David Piper
Dedicated Member
(S02 E01) Forked Lightning
Original Airdate: March 5, 1975
Clegg, having endured several mishaps, seeks to repair his bicycle as well as to master riding it.
“Oh Ivy, thee’s got a chest like a proud pigeon! If it wasn’t for Nora Batty, I could fancy thee!”
~Compo Simmonite
The slapstick for which Summer Wine is famous starts to take hold, but there’s still plenty of witty dialogue to complement it. In Forked Lightning, Norman Clegg suffers That Most Serious of Injuries…twice…while riding his bicycle. Both times, other townsfolk witness this most unfortunate event. The first group are waiting for a bus and mockingly give Clegg an ovation after his accident. Clegg tips his hat; he clearly has a proclivity to cope! One of the townies says, “Nice one, Cyril”, which is not a mistaken reference to Michael Bates’ character, but rather a popular expression of the day.
“In 1972, Wonderloaf Bread created a television advertising campaign written by Peter Mayle with the slogan "Nice one, Cyril", where the slogan was used to congratulate a baker named Cyril for baking a good loaf of bread. The slogan was picked by fans of the football club Tottenham Hotspur, who chanted "Nice one Cyril" to praise a Tottenham player named Cyril Knowles. Harold Spiro, a fan of the club, wrote the song with Helen Clarke based on the slogan.” [Wikipedia]
Fascinating!
It’s unusual for the traditionally vacant streets of Holmfirth to “suddenly” become filled with onlookers. A few of these actors even get multiple lines of dialogue, such as the two ladies who are seen after Clegg’s second, off-camera accident. I hope the ladies got their equity card for their effort.
At the library, Cyril and Compo wonder where Clegg has gone. They also talk about Compo’s lucky rabbit’s foot. It’s not a particularly funny scene, but it demonstrates what superb actors Owen and Bates are, as they can make almost anything sound interesting. This scene proves it.
Clegg finally does show up and is still in pain. Peter Sallis makes hilarious sounds to express this. The mere motion of moving his leg elicits in him groans of agony. This is only surpassed by the joyful sounds he makes when he’s able to walk without misery again! Brilliantly played by Sallis.
Physical and visual comedy galore: The bike is crushed by a passing truck; The Trio ride in the back of a horse trailer with a horse, of course; the boys falling over in the bike while triple towing…I love the look of pure joy on Compo’s face while Cyril and Clegg’s initial amusement quickly turns to stark terror; Bill Owen conveys a “child at play” visage to perfection here.
The mechanic at the garage where Clegg bought the bike (in 1946) is played by Kenneth MacDonald, the future Only Fools and Horses barman. His character might have been a severe annoyance, but MacDonald is such an engaging performer that he’s actually charming. His mechanic character clearly loves life and his job. In between shouting at Gordon, his offscreen colleague, he sings a medley of classic songs:
By the Time I Get to Phoenix
Secret Love
Everybody’s Talkin’
Baby Love
Hound Dog
Try a Little Tenderness
Cyril tells Clegg that 1946 was a terrible year for him, because he spent his military leave that summer at Bridlington.
The two bus (coach) conductresses (Doreen Sloane, Cynthia Michaelis) are tough but lovely. The camera is inside the coach as the doors close to the trio, who are not permitted to bring the bike aboard.
Ivy gets some wonderful character moments. First, after Compo admires her physical form, she chases him out of the cafe and afterward pauses to admire herself in the mirror. Ivy was either clearly taken with Compo’s attention or by his remark about her bosom.
Another great Ivy moment is her look of obvious concern and total love for her dear Sid, who suffered the same very painful injury as Clegg did at the episode’s start. Sid has his best effort yet in being the unofficial “fourth” member of the trio. He tries to repair Clegg’s bike and is later the recipient of the boys’ “pit crew”-style assistance after Sid’s “Butch Cassidy on a bike” moment reaches its ignominious conclusion. The trio simultaneously looking after Sid is a nice bit of affection from the lads, who no doubt appreciated Sid’s attempts to repair Norman’s bicycle, but it’s also a fine character moment for Norman, Cyril, and Compo to attend to their pal.
Forked Lightning has an assured, confident quality, both in the performances by the principal actors as well as the handful of one-off characters who appear in this episode. While not a perfect 10, Forked Lightning is a highly-enjoyable entry and one that will no doubt rise in rating through repeat viewings.
My Rating: 9/10
Original Airdate: March 5, 1975
Clegg, having endured several mishaps, seeks to repair his bicycle as well as to master riding it.
“Oh Ivy, thee’s got a chest like a proud pigeon! If it wasn’t for Nora Batty, I could fancy thee!”
~Compo Simmonite
The slapstick for which Summer Wine is famous starts to take hold, but there’s still plenty of witty dialogue to complement it. In Forked Lightning, Norman Clegg suffers That Most Serious of Injuries…twice…while riding his bicycle. Both times, other townsfolk witness this most unfortunate event. The first group are waiting for a bus and mockingly give Clegg an ovation after his accident. Clegg tips his hat; he clearly has a proclivity to cope! One of the townies says, “Nice one, Cyril”, which is not a mistaken reference to Michael Bates’ character, but rather a popular expression of the day.
“In 1972, Wonderloaf Bread created a television advertising campaign written by Peter Mayle with the slogan "Nice one, Cyril", where the slogan was used to congratulate a baker named Cyril for baking a good loaf of bread. The slogan was picked by fans of the football club Tottenham Hotspur, who chanted "Nice one Cyril" to praise a Tottenham player named Cyril Knowles. Harold Spiro, a fan of the club, wrote the song with Helen Clarke based on the slogan.” [Wikipedia]
Fascinating!
It’s unusual for the traditionally vacant streets of Holmfirth to “suddenly” become filled with onlookers. A few of these actors even get multiple lines of dialogue, such as the two ladies who are seen after Clegg’s second, off-camera accident. I hope the ladies got their equity card for their effort.
At the library, Cyril and Compo wonder where Clegg has gone. They also talk about Compo’s lucky rabbit’s foot. It’s not a particularly funny scene, but it demonstrates what superb actors Owen and Bates are, as they can make almost anything sound interesting. This scene proves it.
Clegg finally does show up and is still in pain. Peter Sallis makes hilarious sounds to express this. The mere motion of moving his leg elicits in him groans of agony. This is only surpassed by the joyful sounds he makes when he’s able to walk without misery again! Brilliantly played by Sallis.
Physical and visual comedy galore: The bike is crushed by a passing truck; The Trio ride in the back of a horse trailer with a horse, of course; the boys falling over in the bike while triple towing…I love the look of pure joy on Compo’s face while Cyril and Clegg’s initial amusement quickly turns to stark terror; Bill Owen conveys a “child at play” visage to perfection here.
The mechanic at the garage where Clegg bought the bike (in 1946) is played by Kenneth MacDonald, the future Only Fools and Horses barman. His character might have been a severe annoyance, but MacDonald is such an engaging performer that he’s actually charming. His mechanic character clearly loves life and his job. In between shouting at Gordon, his offscreen colleague, he sings a medley of classic songs:
By the Time I Get to Phoenix
Secret Love
Everybody’s Talkin’
Baby Love
Hound Dog
Try a Little Tenderness
Cyril tells Clegg that 1946 was a terrible year for him, because he spent his military leave that summer at Bridlington.
The two bus (coach) conductresses (Doreen Sloane, Cynthia Michaelis) are tough but lovely. The camera is inside the coach as the doors close to the trio, who are not permitted to bring the bike aboard.
Ivy gets some wonderful character moments. First, after Compo admires her physical form, she chases him out of the cafe and afterward pauses to admire herself in the mirror. Ivy was either clearly taken with Compo’s attention or by his remark about her bosom.
Another great Ivy moment is her look of obvious concern and total love for her dear Sid, who suffered the same very painful injury as Clegg did at the episode’s start. Sid has his best effort yet in being the unofficial “fourth” member of the trio. He tries to repair Clegg’s bike and is later the recipient of the boys’ “pit crew”-style assistance after Sid’s “Butch Cassidy on a bike” moment reaches its ignominious conclusion. The trio simultaneously looking after Sid is a nice bit of affection from the lads, who no doubt appreciated Sid’s attempts to repair Norman’s bicycle, but it’s also a fine character moment for Norman, Cyril, and Compo to attend to their pal.
Forked Lightning has an assured, confident quality, both in the performances by the principal actors as well as the handful of one-off characters who appear in this episode. While not a perfect 10, Forked Lightning is a highly-enjoyable entry and one that will no doubt rise in rating through repeat viewings.
My Rating: 9/10