Lower Tidmarsh Volunteer Ambulance Service at the Black Lion Pub
Bio[]
Lower Tidmarsh is a small rural village located somewhere in England, possibly somewhere in the outskirts of London. Quaint and somewhat rustic in appearance, the village is home to the Lower Tidmarsh Volunteer Fire Brigade, the Lower Tidmarsh Volunteer Hospital and at least one public house, the Black Lion, which the fire brigade evidently considers a second home. While never explicitly stated, the district seems to share a nearby park with Little Dimpton, complete with a bandstand, musicians and gardeners. Other shared facilities might include a health farm, a police station and a sanitation unit.
On February 24, 1971, a young lady Jenny Lee-Wright in the park meets a foreigner (Benny Hill) who struggles with the English language. He confuses "foot" with "book," and when she explains the difference, he briefly massages her foot. He does the same thing with "knee," but he dares to go as far as "bum," which he applies to his head. It looks like she might be wising up to his tomfoolery. At this point, he becomes repentant and apologetic, but he soon changes the thread of the discussion by asking for the "watch" (time) and lamenting he doesn't care for English fish and chips, the only thing he knows how to order. When she teaches him out to ask for steak and kidney pudding, she focuses on saying "pudding" and he kisses her on the lips. He apologizes for being forward, but he returns to chicanery by saying he likes her "bust" (best), but he still refrains from offending her. However, by this point, the lady has become charmed by his helpless nature and invites him to lunch at her place. An older gentleman (Bob Todd) now sits down and asks the foreigner if he's from Germany or Poland, but the foreigner confesses he's from Bradford and this is how he picks up ladies.
Trivia[]
- Lower Tidmarsh is possibly the location for most of the sketches occurring in the early episodes of the series. Benny's birthplace, Teddington is also mentioned in H.M. Prison Teddington, but by mid-series (or thereabouts), the fictional city of Little Dimpton was established.
- The "Learning All the Time" sketch was redone in color on February 10, 1982 with Jenny Lee-Wright in the same role, Henry McGee taking Bob Todd's place and Bradford changed to Romford.
Episodes[]
- The European Song Contest
- Opportunity's Knocking
- A Tribute to the Lower Tidmarsh Volunteer Fire Brigade
- Undercover Sanitary Inspector
