Britain's Top 50 Sitcoms (Part 2) Quiz

Answer: 23 Railway Cuttings

Tony Hancock worked originally with Sid James, and the series was then called 'Hancock's Half Hour'. After some time, they came to see that they were becoming a team and both wanted to work individually and not be considered only half an act, so they decided to split up. Tony's programme was renamed 'Hancock' and it was one of these which took the country by storm - 'The Blood Donor'. "A pint? That's very nearly an armful. I'm sorry, I'm not walking around with an empty arm for anybody."

Answer: True

This was Dame Judi Dench, who won an Oscar in 1999 for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth in 'Shakespeare in Love'. 'As Time Goes By' is not the only sitcom Judi has taken part in; in 1981 she played with her husband (now sadly deceased) in 'A Fine Romance', where she and Michael Williams never quite managed to admit their feelings, let alone kiss each other, for many, many episodes!

Answer: dinnerladies

There has been some discussion as to why Victoria Wood insisted on a lower case 'd' for her sitcom 'dinnerladies'. Personally I think it could have been for that very reason - the discussion about it kept the programme in the mind just that little longer!

Answer: Leonard Rossiter

'Rising Damp' lasted for four series (28 episodes), from 1974 to 1978. While Rossiter played the landlord, Beckinsale, Warrington and De La Tour were his tenants in a sad-looking house in a northern location which was never named.

Answer: False

This sitcom was set in a television newsroom (except for Stephen Tompkinson who was a roving reporter). The most unusual aspect of this sitcom was that it was filmed just a day or so before it was broadcast, so it contained many of the breaking news stories of the time.

Answer: Ricky Gervais

David Brent (Ricky Gervais) works in a paper merchants in Slough, and his office had the honour of being chosen as the subject of a 'fly-on-the-wall' documentary (docusoap). The resulting sitcom is filmed as that documentary - a radical idea in the field of sitcoms which seemed to work.

Answer: 3

They are Nick, Janey and Michael. Ben (Robert Lindsay) would much rather have had none at all. Susan (Zoe Wanamaker) probably thinks the same. Mind you, if you had Nick for a son, you might feel the same way!

Answer: Terry joined the army

Bob went to sign up for the army, but was refused because he had flat feet. Unknowing of this, and wanting to remain with his friend, Terry had joined up and was taken away to training. When he came back in 1973 he found Bob was about to be married to Thelma, who distrusted his old friend as she could see that he wanted Bob to remain free of matrimonial ties so they could resume their old habits.

Answer: Michael Crawford

Allen wrote the programme along with Crawford, while Lotterby and Mills were the producers. Forever the perfectionist, Crawford refused to allow anyone else to do his stunts on this programme, and in the same dedicated manner, he trained himself to sing, and went on to become the 'Phantom of the Opera' some years later. An incredible leap from Frank Spencer!

Answer: Grantleigh Manor

The outside shots of Grantleigh Manor were done at Cricket St Thomas, in Somerset.

Answer: Wendy Richard

Wendy Richard went on to become Pauline Fowler, the matriarch of the Fowler/Beale family in 'EastEnders'. Frank Thornton was to move to another sitcom, 'Last of the Summer Wine', while Arthur English continued in bit parts in different programmes and Mollie Sugden starred in the sitcom 'That's My Boy'.

Answer: Dave

The first episode was called 'Bills, Bills, Bills' and the programme has been a hit ever since. Breaking away from the mould, 'The Royle Family' never move from their living room unless it is to go to the kitchen or bathroom. It is like spying on your neighbours!

Answer: Kristine Kochanski

Lister had fallen in love with Kristine before the accident which killed the entire crew but for himself (he was in a stasis booth at the time); the Kristine who joined the crew was from a different dimension - in her lifetime she had been the one who had been in the stasis booth, and their Holly had brought Lister back as a hologram, not Rimmer.

Answer: French and Saunders

With Dawn French playing the daughter in a two-person sketch about a mother and daughter who are worlds apart from each other, 'Absolutely Fabulous' was born. Jennifer Saunders (Edina) recruited Joanna Lumley to play Patsy, her best friend, and Julia Sawalha as her daughter, Saffy, and never looked back. 'Ab Fab', as it is affectionately called, has been a popular comedy programme since it began in 1992, even surviving a five-year break.

Answer: it switched channels from ITV to BBC

At the end of the first series, ITV decided not to show this sitcom any more. Recognising a good idea, the BBC took it on, and despite the year's gap in production, soon proved that they could see a fine comedy. The replacing of Harry Enfield's character with Neil Morrisey's Tony Smart went a long way to ensuring the success of the programme.

Answer: Albert Steptoe

Old Steptoe (Wilfrid Brambell) was a disgusting old man, while his son (Harry H Corbett) yearned to better himself and rise above the junk yard in which he had been brought up and now lived. This made for some very funny exchanges between the two, and a classic sitcom indeed!

Answer: Yorkshire

'Last of the Summer Wine' started as a one-off play in 1973, led onto a six-episode series later that same year, and then took off! There have been over 225 episodes made since that time, and one actor, Peter Sallis, has been in each one.

Answer: Secret Army

Clips from the series were, apparently, shown in schools to demonstrate to children how their French would sound to real French people if they did not get their accents right!

Answer: Violet

Rose lived with Daisy and her husband, the slobbish Onslow, while Violet lived in her enormous house with her husband Bruce. The story always centred around Hyacinth, who was so snobbish it was unreal, and her long-suffering husband, Richard.

Answer: Thermoman

Ardal O'Hanlon played George Sunday (Thermoman) in 'My Hero' and Father Dougal Maguire in 'Father Ted'. It seems highly unlikely that any more episodes will be made about this gentle Irish Catholic household, as Dermot Morgan, who played Father Ted Crilly, died shortly after the third series was completed.