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Wyatt's Watchdogs

Wyatt's Watchdogs
Wyatt's watchdogs opening title still.jpg
Opening title
Created by Miles Tredinnick (Writer)
Alan J. W. Bell (Director, Producer)
Starring Brian Wilde
Trevor Bannister
Anne Ridler
April Walker
David Jackson
James Warrior
Tom Radcliffe
Country of origin United Kingdom
No. of series 1
No. of episodes 6
Production
Running time 30 minutes per episode
Release
Original network BBC1
Original release 17 October (1988-10-17) – 21 November 1988 (1988-11-21)

Wyatt's Watchdogs is a 30-minute BBC1 situation comedy that starred Brian Wilde and Trevor Bannister. Created and written by Miles Tredinnick, the six episode series was transmitted in the autumn of 1988. Alan J. W. Bell directed and the music was composed by Ronnie Hazlehurst.

The show was set in the fictional commuter village of Bradly Bush although actually filmed on location in Claygate, Surrey, England.

Retired soldier Major John Wyatt (Brian Wilde) is spurred into action after his sister Edwina’s (Anne Ridler) home is burgled in broad daylight. Ignoring correct police procedures, he forms his own Neighbourhood Watch group of incompetents and patrols the streets in his Range Rover known locally as the ‘Dogmobile’. The Watch members are a hopeless bunch drawn together to fight crime, and bungling and personality clashes are highly evident. Brian Wilde as Major Wyatt clashes worst of all with Peter Pitt (Trevor Bannister), a smooth-talking womaniser and burglar-alarm salesman. He only has two things in mind - to flog his alarms and meet women! Other regular characters include the glamorous man-eater Virginia (April Walker), an interfering Vicar (David Jackson), and a frustrated police sergeant, Springer (James Warrior).

The show actually had the working title of Every Street Should Have One but this was changed at the last minute to Wyatt's Watchdogs. The reason being that the BBC were transmitting the programme on Monday evenings straight after ITV's Coronation Street but before another BBC show called Streets Apart.

This series was part of the reason Brian Wilde returned to Last of the Summer Wine after falling out with Alan J. W. Bell just before he left Last of the Summer Wine in 1985 they solved their differences and when the time came to film in 1989 due to Michael Aldridge having to leave the show for personal reasons the character of Seymour Utterthwaite had to be replaced and Brian agreed to return as Foggy Dewhurst after solving his differences on this show and stayed for seven more years.


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