Some friends hire a boat to go on a sea fishing trip as a break from the daily grind of coal mining in a typical north of England coal mining town. The lads adventures take them to a fishing town where they meet some typical northern types, stern landlady's, down trodden husbands and locals etc. Full of great northern humour(I'm a southerner)as could only be written in the 1970s and staring that great all round actor and wrestler Brian Glover, Last of the Summer Wine(early episodes with Michael Bates) could be the only modern comparison. Great acting great writing add up to a wonderful entertaining story.If only TV could be like this again. Also check out 'Our Day Out'with Alun Armstrong in the same TV series.
5 Reviews
Remarkably memorable
digitig-110 July 2006
It's a remarkable testimony to a play that over thirty years later, whenever I think of great television plays, this is the first one that comes to my mind. It's really a simple tale of innocents abroad, with a touch of comedy of manners.A group of Northern English miners take a fishing holiday on which little goes right, from a snobbish landlady who resents their presence in the guest house to their discovering that the sea isn't really their element.
So it sounds as if it should have been a pleasant but throwaway item, but it has something that -- for me at least -- makes it stick. And I think it has to be the accuracy of the character writing. I grew up in an industrial Northern English town, and I recognised these characters. And I reckon that one of the hardest things in writing is to make good characters interesting -- interesting villains are so much easier. The Fishing Party succeeds with a vengeance; the miners have a raw, earthy goodness, holy fools that all the (admittedly petty) wickedness and adversity around them just passes by, but are never anything less than real.
Pass the brown sauce!
So it sounds as if it should have been a pleasant but throwaway item, but it has something that -- for me at least -- makes it stick. And I think it has to be the accuracy of the character writing. I grew up in an industrial Northern English town, and I recognised these characters. And I reckon that one of the hardest things in writing is to make good characters interesting -- interesting villains are so much easier. The Fishing Party succeeds with a vengeance; the miners have a raw, earthy goodness, holy fools that all the (admittedly petty) wickedness and adversity around them just passes by, but are never anything less than real.
Pass the brown sauce!
The Fishermen Of England
Buzzardschoice13 January 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Excellent play filmed at Whitby in Yorkshire in 1972... Three miners from Leeds arrive at Whitby on a bus, they are Art, Ern and Abe...
Brian Glover (Art) is definitely in charge of the other two, and they both have respect for him. They just want to get booked into a guest house, have a meal then do a spot of fishing, with a bit of drinking to finish.
Things aren't that simple, the landlady Jan Freeman (Audry) over charges for their accommodation, and really can't be bothered to serve an evening meal, and gives them next to nothing for breakfast.
Her spineless husband Frank Moorey (Brian) would love to go out fishing with the lads, but Audry tells him...'You've got work to do here'.
Before finding a boat the lads need to have a good meal, so they have a huge Fish and Chips from the local restaurant. They then find a boat and not only do they get into it, two large crates of brown ale is also loaded aboard.
They insist that the Fisherman who owns the boat, takes them out to the Cod fishing grounds. The waves are far too rough for the lads, and they all begin to get sea sickness.
They then have to return quietly back to their guest house, along with goodness knows how many cod?. Everything is rocking, nothing keeps still for the 3 drunken lads. (you may know that feeling)?
They survive the night, and are all looking forward to a nice smoke kippered breakfast (well that's what Art said they will have)
What they really had, was two very small sausages (burnt) and a small fried egg, not enough to feed their appetite, but Art insists they leave a tip.(why)? along with a note written on the back of a betting slip...'You should serve smoked kippers for breakfast, over charcoal'.
Fantastically funny play, I wish the BBC would repeat all of their classic plays (bet a lot have been wiped)?
If anyone would like a copy of this play on DVD then please contact me at midforda@yahoo.com I will be happy to oblige for a small fee. The picture and sound quality is really very good.
Thanks for reading my review
Brian Glover (Art) is definitely in charge of the other two, and they both have respect for him. They just want to get booked into a guest house, have a meal then do a spot of fishing, with a bit of drinking to finish.
Things aren't that simple, the landlady Jan Freeman (Audry) over charges for their accommodation, and really can't be bothered to serve an evening meal, and gives them next to nothing for breakfast.
Her spineless husband Frank Moorey (Brian) would love to go out fishing with the lads, but Audry tells him...'You've got work to do here'.
Before finding a boat the lads need to have a good meal, so they have a huge Fish and Chips from the local restaurant. They then find a boat and not only do they get into it, two large crates of brown ale is also loaded aboard.
They insist that the Fisherman who owns the boat, takes them out to the Cod fishing grounds. The waves are far too rough for the lads, and they all begin to get sea sickness.
They then have to return quietly back to their guest house, along with goodness knows how many cod?. Everything is rocking, nothing keeps still for the 3 drunken lads. (you may know that feeling)?
They survive the night, and are all looking forward to a nice smoke kippered breakfast (well that's what Art said they will have)
What they really had, was two very small sausages (burnt) and a small fried egg, not enough to feed their appetite, but Art insists they leave a tip.(why)? along with a note written on the back of a betting slip...'You should serve smoked kippers for breakfast, over charcoal'.
Fantastically funny play, I wish the BBC would repeat all of their classic plays (bet a lot have been wiped)?
If anyone would like a copy of this play on DVD then please contact me at midforda@yahoo.com I will be happy to oblige for a small fee. The picture and sound quality is really very good.
Thanks for reading my review
Classic Northern Drama
ben-davies-213 November 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Brian Glover was a brilliant actor. So well written. I last saw this years ago and I doubt it will make TV again now Brian Glover has sadly departed.
The plot centres around three friends who go to the Yorkshire seaside on a fishing trip.
What summed this up for me was scene with them all being drunk followed by being seasick. How they address the fisherman who took them on the fishing trip and how they ignored his warnings. Then the fisherman catches the fish for them and what they get up to hiding the fish in the hotel was hilarious.
Meanwhile back at the hotel the landlady was agonising whether to change the sheets or not.
You just have to see it to believe it. The strength of the characters in this film are excellent.
Glover was in so many good films, and then Alien 3 I am sure he did it for the money.
The plot centres around three friends who go to the Yorkshire seaside on a fishing trip.
What summed this up for me was scene with them all being drunk followed by being seasick. How they address the fisherman who took them on the fishing trip and how they ignored his warnings. Then the fisherman catches the fish for them and what they get up to hiding the fish in the hotel was hilarious.
Meanwhile back at the hotel the landlady was agonising whether to change the sheets or not.
You just have to see it to believe it. The strength of the characters in this film are excellent.
Glover was in so many good films, and then Alien 3 I am sure he did it for the money.
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