The story of Palace Hill – a Grange Hill-like comprehensive school attended by Princes William and Harry – first appeared as the most popular regular segment in the BAFTA-award-winning kids’ show Your Mother Wouldn’t Like It(1985 – 1988) before being spun off into a standalone series.
In the second series, Wills (Philip Wombwell) and Harry (Richard De Sousa) were replaced by Princess Beatrice (Phoebe Wood). The third and final series was (for no particular reason) set in outer space, and the main character was now Chas Slough (Mark Dexter), who was “a bit wet”, talked to plants and was very fond of Di (Danielle Tilley), a style-conscious member of the Galactic Imperial Family “from the desirable end of the universe”.
Other regular characters included bully and resident thicko Nick Knuckle (Oliver Hawker), his streetwise girlfriend Binky Spoon (Gail Kemp), professional con artist Chelsea Bun (Ian Kirkby) and Jimmy (Steve Ryde), who had been attending the school since 1940 and dressed in flannel shorts and pebble specs. He lived in an air raid shelter in the school grounds and had a time machine in the girls’ toilets.
The players were drawn from the Central Junior Television Workshop, based in Nottingham.
Nick Knuckle
Oliver Hawker Jimmy
Steve Ryde Chas Slough
Mark Dexter Maggie
Tessa Harrison Mandy
Alison Dury Binky Spoon
Gail Kemp PC
Alison Hammond Bonnie
Keeley Coxon Di
Danielle Tilley Quiff
Julian Kemp Chelsea Bun
Ian Kirkby Princess Beatrice
Phoebe Wood Peanut Knuckle
Amanda Loy-Ellis Prince Harry
Richard De Sousa Prince William
Philip Wombwell
Episodes
Big School | Ballot Box Rock | The Trip | Charity Begins at School | Close Encounters of the Thin Kind | Fun Run | Where Carol-Singers Dare || Piece of Cake | Invasion of the Body Scratchers | Chronicles of Banarnia | The Great Pantomime Horse Escape | Newt from the Waist Down | Return of the Nedi | The Hatchback of Chelsea Bun || Close Encounters of the Fifth Form | Poltermice | Lost in Spaces | Curse of the Mummy’s Hand | Day of the Triffs | Journey to the Centre of the Golfball | The Cracker Awakes!
