Roy Clarke (writer) & Alan J W Bell (director) (24 December 1988). "Crums". Last of the Summer Wine. Series 10. BBC One. Christmas Special.

a b Roy Clarke (writer) & Alan J. W. Bell (director) (5 January 2003). "The Lair of the Cat Creature". Last of the Summer Wine. Series 24. Episode 1. BBC One. Last of the Summer Wine was set and filmed in and around Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, England, and centred on a trio of elderly men and their youthful misadventures; the members of the trio changed many times over the years. The original trio consisted of Bill Owen as the mischievous and impulsive Compo Simmonite, Peter Sallis as easy-going everyman Norman Clegg, and Michael Bates as uptight and arrogant Cyril Blamire. When Bates dropped out due to illness in 1976 after two series, the role of the third man of the trio was filled in various years up to the 30th series by the quirky war veteran Walter C " Foggy" Dewhurst ( Brian Wilde) (who had two lengthy stints), the eccentric inventor and ex-headmaster Seymour Utterthwaite ( Michael Aldridge), and former police officer Herbert "Truly of The Yard" Truelove ( Frank Thornton). The men never seem to grow up, and they develop a unique perspective on their equally eccentric fellow townspeople through their stunts. Although in its early years the series generally revolved around the exploits of the main trio, with occasional interaction with a few recurring characters, over time the cast grew to include a variety of supporting characters and by later years the series was very much an ensemble piece. Each of these recurring characters contributed their own running jokes and subplots to the show, often becoming reluctantly involved in the schemes of the trio, or on occasion having their own, separate storylines. First of the Summer Wine – Uncovered!". Summer Wine Online. Summer Wine Appreciation Society. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012 . Retrieved 2 April 2017.Last of the Summer Wine is a British sitcom set in Yorkshire created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of Comedy Playhouse on 4 January 1973, and the first series of episodes followed on 12 November 1973. Alan J. W. Bell produced and directed all episodes of the show from late 1981 to 2010. The BBC confirmed on 2 June 2010 that Last of the Summer Wine would no longer be produced and the 31st series would be its last. [1] Subsequently, the final episode was broadcast on 29 August 2010. [2] Since its original release, all 295 episodes, comprising thirty-one series—including the pilot and all films and specials—have been released on DVD. [3] Repeats of the show are broadcast in the UK on BBC One (until 18 July 2010 when the 31st and final series started on 25 July of that year), Gold, Yesterday, and Drama. It is also seen in more than 25 countries, [4] including various PBS stations in the United States and on VisionTV in Canada. With the exception of programmes 'rebooted' after long hiatuses, Last of the Summer Wine is the longest-running TV comedy programme in Britain and the longest-running TV sitcom in the world. [5] [6]

Roy Clarke (writer) & Alan J. W. Bell (director) (1 January 1986). "Uncle of the Bride". Last of the Summer Wine. Series 8. BBC One. New Year Special. Although many felt that the show's quality had declined over the years, [7] Last of the Summer Wine continued to receive large audiences for the BBC [8] and was praised for its positive portrayal of older people and family-friendly humour. [9] Many members of the royal family enjoyed the show. [10] The programme was nominated for numerous awards and won the National Television Award for Most Popular Comedy Programme in 1999. [11] There were twenty-one Christmas specials, three television films and a documentary film about the series. Last of the Summer Wine inspired other adaptations, including a television prequel, [12] several novelisations, [13] and stage adaptations. [14] Production [ edit ] History and development [ edit ] Roy Clarke (writer) & Alan J. W. Bell (director) (20 June 1999). "The Phantom Number 14 Bus". Last of the Summer Wine. Series 20. Episode 9. BBC One. a b c "First of the Summer Wine – Special Article". Summer Wine Online. Summer Wine Appreciation Society. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012 . Retrieved 2 April 2017.Roy Clarke (writer) & Alan J. W. Bell (director) (28 December 2006). "A Tale of Two Sweaters". Last of the Summer Wine. Series 27. BBC One. Christmas special. Camping, Katie (5 September 2008). "Survey says Summer Wine worst thing about Yorkshire". The Huddersfield Daily Examiner . Retrieved 5 April 2017. Atkinson, Neil (16 August 2005). "Is it the Last of Summer Wine?". The Huddersfield Daily Examiner . Retrieved 5 April 2017. Examiner, Huddersfield (24 July 2010). "Last of the Summer Wine Creator Roy Clarke says he knew this season would be the last". Examiner.co.uk . Retrieved 3 August 2016.

a b Oatts, Joanne (17 July 2007). "3.2million enjoy 'Summer Wine' ". Digital Spy . Retrieved 5 April 2017. Atkinson, Neil (24 December 2008). "Last of Summer Wine boss quits in axe row". The Huddersfield Daily Examiner . Retrieved 5 April 2017. Awards Database – Last of the Summer Wine". British Academy of Film and Television Awards. Archived from the original on 18 September 2009 . Retrieved 2 April 2017. A new stage adaptation of the show debuted in 2003. Based on Clarke's novel The Moonbather, the play was first performed by the Scunthorpe Little Theatre Club from 7 to 11 October 2003. [122] Using new actors to perform the roles of Compo, Clegg, and Foggy, the play featured the trio as they attempted to get to the bottom of the disturbance created by a near-naked man in the town. The play was later performed in Eastbourne by Eastbourne Theatres from 15 July 2009 to 8 August 2009 before touring the country through November 2009. [123] Every episode of Last of the Summer Wine was written by Roy Clarke. The Comedy Playhouse pilot and all episodes of the first series were produced and directed by James Gilbert. Bernard Thompson produced and directed the second series of episodes in 1975. [16] In 1976, Sydney Lotterby took over as producer and director. He directed all but two episodes of the third series [6] [23] – Ray Butt directed "The Great Boarding House Bathroom Caper" and "Cheering up Gordon". [24] [25] Lotterby directed two further series before departing the show in 1979. [6] [23] In 1981, Alan J. W. Bell took over as producer and director. Bell, in an effort to get each scene exactly right, was known for his use of more film and more takes than his predecessors [6] and for using wider angles that feature more of the local Holmfirth landscape. [13]a b c "Series Profile: Last of the Summer Wine". The Insider. BBC Sales. May 2007. pp.8–9. Archived from the original (DOC) on 11 January 2008 . Retrieved 2 April 2017. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Producer and director: Alan J. W. Bell (13 April 2003). 30 Years of Last of the Summer Wine. BBC One. Coronet Books released a novelisation of Last of the Summer Wine in 1974. Written by Roy Clarke as an unbroadcast original story, the novel featured Compo, Clegg and Blamire helping their friend, Sam, enjoy one last night with a glam girl. The book became the basis for the Last of the Summer Wine film, Getting Sam Home, with Blamire being replaced by Foggy. [13] In 1983, Granada Books published a slightly different version of the first novel with Foggy in it instead of Blamire. In the late 1980s, Roy Clarke wrote two novels featuring Compo, Clegg, and Seymour. The books were published by Penguin Books under the series heading Summer Wine Chronicles, and were titled Gala Week [125] and The Moonbather. [126] Clarke later adapted The Moonbather into a stage play. [122] Simply the best entertainment possible, I'd never watched Last of the Summer Wine before, then I found series 1-10 at a bargain price, after watching that, I was hooked, I just couldn't believe how good it was, just pure comedy, the best laughs possible for any age. I now have series 11-20 and have not been disappointed in any of them, they just got better and better.

In December 2008, Alan J. W. Bell stated in an interview with The Daily Telegraph that the BBC had not yet commissioned a new series and that bosses at the network told him one would not be produced. Bell criticised this decision, stating that "millions still enjoy the series and the actors love being involved" and that it would be a terrible blow to the shops and businesses in Holmfirth who have come to depend on tourist revenue. The BBC denied these claims, saying that a decision had not yet been reached whether to commission another series or not. [32] A spin-off prequel show, First of the Summer Wine, premiered on BBC1 in 1988. The new programme was written by Roy Clarke and used different actors to follow the activities of the principal characters from Last of the Summer Wine in the months leading up to World War II. Unlike its mother show, First of the Summer Wine was not filmed in Holmfirth. Period music was used instead of Ronnie Hazlehurst's score to create a more World War II era atmosphere. [116] New supporting characters were added to those from Last of the Summer Wine. Peter Sallis and Jonathan Linsley were the only actors from the original series to appear in the spin-off: Sallis played the father of his own character from the original show and Linsley appeared during the second series as a different character. [12] Roy Clarke (writer) & Alan J. W. Bell (director) (15 July 2007). "The Second Stag Night of Doggy Wilkinson". Last of the Summer Wine. Series 28. Episode 1. BBC One. Highest Rated Programmes 1985". BARB. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011 . Retrieved 2 April 2017.

Last Of The Summer Wine - The Complete Collection

Eardley, Clive. "Last of the Summer Wine: Review". Summer Wine Appreciation Society. Archived from the original on 19 February 2015 . Retrieved 2 April 2017. Every single episode of the world's longest-running sitcom: all thirty-one series of the BBC's Last Of The Summer Wine. Tillotson, Margaret. "Interview with Peter Sallis 1994". Summer Wine Online. Summer Wine Appreciation Society. Archived from the original on 22 March 2015 . Retrieved 2 April 2017. Several members of the royal family were viewers of Last of the Summer Wine. While presenting an OBE to Roy Clarke in 2002, Prince Charles said that his grandmother, the Queen Mother, had introduced him to the show. [139] The Queen told Dame Thora Hird during a 2001 meeting that Last of the Summer Wine was her favourite television programme. [10]