Kurt at 04:36, 20 February 2023

2023-02-20T04:36:28Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:36, 19 February 2023
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	{{Infobox television		{{Infobox television
	\| image = Come Back Mrs. Noah.jpg		\| image = Come Back Mrs. Noah.jpg
	\| genre = [[~~w:Sitcom\|~~Sitcom]]		\| genre = [[Sitcom]]
	\| camera =		\| camera =
	\| runtime = 30 minutes		\| runtime = 30 minutes

Kurt at 21:59, 6 October 2022

2022-10-06T21:59:33Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:59, 6 October 2022
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	{{Use dmy dates\|date=July 2021}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=July 2021}}
	{{Infobox television		{{Infobox television
	\| image = Come Back Mrs Noah ~~titlescreen~~.jpg		\| image = Come Back Mrs. Noah.jpg
	\| genre = [[Sitcom]]		\| genre = [[w:Sitcom\|Sitcom]]
	\| camera =		\| camera =
	\| runtime = 30 minutes		\| runtime = 30 minutes
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	\| starring = [[Mollie Sugden]]<br />[[Ian Lavender]]<br />[[Donald Hewlett]]<br />[[Michael Knowles (actor)\|Michael Knowles]]<br />[[Gorden Kaye]]		\| starring = [[Mollie Sugden]]<br />[[Ian Lavender]]<br />[[Donald Hewlett]]<br />[[Michael Knowles (actor)\|Michael Knowles]]<br />[[Gorden Kaye]]
	\| country = United Kingdom		\| country = United Kingdom
	\| network = [[BBC One\|BBC1]]		\| network = [[w:BBC One\|BBC1]]
	\| first_aired = {{Start date\|1977\|12\|13\|df=y}}		\| first_aired = {{Start date\|1977\|12\|13\|df=y}}
	\| last_aired = {{End date\|1978\|8\|14\|df=y}}		\| last_aired = {{End date\|1978\|8\|14\|df=y}}

Kurt: 1 revision imported

2022-10-06T21:25:45Z

1 revision imported

← Older revision	Revision as of 16:25, 6 October 2022
(No difference)

en>Philip Cross: ce, it doesn't have a high reputation

2022-07-14T14:06:44Z

ce, it doesn't have a high reputation

New page

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image = Come Back Mrs Noah titlescreen.jpg
| genre = [[Sitcom]]
| camera =
| runtime = 30 minutes
| creator = [[Jeremy Lloyd]] [[David Croft (TV producer)|David Croft]]
| writer = [[Jeremy Lloyd]] [[David Croft (TV producer)|David Croft]]
| starring = [[Mollie Sugden]] [[Ian Lavender]] [[Donald Hewlett]] [[Michael Knowles (actor)|Michael Knowles]] [[Gorden Kaye]]
| country = United Kingdom
| network = [[BBC One|BBC1]]
| first_aired = {{Start date|1977|12|13|df=y}}
| last_aired = {{End date|1978|8|14|df=y}}
| num_series = 1
| num_episodes = 6
| list_episodes = #Episodes
| producer=David Croft
}}
'''''Come Back Mrs Noah''''' is a [[British sitcom]] starring [[Mollie Sugden]] that aired on [[BBC One|BBC1]] from 17 July to 14 August 1978 with a pilot broadcast on 13 December 1977. It was written by [[Jeremy Lloyd]] and [[David Croft (TV producer)|David Croft]], who had also written ''[[Are You Being Served?]]'' which also starred Mollie Sugden. ''Come Back Mrs Noah'' was not a success, with some regarding it as one of the worst British sitcoms ever made.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/articles/c/comebackmrsnoah_1299000654.shtml |title=BBC Comedy Guide|publisher=[[BBC]]}}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20050405124516/http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/articles/c/comebackmrsnoah_1299000654.shtml Come Back Mrs. Noah] at the former [[BBC Guide to Comedy]], retrieved 7 July 2010</ref>

==Cast==
*[[Mollie Sugden]] as Mrs Gertrude Noah
*[[Ian Lavender]] as Clive Cunliffe
*[[Donald Hewlett]] as Carstairs
*[[Michael Knowles (actor)|Michael Knowles]] as Fanshaw
*[[Gorden Kaye]] as TV Presenter
*[[Tim Barrett (actor)|Tim Barrett]] as Garfield Hawk
*Joe Black as Garstang
*[[Ann Michelle]] as Scarth Dare
*Jennifer Lonsdale as Technician
*[[Raymond Bowers (actor)|Raymond Bowers]] as Professor Holzburger
*[[Robert Gillespie]] as Mission Control
*[[Harold Bennett]] as Priest
*[[Christopher Mitchell (actor)|Christopher Mitchell]] as Butler
*[[Norman Mitchell]] as Mr Noah
*[[Diana King (actress)|Diana King]] as Mrs Carstairs
*[[Vicki Michelle]] as Maid
*[[Jean Gilpin]] as 2nd Technician
*Jennifer Guy as Ivy Basset
*[[Kenneth MacDonald (English actor)|Kenneth MacDonald]] as Space Hen

==Plot==
In 2050, British housewife Gertrude Noah wins a cookery competition, and is awarded a tour of ''Britannia Seven'', the UK's new Space Exploration Vehicle. The craft is accidentally sent blasting off into space with a crew consisting only of Mrs Noah, [[proton]] [[physicist]] Carstairs, [[neutron]] physicist Fanshaw, [[lightbulb]]-changer Garstang, and [[BBC]] [[reporter]] Clive Cuncliffe. The series then centres on efforts to bring them back to [[Earth]]. The programme ''Far and Wide'' (a parody of ''[[Nationwide (TV series)|Nationwide]]'') features frequent updates read by [[Gorden Kaye]]. These reports present a reality in which [[United Kingdom|Britain]] is the most successful nation on Earth, providing aid to countries like Germany and the United States.

==Development==
The series was originally intended as a vehicle for [[Mollie Sugden]] and to take her out of the usual setting she would be in. Croft was very worried that others would soon start work on similar projects so he wished to rush it past the [[BBC]] as soon as possible. He later said that 'It speaks volumes about the flexibility of the [[BBC]] at that time ... we rushed it along without any opposition at all. One of my concerns, when I spoke to [Head of Comedy] [[James Gilbert (producer)|Jimmy Gilbert]], was that everyone would soon be trying to do something similar in this area, because "space" was suddenly all the rage, so I was greatly bothered about the danger of duplication. So I told him that Jeremy and I had an idea that we really liked, and that we wanted to do a pilot, but that the idea was so "hot" that I'd prefer not to tell him what it was about. And Jimmy, to his eternal credit, didn't ask for a script, he didn't question it at all, he just told me to go ahead and do it.'<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Guide|first=British Comedy|date=2021-06-27|title=Stranger Things: When sitcoms strain to be different - Comedy Chronicles|url=https://www.comedy.co.uk/features/comedy_chronicles/strange-sitcoms/|access-date=2021-07-03|website=British Comedy Guide|language=en-GB}}</ref>

==Production ==
[[David Croft (TV producer)|David Croft]] signed up [[Mollie Sugden]] as Mrs Noah who had previously appeared on another Croft and Lloyd sitcom ''[[Are You Being Served?]].'' Also in the series was [[Ian Lavender]] who was known for his role as [[Private Pike]] in ''[[Dad's Army]]''. [[Donald Hewlett]] and [[Michael Knowles (actor)|Michael Knowles]] played physicists Carstairs and Fanshaw, the two were already known to viewers as Colonel Reynolds and Captain Ashwood in the sitcom ''[[It Ain't Half Hot Mum]].''

==Episodes==
{{Episode table |background=#040605 |overall=5 |title=20 |director=18 |writer=18 |airdate=16|episodes=

{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber=1
|Title=Pilot
|DirectedBy = Bob Spiers
|WrittenBy = David Croft & Jeremy Lloyd
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1977|12|13|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=As part of her prize for winning ''Modern Housewife Magazine'''s cookery competition, Mrs. Noah visits the Pontefract International Space Complex (PISC) to tour the flight deck of Britain's £700 billion space station. She witnesses unproductive tea-making technology, tries on a pleasure hat, and is on the verge of testing the dream stimulation machine when the shuttle is accidentally launched into space, providing her a crash course in [[weightlessness]].
|LineColor=040605
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber=2
|Title=In Orbit
|DirectedBy = Bob Spiers
|WrittenBy = David Croft & Jeremy Lloyd
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1978|7|17|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=Mr. Carstairs' wife Rowena ([[Diana King (actress)|Diana King]]) and Mrs. Noah's husband ([[Norman Mitchell]]) send messages to the space ship via ''Far and Wide''. Shortly after, the crew attempts to make scrambled eggs utilising unpredictable robotic technology. Mr. Cunliffe and Mrs. Noah then go to the sleeping quarters, but they find themselves locked together in a cubicle for eight hours. Worsening their situation, the toilet is at the top of the wall, requiring magnetic shoes and gravity-defying skill.
|LineColor=040605
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber=3
|Title=To the Rescue
|DirectedBy = Bob Spiers
|WrittenBy = David Croft & Jeremy Lloyd
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1978|7|24|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=Mr. Cuncliffe and Mrs. Noah have a rude sideways awakening followed by an equally disorienting trip to the automatic clothes-changing machine. As a ship manned by Garfield Hawk and his mistress, Scarth Dare, prepares to rescue them, the physicists attempt to explain the technical dynamics of the rescue operation to Mrs. Noah, Messrs. Cunliffe and Garstang, using food to represent the planets and space craft.
|LineColor=040605
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber=4
|Title=Who Goes Home?
|DirectedBy = Bob Spiers
|WrittenBy = David Croft & Jeremy Lloyd
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1978|7|31|df=y}}
|ShortSummary= The rescue vehicle is damaged, and to offset the load, the group tries to decide who will stay behind. However, the issue become moot when they realise the craft can only accommodate the two rescue crew members. [[Teleportation]] is explored as an alternate method of escape, but since it's never been successful with living subjects, they decide to first test it with a clone. Unfortunately, the cloning process requires Mrs. Noah to consume a ridiculous amount of liquid, and she can't help moving while the computer scanners molest her, causing the clone to emerge with an extended nose and third leg.
|LineColor=040605
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber=5
|Title=The Housing Problem
|DirectedBy = Bob Spiers
|WrittenBy = David Croft & Jeremy Lloyd
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1978|8|7|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=Realising that they may be there for quite some time, Mr. Garstang tries to lay claim to Mrs. Noah, but she reveals that the only one whom she might be interested in is Mr. Carstairs -- who's utterly disinterested. Everyone decides to move into the living quarters, but they're unfinished, so they're forced to pair up. Mrs. Noah and the increasingly-antagonistic Mr. Cuncliffe bunk together in a pad with a high-speed robot butler, the physicists share a more lavish flat with both a butler and a maid, and Mr. Garstang is relegated to a closet. Later, Mr. Carstairs decides to throw a tea party, but he doesn't invite Mr. Garstang.
|LineColor=040605
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber=6
|Title=The Last Chance
|DirectedBy = Bob Spiers
|WrittenBy = David Croft & Jeremy Lloyd
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1978|8|14|df=y}}
|ShortSummary=The crew decides to take advantage of the facilities, so they play a round of virtual golf. Unfortunately, their game is spoiled by a freak rainstorm that short-circuits the machinery. Later, everyone is attired in silver spacesuits and taught how to eject from the spacecraft when it enters the earth's atmosphere, but back at Mission Control, Mr. Hawk is so distracted by Ms. Dare that he pushes the wrong button, catapulting the vehicle to the outer limits of the solar system.
|LineColor=040605
}}
}}

==Other countries==
''Come Back Mrs Noah'' was also shown in the [[Netherlands]], starting on 30 June 1979. It was also aired in Australia and on several [[public television]] stations in the United States including [[WPBT]] in [[Miami, Florida]] and [[WNED-TV]] in [[Buffalo, New York]].

==References==
*[[Mark Lewisohn]], "Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy", BBC Worldwide Ltd, 2003

==Footnotes==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{BBC Online|comedy/guide/articles/c/comebackmrsnoah_1299000654.shtml|''Come Back Mrs Noah''}}{{dead link|date=February 2015}}
*{{British Comedy Guide|tv|come_back_mrs_noah}}
*{{IMDb title|0075494}}

{{David Croft}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Come Back Mrs. Noah}}
[[Category:1970s British sitcoms]]
[[Category:1970s British science fiction television series]]
[[Category:1977 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:1978 British television series endings]]
[[Category:BBC television sitcoms]]
[[Category:David Croft sitcoms]]
[[Category:English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Television series set in the 2050s]]

Come Back Mrs. Noah - Revision history

Kurt at 04:36, 20 February 2023

Kurt at 21:59, 6 October 2022

Kurt: 1 revision imported

en>Philip Cross: ce, it doesn't have a high reputation