Arthur Askey

Documentary featuring a cavalcade of Northern comedy stars including the great Frank Randle, George Formby, Arthur Askey, Norman Evans and many more. The North of England has always enjoyed its own very particular brand of comedy, best seen today in Coronation Street. 80 years ago however Mancunian Studios produced feature films for the northern masses. Funny Up North tells the story of the Mancunian Studios, its eccentric owner John E Blakeley and its cavalcade of stars including such household names as Arthur Askey, Jimmy Jewell, George Formby and the legendary Frank Randle. Hosted by Professor Chris Lee, the authority on northern cinema, Funny Up North takes you on a journey from its humble beginnings to its sad demise in the 1960s.

A documentary about the portrayal of Adolf Hitler in popular culture.

Arena celebrates Roy Plomley's Desert Island Discs with the help of many celebrity castaways, including Frankie Howerd, Russell Harty, Trevor Brooking, the Lord Mayor of London, Professor JK Galbraith and Arthur Askey. The special guest for the 40th anniversary programme was Paul McCartney who was also a fan of the show: 'I love its homeliness. It conjures up the best in traditional British pleasure, like the great British breakfast. It's an honour to be asked'.

Young Rosie Dixon starts her nurse training at St Adelaide's Hospital, but the student doctors and randy male patients just can't keep their hands off her.

Compilation of classic British comedy moments

In this feature-length documentary from 1976, Leslie Mitchell and special guests recall the birth of BBC Television forty years before.

Alf and his family have been moved from their East End home into a high-rise council estate. Alf is not only having trouble coping with his new 'home', but also with the long commute to work, the long walk to the corner pub, his long-suffering wife Else, rebellious daughter Rita, and her philandering, constantly unemployed husband Mike.

A little travelogue feature presenting Torbay - new resort along the 20 mile stretch of South Devon coast.

During the Cold War, a British family struggles to overcome cultural differences as they welcome two Russian social workers into their home for a visit.

Sid Gibson is a soap powder salesman who decides what he really needs is TV advertising. The problem is, he's absolutely broke. He calls upon his friend Arthur Ashton, who arranges to sneak a plug for Sid's suds into a live TV spectacular. The public goes bananas for the product but to maintain sales Sid and Arthur must arrange for ever more outrageous plugs on TV shows. The Ascots races, the Edinburgh Military Tattoo - no show is safe.