Last Of The Summer Wine. Image shows from L to R: Walter C. 'Foggy' Dewhurst (Brian Wilde), William 'Compo' Simmonite (Bill Owen), Norman Clegg (Peter Sallis). Copyright: BBC
Last Of The Summer Wine

Last Of The Summer Wine

  • TV sitcom
  • BBC One
  • 1973 - 2010
  • 295 episodes (31 series)

Gentle sitcom following a group of pensioners living in Yorkshire. This show was Britain's longest-running TV sitcom. Stars Bill Owen, Peter Sallis, Frank Thornton, Brian Murphy, Michael Bates and more.

Last Of The Summer Wine - From The Director's Chair

Roy Clarke's Last Of The Summer Wine was the longest running TV comedy series in the world, largely due to the passion, dedication and creativity of its producer/director Alan J Bell.

In this book, Alan takes us on the set and into the studio to get up close and personal with the series and its actors. You will laugh out loud, cry in places and also guffaw as your jaw drops at reading these astonishing anecdotes, all told as only Alan can from the inside!

Despite being one of the most-watched BBC shows with huge international sales, the programme was unceremoniously dropped by sending Alan an e-mail!

A torrent of public protest ensued, only to fall on deaf BBC ears. Last Of The Summer Wine: From The Director's Chair provides a powerful critique of BBC management style from the man who was the very last in the long line of traditional comedy producer/directors who made programmes with little or no executive interference.

What was so special about a TV series that was the favourite of the Queen; a TV series that was shown for over 36 years in more than 25 countries? Alan J W Bell remembers the series with the passion and emotion he brought to each episode. The series is finished, but in this memoir we can still relive that little bit of Yorkshire held so dear to the viewing public.

Buy from the Publisher

First published: Monday 5th November 2012

Buy and sell old and new items
Search for this product on eBay

BCG may earn commission on sales generated through the links above.

Not in the UK?

Fear not! Many items can still be ordered. Amazon in the UK delivers to many international territories, whilst their Australia, USA and Canada stores also supply many equivalent or imported items.

If you are in the North America, look out for US/Canadian flag icons on popular product listings for direct links.

If you order from a UK store, please note that the UK is in Region 2 and B, respectively, for DVDs and Blu-rays - check your player's compatibility, or look for multi-region products if you are located in another region.

If you are in Australia or New Zealand (DVD Region 4), note that almost all DVDs distributed in the UK by the BBC and 2entertain are encoded for both Region 2 and Region 4. The UK and Australasia are in the same Blu-ray region (B).

Share this page