It Ain't Half Hot Mum

acting very good windsor davies very good as williams and others actors were very good I like it I thought the writing is good very good series

This was the follow up to the immortal 'Dad's Army'and while sharing a wartime setting and comedy based on character had a somewhat harder and cruder edge and was less reliant on whimsy. Perhaps as a result of this, despite the fact that it lasted several series it never gained a real place in the nation's affections to the same extent as Dad's Army. It also straddled a changing period in Britain's attitude to racial stereotyping. The 1970's had begun with the crude 'Love Thy Neighbour' but ended with the first sitcoms featuring more than token black casts (e.g 'The Fosters') and 'It Ain't Half...' was increasingly criticized for its attitude even though as another correspondent says, the Asian characters usually outwit their British 'masters'. Michael Bates as Ranji Ram is probably the last comical asian character to be played by a white actor in makeup a la Peter Sellers. (Bates had lived in India as a boy). Interestingly 'The Simpsons' contains an Indian family whose 'jolly good, sahib' voices and behaviour would be pretty much unacceptable on a British TV programmae today and is very similar to the portrayal of the asian characters in 'It ain't half hot...'. The pint size singer Don Estelle formed an unlikely duo with Sergeant Major Windsor Daies for a few UK hits. Sadly Don is now reduced to busking round Lancashire towns in his 'It Ain't Half...' costume these days.

I didn't know what to make of this comedy after watching the first few episodes. It certainly had jokes, but it is such a unique setup that it was difficult to be comfortable with it at. Nevertheless, after becoming familiar with the characters and roles, it became a lot easier to get into the swing of the show.

The show is about troupe of entertainers who are soldiers (in rank only) in the Royal Artillery Core and are based in India (hence the programme's title). They perform shows for the regular soldiers which involve a range of acts, such as dancing, singing, joke-telling, acting etc. This is all to the extreme frustration of the Sergeant Major Williams, a seasoned soldier with decades of combat experience. He is desperate to see real fighting action and resents being in charge of this concert party that frequently embarrass him with their "less-than-macho" attitude. There are also two pompous senior officers who are generally oblivious to anything that is going on, only concerned with attending dinner parties with other officers.

The first few series did become a bit repetitive in my opinion: the plots mostly being Williams scheming to get the concert party disbanded and sent into the jungle, partly out of spite as he despises them so much, but also to satisfy his taste for combat. Whilst never becoming boring, it did become a bit stale.

However, perhaps I am imagining it, but from around series 4 or 5, when they are all relocated to a jungle in Burma (still as the concert party), the plots seemed to improve in my opinion, becoming more varied and creative and generally funnier.

One thing that is enormous credit to Croft and Perry is their ability to make some rather quite powerful and emotional episodes for a programme that is otherwise slapstick and daft. The final episode was really quite moving. The finale was done excellently, considering how so many other programmes fall flat with their finales.

As a final comment, Windsor Davies gives an incredible performance as the Sergeant Major, being naturally hilarious and also a convincing military figure (I believe he did spend a year or two in the army, so was probably very familiar with how to act the role).

Great fun.

I enjoyed this series when it was originally broadcast. As there is no likelihood of it being broadcast again,I bought The box?box set and have just finished it.It is very funny,almost as good as Dads Army.It does have problems. Michael Bates,blacked up,as the bearer, makes it unacceptable for broadcastimg,as does the homophobic rants by the Sergeant Major. Furthermore it has to be said that many of the Indian characters are drawn in an unsympathetic light..

I absolutely adore this I discovered about years ago when I was 21 and still love it. Windsor Davies is an absolute delight. The send up of British officers is great and Don Estelle was a criminally underrated singer. Michael Bates also deserves a mention despite the criticism of his character it's worth pointing out he was born in India and is a wonderful character in his own right. This is a classic and for those who aren't easily offended you'll have a wonderful time.