‘Tlah!
Listen Very Carefully review
Rating – 
The 1980s must surely be the high-point for British sitcoms. Yes, the previous decade had its fair share of classics, but weekend viewing in the 80s wasn’t complete without your weekly dose of comedic escapism. Of all the sitcoms of that era, one of the finest was ‘Allo ‘Allo. Written by comedy titans David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd, and featuring a cast of memorable characters, it ran for 9 series between 1982 and 1992. And that, dear readers, is the topic of this week’s review. Well, sort of. This bit of opening waffle (hopefully) brings me nicely into my Listen Very Carefully review.
So extricate yourself from Madame Fanny’s wardrobe, disguise yourself as a french onion seller and watch out for the explosive sausage. And of course, listen very carefully. I shall say this only once.
So what’s it about?
Set in the fictional town of Nouvion in occupied France in WWII, ‘Allo ‘Allo followed the trials and tribulations of cafe owner René Artois. René is a hen pecked, adulterous husband and collaborator with both the Germans and the resistance, and each episode followed the various scrapes René and the staff found themselves in.
Listen Very Carefully is an episode by episode discussion by three of the best loved actors in the series. Kim Hartman (Helga), Guy Siner (Gruber) and Richard Gibson (Herr Flick). They revisit each episode and go into great detail about the production and share reminiscences of just what it was like to work on the show.
The discussion goes from the actual casting process before they had even filmed the pilot, to technical talk. There’s even some salacious gossip hinted at from the on location filming. There are also digressions aplenty, with little nuggets of trivia about set design (particularly the general’s office in the chateau), and other film appearances of the exterior locations.
Is it any good?
The show itself is very informal. This is no high budget, American style, polished audio offering in a professional recording studio. This is three old friends (literally) sitting round the kitchen table having a drink and a chat. I love it for that. You’ll know from my previous reviews, that I have a soft spot for “cosy” podcasts. This is a prime example. As I type this, I’m thinking of the best way to talk about it, and the memory of those three talking is making me smile.
If, like me, you have a soft spot for ‘Allo ‘Allo then you’ll love this show. If you have never seen it, then the way that Kim, Guy and Richard discuss it with such fondness will surely make you want to discover it for yourself. Whereas other sitcoms from the 80s have dated terribly, ‘Allo ‘Allo hasn’t. As they say in one of the early episodes, this is probably because it’s set in the war, so the fashions never changed.
I’m currently re watching the show because of this podcast. Mainly to try and spot all the little details that get discussed, such as Helga corpsing as Herr Flick gets soil dumped on his head and Rene’s awkward interactions with Gruber. I haven’t heard Jack Haig singing the crumpet merchant song yet, but I suspect that would have been edited out anyway.
Final thoughts
‘Allo ‘Allo will no doubt be fondly remembered by most people my age and older. And if you are my age, then a lot of the humour would have gone straight over your head (as it did mine). Despite having memorised the catch phrases as a child, revisiting the show as an adult gives you a whole new appreciation not just for the excellent writing, but the talent of the actors.
And if you don’t fondly remember ‘Allo ‘Allo, then have a listen to this podcast, and then go and watch the show. It will be most pleasing…
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