Boys From The Blackstuff

[barry1010]

Is tonight's Play for Today on BBC4. I'm looking forward to it

[Bobbisox1]

Got the box set years ago, a great series Barry

[theshedman]

Go on give us a job As Yosser would say.

[mushroom25]

to be picky - it's not "Boys from the Black Stuff" but the TV Play that preceded it, "The Black Stuff", which detailed how they came to be unemployed (and where Boys from the Black Stuff picked up).

[burlyshirley]

One of the best series of its time, if not the best.

[Bobbisox1]

That and Auf Wiedersehen Pet, pure magic tv

[Ken4155]

tehshedman; Yosser never said, "Go on give us a job." What he said was, "Gis a job. Go on, gis it. Gis a go, go on. I could do that. You only have to walk straight. I can walk straight. Go on, gis a job" :-))

[theshedman]

Auf wiedersehen pet was my favorite around just afterwards.

[theshedman]

I know ken but I only put on gist of it.

[Ken4155]

Alan Bleasdale is quite simply one of the best tv dramatists this country has ever produced. Beside from The Blackstuff, his two other stand out series were GBH and Jake's Progress.

[burlyshirley]

Loved Auf Wiedershen too. They argued a lot, but were always loyal to one another.

[Ken4155]

Yosser's best line was when he was talking to the priest in the confessional. "I'm desperate, father." he says. The priest urges Yosser to call him Dan. So Yosser says, "I'm desperate, Dan."

[theshedman]

Burlyshirley, they were also very good actors and the ones still alive are always on the tv on in films apart from Oz that is. Don't see him these days.

[burlyshirley]

^ They were excellent actors, I particularly liked Barry, but then again Timothy Spall is one of our finest actors. Oz was my favourite and I loved the episode when he sang and totally gobsmacked all the others with his good voice !

[ParsleyDumpling]

burlyshirley, I have a few albums by Jimmy Nail (Oz), he was a very good singer (but probably not to everyone's taste). Loved him in Spender, too.

[burlyshirley]

Parsley - I liked his singing and remember him appearing on Top of the Pops ! I also used to enjoy Spender. Wonder what he does now ..

[KUSTARD]

Thank you so much for providing this thread. I don't usually look at BBC4 programmes so didn't know it was on. Although I watched the series, I had never seen this play which was the start of it. I watched it on the I-player and enjoyed it immensely. I wish they would show the series again but when the world becomes less gloomy!!!!

[barry1010]

Kustard, I thought some people might not realise it was on. The Play for Today is always worth a viewing, a few are mediocre but some are excellent, there are a few available on iPlayer

[KUSTARD]

Thanks for that Barry. I will have a look. Sorry to reply so late but I only go on the computer once a day with my early morning cuppa.