Series synopsis
Shillingbury Tales is a British sci-fi & fantasy comedy drama television series that premiered on ITV1 on May 17, 1981. It ended on June 21, 1981. It was created by Francis Essex. It stars Robin Nedwell, Diane Keen, Jack Douglas and Joe Black.
Shillingbury Tales is a 1980–81 British sitcom produced by Associated Television for ITV. Comprising a single feature length pilot and six one-hour episodes, the series deals with life in an idealised fictional English village and stars Robin Nedwell, Diane Keen, Nigel Lambert, Jack Douglas, John Le Mesurier, Bernard Cribbins and Trevor Howard.
The series was written by Francis Essex and directed by Val Guest. Unusual for the time, it was shot entirely on location in the village of Aldbury in H ...
Premise
Shillingbury Tales is a 1980–81 British sitcom produced by Associated Television for ITV. Comprising a single feature length pilot and six one-hour episodes, the series deals with life in an idealised fictional English village and stars Robin Nedwell, Diane Keen, Nigel Lambert, Jack Douglas, John Le Mesurier, Bernard Cribbins and Trevor Howard.
The series was written by Francis Essex and directed by Val Guest. Unusual for the time, it was shot entirely on location in the village of Aldbury in Hertfordshire on 16mm and consequently there was no laugh track.
The show ended when ATV lost their licence to broadcast and their replacement Central declined to continue production.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Robin Nedwell as Peter Higgins
- Diane Keen as Sally Higgins
- Jack Douglas as Jake Smith
- Joe Black as Harvey
Guest cast
- Bernard Cribbins as Cuffy
- Diana King as Mrs Simpkins
- Linda Hayden as Mandy Smith
- Nigel Lambert as Reverend Norris
- Lilian Grassom as Terry
- Craig Stokes as Cuthbert
- Lionel Jeffries as Major George Langton
- Gwen Watford as Martha Langton
- John Standing as Dick Firman
- Helen Gelzer as Patti Maxton
- Eric Francis as Sam
- Royston Tickner as Filling Station Assistant
Episodes
This series spans 2 seasons with 7 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 0 | 1 | January 6, 1980 | January 6, 1980 |
| Season 1 | 6 | May 17, 1981 | June 21, 1981 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Shillingbury Blowers Writer/musician Peter Higgins and his wife Sally have moved into the village of Shillingbury. The council needs a new conductor for the brass band and invite Peter to join. This causes dissent from the band because they don't want to replace their old friend 'Salty'. |
January 6, 1980 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Shillingbury Tinker Cuffy the tinker is a simple man. He lives in a trailer and does odd jobs for food and money. Then he wins the lottery. Everyone in town tries to change him. |
May 17, 1981 |
| 2 |
The Shillingbury Melon Peter wants to grow a melon for a contest, but he needs a greenhouse. His father in law lets him use his and they both work together to landscape his backyard. There is a car rally in town, and something goes horribly wrong. |
May 24, 1981 |
| 3 |
The Shillingbury Cloudburst While Peter is away, Sally calls Dick, a workman, to fix cracks in the wall. One night, there is a huge storm and Dick brings a tarp over to cover the roof. Jake drives by that night and sees Dick's truck at Sally's. People start gossiping about them. |
May 31, 1981 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | ITV1 |
|---|---|
| First aired | May 17, 1981 |
| Last aired | June 21, 1981 |
| Runtime | 30 minutes |
| Status | ended |
| Schedule | Sunday |