Mickey Dunne

Story of a young cockney lad struggling to make it in mid-60's Britain. Heavily influenced (maybe too heavily) by Michael Caine's character, Alfie. Shown over the summer of 1967, and later in the evening because of some (then) risqué content, it only lasted 14 weeks. A victim of the BBC's early videotape debacle, being erased along with many other early-mid 60's TV shows in order to save a buck on reusable media!

Produced by John Frankau it included some famous guest stars of the day - Liz Fraser, Charles Tingwell, Nigel Davenport, Jack Watling, Imogen Hassell, Clive Dunn, Ray Brooks, Judy Geeson, John Scott-Martin, Jennie Linden, Georgina Hale, Ronald Radd, Jack Woolgar, John Junkin, Isla Blair, Glyn Houston, Dudley Foster, Nosher Powell, Patsy Ann Noble, Anna Carteret, George Pravda, Denise Coffey, Desmond Llewellyn, Judy Cornwell, and Johnny Briggs.

I was only thirteen when this was shown. I don't remember there being anything risqué about it or my mum would never have let me watch it. I do remember it was both funny and sad. The theme song went something like:-

Mickey Dunne, think of number one. You'll never make your pile with a happy smile And an open hand. Where will it land you?

I can't recall who the singer was, only that he had a northern accent. It might well have been a scouse accent but I can't be absolutely sure as fragments of memory from forty-six years ago are not always totally reliable.

Mickey was always getting into trouble for doing what he thought was best. This theme was later plagiarised by viz with the comic strip Helpful Herbert.

I have seen the film Lolita and I used to watch the series Mickey Dunne in the all too distant days of my youth. Unfortunately, I don't think that it was ever repeated, and as is true of so many programmes of that era, I suspect that no material from it was preserved. The Missing Believed Wiped project has done wonderfully well in discovering material that was not preserved in the Archives of the television companies, so perhaps there is a possibility.

I am more than a little puzzled as to what factors led a person or people to indicate that having liked the series Mickey Dunne would indicate that the viewer would also enjoy the film Lolita.

I would like to be able to add a cast credit, but have no way of identifying the episode to be able to do so in the system. This restriction seems to be something of a flaw in what is otherwise such a wonderful resource. Someone with access to the Radio Times would be able to check the necessary information.

I still remember the music and some of the lyrics of the theme tune of the series, which was put out on record, performed by Vince Hill.