Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
      • Playlists
    • Television
      • TV by Decade
        • TV – 1950s
        • TV – 1960s
        • TV – 1970s
        • TV – 1980s
        • TV – 1990s
      • Comedy
      • Drama
      • Kids TV
      • Variety
      • News & Sport
      • Advertisements
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • Music – 1950s
        • Music – 1960s
        • Music – 1970s
        • Music – 1980s
        • Music – 1990s
      • Artists – A to K
        • Artists – A
        • Artists – B
        • Artists – C
        • Artists – D
        • Artists – E
        • Artists – F
        • Artists – G
        • Artists – H
        • Artists – I
        • Artists – J
        • Artists – K
      • Artists – L to Z
        • Artists – L
        • Artists – M
        • Artists – N
        • Artists – O
        • Artists – P
        • Artists – Q
        • Artists – R
        • Artists – S
        • Artists – T
        • Artists – U
        • Artists – V
        • Artists – W
        • Artists – X
        • Artists – Y
        • Artists – Z
      • Artists – 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • Movies – 1950s
        • Movies – 1960s
        • Movies – 1970s
        • Movies – 1980s
        • Movies – 1990s
      • Movies – 0 to 9
      • Movies – A to K
        • Movies – A
        • Movies – B
        • Movies – C
        • Movies – D
        • Movies – E
        • Movies – F
        • Movies – G
        • Movies – H
        • Movies – I
        • Movies – J
        • Movies – K
      • Movies – L to Z
        • Movies – L
        • Movies – M
        • Movies – N
        • Movies – O
        • Movies – P
        • Movies – Q
        • Movies – R
        • Movies – S
        • Movies – T
        • Movies – U
        • Movies – V
        • Movies – W
        • Movies – X
        • Movies – Y
        • Movies – Z
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Television»Comedy
    Comedy TV Shows - 1970s 3 Mins Read

    Romany Jones

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    1 9 7 2 – 1 9 7 5 (UK)
    27 x 30 minute episodes

    Bert Jones (James Beck from Dad’s Army) and his wife Betty (Jo Rowbottom) are newlyweds. Bert is a feckless and workshy sex maniac and Betty is a Streatham girl who wants more from life. The pair live in Bert’s battered, leaky, ant-ridden caravan on a grotty campsite – which looks more like the local rubbish tip than an ideal beauty spot to park a caravan.

    Their nearest neighbours are bluff Cockneys Wally Briggs (Arthur Mullard) and his wife Lily (Queenie Watts).

    Wally is a big, lazy oaf but couldn’t be more lovable as the hen-pecked husband of ever-nagging Lily (Queenie Watts), who is often found ‘ear-wigging’ and usually getting the wrong end of the stick.

    Needless to say, the neighbours don’t always see eye to eye.

    Beginning as a one-off play in 1972, the series had just completed one successful season with another in the can when actor James Beck died.

    Recasting was necessary and snooty Jeremy Crichton-Jones (Jonathan Cecil) and his pretty young debutante wife Susan (Gay Soper) were introduced as Wally and Lily’s new neighbours.

    Crichton-Jones, sporting a bowler hat, pin-striped suit and rolled umbrella (come rain or shine) was a toffee-nosed twit of the highest order and had done “something in the City” for work before going bankrupt. Susan appeared to have a lot more breeding than brains.

    Their impeccable manners and plummy voices were a total contrast to Wally and Lily.

    romanyjones1

    For Jeremy and Susan, their new status quo is the ultimate humiliation so they deal with it in an almost pathological way; complete and utter denial. Jeremy still wears his suit and bowler hat, while Susan swans around Bert Jones’s grungy old caravan in her finest dresses and fur coats.

    “Arfer”, looking like he’d been in a fight with a steam-hammer (and lost), played the lethargic, dim-witted Wally with such comic genius that he emerged as the star of the London Weekend television series.

    Amidst a sea of washing lines and dustbins, the ever-present challenge for the Briggs’ to keep up with the Crichton-Joneses kept viewers laughing through 27 episodes of Romany Jones.

    The characters of Wally and Lily Briggs proved so successful that they were subsequently spun-off into their own series: Yus My Dear.

    Bert Jones
    James Beck
    Betty Jones
    Jo Rowbottom
    Wally Briggs
    Arthur Mullard
    Lily Briggs
    Queenie Watts
    Jeremy Crichton-Jones
    Jonathan Cecil
    Susan Crichton-Jones
    Gay Soper
    Eileen
    Maureen Sweeney
    Ken
    Alan Ford

    Video

    Related Posts

    • Love On A Rooftop
      Love On A Rooftop
      1 9 6 6 - 1 9 6 7 (USA) 26 x 30 minute episodes This sitcom from ABC/Columbia told the…
    • Good Guys, The
      Good Guys, The
      1 9 6 8 - 1 9 7 0 (USA) 42 x 30 minute episodes This CBS sitcom starred Bob Denver…
    • Tracey and Me
      Tracey and Me
      1 9 5 6 (UK) 3 x 30 minute episodes This short-run domestic comedy series from Associated-Rediffusion Television was written by…
    • Honky Tonk Heroes
      Honky Tonk Heroes
      1 9 8 1 (UK) 3 x 60 minute episodes This three-part comedy series was set in the Blue Moon of…
    • Yus My Dear
      Yus My Dear
      1 9 7 6 (UK) 19 x 30 minute episodes In this sequel to Romany Jones Wally (Arthur Mullard) and Lily (Queenie…
    • Hole in the Wall, The
      Hole in the Wall, The
      1 9 7 2 (UK) 7 x 25 minute episodes Young Stephen Kemp was taken to live with his grandfather,…
    • Mulberry
      Mulberry
      1 9 9 2 - 1 9 9 3 (UK) 13 x 30 minute episodes Mulberry (Karl Howman) is the cheerful…
    • Hampton Court
      Hampton Court
      1 9 9 1 (Australia) 13 x 25 minute episodes What a great idea! Let's put Betty, the brain-dead secretary from…

    1972 1973 1974 1975
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleBob & Earl
    Next Article Chess Records

    Comments are closed.

    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    You May Also Like
    • Munster, Go Home (1966)
      The Munster family debuted on the big screen just as […]
    • Bread (1971)
      On their way home from the Isle of Wight Pop Festival, five […]
    • Scobie Malone (1975)
      Jack Thompson stars as Detective Sergeant Scobie Malone, who is […]
    • ABC Rocks
      1 9 8 4 – 1 9 8 5 (USA) One year after the debut of […]
    • Fast Talking (1984)
      Shot on Super 16mm film and then blown up to 35 mm for […]
    • These Dangerous Years (1957)
      Having made his film debut in Ramsbottom Rides Again a year […]
    Comments Box SVG iconsUsed for the like, share, comment, and reaction icons

    OUR LATEST FACEBOOK POSTS

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-64418847 ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Mr Blobby costume sells for more than £62,000 on eBay

    www.bbc.co.uk

    The character, made famous by BBC show Noel's House Party, had been in storage since the 1990s.
    1 day ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 0
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Put some beefiness into your mid-week menu with these recipe ideas published in a Birds Eye advertisement from the Radio Times on 30 September 1965.

    Put some "beefiness into your mid-week menu" with these recipe ideas published in a Birds Eye advertisement from the "Radio Times" on 30 September 1965. ... See MoreSee Less

    7 days ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    They were awful. An overpowering savoury flavour that lingered in your mouth for hours. Heaven knows what unmentionable parts of a bull went into making them 😳

    More sad news 😪

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    US rock legend David Crosby dies aged 81

    www.bbc.co.uk

    Crosby, who co-founded both the Byrds and Crosby, Stills and Nash, had been ill for some time.
    1 week ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 0
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    This is what they promised us when I was a kid. What happened? 

All I have is 700 channels of rubbish on the TV in High Def, TikTok, Facebook and a phone I can take photographs with . . .

    This is what they promised us when I was a kid. What happened?

    All I have is 700 channels of rubbish on the TV in High Def, TikTok, Facebook and a phone I can take photographs with . . .
    ... See MoreSee Less

    1 week ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 54
    • Shares: 22
    • Comments: 7

    Comment on Facebook

    I thought we would have moving pavements by now when I was a kid 😂

    Totally agree!!!

    The new Tesla, 4.6 next century.

    We got transvestite story hour instead

    We appear to be going backwards

    There's actually a very good David Graeber essay on this very topic: thebaffler.com/salvos/of-flying-cars-and-the-declining-rate-of-profit

    The Jetsons strike again.

    View more comments

    Renowned Australian singer Renee Geyer is dead at 69 following complications from hip surgery. Such a fabulous voice. RIP😢

https://nostalgiacentral.com/music/artists-l-to-z/artists-r/renee-geyer/

    Renowned Australian singer Renee Geyer is dead at 69 following complications from hip surgery. Such a fabulous voice. RIP😢

    nostalgiacentral.com/music/artists-l-to-z/artists-r/renee-geyer/
    ... See MoreSee Less

    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 0
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    That is so sad to hear 😥 rest in peace 🙏 🕊 xx

    Gina Lollobrigida: Italian screen star dies at 95
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-64292026

    Gina Lollobrigida: Italian screen star dies at 95
    www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-64292026
    ... See MoreSee Less

    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 4
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    😍😍😍😍

    Vale Jeff Beck. Dead at 78. 😢

    ... See MoreSee Less

    Link thumbnail

    Jeff Beck: British guitar legend dies aged 78

    www.bbc.co.uk

    One of rock's most influential guitarists, he was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice.
    2 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 1
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Hi everyone. Were in the process of moving www.nostalgiacentral.com to new dedicated servers to better cope with the volumes of traffic. Please ignore any SSL security errors you may receive when visiting the site over the next 24 hours while the move completes.

    Hi everyone. We're in the process of moving www.nostalgiacentral.com to new dedicated servers to better cope with the volumes of traffic. Please ignore any SSL security errors you may receive when visiting the site over the next 24 hours while the move completes. ... See MoreSee Less

    3 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 5
    • Shares: 0
    • Comments: 2

    Comment on Facebook

    Ironically, this post has jumped off the page at me. You'll probably get most traffic today because everyone will want to see what they might be missing!

    Martin Platt

    RIP Fred White, drummer with Earth, Wind and Fire, who has died aged 67. 😢

    RIP Fred White, drummer with Earth, Wind and Fire, who has died aged 67. 😢 ... See MoreSee Less

    4 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 4
    • Shares: 2
    • Comments: 1

    Comment on Facebook

    Great band

    RIP Dame Vivienne Westwood,  one of the most recognised and influential designers of the late twentieth century. 
https://nostalgiacentral.com/pop-culture/fashion/vivienne-westwood/

    RIP Dame Vivienne Westwood, one of the most recognised and influential designers of the late twentieth century.
    nostalgiacentral.com/pop-culture/fashion/vivienne-westwood/
    ... See MoreSee Less

    4 weeks ago
    View on Facebook
    · Share
    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
    View Comments
    • Likes: 3
    • Shares: 1
    • Comments: 0

    Comment on Facebook

    Load more
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    Popular Tags
    1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1975 1976 Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games Britpop Canada Crime Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen Labels Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Power Pop Pub rock Punk Radio Scotland Ska Soul music Sport Surf music
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Copyright © 1998, 2023 Nostalgia Central
    • About Nostalgia Central
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.