On The Buses: The Complete Series Boxset [DVD]

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Hop on board with comedy legends Reg Varney, Doris Hare, Michael Robbins, Anna Karen, Bob Grant and Stephen Lewis in all three films, presented on Blu-ray for the very first time worldwide. At the beginning of the seventh series Arthur, who is not seen, has left Olive and they are divorced. Olive again gets a job as a clippie on the buses as they are short of money. Stan takes a job in the north of England in a car factory in the "Goodbye Stan" episode, and the inspector takes Stan's old room as a lodger. Michael Sheard as the general manager of the bus depot who is seen frequently throughout the seventh and final series. He often argues with Blakey about something that the latter has done. He was also the judge at the gardening competition in the episode "Gardening Time". Sheard also played the general manager in the Holiday On The Buses film. A total of 74 episodes of On the Buses were broadcast over seven series. Three spin-off films were also released.

Madeleine Mills and Sandra Miller as the inspector's niece. She was played twice by Mills and twice by Miller. In her first two appearances, she and Stan are in a relationship; in the second they are engaged, but split up after a tea party at Stan's house. In her third appearance she married Bill, a bus driver at the depot. She also appeared in the episode "The New Nurse".

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In addition, two five-minute Christmas specials were made by LWT as part of an All Star Comedy Carnival in 1969 and 1972, ITV's answer to the BBC's Christmas Night with the Stars programme. The 1969 edition has been lost, but the 1972 edition – featuring a goose that the cast are chasing for Christmas dinner – exists in the Thames Television archive, which is now owned by FremantleMedia. Visual Entertainment released On the Buses: The Ultimate Collection, an 11-disc box set featuring the complete series on DVD on 12 September 2006. Anna Karen as Olive Rudge, Stan's sister. Olive is always being criticised by her husband Arthur, even though she helps her mum with household jobs and frequently helps Stan with the decorating. Olive has twice been a clippie at the bus depot, both times being unsuccessful. She is always wanting "an early night" with Arthur, much to his displeasure.

The three spin-off films were produced by Hammer Film Productions. They are On the Buses (1971), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), and Holiday on the Buses (1973), set in a holiday camp. On the Buses became Britain's top box office film of 1971. Network Distributing Ltd Film TV Home Entertainment". Archived from the original on 31 July 2019 . Retrieved 31 July 2019. Filmed external shots were part of the series. LWT arranged with the now defunct Eastern National Omnibus Company to use its buses at Wood Green bus garage in North London. They were shown as belonging to Luxton and District. Luxton is supposed to be in Essex, and actual Essex towns including Southend-on-Sea, Basildon, Braintree and Tilbury are all mentioned. One of the bus route termini was "Cemetery Gates", for which LWT used the entrance to Lavender Hill Cemetery. A different Lavender Hill in Battersea also features in the last episode of the last series, featuring the town hall (now the Battersea Arts Centre).

On The Buses

Sandra Bryant as Sandra, a clippie at the bus depot. Her character is seen frequently throughout the seventh and final series. In the first episode of the seventh series, she goes on a date with Stan to the cinema, until Olive comes along too. The films were set in a different canon to the series – in the films, Arthur and Olive manage to have a child despite their apparently sexless marriage and Arthur's 'operation' – the exact nature of which was never explicitly revealed. Arthur's operation is mentioned in the first film, but later Olive gives birth to their baby son. The three films follow a loose story arc which shows their son (Little Arthur) growing up. Olive is pregnant with a second child at the end of Mutiny, but no mention of this was made in the third film, Holiday, set mainly in a holiday camp. The bus depot becomes that of The Town & District Bus Company instead of The Luxton & District Traction Company. The buses in the films are mostly red ones, with one green one (not including the Windsor Safari Park tour bus in Mutiny On The Buses). Walker, Craig (2009). On the Buses: The Complete Story. Apex Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1-906358-69-3. I was torn between 3 or 4 stars for this show, but in the end, it makes me happy and makes the characters seem like old friends rendering it both watchable and re-watchable. So I give 4. I would not give it 5 stars because it pales when compared to shows like The Good Life, To The Manor Born or Dad's Army where the writing and character development and even acting is far more sophisticated. This show views much more like a filmed play than a polished show. There are a lot of fluffed lines, but there is also genuine live audience reaction.

The show's quirky humor and unforgettable characters have stood the test of time. Reg Varney as Stan Butler, Stephen Lewis as Inspector Blake, and the rest of the cast deliver top-notch performances that will have you in stitches from start to finish. The witty banter and clever writing make "On The Buses" a true gem of British television history. This DVD release also includes a number of extras, including a couple of Reg Varney variety shows, and also the opening episode to the follow up series 'Don't Drink The Water' (starring Stephen Lewis' character Blakey), all of which perhaps have fairly limited appeal. a b The Guinness Book of Classic British TV, by Paul Cornell, Martin Day and Keith Topping, second edition. Guinness Publishing Ltd., 1996 (p.66).Selected items are only available for delivery via the Royal Mail 48® service and other items are available for delivery using this service for a charge. Characters from On The Buses appeared in two other series. A spin-off, Don't Drink the Water (1974–75), ran for thirteen episodes, featuring Blake retiring to Spain with his sister Dorothy ( Pat Coombs - who also played one of the female bus drivers in the first On The Buses film). Anna Karen reprised her role as Olive in LWT's revival of The Rag Trade, which ran for two series in 1977–78.