Way back in 1969 a TV comedy series began with an episode called THE EARLY SHIFT. That show was called
On The Buses.
It was about the life of a driver and his conductor working
on the No.11 bus that ran to the CEMETERY
GATES. They were employed by Luxton and District Bus Depot and answerable to an Inspector who was the bain of their lives. The series
was created and written by Ronald Wolfe and Ronald Chesney The main cast were the happy go lucky bus driver Stan (Reg Varney).
Stan's best pal, the lecherous
conductor Jack (Bob Grant) and Inspector Blake (Stephen Lewis). Driver Stan lived at home with sister
the delectable Olive (Anna Karen) and her
lay-about husband Arthur (Michael Robbins) plus of course dear old Mum. (Cicely Courtniedge) series 1, (Doris Hare) from series
2 onwards.
The
series followed the exploits of Stan and Jacks lives. Their day to day living, how they dealt with authority and of course
the all important job of chasing the
opposite sex known as 'Birds'. The cast won the ITV personality of the year in
1970. By 1971 the show was a firm favorite
across the nation and was watched globally by audiences of 22 million.
The series was to reflect
the lives of the working classes of the
time and this was part of the formula for its success. The show ended up being exported to 38 countries around the world and
is still being given re-runs on TV to
this day.
There were also 3 spin of feature films from the series: - 'On The Buses',
'Mutiny On The Buses' and
'Holiday On The Buses.'
So why not hop back onboard for a trip down memory lane here
at the ON THE BUSES fan-club
website.
LWT comedy series On The Buses was a hit with viewers but not with critics who didn’t see the charm
of the series viewers did. Such was the
success of the comedy that it spawned three spin-off movies and Flashback takes a look at both the television series and the
three movies of On the
Buses. On the Buses is probably one of the better remembered comedies of the 1970s
thanks to its successful run on ITV and
three cinema movies spun-off from the television series. The series was created by Ronald Wolfe and Ronald Chesney who had
also created The Rag Trade for the BBC and
had first taken On the Buses to BBC bosses who declined to produce the series. With rejection from the BBC the duo turned
to commercial rival ITV and the London
Weekend Television company, LWT for short, who held the weekend franchise in London. The series ran from 1969 to 1973 and
was a huge hit with viewers but critics did
not take to the series and that’s a legacy that remains to this day. Like many comedies of its era many critics look
back on the series through the view point
of down their nose, with a snobbish attitude that does not find the comedy contain within the series amusing at all. But despite
this the series still enjoys
popularity thanks to the characters within it, which are still referred to pop culture references, and the DVD releases of
the series. Repeats of the show have also
ensured its continuing longevity in the minds of audiences. The series
revolved around the antics of bus driver Stan Butler [Reg Varney] and his conductor Jack [Bob Grant] as they try to date their
way through the female clippies of the
bus company, avoid as much work as possible and wind up Inspector Blakey [Stephen Lewis] as much as possible. While Jack was
presented as a womaniser and Stan as a
down-to-earth bloke, Blakey was the stereotypical jobworthy inspector always looking out for a chance to get one over on Stan
and Jack. Many of the episodes revolved
around Blakey trying to catch Stan and Jack out. Other characters within the series included Stan’s mother [Cicely Courtneidge
and then Doris Hare], his sister
Olive [Anna Karen] and Oliver’s husband Arthur [Michael Robbins]. Arthur was often out of work due to a supposed back
injury and much was made of his attempts
at avoiding spending time with his long suffering wife, Olive. Olive was often the butt of many jokes. To this day referring
to a woman as Olive is an unflattering
remark and something of an insult to most women. As the series progressed some changes were made to the cast with several
cast members leaving. In 1971 the first movie based on the series was filmed
and released at cinemas, purely entitled
On The Buses. The film revolved around the introduction of female bus drivers to the company and Jack and Stan’s attempts
at getting rid of the latest threat to
their job, especially as the women proved to be better drivers and better at their jobs. The film was a hugely commercial
success and was the top box-office film at
the time, beating the James Bond film of the time Diamonds Are Forever. Given the huge success of the film and the continual
success of the television series another
film was made and released in 1972. Mutiny on the Buses saw Stan get a girlfriend who was determined that he should get a
job on a brand new line the bus company were
operating, to the nearby zoo. All manner of things go wrong and the only customers on the bus end up being escaped zoo animals.
In 1973 a third film was made, the
final film based on the series. Holiday on the Buses saw the action switch to a holiday camp and the various antics and disasters
that happened here as Stan, Jack and
Blackley all take up jobs on the camp site. All three films were produced by Hammer Film Productions who switched to making
film spin-offs from popular television
shows following the decline of Hammer Horrors. On the Buses was one of many popular comedy series’ of the 1970s that
was transformed into a big screen version
with George and Mildred, Please Sir and Man About The House being just one of many comedies made into films. In all there
were seventy four episodes of On the Buses made between 1969 and 1973, all of which were half an hour in length. In addition
to these two Christmas Specials were also
made. The series was mostly recorded at LWT’s studios in Wembley but in 1972 filming relocated to the South Bank studios
when LWT opened up their new studios
there. The fourth season of the show was hit by the ITV colour strike which ran from late 1970 to early 1971, consequently
seven episodes of the season were made in
black and white. Many other ITV shows were similarly affected by the strike with many showings having to switch back to recording
in black and white. After the series
ending in 1973 a short-lived spin-off series following, Don’t Drink the Water, ran from 1974 to 1975 and saw Stephen
Lewis reprise his role of Blakely. The
series saw Blakely retire to Spain with his sister, Dorothy [Pat Coombs]. The series didn’t capture the audience in
the same way as the parent show and
didn’t command the same ratings On the Buses did during its heyday. The series is now criticised for its perceived sexism
and the womanising ways of Jack, which
some see as endorsing his life style and treating woman as sexual objects. However, On the Buses was merely a product of its
time, like all comedies of that era, and
merely reflected the society of its time. Society in the 1970s was very different to our society and to judge the series based
on the values we have today seems
unfair given the advances made in regards to equality in the last thirty years which have led to our society today being more
respectful of equality of women.
In 1988 a stage version of the series toured in Australia which lead to the idea being put forward of a new
series of On the Buses being made. Back on
the Buses was suggested in 1990 and most of the original cast were believed to be up for reprising their roles. However, despite
publicity for the proposed revival
LWT opted not to push ahead with the idea.
Originally pubished in 2008 In memory of Reg Varney for ATV Written by Doug Lambert - UK Editor
How the actors came together in
ON THE BUSES
REG
VARNEY as STAN BUTLER
Reg started his career as a piano player (self
taught) before getting into knock about
comedy routines. During World War II, he joined the Royal Engineers, but continued performing as an army entertainer, entertaining
the troops including touring the
Far East.After the war he returned to his showbiz career in variety and TV roles.Reg
Varney was already known to Ronnie Wolfe and Ronnie Chesney due to his part as foreman Reg Turner in 'The Rag Trade',
which began in
1961.Reg was touring Australia with his act at the time when they contacting him asking
if he would be interested in playing
the role of Stan Butler. Reg sent a cable back to the UK saying “I am learning to drive a bus.”
BOB GRANT as JACK HARPER
Bob Grant was born in Hammersmith, west London, in 1932, trained at
Rada, did his National Service with the
Royal Artillery, then made his stage debut in 1952. Other repertory theatre work followed before his first London appearance,
with the Joan Littlewood's Theatre
Company. Bob was writing film and theatre plays and had also co-written with Stephen Lewis. Playing various roles on stage
including farces, before getting the part
of Jack the conductor, with his cheeky grin and quick wit he found the part was perfect for him.With
Stephen Lewis, Bob Grant
also wrote 11 episodes of ON THE BUSES
STEPHEN LEWIS as
Blakey
Stephen Lewis was working on a building site when Joan Littlewood came down from the theatre workshop and
chatted to Stephen and persuaded him to
take up acting for a play they were putting on about the building industry. He soon became one of the theatre company’s
best actors earning respect in the
industry. He was offered the part of Inspector Blake and the rest they say his history. Stephen Lewis got the idea of how
to play the character after spending time in
a real bus depot where he found Blakey’s character. In Stephen Lewis’s own words “The Inspector was in the
army for 5 years and although uniforms
and rules on the buses are similar to army life, he could not order everyone around like in the army. The bus crews can answer
back, walk out or call on the union,
much to Blakey’s frustration
DORIS
HARE as MUM
Born into an acting family,
her Father, Mother 3 Brothers and 2 Sisters were all on the stage. At the age of three she made her professional debut. Her
first West End hit came at the Adelphi
Theatre in 1932, when she was 27. Doris had a long and outstanding career but was always modest about this. The roles she
played were many and varied and was a forces
sweetheart of The Merchant Navy often heard on radio during the war in "Shipmates Ashore" eventually receiving an
MBE for her work as a wartime entertainer.
In 1945 she returned to the West End and continued working in theatre and film. Doris was first choice to play Mum in ON THE
BUSES was abroad at the time with her
husband who was an eminent Doctor. It was not until series 2 that Doris could accept the part as Mabel Butler.
ANNA KAREN as OLIVE
Early in her career, Anna Karen worked as an exotic dancer in London before getting into acting. When asked to audition
for the role of Olive she was just
putting make-up on in the back of the car when it was suggested she should go for the part without it. So with no make-up
a skirt down to her knees, the now famous
glasses and looking dowdy Anna walked into the audition and got the part as Olive.The
series also transferred to the stage/
which in 1987 took Anna to abroad to Victoria and Vancouver and the next year to Toronto. Anna is great friends with Barbara Windsor.
MICHAEL ROBBINS as ARTHUR
Michael Robbins began his professional life as a bank clerk. Through taking part in amateur dramatics he soon turned
professional actor, but also worked as
an usher in London during periods out of work.His acting talent shone
through and he gained enormous experience
with various repertory companies that lead him eventually to get TV work.Michael
was offered
the part of Arthur in ON THE BUSES after he was spotted by Ronald Wolfe and Ronald Chesney
playing
an irate bus passenger in the Harry Worth Show.
In 1987 Doris Hare, Anna Karen and Michael Robbins went over to Canada to star
in the stage play/farce
'ON THE BUSES A NEW LIFE. Reprising the roles of Mum, Olive and Arthur it all takes place in a hotel where
Olive finally gets to meet her Dad for
the first time it
was written by Ronnie Wolfe and Ronnie Chesney and was big hit with the Canadian theatre goers. It is a very funny play and
believed there are
only a few recordings of the play in existence, of which I am lucky enough to have one of these thanks
to Ronnie
Wolfe.
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