Nightingales (UK TV series)
| Nightingales | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Paul Makin |
| Starring |
James Ellis Robert Lindsay David Threlfall |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of series | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Location(s) | Paradise Circus, Birmingham, West Midlands, England |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Alomo Productions |
| Distributor | FremantleMedia |
| Release | |
| Original network | Channel 4 |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Original release | 27 February 1990 – 10 February 1993 |
Nightingales is a British situation comedy set around the antics of three security guards working the night shift. It was written by Paul Makin and produced by Alomo Productions for Channel 4 in 1990.
Nightingales revolved around the jobs of three bored nightwatchmen working in a deserted office block, the location of which is never revealed, although exterior shots are of a building located on Paradise Circus in Birmingham City Centre.
A typical episode involved both very naturalistic dialogue — and the kind of claustrophobic studio-setting that prevailed in shows such as Steptoe and Son — combined with the surreal.
Nightingales ran for two series totalling 13 episodes from 27 February 1990 to 10 February 1993. The long delay was prompted by Channel 4 executive Seamus Cassidy who was not happy with the proposed scripts for the second series and it was nearly three years before it was given the go-ahead. The theme tune was a version of the song "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" sung by Lindsay. Writer Paul Makin went on to write the more conventional comedies like Goodnight Sweetheart. A US remake (titled "In Security") was piloted but never commissioned.
Guest characters included Piper the elderly cleaning man; Eric the werewolf (Ian Sears); an additional security guard who was a gorilla; and Mary the Christmas Allegory (Lia Williams), who gave birth to consumer products.
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