Citizen James (1960–1962) User Reviews

Sid Without Tony

[Rabical-91 · 7/10 · 12 December 2018]

At the start of the '60's, Tony Hancock decided he did not wish to continue with the use of a support cast and so dropped having Sid James as his regular comedy partner. Luckily for Sid, he landed his own show scripted by Ray Galton & Alan Simpson ( who also were dropped as Tony's regular writers ).

'Citizen James' had Sid as an animated version of himself ( and by that I don't mean a cartoon version of himself ). Flat capped Sidney Balmoral James is a workshy layabout who always looks for ways to make easy money without having to work for a living.

Liz Fraser appeared in the first series as his frustrated fiancee, as did Bill Kerr as his Antipodean friend. However, by the second series, they left and Sid formed a double act with Sidney Tafler as his bookie friend Charlie.

Three series were made in total. It was nothing overly special but it was more than adequate a way to give Sid regular television exposure. Whilst Tony's career went downhill after his decision to go solo, Sid's career looked to be on the up. He would later find greater success on ITV with 'George & The Dragon', 'Two In Clover' and 'Bless This House', as well as finding cinematic success with the 'Carry On' films.

After 'Citizen James' finished, Galton & Simpson also found greater success when they penned the long running 'Steptoe & Son'

The understudy done alright, whilst the Hancock star ended up with sh...omething else

[Astenny_Bisto · 8/10 · 15 September 2022]

Hadn't heard of this until 18mths ago when it was mentioned on a forum discussion about the legendary HHH.

Not a Carry On/Bless This House fan by any means, so I wasn't sure what to expect... then I seen the names Galton & Simpson stamped on, like a TradeMark of Quality Guarantee.

First series is just perfect, and another example of G&S at their finest and their most prolific. Every bit as clever, expertly detailed, well-timed, well-judged, and well-worth-it as Hancock's Half Hour and Steptoe & Son.

You can sense other characters developing as Series 1 progresses, and the last couple of episodes in particular leave you with the feeling that had it stayed G&S, with SJ and the majority of the supporting cast it really could've developed into something special and a series that would've been as significant in early-mid 60s TV history as HHH was for the mid-50s to the turn of the decade.

I've not done the reading to explain this, and websites don't say why, but it all then changes. Only 3xS02 and 2xS03 episodes survive, and my DVD is missing one but from the four that I have you just know that the writers have changed, and there's also a feeling that the budget was either slashed or Sid stuck it on trap six at Crayford! One thing that stands out is Sydney Tafler being much less effective as the S2/3 sidekick than he was in the S1 role, Sid's heartless, inhumane, and asking-for-it bookie.

But don't say no if you get the chance to see them, because even the post G&S episodes are dozens of times better than the toss that poor Tony ended up churning out on ITV a few years later.

Sid landed a good one, whereas Tony had to deliver quips that made you want to quit, and storylines weaker than a pensioner with brittle bone disease. (ATV Hancock has the wit and charm of a 2022 BBC1 sitcom, written by a woman and starring one person from each legally protected group, where each victim kicks an unemployed native Brit in the painful area!)

So, six classics that deserve a lot more attention than they've had, and four more episodes of an above-average nature.

If you see it reduced on a re-selling site, grab it.

A forgotten gem.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 17 March 2024]

Sid, a man about town, is always mixed up in some sort of scheme, Charlie, his partner in crime very much has an eye for the ladies, the pair always seem to be in trouble.

It's a classic comedy, a very funny, sadly forgotten comedy series, it was a great vehicle for Sid's comedy brilliance, and for me, it's way better than Hancock's half hour.

Fortunately series one exists in its entirety, and it is well worth watching, excellent from start to finish, the remaining episodes from series two and three are also very good, but Sid's character is very different, now a man for justice, not quite The Del Boy figure.

Sid is wonderful, such a talent, you even get to see him dancing. Tafler is great, as is Liz Fraser, a shame she didn't seem to feature much past series one.

My favourites were Crusty Bread and The Elixir, but every episode offered something.

How sad that the bulk of it is lost, it seems so unlikely that more will pop up, but then you never know.

The most recently rediscovered episode, The Day out, was shown a few years back on The BBC over Christmas, sadly it's nowhere to be found nowadays, hopefully one day it'll get a commercial release.

Don't pass it by.

8/10.