Episode 5

Lionel Jeffries' sitcom Father Charlie was made by new ITV franchisee Central Independent Television, who'd only taken over the Midlands franchise from ATV on 1st January 1982, two months before this series was broadcast from 28th February 1982 (although basically Central was a rebranded ATV with the same personnel).

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This was Lionel Jeffries' second starring sitcom and one of only four he made across his long career (not counting one-off guest roles). His first one had been way back in 1964 but filmed in 1960 (ironically they brush over that in publicity for Father Charlie and insist this is his first TV sitcom). I've also covered his third sitcom Tom, Dick & Harriet in these Forgotten Sitcom pages.

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Father Charlie saw Jeffries in the titular role, a Cockney ex-Regimental Sergeant-Major during the war who lost his wife in the Blitz and converted to Roman Catholicism to cope with the loss, becoming a priest. The sort of working class rough diamond who'd help anyone and give everything away but he's not shy about giving his true opinions and speaking his mind, which rubs up both parishioners and his superiors the wrong way all too often, his eccentric and forthright nature making it difficult for him to work amicably with other priests, requiring him to be moved on to other parishes then other diocese. Running out of parishes to send him to, Bishop Larkin (John Savident, I say John Savident! ) finds a place for him out of the way. The Sisters at St Winifred's Convent out in the country have been petitioning the Bishop to have their own Chaplain for years rather than a visiting one but until now he's had no one to send, but it seems the perfect place to offload Father Charlie to keep him out of trouble as their new permanent Chaplain (Charlie Chaplain jokes here...) However, the Sisters especially Mother Superior in the form of Reverend Mother Joseph (Anna Quayle), a very strict and traditional type, take an instant dislike to the unorthodox priest. The Reverend Mother is an upper class lady who thoroughly dislikes the working class Cockney priest. The Sisters at the Convent are Sister Bernadette (Denyse Alexander), Sister Lucy (Jamila Massey, best known as Jamila in Mind Your Language), Sister Mercedes (Gillian Royale), Sister Mary (Deddie Davies), Sister Anna (Annet Peters), Sister Clare (Wendy Smith) and Sister Theresa (Jean Bulk Morton).

Throughout the series Charlie mostly finds himself keeping to himself in his room in his spare time with only his pet mynah bird Arthur to talk to. They actually used three birds for filming; a dummy used for shots when they want it to keep still, a second that was trained to fly around the room and third that was more talkative for "dialogue". The bird that flew around despite being trained didn't always land on cue, and pecked Lionel almost drawing blood.

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The series was created and written by Vince Powell (4 episodes) with Myles Rudge (2 episodes). Initially the plan was to write 6 standalone pilots for Lionel Jeffries as different characters in different situations each week, like Ronnie Barker's Seven of One series, but after going out to dinner one evening Vince Powell, Miles Rudge and others were thrashing out ideas when after the second or third port someone suggested a working class priest and Vince Powell loved the idea and decided to build a whole sitcom around that one idea instead. Vince Powell had been brought up Catholic and always wanted to write something about some of the unconventional priests he'd met in real life. Lionel Jeffries too said he'd always fancied playing a priest. It was Jeffries who suggested Anna Quayle for the Mother Superior role, having worked with her on Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the Tony Curtis film Drop Dead, Darling (although their characters didn't interact in the Curtis film) and obviously being an experienced director himself he knows how to cast.

There was worry that Central would reject the idea because LWT was already producing the Arthur Lowe sitcom Bless Me, Father about a Catholic priest but bosses agreed that Father Charlie was good enough and different enough to go ahead with. In any case, although Father Charlie was already in the can by then, by the time Central had started broadcasting in 1982 Bless Me, Father had already ended after its third series in 1981 so there was no overlap.

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The series ran on ITV as follows;

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1.2 TV Or Not TV? - 28/02/1982**

Reverend Mother Joseph disapproves of television but Father Charlie feels it'd be a window on the world for the Sisters and their elderly patients.

(**See below about broadcast error).

1.1 The New Chaplain - 07/03/1982**

The Sisters of St. Winifred's Convent have been busy petitioning the Bishop for their own Chaplain for many years but he has been unable to grant their request. However, as a result of many complaints about one of his parish priests, Father Charlie, he finds it convenient to comply with their wishes.

1.3 Miracles Take A Little Longer - 14/03/1982

Financial worries about the replacement of an ancient central heating boiler are clearly a problem for the Reverend Mother until Father Charlie suggests a summer fete to raise the necessary cash. However, on the big day the heavens open a torrential downpour dampening the Sisters' spirits and keeping people away. Whilst the Reverend Mother goes off to pray for a miracle Father Charlie goes out to the main road holding up traffic telling them there's a diversion through the Convent grounds.

1.4 Halfway To Heaven - 21/03/1982

Father Charlie wants to stay in bed claiming lumbago from an old war wound to avoid getting up for Mass but the Reverend Mother wont hear of it. Father Charlie plays up the bad back whilst kneeling for Mass and the Reverend Mother calls in the doctor. As the Sisters think he's on his last legs they start being kind to him and Charlie plays it for all its worth.

1.5 For What We Are About To Receive - 04/04/1982

The Reverend Mother launches an austerity drive to save money meaning only soup for lunch and dinner. When local butcher Mr Wainwright (Tony Selby) calls in to arrange a Mass for his recently deceased dad, Father Charlie suggests a donation of steak and kidney so the Sisters can make a pudding. When drunken Irish Father O'Brien (J.G. Devlin) comes round to hear the nuns' confessions Father Charlie has to stand in for him with an Irish accent in the confession box to cover for him with the Reverend Mother. Whilst all the nuns are together waiting their turn Father O'Brien helps himself to the steak and kidney pudding and Charlie has to take the blame as the only one supposedly free to roam the kitchens when he was really in the confessional, which he can't admit as it's against Canon law.

1.6 Better The Devil You Know - 11/04/1982

The Reverend Mother returns to the Convent to find Father Charlie and the Sisters singing and dancing in a wild birthday party for Charlie and finally gives him his marching orders. Initially happy at the thought of Father Charlie going, the Reverend Mother changes her mind when she realises he is a better deal than the Bishop's secretary Father Costello (Christopher Good), who is even stricter than the Reverend Mother, as the Bishop considers swapping Charlie and Costello around.

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** Note new boy Central's cock-up on the broadcast front with the dates! They accidentally broadcast Episode 2 first on 28th February then played Episode 1 the second week on 7th March which confused audiences because in the first week they find Father Charlie already working at the Convent then the next week is all the first episode of a new series set up of the situation! This error was down to the way of working Central had inherited from predecessor ATV. ATV originally had the London weekend contract taken over by LWT in 1968 and produced all of its shows at Elstree in Hertfordshire. When ATV lost that and took over the Midlands franchise instead they built a modern colour production complex in the centre of Birmingham but continued to film most of their comedy and drama output from Elstree and just shoot regional pieces and news from Birmingham. This is what eventually led to the rebrand of the Midlands franchise in the 1980 renewal rounds, ATV were criticised for their lack of local output and regional character. ATV promising to build a second studio in Nottingham going forward and rebrand as ATV Midlands to reinforce the local interest. The IBA authority renewed ATV's franchise on the basis that they follow through on the move of the main studio to the Midlands area but also totally change their name as a new start, and chose Central Independent Television. But until their new larger studio facilities were built in the Midlands, Central had to continue using the Elstree studio for series as they had done as ATV and this is where Father Charlie was filmed and the tapes stored till needed for broadcast in Birmingham. The people at Elstree sent the wrong tape in error that first week, and Central had to run with Episode 2 as the mistake wasn't realised in time to send up the correct tape.

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Despite the confusion the series did very well with the public at the time, even with Catholics as it didn't mock the faith. It attracted an audience of 15 million viewers and Central were talking of a second series just a few episodes in and by the last episode critics were expecting a second series. On Monday 19th June 1982 Lionel Jeffries opened the Catholic fete at St Peter & St Paul's Church & Holy Cross, Lichfield with the real Father Peter Lees of that parish, it was the church where Jeffries was christened and where he married his wife Eileen in 1951. He met her whilst working at the Garrick Theatre in Lichfield. Having the star there after playing Father Charlie helped raise £1500, and again Lionel expected at this point that there'd be a second series. So with everyone from star, network and public keen for more it's rather odd that a second series didn't materialise in the end! Instead Lionel went into a new sitcom for Thames called Tom, Dick & Harriett, his third sitcom, which would go on to get a second series. Even so Father Charlie didn't stay in the 'never repeated' camp that a lot of these forgotten sitcoms fell into, the whole 6 episode series was repeated by Central in 1984 and 1989 which again makes it odd that they didn't go ahead with that second series given its popularity in the 80s to warrant two repeats. Sadly it hasn't been repeated since 1989 and has never been commercially available on VHS or DVD so has been rather neglected since.