BLACK MAGIC
BLACK MAGIC
Rehearsals: 28th October – 2nd November 1974 at St Paul’s Church Hall, Sussex Place, London W6
9:30 – 1:30pm
Walk-Through: 2nd November at Yorkshire Television Centre, Leeds
5 – 5:30pm
Recorded: 3rd November 1974 at Yorkshire Television Centre, Studio 4, Leeds
Broadcast: Friday 8:30pm 13th December 1974
CAST
Leonard Rossiter – Rigsby
Richard Beckinsale – Alan
Frances de la Tour – Ruth
Don Warrington – Philip
CREW
Creator/Writer – Eric Chappell
Producer/Director – Ronnie Baxter
Designer – Colin Pigott
Music – Dennis Wilson
Casting – Muriel Cole
Floor Manager – Don Clayton
Stage Manager – Terry Knowles
Production Asst – Mary Byrne
Lighting – Peter Hardman
Cameras – Mike Boyle
Sound – Ron Parker
Vision Mixer – Kay Harrington
Tech Supervisor – Gordon Quinn
Wardrobe – Brenda Fox
Make-up – Diana Caplin
Prop Buyer – Rod Saul
Call Boy – John Heaton
Warm-up – Felix Bowness
Episode Review
With landlord Rigsby, it’s one long bed-sitter battle in….RISING DAMP
Avaricious, bigoted, cynical, devious, prejudiced….these are just a few of the adjectives which help to sum up Rigsby’s striking personality. And wherever Ruth is concerned, there’s another…amorous.
He sees himself as her knight in shining armour.
Unfortunately for him, Ruth doesn’t. But Rigsby’s Achilles heel does stand her in good stead now and again. It did enable her, for instance, to wrangle the real object of her affections – one Philip, another student – into rigsby’s vacant prize flat. He didn’t last however. Even the fact that Philip just happens to be the son of an African chief – a snippet of information which certainly appealed to Rigsby’s aristocratic leanings – didn’t save him from eventual relegation to the joint tenancy of Alan’s freezing cold garret. So there, are Alan and Philip, stuck under the same miserable attic roof, sharing the same miserable sticks of furniture, plagued by the same grasping landlord, and with nothing at all in common except misery.
Nothing at all? Well, they do have one mutual interest…women! Philip reckons to have ten wives back home – and misses them Alan can’t get hold of one, let alone ten – he seems to miss ‘em all.
Philip also maintains that in his own, civilised, country his people look on him as a god, and believe he has inherited certain supernatural powers.
“Rubbish!” says Rigsby. Alan’s not too sure either way. But when Philip accepts Rigsby’s challenge and sets out to show that he can indeed work the odd minor miracle, he does appear to get results.
And when later Alan, and then Rigsby, decide to do a little secret magical meddling themselves they get results too – but not quite what they expect.
Did you know?
- A new opening title sequence, approx 43secs, introducing us to the characters after a 3 month gap from the Pilot episode to start the new series.
- A caption slide was used at the commercial break, with “RISING DAMP” superimposed over an old, varnished wooden door can be seen for the first time. ‘END OF PART ONE’ and ‘PART TWO’ were also superimposed over the door, along with linking bars from the theme tune.
- Sound effects were used on two occasions to suggest nearby trains in close proximity to the boarding house.
- An imitation leopard skin headpiece was hired for the episode.
- Alan can be seen reading ‘Biology for General Science’
- A hat and scarf were hung precariously on the door so that they would fall to the floor as Alan exited the room after giving Rigsby the bottle of ‘germs’ (salad cream). This did not go to plan initially, and Beckinsale was forced to re-open the door whereupon they fell.
- The end credits were superimposed over the closing scenes of the episode.
- Philip’s ten wives were mentioned for the first time.
- At Yorkshire Television Centre, the cast occupied the following Dressing Rooms:-
Leonard Rossiter #12
Richard Beckinsale #11
Frances de la Tour #6
Don Warrington #8
This would continue until the end of the third series.
Interesting to note:
- Production# 2752
- Fridays at 8.30pm, opposite Ken Dodd’s World of Laughter
- ‘Black Magic’ – not in Top 20 viewing figures