How awful that the BBC refuse to show this again...what a load of nonsense...it was and still is an affectionate look at how things were in the war...I went on holiday to Turkey last year and saw exactly the same thing in the markets...foreign people imitating British for comedy purposes... poor Michael Bates was lambasted as racist for his role but that is exactly the kind of character around at the time...and there still is. This is almost "Spike Milliganesque" in its approach to multi culture comedy...there was never any intent to mock or offend...pure vaudeville. Perry and Croft understood perfectly the comedy in wartime as these were all obviously based on real life characters..anybody who is offended by this should be genuinely ashamed.....this series had 15 million viewers in its heyday...all apparent racists. Must add that all the crew were all in on the fun...Windsor Davies was brilliant., much like Hylda Baker and always using the wrong words ...one thing though....almost every British comedy at the time was made into a movie...why was this left out. Marvelous comedy from the finest writing duo since Galton and Simpson.
15 Reviews
Takes some getting used to, but gets better with every series
rophihisuc13 December 2017
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.
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.
''Shut up!!!!''
Rabical-912 October 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Jimmy Perry and David Croft's 'Dad's Army' saw the exploits of soldiers fighting for their country on British soil, however their next big hit, 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' focused on British soliders fighting in the Indian jungle.
I say it focuses on the soldiers fighting in the jungle, well, that is not strictly true, the synopsis of this long running sitcom actually focuses on a group of soldiers who are part of a group known as 'the concert party' entertaining the troops before they are sent up to the front. Some of the characters are just in this group to keep them out of combat though some of them do aspire to pursue a career in showbusiness.
The undoubted star of the show was Windsor Davies as bigoted Sergeant Major Williams though other characters included Lieutenant Colonel Reynolds ( Donald Hewlitt ) and laid back Captain Ashwood ( Michael Knowles ). The concert party consisted of pint-sized Gunner Lofty Sugden ( Don Estelle ), Gunner turned Bombardier Beaumont ( Melvyn Hayes ), Gunner Graham ( John Clegg ), Gunner Atlas Mackintosh ( Stuart McGugan ), Gunner Nobby Clark ( the late Kenneth McDonald ) and Bombardier Solly Solomon ( George Layton ). Layton left at the end of series two when the character was demobbed back to Britain. Michael Bates blacked up to play Bearer Ranji Ram in the first few series but was written out following Bates' death.
I don't regard 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' as a wonderful show, not by any means but it is fun, at least for the first few series. Perry and Croft seem to have a habit of flogging a show to death ( as 'Hi-De-Hi' well and truly proved ). It has been a long time since I have watched it but one very funny scene I can remember was Lofty, tired of Williams' constant put downs, making various attempts to murder the loud-mouthed officer. 'Scotch & Wry' star Rikki Fulton made an impressive guest role in one episode as a doctor.
'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' used to be repeated severally on UK Gold years ago but for quite a while it has been more or less in hiding. In these 'so called' PC days, it seems it will be banished to the same fate as 'Till Death Us Do Part' and 'Love Thy Neighbour'. Pity, it is no more racist than say 'Blazing Saddles'.
In 1986, 'Naked Video' made a delightful reference to the show with a sketch ( as I mentioned in my 'Are You Being Served?' review ) in which Gregor Fisher and Ron Bain played scriptwriters who wanted to write a sitcom set in a Japanese concentration camp. ''We could call it 'Are You Being Starved? Or how about 'I Ain't Half Thin, Mum'?''.
I say it focuses on the soldiers fighting in the jungle, well, that is not strictly true, the synopsis of this long running sitcom actually focuses on a group of soldiers who are part of a group known as 'the concert party' entertaining the troops before they are sent up to the front. Some of the characters are just in this group to keep them out of combat though some of them do aspire to pursue a career in showbusiness.
The undoubted star of the show was Windsor Davies as bigoted Sergeant Major Williams though other characters included Lieutenant Colonel Reynolds ( Donald Hewlitt ) and laid back Captain Ashwood ( Michael Knowles ). The concert party consisted of pint-sized Gunner Lofty Sugden ( Don Estelle ), Gunner turned Bombardier Beaumont ( Melvyn Hayes ), Gunner Graham ( John Clegg ), Gunner Atlas Mackintosh ( Stuart McGugan ), Gunner Nobby Clark ( the late Kenneth McDonald ) and Bombardier Solly Solomon ( George Layton ). Layton left at the end of series two when the character was demobbed back to Britain. Michael Bates blacked up to play Bearer Ranji Ram in the first few series but was written out following Bates' death.
I don't regard 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' as a wonderful show, not by any means but it is fun, at least for the first few series. Perry and Croft seem to have a habit of flogging a show to death ( as 'Hi-De-Hi' well and truly proved ). It has been a long time since I have watched it but one very funny scene I can remember was Lofty, tired of Williams' constant put downs, making various attempts to murder the loud-mouthed officer. 'Scotch & Wry' star Rikki Fulton made an impressive guest role in one episode as a doctor.
'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' used to be repeated severally on UK Gold years ago but for quite a while it has been more or less in hiding. In these 'so called' PC days, it seems it will be banished to the same fate as 'Till Death Us Do Part' and 'Love Thy Neighbour'. Pity, it is no more racist than say 'Blazing Saddles'.
In 1986, 'Naked Video' made a delightful reference to the show with a sketch ( as I mentioned in my 'Are You Being Served?' review ) in which Gregor Fisher and Ron Bain played scriptwriters who wanted to write a sitcom set in a Japanese concentration camp. ''We could call it 'Are You Being Starved? Or how about 'I Ain't Half Thin, Mum'?''.
Delightful
ahvginkel27 October 2004
The series has been rerun by Dutch TV lately, and really, it was in fact the only program I really enjoyed 5 times a week for a long time. Lovely boys, lovely series!!!!! The show has lost none of its freshness, wit and edge. SM Williams as the prototype British drill sergeant and the bedraggled concert party which remind me a lot of the stories depicted in Spike Milligan's war memoirs. The final episode with the demob scenes I found very touching. It was very realistically depicted with the war heroes returning to a drab Blythe and viewed with disdain and even contempt by the civvies they were "protecting".
I really hope that the BBC will air the show again. I miss it!!!!
I really hope that the BBC will air the show again. I miss it!!!!
It Ain't Half Funny
malcolmgsw10 January 2021
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..
"Meet the gang 'cos the boys are here!"
ShadeGrenade26 January 2010
Warning: Spoilers
I could not believe my eyes when in 2007, fans of 'Celebrity Big Brother' praised it for 'holding a mirror up to real life' ( this was around the time of the racism row involving Shilpa Shetty and the late Jade Goody ) after years of bashing so-called 'racist' '70's sitcoms such as 'Love Thy Neighbour'. I thought they were hypocrites, and said so. 'It Ain't Half Hot Mum' was then thrown into the argument, with some pointing out it had starred a blacked-up English actor. Well, yes, but Michael Bates had lived in India as a boy, and spoke Urdu fluently. The show's detractors ignored the reality he brought to his performance as bearer 'Rangi Ram'. Noted Indian character actor, Renu Setna, said in a 1995 documentary 'Perry & Croft: The Sitcoms' that he was upset when he heard Bates had landed the role, but added: "No Indian actor could have played that role as well as Bates.". Indeed.
'Mum' was Perry and Croft's companion show to 'Dad's Army'; also set in wartime, the sedate English town of Walmington-On-Sea had been replaced by the hot, steamy jungles of India, in particularly a place called Deolali, where an army concert party puts on shows for the troops, among them Bombadier Solomons ( George Layton, his first sitcom role since 'Doctor In Charge' ), camp Gunner 'Gloria' Beaumont ( Melvyn Hayes ), diminutive Gunner 'Lofty' Sugden, 'Lah de-dah' Gunner Graham ( John Clegg ), and Gunner Parkins ( the late Christopher Mitchell ). Presiding over this gang of misfits was the bellicose Battery Sergeant-Major Williams ( the brilliant Windsor Davies ), who regarded them all as 'poofs'. His frustration at not being able to lead his men up the jungle to engage the enemy in combat made him bitter and bullying ( though he was nice to Parkins, whom he thought was his illegitimate son! ). Then there was ever-so English Colonel Reynolds ( Donald Hewlett ) and dimwitted Captain Ashwood ( Michael Knowles ). Rangi was like a wise old sage, beginning each show by talking to the camera and closing them by quoting obscure Hindu proverbs. He loved being bearer so much he came to regard himself as practically British. His friends were the tea-making Char Wallah ( the late Dino Shafeek, who went on to 'Mind Your Language' ) and the rope pulling Punka Wallah ( Babar Bhatti ). So real Indians featured in the show - another point its detractors ignore. Shafeek also provided what was described on the credits as 'vocal interruptions' ( similar to the '40's songs used as incidental music on 'Dad's Army' ). Each edition closed with him warbling 'Land Of Hope & Glory' only to be silenced by a 'Shut Up!' from Williams. The excellent opening theme was penned by Jimmy Perry and Derek Taverner.
Though never quite equalling 'Dad's Army' in the public's affections, 'Mum' nevertheless was popular enough to run to eight seasons. In 1975, Davies and Estelle topped the charts with a cover version of that old chestnut 'Whispering Grass'. They then recorded an entire album of old chestnuts, entitled ( what else? ) 'Sing Lofty!'.
The show hit crisis point three years later when Bates died of cancer. Rather than recast the role of 'Rangi', the writers just let him be quietly forgotten. When George Layton left, the character of 'Gloria' took his place as 'Bombadier', providing yet another source of comedy.
The last edition in 1981 saw the soldiers leave India by boat for Blighty, the Char Wallah watching them go with great sadness ( as did viewers ).
Repeats have been few and far between ( mainly on U.K. Gold ) all because of its so-called 'dodgy' reputation. This is strange. For one thing, the show was not specifically about racism. If a white man blacked-up is so wrong, why does David Lean's 1984 film 'A Passage to India' still get shown on television? ( it featured Alec Guinness as an Indian, and won two Oscars! ). It was derived from Jimmy Perry's own experiences. Some characters were based on real people ( the Sergeant-Major really did refer to his men as 'poofs' ). I take the view that if you are going to put history on television, get it right. Sanitizing the past, no matter how unsavoury it might seem to modern audiences, is fundamentally dishonest. 'Mum' was both funny and truthful, and viewers saw this. Thank heavens for D.V.D.'s I say. Time to stop this review. As Williams would say: "I'll have no gossiping in this jungle!"
'Mum' was Perry and Croft's companion show to 'Dad's Army'; also set in wartime, the sedate English town of Walmington-On-Sea had been replaced by the hot, steamy jungles of India, in particularly a place called Deolali, where an army concert party puts on shows for the troops, among them Bombadier Solomons ( George Layton, his first sitcom role since 'Doctor In Charge' ), camp Gunner 'Gloria' Beaumont ( Melvyn Hayes ), diminutive Gunner 'Lofty' Sugden, 'Lah de-dah' Gunner Graham ( John Clegg ), and Gunner Parkins ( the late Christopher Mitchell ). Presiding over this gang of misfits was the bellicose Battery Sergeant-Major Williams ( the brilliant Windsor Davies ), who regarded them all as 'poofs'. His frustration at not being able to lead his men up the jungle to engage the enemy in combat made him bitter and bullying ( though he was nice to Parkins, whom he thought was his illegitimate son! ). Then there was ever-so English Colonel Reynolds ( Donald Hewlett ) and dimwitted Captain Ashwood ( Michael Knowles ). Rangi was like a wise old sage, beginning each show by talking to the camera and closing them by quoting obscure Hindu proverbs. He loved being bearer so much he came to regard himself as practically British. His friends were the tea-making Char Wallah ( the late Dino Shafeek, who went on to 'Mind Your Language' ) and the rope pulling Punka Wallah ( Babar Bhatti ). So real Indians featured in the show - another point its detractors ignore. Shafeek also provided what was described on the credits as 'vocal interruptions' ( similar to the '40's songs used as incidental music on 'Dad's Army' ). Each edition closed with him warbling 'Land Of Hope & Glory' only to be silenced by a 'Shut Up!' from Williams. The excellent opening theme was penned by Jimmy Perry and Derek Taverner.
Though never quite equalling 'Dad's Army' in the public's affections, 'Mum' nevertheless was popular enough to run to eight seasons. In 1975, Davies and Estelle topped the charts with a cover version of that old chestnut 'Whispering Grass'. They then recorded an entire album of old chestnuts, entitled ( what else? ) 'Sing Lofty!'.
The show hit crisis point three years later when Bates died of cancer. Rather than recast the role of 'Rangi', the writers just let him be quietly forgotten. When George Layton left, the character of 'Gloria' took his place as 'Bombadier', providing yet another source of comedy.
The last edition in 1981 saw the soldiers leave India by boat for Blighty, the Char Wallah watching them go with great sadness ( as did viewers ).
Repeats have been few and far between ( mainly on U.K. Gold ) all because of its so-called 'dodgy' reputation. This is strange. For one thing, the show was not specifically about racism. If a white man blacked-up is so wrong, why does David Lean's 1984 film 'A Passage to India' still get shown on television? ( it featured Alec Guinness as an Indian, and won two Oscars! ). It was derived from Jimmy Perry's own experiences. Some characters were based on real people ( the Sergeant-Major really did refer to his men as 'poofs' ). I take the view that if you are going to put history on television, get it right. Sanitizing the past, no matter how unsavoury it might seem to modern audiences, is fundamentally dishonest. 'Mum' was both funny and truthful, and viewers saw this. Thank heavens for D.V.D.'s I say. Time to stop this review. As Williams would say: "I'll have no gossiping in this jungle!"
Very funny
pjdickinson-278224 September 2021
This had people rolling around laughing in the 1970s and for good reason. It was very funny and totally politically incorrect which made it even better. No one was offended by it back then - even the targets of its jokes but in today's climate thin skinned professionally offended whackjobs absolutely would be. Hilarious.
Comedy Gold lost to the PC age
adamlennard15 October 2019
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.
Political correctness gone wrong
morrishj-9042819 April 2022
I am in my late 70s and have just finished watching, for the third time, the boxed set of 'It ain't half hot mum'.
I found it amusing and of the period and reflected how the majority of Britons regarded the rest of the world. I never met one who was different, in skin colour, until I joined the RAF at 17 when I travelled up to Bridgnorth with an Indian/Pakistani recruit. Just as the BBC doesn't show shows that reflect the times they were made I think that is pandering to the 'lilly liveried' who are trying to take our heritage away.
When I have worked my way through the DVDs that I have, I don't have a TV, I shall again take the series and enjoy it. I admit that it may be all the wrong reasons but I will enjoyed it well into my 80s.
I found it amusing and of the period and reflected how the majority of Britons regarded the rest of the world. I never met one who was different, in skin colour, until I joined the RAF at 17 when I travelled up to Bridgnorth with an Indian/Pakistani recruit. Just as the BBC doesn't show shows that reflect the times they were made I think that is pandering to the 'lilly liveried' who are trying to take our heritage away.
When I have worked my way through the DVDs that I have, I don't have a TV, I shall again take the series and enjoy it. I admit that it may be all the wrong reasons but I will enjoyed it well into my 80s.
Borrowed the box set and.....
quadrophenia-6952412 August 2021
Warning: Spoilers
There's 8 episodes I had seen 1 and 2 but my brother had the box set and was looking forward to seeing episode 3 but was not very funny atoll so i thought I would watch episode 7 and 8 as they where made in in 1980 but it was just the same people from before and it was just as unfunny so I didn't watch anymore.
Funnier Than Dad's Army
de_niro_200127 September 2000
Dad's Army may be a classic but this series by the same scriptwriters involving a similar but more youthful crowd of army misfits generally has more laughs per episode and is a lot funnier. The scene after the closing titles where Sergeant Major Williams barks "shut up" at Char Wallah Mohammed never ceases to be funny. The series lost something when Michael Bates died (you know, there's an old Hindu proverb....). Don Estelle has a marvellous singing voice and another running joke in the programme was the performances where he played romantic heroes like Nelson Eddy or Ivor Novello and he'd have Melvyn Hayes (Gloria) as his leading lady. This programme has been frequently criticised as racist but frankly the various Indians, Malaysians and Burmese who used to appear in it were usually portrayed as smarter and more sorted out than the Sergeant Major and his platoon. Sergeant Major Williams has a fair bit of trouble with the King's English (degrading to the Welsh?), Gunner Atlas Mackintosh takes offence very quickly, particularly with Gloria (insulting to Scots?) and Captain Ashwood is an upper-class twit (so that degrades the English?). The BBC seems to show Dad's Army practically every waking day and "It Ain't Half Hot Mum" should be seen more often too. It's a classic and has a big fan following.
Britain Stoops to Conquer
robertguttman18 October 2019
When it comes to humor there are few levels to which the British will not stoop and, In "It Ain't Half Hot, Mum", Britain stoops to conquer humor in India. David Croft was in charge, so be warned not to expect Merchant-Ivory class or Bollywood sophistication. "It Ain't Half Hot, Mum" is a prime example of low British humor, which means that there are few depths below which they will not descend for the sake of a laugh. Not that the show isn't screamingly funny, it is. It is simply that you will hate yourself for laughing at it.
The series is set on a British Army base in India in 1945, during the closing days of World War II, A group of soldiers are trying to evade active duty at the front by serving in an entertainment unit. Their world is further polluted by a Colonel, a Captain, a Sergeant-Major and a group of Indian servants.
All of the characters are portrayed in the broadest possible manner. If "It Ain't Half Hot, Mum" had been produced in the U.S. (not that it ever could have been) the network would have been compelled to cancel it after the very first episode due to a veritable avalanche of protests from Indian civil rights organizations and LGBT defense groups.
That being said, it must also be conceded that "I's Not Half Hot, Mum" is very well written, impeccably performed and screamingly funny. It you don't mind politically incorrect humor, the kind where you hate yourself for laughing, but laugh anyway, this will be just your cup of tea.
The series is set on a British Army base in India in 1945, during the closing days of World War II, A group of soldiers are trying to evade active duty at the front by serving in an entertainment unit. Their world is further polluted by a Colonel, a Captain, a Sergeant-Major and a group of Indian servants.
All of the characters are portrayed in the broadest possible manner. If "It Ain't Half Hot, Mum" had been produced in the U.S. (not that it ever could have been) the network would have been compelled to cancel it after the very first episode due to a veritable avalanche of protests from Indian civil rights organizations and LGBT defense groups.
That being said, it must also be conceded that "I's Not Half Hot, Mum" is very well written, impeccably performed and screamingly funny. It you don't mind politically incorrect humor, the kind where you hate yourself for laughing, but laugh anyway, this will be just your cup of tea.
Dreadful, unfunny dross
DavidYZ18 May 2017
This is a BBC sitcom set in 1945. It's about a Royal Artillery Concert Party. The first four series are set in India; the latter four are set in Burma.
This is painfully bad to watch, because all of the members of the concert party are appallingly bad entertainers. After I watched it, I read that the characters are supposed to be awful entertainers - and that's what's meant to be the main source of the show's humour. However, that makes them unpleasant to watch and listen to - and it's just the same bad joke repeated in every episode. It's also unrealistic - if all members of a concert party were bad entertainers, they'd be fired.
This is painfully bad to watch, because all of the members of the concert party are appallingly bad entertainers. After I watched it, I read that the characters are supposed to be awful entertainers - and that's what's meant to be the main source of the show's humour. However, that makes them unpleasant to watch and listen to - and it's just the same bad joke repeated in every episode. It's also unrealistic - if all members of a concert party were bad entertainers, they'd be fired.
The forgotten Perry/Croft series
Markhoni25 October 2002
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.
very good acting very good
katslaterc10 September 2003
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
