THE LAST OF THE BIG SPENDERS
THE LAST OF THE BIG SPENDERS
Rehearsals: 12th – 15th October 1975 at The Sulgrave Boys Club, 287 Goldhawk Road, London, W12
1:30pm – 5:30pm
Walk-Through: 16th September 1975 at Yorkshire Television Centre, Leeds
Recorded: 17th September 1975 at Yorkshire Television Centre, Studio 4, Leeds
Broadcast: Friday 7:30pm 12th December 1975
CAST
Leonard Rossiter – Rigsby
Richard Beckinsale – Alan
Don Warrington – Philip
Gay Rose – Brenda
Campbell Singer – Flint
Robert Gillespie – Gasman
Ronnie Brody – Charlie
CREW
Creator/Writer – Eric Chappell
Producer/Director – Ronnie Baxter
Designer – Colin Pigott
Music – Dennis Wilson
Casting – James Ligatt
Floor Manager – Mike Purcell
Stage Manager – Olive Simpson
Production Asst – Celia Sherman Fisher
Lighting – Peter Hardman
Cameras – Gerry Lord
Sound – Chris Warner
Vision Mixer – Chris Foley
Tech Supervisor – Gordon Quin
Wardrobe – Brenda Fox
Make-up – Viv Locklin
Prop Buyer – Fred Newell
Scenes – Bill Donnelly
Call Boy – Graeme MacArthur
Warm-up – Felix Bowness
Episode Review
Rigsby’s decided to splash out on some brand new designer furniture. Well, that’s what being a miser…sorry thrift, and years of bread and butter puddin’ will do for you! Neither a lender nor a borrower be, os his motto and seeing as though Alan’s skint, as usual a victim of inflation, there’s going to be no charity from Scrooge. Young Brenda’s overcome by Rigsby’s new furniture additions and he’s even invited her down for a meal, but where’s the money coming from to pay for that? He’s already raided the gas meters!
However, all the furnitures been bought ‘on-the-knock’ and a lapse in payments leaves Rigsby with a visit from Mr Flint and Charlie. Rigsby’s left looking for sympathy, and cash, and Brenda’s off down the pub!
Interesting to note:
- Production# 2775
- Fridays at 7.30pm, opposite repeats of The Wonderful World of Disney
- ‘The Last of the Big Spenders’ – 7.30m (13th=)
- At one point Rigsby mentions to Brenda that Vienna is “chasing the dog all around the garden”, if the said dog belongs to the landlord, or even the neighbour, then this is the only time it is referred to.
Did you know?
- A quantity of furnishings were hired to represent the new furniture.
- A gasman’s uniform was hired for Robert Gillespie
- Rigsby produces the same purse he used in the previous episode, ‘A Perfect Gentleman’.
- Thanks to Robert Gillespie’s recent documentation of the his scene with Leonard, playing the Gasman, we now know how the scene with the falling coins was achieved, contrary to my recent understanding that pouches were sewn inside Leonard’s trousers to hold a substantial amount of loose coins. Here’s Robert’s review of the scene, “To get the coins to spill from each pocket, as seen, he asked for a large match box on a pivot in one pocket and for the pocket bottom to be loosely tacked in the other. Also, the compo studio floor rendered the falling coins soundless, so Len pushed for us to end on a bit of plywood. The director shot the scene in close-up at first. Len politely suggested that it was a better build-up to see him jiggling his pants’ pockets. In the end, we did it in a single take.” Fo more information, please visit his excellent website HERE.
- As Rigsby’s pocket bursts and the coins hit the floor, the scene breaks for the adverts, whereupon you can clearly hear Leonard say “Like peeling grapes”, this seems to have been recorded in error as the episode went to commercial break. This is audible on only a select few recordings, it is omitted from the North American releases by Acorn Media.
Dressing rooms:
Leonard Rossiter #12
Richard Beckinsale #11
Don Warrington #8
Robert Gillespie #10
Campbell Singer #5
Ronnie Brody #9
