Hardwicke House
| Hardwicke House | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Paula Burdon |
| Written by | Richard Hall and Simon Wright |
| Directed by | John Stroud |
| Starring | Roy Kinnear, Pam Ferris, Duncan Preston |
| Theme music composer | Peter Brewis |
| Country of origin | UK |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 7 (of which 5 were untransmitted) |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Paula Burdon |
| Running time | 1 x 50 minutes (Episode 1), 6 x 25 minutes (Episodes 2-7) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ITV |
| Original run | 24 February 1987 – 25 February 1987 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Chalk |
Hardwicke House was a 1987 seven-episode sitcom produced by Central Independent Television for the ITV network. It was so negatively received that only the first two episodes were transmitted.
Contents |
[edit] Plot and episode titles
The series was set in the large comprehensive school of the title, the staff of which were as dysfunctional as the pupils. One teacher was a multiple murderer, while the deputy headmaster lusted after male pupils. One teacher, Moose Magnusson, was on an extended exchange placement, as his own school in Iceland refused to have him back.
- Episode 1 - The Visit (24 February 1987)
- Episode 2 - The First Day of Term (25 February 1987)
- Episode 3 - Interview Day (scheduled for 4 March 1987)
- Episode 4 - Prize Giving (scheduled for 11 March 1987)
- Episode 5 - Old Boys (scheduled for 18 March 1987)
- Episode 6 - Inspector Calls (scheduled for 25 March 1987)
- Episode 7 - Passion Play (scheduled for 1 April 1987)
[edit] Pre-publicity, broadcast and aftermath
The series was extensively trailed and featured on the front cover of the TV Times for the week of the first two episodes - a double-length premiere and a "regular" episode - which were shown on consecutive Tuesday and Wednesday nights, with later episodes scheduled for subsequent Wednesdays. However, the public and press outcry against the series was so great that the series was pulled and replaced with re-runs of Chance in a Million. Work on a second series was immediately halted. It was initially claimed that Central had wiped the master tapes of the whole first series, but this was later revealed to be untrue.
The remaining five untransmitted episodes included cameos from John Fortune, Bryan Pringle and - in the roles of highly dangerous boys recently released from borstal - Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson.
The series has never been transmitted outside the United Kingdom (although it was offered for overseas sale by Central), nor yet released on any home video format.
[edit] References and notes
[edit] External links
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