David Croft. Copyright: BBC
David Croft

David Croft (I)

  • English
  • Writer, director and producer

Press clippings

Antiques Roadshow guest stunned as 'rare' Dad's Army script gets eye-watering valuation

Antiques Roadshow expert Clive Farrahar was blown away by the original scripts for classic BBC sitcom Dad's Army. And it's safe to say that the guests were shocked to learn that the "rare" scripts, handwritten by Dad's Army writer David Croft, were worth up to £10,000.

Sam Huntley, Daily Star, 4th February 2024

A look back at Come Back Mrs. Noah

Come Back Mrs. Noah may be emblematic of all the worst excesses that 1970s comedies are chastised for, but it's not beyond reproach. The series revels so vigorously in the ridiculous and the corny that it feels like an absurdist exercise in what's possible in a 7pm sitcom.

Curious British Telly, 16th February 2021

Comics in Oxford Dictionary Of National Biography

Caroline Aherne, Victoria Wood and Ronnie Corbett and have been added to a prestigious and definitive list of the greatest ever Britons.

Chortle, 9th January 2020

Don't panic! Dad's Army proves to be as good as it was

Permission to breathe a sigh of relief, sir! The first instalment of Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes - shown last night on Gold - was a real joy.

Gary Bushell, The Daily Express, 26th August 2019

Why do Hungarians love this dodgy old British sitcom?

The Upstairs Downstairs spoof has been forgotten in Britain. But in Hungary, kids still name their pets after the cast. Our writer travels to Budapest for the lavish 30th anniversary celebrations.

Claire Armitstead, The Guardian, 3rd October 2018

Dad's Army at 50: sitcom celebrates half-century

BBC's classic Second World War comedy centred around pompous Captain Mainwaring's attempts to instil strict discipline into ageing band of brothers.

Joe Sommerlad, The Independent, 30th July 2018

Dad's Army at 50: the history of 'comedy's finest hour'

The leads hated the script and the BBC was terrified of offending veterans. But Dad's Army became a TV phenomenon. We reveal how the Walmington warriors seized victory.

Mark Lawson, The Guardian, 24th July 2018

TV humour is lewd, lavatorial & lacking any form of wit

The problem, however, is bigger than just one show. For the abject and high-profile failure of The Nightly Show raises a disturbing question. What has happened to British comedy? The sheer unfunniness of much of it is beyond depressing.

Christopher Hart, Daily Mail, 18th March 2017

A crack squad of British actors are on parade in this loving homage to the cherished TV sitcom. Toby Jones is the pompous Captain Mainwaring, Bill Nighy the insouciant Sergeant Wilson and Michael Gambon is Private Godfrey, while Catherine Zeta-Jones brings some unlikely glamour to wartime Walmington-on-Sea. Hamish McColl's screenplay has its moments, but can't quite access the lovely, characterful warmth of TV series writers David Croft and the recently deceased Jimmy Perry.

Paul Howlett, The Guardian, 18th November 2016

Why Dad's Army has never been beaten in British comedy

They wouldn't get away with it today. No black faces, nor any character remotely ethnic other than John Laurie's tetchy Scotsman. Women only in subsidiary roles. And certainly no suggestion of sexual ambiguity beyond a wet clergyman. The BBC's modern cultural commissars wouldn't give the pilot script a second glance. White. Middle class. Home Counties. Show him the door, Doris.

Michael Henderson, The Telegraph, 25th October 2016

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