View source for Parsley Sidings

{{italic title}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2012}}
'''''Parsley Sidings''''' is a [[w:BBC Radio|BBC Radio]] [[w:sitcom|sitcom]] of the early 1970s created by [[Jim Eldridge]]. It stars [[Arthur Lowe]] and [[Ian Lavender]] (who were starring in the sitcom ''[[Dad's Army]]'' at the time) and [[Kenneth Connor]] from the ''[[Carry On (franchise)|Carry On]]'' films.<ref>{{cite web|title=Parsley Sidings|url=http://www.britishcomedy.org.uk/comedy/psidings.htm|work=British Comedy|accessdate=5 March 2013}}</ref>

The show is set in a sleepy out of the way [[w:railway station]] on the main line between [[w:London]] and [[w:Birmingham]], in the [[w:English Midlands|Midlands]]. The main characters are the station master, Mr Horace Hepplewhite (played by [[Arthur Lowe]]); his son, Bertrand ([[Ian Lavender]]); station porter Percy Valentine ([[Kenneth Connor]]); Mr Bradshaw, the signalman (also played by [[Kenneth Connor]], as was Clara the station hen); and station tannoy announcer Gloria Simpkins ([[Liz Fraser]], who was also in the ''Carry On'' films, and appeared in the [[Dad's Army#Films|Dad's Army feature film]]). The guest cast in some episodes included [[Bill Pertwee]] (also from ''Dad's Army'', appearing in episode 11), [[w:Roger Delgado|Roger Delgado]] (The Master in ''[[w:Doctor Who|Doctor Who]]'' in the Jon Pertwee era) with the announcer for the programme being [[w:Keith Skues|Keith Skues]].

The scripts are by Jim Eldridge (who would later go on to write for many more series, the most successful being the BBC's ''[[King Street Junior]]''). The series was produced by [[w:Edward Taylor (scriptwriter)|Edward Taylor]], and was broadcast on [[w:BBC Radio 2|BBC Radio 2]]. Due to the BBC's then practice of wiping tapes after the broadcast of a show, only a minority of the 21 episodes produced were still in the BBC archive; ''Goodbye, Parsley Sidings'' and ''The Entente Cordial'' are aired on [[w:BBC Radio 4 Extra|BBC Radio 4 Extra]] occasionally and have always been in the BBC archives, while ''A Night Out'', ''A Bird in the Hand'' and ''The Secret Agent'' were recovered between 2001 and 2003 as off-air recordings from members of the public. These episodes were aired in early 2007. All the other episodes are known to exist in private hands.

In 2008, more episodes were 'discovered', including the pilot and "The New Level Crossing".<ref>{{cite web|last=Wolf|first=Ian|url=http://www.comedy.org.uk/guide/radio/parsley_sidings/|title=Parsley Sidings|publisher=British Comedy Guide|accessdate=2009-03-08}}</ref>

The BBC broadcast some programmes from the series in February 2011. Starting 1 November 2012, 4 Extra began a run of the whole series using audio compiled from both the BBC's own archive and private collections, with intros and outtros re-recorded by original on-stage announcer [[w:Keith Skues|Keith Skues]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Wilkojc|first=Mik|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/radio4/2012/10/radio_4_extra_parsley_sidings.html|title=Radio 4 Extra: Parsley Sidings|publisher=BBC|accessdate=2012-11-03}}</ref>

The signature tune is "Banjo Boy" by [[w:Roger Roger (composer)|Roger Roger]], from the LP ''Mood Music Vol. 18'' in the [[w:Chappell & Co.|Chappell]] music library. (This music was also used for the signature tune of the 1969–71 British TV series ''[[w:The Mind of Mr. J.G. Reeder]]''.) 

== Episodes ==

{| border=1 cellpadding=3 style="border-collapse: collapse;"
|- bgcolor="#ff9999"
|colspan=4|'''Series 1'''
|-
| '''Title'''
| '''Recorded'''
| '''First broadcast'''
|-
| ''Pilot''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1971-02-28}}
|-
| ''The Market Special''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1971-12-05}}
|-
| ''The Postal Express''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1971-12-12}}
|-
| ''The Beauty Queen Contest''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1971-12-19}}
|-
| ''The Inspector Calls''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1971-12-31}}
|-
| ''The 1890 Rocket''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1972-01-02}}
|-
| ''The Excursion''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1972-01-09}}
|-
| ''Cricket, Lovely Cricket''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1972-01-16}}
|-
| ''Who'll Be Mother?''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1972-01-23}}
|-
| ''The Concert''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1972-01-30}}
|-
| ''Goodbye, Parsley Sidings''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1972-02-06}}
|- bgcolor="#ff9999"
|colspan=4|'''Series 2'''
|-
| '''Title'''
| '''Recorded'''
| '''First broadcast'''
|-
| ''Pass The Parcel''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-09-29}}
|-
| ''The Flower Show''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-10-06}}
|-
| ''The Entente Cordiale''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-10-13}}
|-
| ''A Night Out''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-10-20}}
|-
| ''The Goods Train''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-10-27}}
|-
| ''A Bird In The Hand''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-11-03}}
|-
| ''The Purity League''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-11-10}}
|-
| ''The New Level Crossing''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-11-17}}
|-
| ''The Film Makers''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-11-24}}
|-
| ''The Secret Agent''
| Unknown
| {{Date|1973-12-01}}
|}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*{{British Comedy Guide|radio|parsley_sidings}}
*[http://www.britishcomedy.org.uk/comedy/psidings.htm Parsley Sidings - more information and some episode synopses]
*[http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/Dads%20Army%20Parsley%20Sidings.htm A more in-depth guide]{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113180851/http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/Dads%20Army%20Parsley%20Sidings.htm |date=13 January 2015 }}

[[Category:BBC Radio comedy programmes]]
[[Category:Lost BBC episodes]]