Jimmy Perry (1923–2016)

Wonderful stuff. Set in the UK during World War II.

From an unexploded bomb to a church hall dance; from a struggle to use a telephone box to a boat drifting out to sea. It's remarkable how many plot lines the writers came up with for this classic series, which sometimes makes us laugh aloud with the clever dialogue and situations. Dated and somewhat sexist, of course... but it was a product of its time.

We very much enjoyed watching series three, and are already looking forward to the next show more one. Definitely recommended if you like this kind of 1960s sitcom.

Longer review: https://suesdvdreviews.blogspot.com/2025/12/dads-army-series-3.html show less

Very enjoyable, building on the characters of the previous series. Some caricatures, of course, and plenty of innuendoes but all for the sake of humour.

There are some surprisingly poignant episodes too: Captain Mainwaring makes a new friend, but starts to feel rather too attached to her. Sergeant Wilson is promoted, until disaster strikes. Corporal Jones is accused of cowardice. It's a testament to the writers and the actors that these stories can be told, balancing humour and the more show more serious elements.

I probably saw these on TV in the 1970s when they first came out, but have no memory of any of these episodes. So we enjoyed them very much.

Longer review: https://suesdvdreviews.blogspot.com/2026/02/dads-army-series-four.html show less

It's many years since I saw 'Dad's Army' on TV, when broadcast and also some repeats. Very enjoyable to watch the six episodes of Series 1 and the remaining three of Series 2, plus an 'extra' which explains how these episodes, thought to be lost forever, were discovered.

It's bumbling humour, with unlikely stories and some backgrounds and props demonstrating the low budget that must have gone into these early episodes, which are black-and-white. But somehow it's very appealing; possibly show more because the characters of the Home Guard are so well-developed, albeit caricatured.

It's part of British culture, and I would recommend it to anyone wanting a bit of classic humour.

Longer review here: https://suesdvdreviews.blogspot.com/2024/05/dads-army-series-1-and-2.html show less

I have read several biographies that are heavily illustrated and they tend to be coffee table books; interesting to browse, but not very informative. I therefore, picked up this tome with some trepidation but, to my surprise, and delight, this turned out to be the exception. The pictures are carefully chosen to add to the story of Jimmy Perry's life and save pages of description: a photograph of his family, friends or work colleagues rather than shovels full of flowery prose.
The show more autobiography is heavily slanted towards his writing. We get details of his life that lead to the various themes of his comedies, but little about his personal life.
for anybody who likes, Dad's Army, It Ain't Half Hot Mum, or Hi De Hi, there is a wealth of fascinating background information plus an insight in to what it was like to live through the second World War and into the ensuing peace. show less