- Whispers From Walmington Forum -

Fundy · Verger Joined: 10 May 2007 Posts: 55

Jonesy may have been a bit over the top, but I loved that character. And the three sayings from DA that everyone seems to know are

"You stupid boy, Pike"
"They don't like it up 'em"
and
"Don't panic, Mr Mainwaring, Don't panic"

and obviously two of those are from Jonesy, so without a Jonesy in the platoon then maybe the general public would have remembered DA less.

Fundy

chandler · Civilian Joined: 19 Jul 2008 Posts: 2

I've just discovered this forum so I aplogise for taking up this relatively old thread.

There is some documentary or other - possibly the "We Are The Boys" series - where Clive Dunn speaks of his great fondness and admiration for both the talent and character of Jimmy Beck, and of his sadness at his death. The fact is that it's no secret that Beck's passing was induced by his lifestyle, and I don't think Clive Dunn was being insensitive - its been discussed many times, including in Graeme McCann's very fine book.

And the character of Jones may have been responsible for some of the less subtle moments on the programme, but was also portrayed with great resonance and sweetness by Dunn. A very touching character, I find.

Anyway, I'm pleased to have discovered this forum.

Mr. Blew Itt · Town Clerk Joined: 14 Nov 2007 Posts: 17

I think most of us are aware of the fact that Clive at first resented the line "They don't like it up 'em!", and in a way, he still feels ambivalent towards it now. It's true that a line like that isn't in keeping with most of the rest of the show's writing, which relied more on the relationships between the characters.

But, as Clive rightly pointed out, Jones was an old soldier who had been in the army for an innumerable number of years, and then became a butcher, so he would be inclined to have an obsession with knives and bajonets. Not to forget that the Jones character was based on an officer Jimmy Perry knew when he himself was in the Home Guard, and he would say exactly that: "Give 'em the cold steel! They don't like it up 'em!" So there you have it.

I don't think Clive feels bitter about DA, after all, he was again present at the latest 40th anniversary reunion, while he could have easily stayed in Portugal. I think that shows his commitment.

But I think he does have the notion that 99% of the public knows him only from DA; since it was and is so hugely popular, it easily eclipses anything he had done before and has done afterwards. The same goes for most of the other actors: Arthur Lowe was previously a household name as Mr. Swindley in 'Coronation Street', and he had some good parts after DA: 'Bless Me, Father' and the classic silent 'The Plank' come to mind. And Bill Pertwee has done some very nice things as well. But think of Arnold Ridley and John Laurie: both of them had a very long stage and screen career, but they only found lasting fame in their twilight years. John Laurie was especially aware of this 'rubbish' as he would call it, but I don't think any of them were bitter about it. After all, it is better to be remember for one very good thing than not to be remembered at all.

The same goes for lots of actors and comedians. Everybody knows Andrew Sachs as Manuel from 'Fawlty Towers', but this was only a 12-episode series in a lifetime of entertainment. Mollie Sugden has become a household name as Mrs. Slocombe in 'Are You Being Served?'. I've seen a couple of other shows she was in, but they don't compare to AYBS, which is in the public's collective mind. John Inman, same thing: if it hadn't been for Mr. Humphries ("I'm free!"), hardly anyone would remember him now. And I could go on and on with other examples. All these people were and are great at what they do, and had the good fortune of finding themselves in a show that went on to become a classic. A great many actors never find fame, so you can thank your lucky stars if you do, even if it's for one thing you've done in your whole career.

The downside of this is that some of these actors had a great deal of trouble finding work different from the role that made them famous, even if they were perfect for the part. And that's still true today. One of the most poignant examples is Bob Grant, a very talented actor and scriptwriter who was catapulted to stardom by his role as Jack Harper in 'On the Buses', then found himself virtually out of work after the show ended, which ultimately drove him to depression and suicide years later. Very sad and a great waste.

Getting back to DA, I for one love old Jonesy for his enthousiasm and clumsiness, which do indeed make him stand out from the rest of the platoon. I'm sure the character was meant to be this way to contrast with the rest, and Clive portrayed him brilliantly. When I watched the show as a young boy, I never realized that he wasn't really as old as the others - I just thought he was an extremely agile old gent, and wondered how on earth he could do some of the physical stuff. But it never struck me as being out of place in DA.[/url]

Oz · Posted: Thu 31 Jul 2008 20:28 pm Post subject:

I think the word you're looking for is 'TYPECAST' Cool

straycat · Verger Joined: 02 Feb 2008 Posts: 57 Location: USA

spoken20 · Civilian Joined: 28 Oct 2008 Posts: 4

All i can say is amazing and all are doing great I mean not only geat but very very great.They actually done right and i didn't see some bad about their movie and also the good thing about it is that its goes to flow which make people amaze Razz

_________________
Fitness Good

Oz · Posted: Tue 28 Oct 2008 16:42 pm Post subject:

hodders · Town Clerk Joined: 17 Sep 2006 Posts: 43 Location: Oxford

I think someone is trying to get promoted quickly?
_________________
-- hodders

pault · Verger Joined: 26 Jan 2007 Posts: 97

The Midnight Special · Town Clerk Joined: 07 Jul 2009 Posts: 13

For what it's worth, I find everything Jonesy says and does in DA, very funny. Nearly all my 'belly-laugh out loud' moments are from what Jonesy says and does. It would be easy for people to say Jonesy was an over the top character who relied on slapstick and "catchprases" for laughs. But that would be a shallow view. It needed superb character acting ability and comic timing (and mis-timing in the drill scenes!) to carry off the part, which I guess few people could manage. Just contrast Clive Dunn's accomplished slapstick with Arthur Lowe's (falling over, glasses awry) efforts . Lowe's are nowhere near on the same level in my opinion.