting Blott himself, gardener and mystery man, casting his enigmatic eye over the eccentricities of the great British aristocracy... Starring, George Cole, Geraldine James, David Suchet, Simon Cadell and Julia McKenzie
Connie is a 1985 British television drama created and written by Ron Hutchinson as a dry commentary on 1980s Thatcherite values. Set in the East Midlands garment industry, the titular character returns to the United Kingdom from Greece after eight years in self-imposed exile. She's determined to claw back control of her chain of high-street clothes shops now controlled by her stepsister, and also get her foot back into the House of Bea, a family-owned garment factory run by her father and stepmother, which is now losing money.
The Black Tower is a 1985 mystery television mini-series based on the book 'The Black Tower' by P.D. James. The title role of Commander Adam Dalgliesh was played by Roy Marsden.
A millionaire leaves his fortune to an unknown woman, Catherine Durell, who travels to Norway to take over her newly inherited property. Soon, she finds herself caught in a maelstrom of murder and terror.
Charters and Caldicott is a 1985 BBC mystery series featuring the characters Charters and Caldicott from the film The Lady Vanishes. It featured six 50 minute episodes broadcast on BBC1 at 9.25pm on Thursdays from 10 January to 14 February 1985.
Copy Cats was a British television comedy impressions sketch programme produced by LWT for ITV from 30 November 1985 to 5 December 1987. It was a revival of the quickfire sketch format of 1970s show Who Do You Do? and featured Aiden J. Harvey and Johnny More who were stars of the earlier show.
Heavy Metal singer Nigel Cochran moves into a small English village and forms a relationship with the local classical music teacher.
Mr Pickwick, Tupman, Winkle, Snodgrass and Sam Weller begin their travels through the England of stage-coaches and coaching inns.
Alias the Jester was a British animated series created by Cosgrove Hall Films, airing in 13 episodes on ITV starting on 13 November 1985. The show also aired during the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's after school timeslot and is considered one of the Classic ABC shows. GBC TV in Gibraltar aired the series multiple times in the late eighties, notably as a filler during the children's 630pm - 730pm weekday slot.
Cover Her Face is the debut 1962 crime novel of P. D. James. It details the investigations into the death of a young, ambitious maid, surrounded by a family which has reasons to want her gone – or dead.
Anna Tellwright lives in the Pottery District in Staffordshire with her young stepsister Agnes & father Ephraim, who is a wealthy man, but a miser. Anna attends the Methodist Church, but their strict rules & her father's thumb on everything she & Agnes do creates a longing for freedom. At 21, she inherits her grandmother's estate & is a now a wealthy young woman.
The Mistress is a British sitcom that aired on BBC2 from 1985 to 1987. Starring Felicity Kendal and Jane Asher, it was written by Carla Lane. The Mistress features Kendal playing Maxine, a young florist who is having an affair with a married man, whose wife was played by Jane Asher. It was disliked by some viewers, who were unhappy at seeing Felicity Kendal, who was best known as the innocent Barbara Good, playing a woman sleeping with someone else's husband.
Acorn Antiques is a parodic soap opera written by Victoria Wood as a regular feature in the two seasons of Victoria Wood As Seen On TV, which ran from 1985 to 1987. It was turned into a musical by Wood, opening in 2005.