Rising Damp – Series One
Picture: C
Sound: C+ Extras: C Episodes: B-
Taken from a stage work, Rising Damp was another
British situation comedy that dealt with racism directly, and though it has not
aged perfectly, it is still a well-written and acted show. The bigot in question here is a landlord
named Rigsby and played by the great British actor Leonard Rossiter (Barry
Lyndon, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Billy Liar, Britannia
Hospital, The Pink Panther Strikes Again). He is joined by the following actors as his tenants: Frances de
la Tour (Harry Potter & The Goblet Of Fire) as Ruth, Don Warrington
(Manchild) as Philip and the late Richard Beckinsale (the respected
actor who happens to be Kate Beckinsale’s father) as Alan. Rigsby is interested in Ruth, thinks Alan is
a radical and has issues with the fact that Philip is black. Episodes include:
1)
The Lodgers (Rooksby)
2)
Black Magic
3)
A Night Out
4)
Charisma
5)
All Our Yesterdays
6)
The Prowler (with guest star George Sewell;
U.F.O., Barry Lyndon)
7)
Stand Up & Be Counted (with
guest star Anthony Sharp from A Clockwork Orange and Michael Ward from Revenge
Of The Pink Panther)
I recognized other guest stars from the British TV action
cycle that included The Avengers, The Saint and others. The show is funny enough and when the jokes
don’t always work, the approach is fine.
The set of the apartment building often lives up to the series
title. The result is atmosphere in the
look, feel and teleplays throughout that makes the show worth revisiting.
The 1.33 X 1 image originated on analog PAL videotape and
has not aged as well as expected, likely more a source issue than transfer
issue. The Dolby Digital 2.0 is a
little bit better, with good monophonic sound for its age. The only extras include text production notes
and cast filmographies, and with the two male leads no longer with us, it’s
hard to say what archival footage might exist.
Acorn Media is poised to issue the entire series, which we look forward
to.
- Nicholas Sheffo
