Steptoe and Son
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Steptoe and Son | |
|---|---|
| Harry H. Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell as the eponymous characters. © BBC </small> | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Running time | 30 minutes per episode |
| Creator(s) | Alan Simpson Ray Galton |
| Starring | (listed in closing credits) Harry H. Corbett Wilfrid Brambell |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original channel | BBC One |
| Original run | 1962–1974 |
| No. of episodes | 57 |
Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were aired on the BBC from 1962 to 1965, followed by a second run from 1970 to 1974. Its theme tune, "Old Ned", was composed by Ron Grainer.
The show had its roots in a 1962 episode of Comedy Playhouse entitled "The Offer". Later that year, the first of eight series was commissioned, the first four of which were made in black and white. Each series comprised five to eight half-hour episodes, and the last was transmitted in 1974. At the peak of the series' popularity, it commanded viewing figures of some 28 million per episode. In addition, the early 1970s saw two feature films, two 45-minute Christmas specials and a number of radio shows based on the TV scripts. In the mid 2000s, a stage play was written that brought the storyline to a close.
The series was one of the first UK situation comedy programmes to employ actors rather than comedians in the principal roles. Galton and Simpson had decided themselves that they wanted to try to write for performers who "didn't count their laughs".
Contents |
[edit] Characters and situation
The father, Albert Steptoe, was lazy, stubborn, narrow-minded, foul-mouthed, and had revolting personal habits. Albert was content with his place in the world, utterly unpretentious and downright cynical. He could be extremely mean-minded and did everything he could to prevent Harold improving himself — especially if it meant him leaving home. The actor Wilfrid Brambell, who played him, even had two sets of false teeth: his own and Albert's rotten-looking dentures.
The son, Harold, played by Harry H. Corbett, was also obstinate, though prone to moments of enthusiasm about an idea. He wanted to move up in the world — most of all to escape from the family home and his stifling relationship with his father. Harold had aspirations. He liked to see his business as being in antiques rather than junk. He was a dreamer and idealist. Politically, Harold was a Labour supporter who was appalled at his father's reactionary views. He aimed to improve his mind and his social circle but always failed, often thanks to Albert's deliberate put-downs or sabotage. Harold's exasperation and disgust at his father's behaviour often resulted in his repeating the catchphrase, "You dirty old man."
The episodes often revolved around (sometimes violent) disagreements between the two men, Harold's attempts to bed women and momentary interest over things found on his round. As with many of the best examples of British comedy, much of the humour derived from the pathos of the protagonists' situation, especially Harold's continually-thwarted (usually by the elder Steptoe) attempts to "better himself" and the unresolvable love/hate relationship that existed between the pair.
A common theme was that Albert almost always came out on top. Despite his lack of effort Albert routinely and easily proved himself superior to his son whenever they came into competition such as in their frequent game-playing, e.g., the Scrabble and badminton games from the 1972 series. Harold would take them desperately seriously and see them as symbols of his desire to improve himself, but every time they came to nothing. His father's success was partly down to superior talent but aided by cynical gamesmanship and undermining of his son's confidence. In addition, Albert habitually had better judgement than his son, who blundered into all sorts of con-tricks and blind alleys as a result of his unrealistic, straw-clutching ideas. Occasionally the tables were turned, but overall the old man was the winner, albeit in a graceless fashion.
Harold was infuriated by these persistent frustrations and defeats, even going to the extent in "Divided We Stand" (1972) of partitioning the house in two so he didn't have to share with his selfish, uncultured and negative father. Predictably, his plan ended in failure and ultimately he could see no way out. However, for all the bitterness there was an essential bond between the pair. Deep down, Albert seemed to love his son and his behaviour was perhaps a selfish but misguided way of holding on to him so he didn't have to face life alone. When the crunch came, Harold would stick by his father. This protective bond is much in evidence in "The Seven Steptoerai" from 1974 when they are menaced by a local gangster running a protection racket. Typically though, it is Albert who gets them ingeniously out of a very hazardous predicament.
A 2002 Channel 4 television documentary, When Steptoe Met Son, told the story of an ill fated final tour of Australia during which the already strained relationship between Corbett and Brambell finally broke down for good. It therefore revealed that there were in fact many parallels between the lives of the two actors and those of the characters that they portrayed.<ref>The Guardian: feature on the Channel 4 documentary</ref>
[edit] Analysis
During the time of its production in the 1960s and 1970s, Steptoe and Son marked itself out as radical compared to the great majority of sitcoms. This was an age when the predominant sources of laughter were farce, coincidence, slapstick and innuendo. However Steptoe and Son brought a much greater social realism. Its characters were not only working class but demonstrably poor. The earthy language and slang used were in marked contrast to the refined voices heard on most television of the time. Social issues and debates were routinely portrayed, skilfully woven into the humour. The programme did not abandon the more traditional sources of comedy but used them in small doses. The characters, and their intense and difficult relationship, highlighted much deeper qualities of writing and performance than comedy fans were used to seeing.
Steptoe and Son is rare among 1960s BBC television programmes in that every episode survives for posterity, despite the mass wiping of BBC archive holdings between 1972 and 1978. However, all the instalments from the first 1970 series and one later show that were originally made in colour have only survived in the form of black and white recordings made off-air by Galton and Simpson themselves, using a half-inch reel-to-reel video recorder — a forerunner of the video cassette recorder.
Arguably the most memorable episode was "The Desperate Hours", made in 1972, and starring Leonard Rossiter as one of two escaped convicts who break into the Steptoe home looking for food and money. The scenes between Corbett and Rossiter — two formidable actors of a competitive nature — were remarked upon by critics as being truly compelling.
The BBC has released seven DVDs of the series to date — the first two being compilations of the "best" colour episodes, and the other five containing the complete first five series, respectively. Also available is a DVD containing the two feature films: Steptoe and Son, and Steptoe and Son Ride Again.
[edit] Episodes
Eight series were made, four in black and white, and four in colour, containing 57 episodes. Two were Christmas specials.
[edit] Remakes
The show was remade in the United States as Sanford and Son, which was a top-rated series that ran for five years (1972–1977) on the NBC network.
A Swedish remake by Sten-Åke Cederhök was called Albert and Herbert, the pair living at Skolgaten 15, an address in a working-class neighbourhood of Haga, Gothenburg.
In the Netherlands there were also seventeen episodes of a Dutch version called Stiefbeen en Zoon.
[edit] Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane
Main article Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane
In October 2005, Ray Galton and John Antrobus premiered their play, Steptoe and Son in Murder at Oil Drum Lane, at the Theatre Royal, York. It then went on tour across the country. It was set in the present day and related the events that led to Harold killing his father, and their eventual meeting thirty years later, with Albert appearing as a ghost. By the end, it is clearly established that this is very much a conclusion to the Steptoe saga. The play is possibly a remake of Sten-Åke Cederhök's 1982 play, Mordet på Skolgatan 15 (Murder at Skolgatan 15). [citation needed]
[edit] Trivia
- "Steptoe and Son" is the Steptoes' trading name, but as established in one of the earliest episodes, the "Son" is not Harold but Albert: the name dates from when he and his father worked the rounds.
- Wilfrid Brambell — despite being Irish — spoke with a prestige Received Pronunciation English accent.
- When Wilfrid Brambell left the UK after the third series to pursue an eventually unsuccessful Broadway musical career, Galton and Simpson toyed with the concept of killing Albert off. This was in order to continue the show without having to wait for the actor to return. The character would have been replaced with Harold's illegitimate son, Arthur (thought to be played by child actor David Hemmings). This idea was detested by Corbett, who thought it ridiculous.
- Wilfrid Brambell was aged only 49 when he accepted the role of Albert; he was only 13 years older than Corbett.
- When original Pink Floyd frontman, Syd Barrett, came up with the riff to "Interstellar Overdrive", the group's bassist, Roger Waters, told him it reminded him of the theme to Steptoe and Son.
- When the Sex Pistols and their entourage, the Bromley Contingent, made their infamous last-minute appearance on the Today show on 1 December 1976, Pistols guitarist Steve Jones responded to the host, Bill Grundy (particularly, Grundy's attempt to 'chat up' Siouxsie Sioux), with the comic line "You dirty old man!"
- Wilfrid Brambell appeared in The Beatles' 1964 film, A Hard Day's Night, playing the role of Paul McCartney's scalliwag grandfather. The Beatles apparently lobbied to get Brambell since they were fans of Steptoe and Son. As counterpoint to the younger Steptoe's catchphrase ("You dirty old man") the repeated phrase used to describe Paul's grandfather in the film was "He's very clean".<ref>Trivia at IMDb, URL accessed September 1st, 2006</ref>
- During the 1964 British General Election, incumbent Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, apparently persuaded the BBC to delay the airing of the election night episode until after the polls closed, fearing that Labour-supporting voters would stay in to watch the show.<ref> Cult TV: The Comedies, Jon E. Lewis and Penny Stempel. Bay Books 1998. BBC executive Paul Fox also referred to this incident on a documentary called "Swing Time" broadcast on BBC 2 in April 1997.</ref>
[edit] References
<references/>
