Cuffy (TV series)

Cuffy is a 1983 British sitcom. It spawned off from the 1980–1981 ATV comedy-drama Shillingbury Tales, and both series were created by Francis Essex. In Shillingbury Tales, the character of Cuffy appeared in two episodes and was played by Bernard Cribbins, who reprised this role, now given centre stage, for this series, alongside the rest of the main Shillingbury cast: Jack Douglas as farmer Jake, Linda Hayden as his daughter Mandy, Nigel Lambert as the Reverend Norris, and Diana King as the local spinster Mrs. Simkins.

Cuffy
GenreSitcom
Created byFrancis Essex
StarringBernard Cribbins
Jack Douglas
Linda Hayden
Nigel Lambert
Diana King
Theme music composerEd Welch
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Producer(s)Paul Harrison
Christopher Baker
Greg Smith (executive producer)
Running time30 minutes
Release
Original networkCentral Independent Television
ITV
Original release13 March –
17 April 1983

In as much the Shillingbury Tales were made by ITC Entertainment and seen on the ITV network via its parent company ATV, Cuffy was made by ATV's successor company Central Independent Television also for the ITV network.

Plot

The show revolved around the tinker Cuffy, who lived in a scruffy caravan in the fictional picturesque English village of Shillingbury. Beneath his raggy image (flat cap, grubby coat and stubble), deep underneath he had a heart of gold, although he had a tendency to get into mischief (unintentionally). The episodes revolved around some of his hapless misadventures.

Episodes
Cribbins with Susie Silvey during the filming of Cuffy
  • 1. Cuffy And A Carpetbagger (13 March 1983)
  • 2. Cuffy And A Holiday (20 March 1983)
  • 3. Cuffy And A Fashion Show (27 March 1983)
  • 4. Cuffy And A Downpour (3 April 1983)
  • 5. Cuffy And The Status Quo (10 April 1983)
  • 6. Cuffy And A Green Eye (17 April 1983)

Trivia

The character of Cuffy was actually the brainchild of the late Bob Monkhouse, who was a close friend of Shillingbury creator Francis Essex, and gave it to him to include in both series.

The series' interior scenes were shot at Elstree Studios, which were still owned by Central TV (hired from ATV) and were its production base until their new Nottingham studios were completed in November 1983, after which they sold Elstree to the BBC and made the move northwards.

DVD release

The Complete Series of Cuffy was released on 3 May 2010.

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References
  • Mark Lewisohn, BBC Online Comedy Guide/Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy
  • British TV Online Resources
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