"SOME MOTHERS DO 'AVE 'EM" | Film Trims, Unused Takes & Comparisons

TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Introduction
00:41 The Employment Exchange
01:22 The Public Relations Course
02:42 Jessica's First Christmas
03:16 Learning To Drive
Originally broadcast on Easter Monday 1977, 'To Be Perfectly Frank' follows the making of popular sitcom "Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em" starring Michael Crawford as the irrepressible, accident-prone Frank Spencer.
The 40-minute documentary features several excerpts from the first two series and Christmas Specials, including pre-filmed location sequence. These were sourced from the original 16mm film inserts still held at the BBC Film Library. As such, they have no audience laughter, are noticeably different in picture quality and occasionally feature shots and dialogue left out of the finished episodes.
Sadly, for reasons unknown, the full programme has not been repeated since November 1978 and has never been made commercially available. A heavily truncated 20-minute edit aired on BBC2 in June 1999, with a slightly shorter 30-minute version airing on BBC Four on 1st August 2023. This video examines the 2023 revised repeat, directly comparing the film inserts of the location sequences to the finished episodes.
FUN FACT: The filming of the window cleaning stunt in The Employment Exchange (Series 1 Episode 7) took place at Station House on the North Circular Road in London on 10th March 1973, just 19 days before the completed episode was transmitted on BBC1. And if you think that's tight, the studio recording took place the night before transmission, on 28th March 1973. WOW.
For more info on "Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em" recording dates:
www.dirtyfeed.org/2022/09/mmm...
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Researched and edited by Pip Madeley.
Follow me on Twitter: pipmadeley
Buy me a coffee: ko-fi.com/pipmadeley
DISCLAIMER: The footage in this video is the copyright of the BBC and I do not claim ownership. Limited clips have been used in accordance with fair dealing as allowed by UK law for the purposes of review, research and education. Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em is available to buy on DVD and currently free to watch on iPlayer.

[@freewheelinfranklyn]

He really did risk life and limb to make us laugh. Some Mothers should be constantly on TV like Father Ted. It's a classic

[@PipMadeley]

Agreed. Happily it's all on iPlayer at the moment and BBC4 are showing it weekly on Tuesday nights.

[@malcolmwhite6588]

Yes, he’s extremely talented acting stuntman Phantom of the Opera, one of the very few actors that did almost all his own high-risk stunt- to this day, meaning of the action hero, actors that people would think are very much tougher and braver than an actor. Like Michael Crawford are just wannabes Tom Cruise would be one of the exceptions.

[@Jack_Warner]

Brilliant stuff. We had a teacher at my senior school in the mid 70s called Mr Rodwell. He used to wear a Beret, and ride his bike to the school. As soon as he rode past us, we'd whistle the Some Mother's... theme.

[@CammieInOz]

Such fun to watch. Michael Crawford has stated that despite the many risky stunts he did himself, he never had any serious injuries.

[@manonymous4737]

When I worked as a delivery driver I would always check in with the depot by calling them and saying "Demon King, Demon King...." My boss had a good sense of humour and knew where it came from

[@Peye-pv4cb]

I imagine people that worked in sequences with Frank probably had to be angry with him otherwise they wouldn't get anything done from pissing themselves with laughter

[@DVDandFilmBloke]

Damn, I missed the 2023 repeat. You know it was such a missed opportunity for the BBC not to include it as an extra on the DVD set, in fact the DVD set was pretty lousy, usually the BBC themselves do pretty good jobs with their catalogue (a full copy probably still exists in the archives). I would be happy to double dip if they release a remastered set. Did they make To Be Perfectly Frank on film or on VT? The inserts had aged by the time To Be Perfectly Frank was produced, that might be the reason there dirtier. The original inserts might still exist in the archives due to them being used in the documentary, actually the fact the original quad masters for the whole series still exist is a miracle. I must say what was shot for The Public Relations Course was pretty funny due to just how awkward it is, though the transmitted version was probably cut down for time. It is very surreal seeing the inserts without the studio audience because the actors have to play as if there is a studio audience and just prey they laugh at the right moments.

[@PipMadeley]

You'll be glad to know it's on iPlayer for the next 29 days.

[@DVDandFilmBloke]

@@PipMadeley Great

[@DVDandFilmBloke]

@@PipMadeley I've finished watching it (I was recording it with OBS at the same time for archival reasons) and I thought it was fantastic. Again such a crying shame the BBC never released it as a DVD extra.

[@sjcuk7]

Such a shame the original 40 minute length version wasn't shown, I wonder what was cut out for the 30 min one

[@jamestheposh]

If I remember correctly, the 30 minute edited version was also shown in 1999, during ‘Crash, Bang, Wallop Night’ on BBC2.

[@PipMadeley]

The 1999 repeat was a 20 minute edit (further details in the video's description).

[@jamestheposh]

@@PipMadeley Ahh, memory fails me, thank you.

[@anaccount8474]

I don't think MC had any actual stunt training, he just did all this crazy stuff. So hugely talented.

[@Telly_1]

This is fantastic! Especially some of that original sound, sometimes it's completely drowned out by the audience

[@alexfletcher5192]

Even today, watching this makes me go: 'It's all Health & Safety gone mad these days... and this is what sent it there...'

[@eileenbond971]

Absolutely brilliant, watching this right now. I adore the childlike quality of the hapless Frank Spencer, no one else could have done it better ! 😂

[@markgreet3543]

Comedy classic when will this sort of thing return? Still we got youtube to remind of us of the golden age of comedy.

[@mekonta]

Great stuff! Will you be uploading the documentary ‘To Be Perfectly Frank’ (1977) in full on here or elsewhere?

[@PipMadeley]

It's available on BBC iPlayer for the next two weeks.

[@ROCKINGMAN]

Was the laughter added after or real reaction to funny sequences? Always thought that when filming it must be annoying with people just stand around and watching.

[@PipMadeley]

The laughter is from the studio audience who were watching the pre-filmed sequences on monitors.

[@ROCKINGMAN]

@@PipMadeley I see thanks for that. So, they really did react to what we see. It sounded convincing, so wondered how. Thanks.

[@PipMadeley]

No worries! Canned/artificial laughter is much more an American thing but some producers might pepper their shows with laughs where the audience didn't give quite the response they wanted.

[@sabrinatirabassi3529]

Derek Ware everyWare

[@ronmccullock1407]

Did a lot of stunt work in Dr Who the Jon Pertwee season

[@PipMadeley]

Derek worked on Dr Who from the very beginning, as fight arranger for An Unearthly Child. His final credit was The Sea Devils in 1972.

[@Craigmt12]

Thank you for putting this together. Really interesting seeing the original footage.

[@stevedickson5853]

Health and safety wasn't a top priority in the 70s lol, they don't make em like they used to

[@user-sk3tn1hr8t]

Very well researched and edited. Thank you.

[@robertfoster6070]

I imagine that an unseen driver drove Mr Bean’s mini in the sale sketch.

[@sjs260563]

who knew that Lord Heseltine was a cameraman on SMDHT? :)

[@afriend9428]

*amazing show! Funniest thing on tv* ❤

[@Robert_Manners]

Never seen this before, amazing to see 🎉

[@catherinetelford8449]

One of the best shows in the world and you got the best laugh

[@TheHarrip]

That was wonderful thanks Pip

[@johnclay7644]

16mm informative content.

[@daveboybrookes]

Fantastic stuff! Thanks for sharing

[@robrob8258]

Amazing

[@arricammarques1955]

Duped 16mm interpositive prints.

[@danielwilliamson6180]

3:48