Wind of Change Perry and Croft: Made in Britain

-Sergeant Major?

-Shut up!

What I wanted to do was to talk about the last days of everything.

I'm usually in love with the latest creation.

They're all favourites in their own way.

Mr BL Williams. Civilian.

We don't get in each other's hair because we've got to be...

-It's like being married to somebody.

-Could be, yes.

-Yes.

I... I might have a little surprise for you tonight.

No, no... I...

What is the secret of this tremendous partnership of yours?

You've done so many successful things.

Dad's Army, It Ain't Half Hot, Hi-de-Hi...

We don't talk to each other.

We don't talk to each other much, except when we're working.

No, it works fine because I go over the top.

I have these ridiculous ideas. And David straightens them out.

We work together and it all seems to come out quite nicely.

# Coo! Coo! I just want you

# I really love the things that you do

# Come on and love-a-me too

# Won't you be my coo ca choo. #

India, the brightest jewel in Great Britain's crown of empire.

For 200 years, many famous heroes fought to keep the Union Jack

flying over this vast continent. 1757, Clive of India.

1826, Colonel William Sleeman, who suppressed the thugs.

1857, General Havelock, hero of Lucknow.

1945, this great tradition of empire is defended by a new

generation of heroes.

# Meet the gang cos the boys are here

# The boys to entertain you.

# With music and laughter to help you on your way

# To raising the rafters with a hey, hey, hey

# With songs... #

It was my adventures, running this ridiculous concert party.

# So, meet the gang cos the boys are here

# The boys to entertain you

# B-O B-O-Y-S, boys to entertain you! #

I was running a concert party in a place called Deolali in India

and the sergeant major existed and the colonel existed

and the sergeant major was intent on posting us up the jungle and that was

the only way we could stay in this dreadful place,

which was better than the jungle, was by running this concert party,

which the colonel liked.

And the whole situation did exist.

But David was in India as well, weren't you?

Yes, we were both in India at the same time, not the same place.

All the Brits were going home.

Unfortunately, I was left behind for two years.

Don't forget, we were all boys. We're talking about 19-year-olds.

When you think about soldiers in the war, you think about older men,

if you are a young person, but we went, we were boys.

Dear Mum, I hope you are well. The news is quite good.

I've got the Delhi itch. However, I've got over the runs, how's dad?

'40 million Muslims will live in India.

'18 million Hindus in Pakistan.'

We had the terrible job of trying to keep the Hindus

and the Muslims apart. This was the division of India and Pakistan.

It was a most frightful situation.

I shall never forget it.

British go home?! Bloody cheek!

Here we are, fighting to defend their country.

And this is how they repay us. How dare you!

How flamin' dare you!

CROWD CHANTS

Cow dung.

Cow dung all over my best tunic.

You should take it as a complement. To them, the cow's a sacred animal.

# Happy days are here again

# The skies above are clear again

# Let us sing a song of cheer again

# Happy days are here again. #

# Back again, back again

# Amongst the dear old friends we know... #

'The nine who'd got back together weren't entirely sure

'that by swapping the Royal Artillery depot in tropical Deolali

'for the BBC canteen at Shepherds Bush,

'they'd at last made the big time.'

# It was worth the going to be sure of knowing

# When we will come back again. #

What David and I have taken generally in Ain't Half Hot Mum is

the atmosphere of the show, the end of the British Raj,

the last days of the British Empire and the general thing of trying

to keep the spirits of the troops up in the most appalling conditions.

Hello, Mum and David.

I'm getting on quite well out here and I'm receiving my mail OK.

Roy, will you please remember me to Eileen and Gladys.

Well, Mum, that's about all for now, only don't worry - I'm OK.

Be seeing you.

I think Fred wants to talk to his wife.

Hello, Joan, dear, also mother. Hope you are both well.

This is certainly an unexpected pleasure.

I'm off to Kashmir in July and I shall see

Mrs Burgess in November.

Give all my kindest regards to those there. Also Vi.

Before I go, I think the boys would like to sing a song to you.

-What's it to be, boys?

-ALL: We'll Meet Again!

OK, maestro. Let's have it.

This should be good.

# We'll meet again

# Don't know where, don't know when

# But I know we'll meet again some sunny day... #

I will show you who is the masters here!

-Bearer!

-Sergeant Major, sir.

Burn this flag.

Oh, Sergeant Major, sir. Please do not ask me to do such a thing.

Burn this flag!

Sorry, I have no matches.

Whose side are you on?

Depends on who I'm talking to at the time, sir.

You may think it's a good thing the British are able to

laugh at their own past,

but the British Empire was no joke for those on the receiving end.

-How much to we pay the punkawalla?

-Three rupees a week, sir.

-Let's see. That's about four and six, isn't it?

-That's correct, sir.

Doesn't seem very much, does it? Ought we to give him a rise?

-Say one more rupee?

-What do you think, sergeant Major?

-Won't stop him falling asleep, sir.

-True.

Besides, if we give one a rise, they'll all want it.

We've only got one.

That's beside the point, Ashwood. A thing like that can interfere with

the whole structure of Indian society.

If you are doing history,

you must portray things as they were then, which was 1946.

It's no good pretending that it didn't happen. It did happen.

It's a very important part of our imperial history.

And it's authentic, really.

The British soldier was pretty arrogant

because we were the top dogs in those days.

So I think that attitude was there

and some of the Indians were very anti-British.

Hello! Someone's left a note.

It's addressed to you, sir. What does it say?

British pigs go home.

What awfully bad manners!

# Sing as we go and let the world go by

# Singing a song, we march along the highway

# Say goodbye to sorrow

# There's always tomorrow to think of today

# Sing as we go, although the skies are grey

# Beggar or king, you've got to sing a gay tune... #

SHIP'S HORN BLARES

There! It's the chai-wallah!

-Sahibs!

-Goodbye, Muhammad!

-Sahibs, I have presents!

-See you, Muhammad. See you, old son.

-Bye!

-Goodbye!

Goodbye, Sahib.

Give my love to dear old Blighty.

I shall never forget you.

With your happy songs and jolly jokes.

Thank you for showing a humble char wallah...

..there is no business like show business.

SHIP'S HORN BLARES

# From Mayfair to Park Lane

# You will hear the same refrain

# In every house again, again

# You rang, m'lord?... #

So, what are we all doing with ourselves today?

Jerry's asked me to lunch at the Savoy.

Do you realise that for the price of your lunch at the Savoy,

I could feed a working family for a month?

That's only because they eat cheap food like fish and chips

and plum duff and things.

You Rang, M'Lord was about 1927, just before the big financial crash

and the emergence of a left wing sort of philosophy,

particularly below stairs and above stairs, actually.

But it was the emergence of a sort of communist influence in politics

and general life.

I think that was an important element.

So, what we're trying to do in this show is also be funny,

get laughs but also do a little social comment.

Well, I believe in an ordered, structured society

with everyone knowing their place.

If they wish to advance themselves,

it should only be by hard work and diligence.

Mr Stokes is one of those...

socialists.

What's that mean?

Between you and me, I think he'd like to get rid of the king.

Oh, no!

The king's a lovely man.

-Does he want to get rid of the queen as well?

-Yes.

He wants to tear down the structure of society

and replace it with the common man.

Which one?

SHE MOUTHS

-Time you made a speech, Daddy. You always do.

-Speech, speech!

Well, thank you.

Well, it's been a difficult year.

But I think, at last, we are beginning to turn the corner.

The prospects for next year, 1929, look really good.

# Once I lived the life of a millionaire

# Spending my money, I didn't care

# I carried my friends out for a good time

# Buying bootleg liquor, champagne and wine

# Nobody knows you

# When you're down and out... #

New dances in the tradition of the Lambeth Walk

continue to reach the ballroom.

The latest is an animated accompaniment

to the Siegfried Line song.

Washing hangs out on the line as steel helmeted dancers step it out.

Dad's Army was the end of an England that doesn't exist anymore.

For me, it was the finest hour for the British people,

but we were totally alone.

Faced by the most terrible, terrible regime you could ever think of.

Remember, men. We have one invaluable weapon on our side.

We have an unbreakable spirit to win.

A bulldog tenacity that will help us to hang on

while there's breath left in our bodies.

You don't get that with Gestapos and jackboots.

You get that by being British.

So, come on, Adolf. We're ready for you!

THEY CHEER

# I see skies of blue

# And clouds of white

# The bright, blessed day

# The dark sacred night

# And I think to myself

# What a wonderful world... #

I think the boys of today, you know, have ridiculed war

and they don't realise what they're fathers did.

They were brave men, you know?

People were killed in the Home Guard.

If you've got two million people, two million men,

and you're on exercises and you're firing live ammunition

and you fire machine guns, people get killed.

It's called friendly fire now.

But it always happens.

I'll tell you one thing.

They was very good at keeping their stiff upper lips.

Do you know, we had a young officer in the Battle of Omdurman,

he had his head blown right off.

And his upper lip was as stiff as cardboard.

LAUGHTER

I really want to put a point now to David Croft,

and that is that some of the serious intent of the Home Guard,

because particularly from 1943 onwards,

they did a very serious job and this is, in many ways,

not reflected in this comedy series, is it?

Well, we're stopping round about the beginning of 1942, I think.

Because I think when it does become serious

then perhaps it isn't quite so funny.

In those pioneer days, it was terribly serious

but it's a marvellous comedy situation, it is wonderful.

-Click.

-Privates, infantry rifleman, front, field grey uniform.

-National colours on right side of steel helmet.

-Here.

Now, there are one or two things to look at here

but I want you to take particular notice of the eyes.

You see the eyes?

Mean, shifty, set too close together.

Typically Nazi.

Mainwaring, although he's very pompous, he's a very brave man.

And the main frustrations, I think, come not through their inefficiency

but through the obstacles they meet due to the wartime situation.

I think you can see the underlying seriousness of it.

You've got a pretty old cast there, and out you go on location

-and it was pretty hard on them.

-Very good for them, I think.

Gets them out in the fresh air. Sets them up for the spring, really.

John Laurie and Arnold Ridley are both what, 78?

And Arthur and John are quite young men. Late 50s.

They had enormous energy. Enormous vitality.

Right. Clean.

We just about got the last episode made

because the writing was on the wall.

They were old, they were getting ill.

But they still kept on.

Stand at ease.

Where's Corporal Jones?

-Excuse me, Mr Mainwaring.

-Yes?

Remember when we came into the high street and you said right wheel?

He didn't.

The crowd pays its tribute to the men whose sacrifices to duty

had enabled regular soldiers to relinquish home duties

and go overseas.

This is their final parade.

The youngest branch of the Armed Forces is the first to stand down.

It was just a goodbye and they did a toast at the end.

Because we really meant it. It was a toast to those men.

-Mr Mainwaring.

-Hmm?

Warden wasn't right, was he?

When he said Nazis would walk straight through us?

Of course he wasn't right.

I know one thing. They're not walking straight through me.

Nor me. I'll be beside you, Jonesy.

We'll all be beside you, Jonesy.

We'll stick together. You can rely on that.

Anybody tries to take our homes and our freedom away from us,

they'll find out what we can do.

We'll fight.

And we're not alone. There are thousands of us all over England.

-And Scotland.

-And Scotland.

All over Great Britain, in fact.

Men who'll stand together when their country needs them.

Excuse me, sir. Don't you think it might be a nice idea

if we were to pay our tribute to them?

For once, Wilson, I agree with you.

To Britain's Home Guard.

ALL: To Britain's Home Guard.

Hello, campers. Rise and shine.

Well, it's a beautiful Maplins morning,

and we've got lots of Maplins fun in store for you today.

Breakfast will be served in half an hour.

They were about something. They were all about an important event.

Hi-de-Hi was about an era of this country

which was interesting and nostalgic.

-Morning, Ted.

-Morning, Jeffrey. I'm just mending the Tannoy.

# Every night I hope and pray

# A dream lover will come my way

# A girl to hold in my arms

# And know the magic of her charms... #

When you were at Butlins as a Redcoat,

did people behave as your lot behaved?

Did the entertainers behave...

Exactly, in fact Bobby Butlin said to me,

"I recognise every one of these characters

"and they're all based on truth."

Most of them really existed,

particularly the children's entertainer who hates kids.

He used to say, "Hello, boys and girls, little bastards."

He really existed.

Your kiddies' entertainer, Uncle Willie!

Get out! Get out the way!

Hello, kids. I love you all.

There's the young hopefuls on the staff who are going to be

famous comedians and famous sportsmen, and the old has-beens,

and that's the contrast between the young and the old.

The optimistic and the people who are on the heap.

Please welcome Yvonne Stuart-Hargreaves.

Yvonne was born in 1914.

She comes from Southport and her vital statistics are 32, 32, 32.

Her hobbies are advising people, character analysis,

and witty conversation.

I think you ought to vote for her.

Because she's different.

Maplins, which is the name of the holiday camp,

is obviously taken from Butlins.

Have you had any reaction from the real Butlins?

Not since it went on the air, no.

We had a reaction in the first instance.

They didn't want us to go there and film, and we didn't.

We filmed in a much smaller camp, I must say.

Butlins are much bigger camps.

But the feeling was that that is not how camps are now.

The image is changing.

The sort of holidays you there I think is changing.

They're more self-catering and not so organised.

People don't want to be organised so much now.

Hello, campers. Hi-de-hi!

A CROWD: Hi-de-ho!

# Somewhere beyond the sea

# Somewhere waiting for me

# My lover stands on golden sands

# And watches the ships

# That go sailing... #

'For those with a little more money to spend

'and who want to be sure of the sunshine, there are now

'holiday camps like summer villages around the Mediterranean.

'Some of the new ones are British.'

# I know beyond a doubt

# My heart will lead me there

# Soon we'll meet, I know we'll meet

# Beyond the shore

# We'll kiss just as before

# Happy we'll be beyond the sea... #

'As you can see, the outdoor pool is empty,

'owing to the atrocious weather.

'What with the wind, rain.

'Day in and day out.'

-You coming, Ted?

-Just having a last look.

You said you weren't going to get sentimental.

Well, I was just thinking...

..about all the wonderful times we've had round this pool.

Just think of the times I've been chucked in.

We've seen the best of it, Spike.

They'll all be going abroad now. And they'll get the sun.

But without you and me they won't have the fun.

The British holiday won't be the same, will it?

The wind of change, Ted.

Aye.

You're right, there, Spike.

It's the wind of change.

I think when you stop enjoying writing something,

it's time to finish. Nobody wants you to finish.

The cast don't want you to finish.

The BBC doesn't want you, it thinks you're still getting good figures.

But it's time to go, I think.

You get very attached to doing a programme

and when it stops it is sad.

# We're not back next year

# So let's say goodbye Maplins

# The message that we're sending

# Goodbye Maplins

# Hi-de-Hi is ending

# Fret you never

# Hi-de-Hi will live forever

# Goodbye Maplins

# Goodbye. #

I like sad endings.

There's only that much between laughter and tears. Lovely.

Hi-de-Hi!

Well, there we are, viewers. That's our story.

Over the years, the late David Croft and myself wrote

and produced many, many comedy shows.

We also made many, many stars.

They were great times. Golden years.

Well, time's getting on so I'm going to ask Mr Henry Hall to play us out

with Here's To The Next Time.

Cheerio!

# Here's to the next time

# And our merry meeting

# Here's to the next time

# We send you all our greetings

# Set it to music

# Sing it to rhyme

# Now all together

# Here's to next time. #