The Jimmy Perry/David Croft sitcom ‘Hi-De-Hi!' was a staple of British TV throughout the 1980s. The enormously popular show regularly drew large viewing figures as the adventures of the staff at Maplin's holiday camp reliably entertained audiences with a consistently high standard and laugh-to-minute ratio.
As with other Perry/Croft sitcoms such as ‘Dad's Army', the success of ‘Hi-De-Hi!' lay in creating a large ensemble cast of loveable characters, with a core of regulars capable of carrying their own episodes. The enthusiastic ‘Yellowcoat' entertainers mixed with the potty chalet maid and the often-harassed entertainments manager. It created magical TV that the whole family could enjoy.
With razor-sharp scripts, hilarious performances, vivid costumes, off-stage characters like cockney geezer and holiday camp magnate Joe Maplin, and Peggy's fearsome boss Miss Cathcart, and a nostalgic setting in the late 1950s / early 1960s, ‘Hi-De-Hi!' has all the ingredients of classic sitcom heaven.
I was a child when ‘Hi-De-Hi!' first aired. Four decades on, I have revisited all fifty-eight episodes in a quest that began in January. I have loved the experience! These are the episodes that stood out the most. Do you agree with my picks?
‘Peggy's Big Chance'
I wanted to watch ‘Hi-De-Hi' in the first place after seeing Su Pollard in panto last year. She was brilliant! As a kid, chalet maid Peggy Ollerenshaw was by far my favourite character. There's something so endearing about the cleaning staff dreaming of the big time. Her innocence and honest ambition set her up for being dragged into wheezes, usually by Ted (Paul Shane). This one's no exception. Poor Peggy agrees to take part in a poolside comedy routine in which she plays a shark sent to attack comedian Spike Dixon (Jeffrey Holland). What could possibly go wrong? Pollard's performance, especially at the end of the episode, brings a tear to my eyes. It's important to say that pathos, a powerful ingredient in good comedy, runs throughout ‘Hi-De-Hi!', and this episode shows it strongly. It's also notable for revealing the innate decency of entertainments manager Jeffrey Fairbrother (Simon Cadell). His paternalistic instinct is to both encourage and protect Peggy. Beautiful writing and performances.
‘A Night Not To Remember'
This is a classic Jeffrey Fairbrother episode, and as a great admirer of the late, great Simon Cadell, I enjoy it for his superb performance playing comedy drunk. When the reserved and quiet Jeffrey becomes inebriated after a group of rugby players play a trick on him, he has to be escorted back to his chalet by Gladys (Ruth Madoc), who is madly in love with him. When Jeffrey can't remember the events of the previous night, he grows worried that something inappropriate may have happened. I was still laughing days later every time I thought of Jeffrey clinging on to the bar rail all the way back to his chalet. The episode has some magical scenes between Simon Cadell and Ruth Madoc. Their chemistry was exquisite, and even used to sell chocolate in a Cadbury's Whisper commercial.
‘Carnival Time'
This is a great episode for the whole ensemble. You know something's bound to go wrong when loveable but hapless comic Spike (Jeffrey Holland) is put in charge of organising the tableau. And overly-confident Ted (Paul Shane) believes a bit of live fire will wow the punters and can easily be contained. With Gladys (Ruth Madoc) decked out as Joan of Arc… well, you get the gist. Jeffrey (Simon Cadell) receives a visit from an old academic friend, played by Perry/Croft royalty John Le Mesurier, who had been the suave Sergeant Wilson in ‘Dad's Army'. Forced to choose between his old life and new, Jeffrey realises who his friends are, ensuring there's a solid gold heart beating within the anarchic and brilliantly-realised slapstick.
‘It's a Blue World'
This one is a classic Ted Bovis dodgy money-making scheme, which would form the hook on several occasions. The affable but unscrupulous camp host sells tickets to see an illegal blue movie after a print of the film ends up in Maplin's. But the screening has to happen before the police raid the premises. It's an excellent example of an episode that uses supporting characters well, with ballroom dance partners Barry and Yvonne Stuart-Hargreaves making the most of some terrific material. “Come away, Barry!” Nobody has ever given side-eye quite as well as Barry Howard.
‘Eruptions'
Perry and Croft were so often able to pull out all the stops for a festive spectacular, and this one (and my next selection) are the best. When new holiday camp attraction – a model volcano called ‘The Mighty Mountain of Pitspaloo' – distracts campers in the middle of Ted's act, he decides to fight fire with fire and conjures a fiendish plot to get rid of it. Cue a midnight raid to sabotage the mechanical monstrosity in the hope that it won't pass an inspection by the fire officer. Jeffrey learns of Ted's nefarious activities through the drink-sodden Punch and Judy man (Leslie Dwyer, in his final role at the end of a distinguished career). But his attempt to put a stop to it unwittingly traps Jeffrey inside the Three Bears Cottage overnight – with Gladys for company! How tongues will wag…
‘The Great Cat Robbery'
This is another fantastic feature-length Christmas special. I laughed all the way through this one. A famous cat burglar stayed at the camp, and the police haven't recovered his loot. Ted believes he must have stashed a priceless emerald necklace beneath the floorboards in one of the chalets. But when they are constantly occupied by visiting campers, how on earth can they pull up the floorboards to find the buried treasure? Paul Shane and Jeffrey Holland are a fantastic double act throughout the series. Their contrasting physiques (short and squat versus tall and thin) automatically pair them well in the time-honoured style of Laurel and Hardy. But throughout ‘Hi-De-Hi!', it's the honest, dependable and somewhat dull Spike who acts as his conscience and reins the excesses of the exuberant, amoral and unscrupulous Ted. Nowhere is this dynamic more in evidence than in this episode. It's also an opportunity for the new entertainments manager, Squadron Leader Clive Dempster (David Griffin) to prove he's a much more caddish posh boy than his predecessor, straight-laced Jeffrey.
‘The Wind of Change'
The final episode of ‘Hi-De-Hi' is bittersweet, and leans into the pathos that works so well in the show. It has to be included simply for Su Pollard's beautiful and hilarious performance. When Peggy finally gets her chance to don the much-coveted jacket and become a Yellowcoat, will she finally have gotten on and set herself up for a whole new career entertaining campers for season after season? Times they are a changing, and external events threaten to break up the gang. Now that Clive and Gladys have tied the knot, will Spike give up his dream of being a successful comedian and settle down to a sensible job in insurance for the sake of a bungalow and a mortgage? Knowing that it would be the final episode, every member of the ensemble gives their all as the series goes out on an unforgettable high, reminding viewers why it's generally regarded as one of the all-time great British sitcoms.
See our piece on remembering Simon Cadell, visiting his grave at All Saint's Church, Honington.
