- 2 years ago
The phrase "nearest and dearest" often evokes a sense of warmth, family, and close relationships. It's a term that brings to mind the people we hold closest to our hearts—our family, friends, and loved ones. However, in the context of British television, "Nearest and Dearest" takes on a different meaning, referring to a classic sitcom that captured the hearts of many.
"Nearest and Dearest" was a British television sitcom that aired from 1968 to 1973. The show starred Hylda Baker and Jimmy Jewel as Nellie and Eli Pledge, siblings who inherit their father's pickle business in Colne, Lancashire. The series was known for its humor derived from the characters' squabbles, malapropisms, and the unique dynamics of a family-run business.
The premise of the show was simple yet effective: Nellie, a hard-working spinster, and Eli, a womanizing slacker, must run the family business together to inherit their father's fortune. This setup led to comedic situations and memorable catchphrases that are still recognized by fans of classic British comedy.
Despite the on-screen chemistry between Baker and Jewel, it was widely reported that the two did not get along off-screen, adding a layer of intrigue to the show's history. Their tumultuous relationship is often cited as one of the most toxic in British sitcom history.
"Nearest and Dearest" also serves as a cultural touchstone, reflecting the era's social norms and the changing landscape of British comedy. It's a show that, while rooted in the 1960s and 70s, continues to find new audiences who appreciate its wit and charm.
For those who grew up watching "Nearest and Dearest," the show remains a nostalgic reminder of a bygone era of television. And for newcomers, it offers a glimpse into the rich tapestry of British humor and the timeless appeal of family dynamics in storytelling.
Whether you're revisiting the series or discovering it for the first time, "Nearest and Dearest" stands as a testament to the enduring nature of well-crafted comedy and the universal themes of family and ambition. It's a piece of television history that continues to be nearest and dearest to many viewers' hearts.
Listen to our radio station Old Time Radio https://link.radioking.com/otradio
Listen to other Shows at My Classic Radio https://www.myclassicradio.net/
Entertainment Radio | Broadcasting Classic Radio Shows | Patreon
Remember that times have changed, and some shows might not reflect the standards of today’s politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Entertainment Radio
"Nearest and Dearest" was a British television sitcom that aired from 1968 to 1973. The show starred Hylda Baker and Jimmy Jewel as Nellie and Eli Pledge, siblings who inherit their father's pickle business in Colne, Lancashire. The series was known for its humor derived from the characters' squabbles, malapropisms, and the unique dynamics of a family-run business.
The premise of the show was simple yet effective: Nellie, a hard-working spinster, and Eli, a womanizing slacker, must run the family business together to inherit their father's fortune. This setup led to comedic situations and memorable catchphrases that are still recognized by fans of classic British comedy.
Despite the on-screen chemistry between Baker and Jewel, it was widely reported that the two did not get along off-screen, adding a layer of intrigue to the show's history. Their tumultuous relationship is often cited as one of the most toxic in British sitcom history.
"Nearest and Dearest" also serves as a cultural touchstone, reflecting the era's social norms and the changing landscape of British comedy. It's a show that, while rooted in the 1960s and 70s, continues to find new audiences who appreciate its wit and charm.
For those who grew up watching "Nearest and Dearest," the show remains a nostalgic reminder of a bygone era of television. And for newcomers, it offers a glimpse into the rich tapestry of British humor and the timeless appeal of family dynamics in storytelling.
Whether you're revisiting the series or discovering it for the first time, "Nearest and Dearest" stands as a testament to the enduring nature of well-crafted comedy and the universal themes of family and ambition. It's a piece of television history that continues to be nearest and dearest to many viewers' hearts.
Listen to our radio station Old Time Radio https://link.radioking.com/otradio
Listen to other Shows at My Classic Radio https://www.myclassicradio.net/
Entertainment Radio | Broadcasting Classic Radio Shows | Patreon
Remember that times have changed, and some shows might not reflect the standards of today’s politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Entertainment Radio
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FunTranscript
00:30Come on then, what are you doing? Get to work? There's a lot of you? I should think so. Doggling
00:40your time away. That's it. My goodness. I should think so. Who's been pickling in this
00:53jar? Me, Miss Nelly. Yeah? Well, I'll have a sample. Let's see. Tasted worse. Oh, thanks
01:05very much, Miss Nelly. I've tasted better. Look at that collie, eh? Just look at it.
01:12Now, I've told you about this before, haven't I? That's all stalk and no head, isn't it?
01:19What I expect from you is a short stalk and a big head. Ah, he's all slapdash, Miss Nelly.
01:28He won't be told. You've got some room to talk. When I felt your gherkins just now,
01:33they'd gone soft. Now then, get the box ready. That's right, Stanley. Come on now, there's
01:42lots of you. I want you over here. Come on, gather round. Quick, quick's the word. Sharp's
01:47the action. We'll give you so much an hour. Now, as you all know, the picklers of Great
01:53Britain and Lancashire are giving their exhibition of pickles at Blackpool on Saturday. Now this
02:00year, our pickles are going to be the starter. Our top picklers will be there, Miss Nelly.
02:08We are not pickling tops. We shall win. But, I mean, the Blackpool exhibition, it's the
02:17Olympic Games at Pickletrade. We can win, and we shall win. Because this year, our picklerly
02:25has got a special wandering ingredient. So therefore, I want from you this week, first
02:33class pickling. And if that cat from the chippy gets in from next door, I'm having it doctored.
02:39And that goes for one or two of you as well. So if you can get on with it. Now, come on.
02:45Where's Mr. Eli? Oh, he went out, Miss Nelly. Yeah, he would be in the pub when there's some
02:54work to be done. Oh dear, look at the time. Quarter to. Must get a little hand put on this
03:01spot. Oh, Nelly, look. Don't you Nelly love me? I'm up to me armpits in beetroot and chutney. See,
03:10I've been at it since six o'clock this morning. You see? I don't know. Well, you've just been
03:16pleasuring yourself outside. I mean, the vinegar's been heaving again, and there's that gremble
03:21there. Yeah, see? He's just broken three bottles of our best cucumber. I'm only a woman. Well,
03:28we've only got your word for that. And talking about women, if we were, we've got a surprise
03:34for you. Why? Are you having your mouth sewn up? Hang about, Nelly. Wait till you see what I've found.
03:42I'd love to preserve that in vinegar. We haven't got a job, have we? We'll have to get a couple of buckets. No, Nelly, you've missed the point. I'd have to be blind.
04:04Look, it's the pickling exhibition on Saturday at Blackpool, innit? We need expansion. Expansion,
04:10yes. Inflation, no. Nelly, I'd like you to meet Sabrina. Sabrina? That name sounds formidable.
04:18Isn't that the one that was on telly? You remember that one. I remember both of them.
04:25Hey, are you a good worker? Oh, you mean I've got to work? Stan,
04:32take Sabrina round the back and show her your gherkins.
04:34What does she mean, have I got to work? Is she experienced? Oh, she's very experienced.
04:42I'm going to teach her to pickle too. I smell a great big mouse. That girl,
04:50she's not a real pickler, is she? Well, no, she's more of a model. What for, barrage balloons?
04:57She's your fancy woman, isn't she? No, she's not, Nelly. Oh, yes, she is. No, she's not. Well,
05:01I'm not having any of that there in this shed. I'm telling you that. Neither am I. No, no. You
05:06either. No, Nelly, she's not my fancy woman. She's your fancy woman. She's all part of a plan
05:10that I've dreamed up. What are you talking about? You want to get plenty of pickles in the headlines,
05:13don't you? Yes, in the headlines, yes, but not in the Sunday papers. She, look, it's a pickling
05:20exhibition on Saturday and I've entered her for the competition. Yeah, what has, a stuffed olive?
05:26You daft old haybag. I've entered her as Miss Pickle. Yeah, Miss Pickle, she'd have to be a
05:33proper pickler like her. Like her what? Her there. Anyway, I've prepared to give all my free time up
05:41this week to show Sabrina the ropes. Show the ropes? Knowing you, that's not all you'll show her.
05:49Nelly, she's a dead cert. Eh? I mean to win the competition.
05:54Oh, yes, and she's all I ask for 20 quid a week. 20 quid a week? That's more than I get.
05:59Ah, well, you get a share of the profits, don't you? Ah, yeah, well, I'm not getting my share lately.
06:04Neither am I. So, I will do from now on if I play me cards right.
06:10It'll do him good, you know, at Blackpool, this weekend. Oh, yes, I'm right looking forward to it.
06:15It'll be a nice change. We had our honeymoon in Blackpool, you know. Oh, I remember.
06:21Must have been lovely. Bit of a letdown, really. Blackpool Tower wasn't as big as I'd expected, either.
06:32Still, I mean, it'll be nice to have another look at it.
06:37I'm just saying, Walter, you and Lily at Blackpool, it'll be nice to have another look at it.
06:45Yeah, that reminds me. Would you like to have a look at my Piccololy?
06:52Well, are you sure it's no trouble? No, but I've got it hidden.
07:03This is it. It's, uh, Pledge's Extra Power Piccololy, a new product.
07:10You... You've never tasted anything like it.
07:14Well, what's different about it? What have you put in it?
07:16Oh, I can't tell you that. It's a secret between Ariella and me.
07:19Oh, go on, you can tell me. No, I can't. Can't. Can't. Can't. Can't. Can't. Can't.
07:24All right, well, I'm your best, keeping it to yourself.
07:27Well, I could tell you, Lily.
07:32But you won't come out with it, will you? I'm just saying, you won't come out with it, will you?
07:40Well, all right, then. You see, it's, uh, dandelion leaves.
07:47Yes, gathered at full moon. It gives the Piccololy a special effluvia.
07:56Lily, this... This could win us the Supreme Award, the Golden Gherkin.
08:03And after that, who knows? We might go continental.
08:08Might even go to Brussels and try for the Golden Sprout.
08:13Well, this all sounds very exciting. Yes, well, there's only one fly in the ointment,
08:19and that's that Arnold Guttersby. Who's he when he's at all?
08:21Well, Guttersby's pickles, you know, of Burnley. Yes, he's had it in for us, you know,
08:26ever since me dad reported him during the war for putting red ink in the potatoes to make it
08:32look like beetroot. Hey, Lily, um, this girl that your real eye's got, you know, for the Miss
08:40Pickle contest, is he? No, I mean, has he? Well, he says he hasn't. I'm sceptic, too, about it.
08:57You know, I mean, all these girls, they let the limelight go to their heads, you know.
09:01I was once the Rose Queen, but I never let it spoil me. And then again, Walter's had his thrill.
09:11Right, Walter, you've had your thrill. You know, that time in hospital.
09:16Oh, I remember now, yeah. What was it the other patients called him? The man who had everything.
09:23Oh, yeah. He was very popular in hospital, was Walter. He was voted Mr. With It.
09:31When he came out, he was Mr. Without It.
09:35It's not on, you know. You promised to wine and dine me like an oriental princess.
09:40Well, what about that meal I bought you at the Chinese Chippy? That was their number four special,
09:45with chopsticks. I thought you liked that. I did. The chopsticks tasted delicious.
09:51Well, I'm sorry about it, you know, but I know he's been keeping an eye on us like, see, but
09:55wait till we get to Blackpool. Oh, I got myself there.
10:01The Golden Mile and a plate of whelks turns me on.
10:05Oh, I'll show you all the romantic places. You're not getting me under that North Pier.
10:10Hey, only the best is good enough for my little treasure chest.
10:14And what's the best you can offer? A quick touch-up in the bus shelter at Squire's Gate.
10:21Nothing like that. I booked the hotel, the Babylon. Ooh, they've given you the room next to mine.
10:29I've got news for you, Eli Pledge. Is that really a name, Eli Pledge?
10:35I'm not going to Blackpool with you. I'm going with somebody else.
10:38How do you mean? I've had a better offer from Arnold Guttersby.
10:42I'm going to work for him, and I'm going to be his entry for Miss Pickle.
10:47But, Sabrina... You and me are finished.
10:52Finished? We never even bloody started.
11:17Oh, what a journey. I thought we were never going to get here.
11:34That's the last time you get me on a shadowy, Walter. Twelve times he stopped that bus.
11:40Well, he couldn't help it. He had to go. Not on the fast lane of the M6.
11:47Oh, there you are, Lily. You thought you'd got lost?
11:51No such bloody luck. Shut up, you big girl's blouse.
11:56What happened? Oh, well, it were Walter.
11:58That revolving door at Byte Lobby caught hold of him.
12:01All right. Where did he catch hold of him? She just told you, by the lobby.
12:06Excuse me, sir. Ah, there you are, Squire. I can do with a drink.
12:10Certainly, sir. Shall I get a porter to take the bags upstairs?
12:13No, no, they'll have a drink, you know. What are you having, Lily?
12:18I'll not have a drink, Eli. I shouldn't think so.
12:20I want to get Walter upstairs. Yes.
12:23No, not a drink you need, you know. It's a bloody miracle.
12:26Will you shut up, you? Yes, you'd better get him upstairs.
12:29You're quite right, Lily. He'll want to be getting on the bed for a bit.
12:33I'm just saying, Walter, you'll want to get on the bed for a bit.
12:37He must be tired. Ah, now, I'll have a pint of beer.
12:41Nellie, what will you have? Oh, have you got a glass of sherry wine?
12:47Why, certainly, madam. A Montanado? No, thank you. I don't smoke.
12:53Oi, he's asking you if you want your sherry dry.
12:59Of course I don't want it dry. I want it wet, don't I, when I wants to drink?
13:05Ah, certainly, madam. Ooh, I like this place.
13:09Ooh, I like these, uh, candle braziers.
13:17Hey, what are you doing? What?
13:19What about me? Oh, yeah, I was reading.
13:21Do you want some beer? I don't think so.
13:24That's better.
13:30Sir? Madam?
13:32That'll be 90 pence, sir. 90 pence?
13:3890 pence? I mean, what, for a sherry wine and a pint of beer?
13:43But it's the S.E.T., madam, sir. S.E.T., my B.T.M.
13:49I'll buy another drink here after I ring up the building society and get a bloody mortgage.
13:53If you buy a drink, we'll be bankruptured.
13:56It's a good thing that our pickles are going to win first prize.
13:59Here you are, 90 pence. Oh, thank you, sir.
14:02Service charge is not included. Do you want a tip?
14:06Well, it is customary, sir. How about her for the 3.30?
14:13Here we are then. Oh, you've got the exhibits then,
14:17have you, Stan? Every one we carry.
14:19Yes, well, we've got to keep our eye on those, you know.
14:23I mean, until we hand them over.
14:26I mean, where do you think we should put them? We want a safe place.
14:29How about Walter's bed? Well, I mean, nothing's ever happened to Lily, has it?
14:34A few jars of pickles should be safe.
14:37Don't talk, daft. Supposing some unscrupulous pickler should get his hands on...
14:42Hey-up.
14:43Ahem.
14:44Arnold, goodness me.
14:46Hello, hello, hello. What side was you up, then?
14:49Take no notice. Inhale him.
14:51Can't understand why...
14:54Can't understand why you bothered coming, really.
14:56You stand no chance with them mucky pickles of yours.
14:59What are you talking about? Everybody knows that you blow up your gherkins.
15:03With a bicycle pump.
15:06They tell me you've developed a new type of piccolily.
15:09What's, uh, what's so special about it?
15:12Well, sir, you'll know what's so special about it when we win first prize.
15:17It's made from a top-secret formula.
15:19Oh, aye, a top-secret formula. And what's the secret about dandelions?
15:25I'll see your pickles off, Pledgey.
15:27Come on, Sabrina.
15:28Ta-da!
15:28Stand no chance.
15:31Flaming Arnold, got his back.
15:33How did he know about those dandelions?
15:36Who told him?
15:38Stanley?
15:39Come here.
15:41Have you been talking in the pub?
15:43No, not me, Miss Nellie.
15:45He like?
15:46No, I didn't talk in the pub, Nellie.
15:49You great festering wicklow, you.
15:52I'll kill you.
15:53It was that Sabrina, you know, she, like, wormed it out of me.
15:57You dozy crate-egg.
15:59You're not fit to shuffle up sherbet in a...
16:03in a kale-eye factory.
16:10I'm, um, I'm sorry, Nellie.
16:12I thought that I could trust that Sabrina, you know.
16:16That Flaming Arnold got his back as soon as she told him.
16:19I bet he went out picking dandelions.
16:22You know, they'll do wonders for his pickle-lily.
16:24He wouldn't have to go out and pick them, Nellie.
16:28What do you mean?
16:29I gave Sabrina that big jar of dandelion juice
16:33that was in our pickle shed behind the beetroot sacks.
16:36Don't hit me.
16:38You big fleas armpit.
16:41We might as well have stopped at home.
16:44Hey, lad.
16:46Did you say that big jar behind beetroot bags?
16:49Yes.
16:51That big jar with big screw top?
16:53Oh, shut up.
16:54It's too late now.
16:55Not only that wasn't dandelion juice,
16:58wasn't it?
16:59No.
17:00What the hell was it?
17:01It were the horses.
17:05The horses what?
17:09You know,
17:12I put it in that jar before I took it to vet.
17:19You mean the horses...
17:20And I gave it to Sabrina.
17:23And she gave it to Arnold got his back.
17:25To put in his pickle-lily.
17:29Here we go gathering lots of hay, lots of hay, lots of hay.
17:32Here we go gathering lots of hay on a cold and frosty morning.
17:36Peace, peace, peace, peace, peace, peace.
17:39Now, this is the kind of behavior that gives Britain's picklers a bad name.
17:41Who the hell are you?
17:42My name is Perkins of Perkins Gherkins.
17:46And I'm the conference secretary.
17:48Oh, yes.
17:49Well, how do you do?
17:50You haven't had the pleasure of me yet, have you?
17:54I'm Miss Nellie Pledge of Pledge's Pure Pickles.
17:58And this here is my brother of the same name.
18:01Ah, yes, Mr. Pledge.
18:03Now, I have you down as having a contestant for the Pickle Queen.
18:05Ah, well, there's been a bit of a snag, you see.
18:07I trust your candidate will appear.
18:09There's a 50 pound forfeit if she doesn't.
18:11We can't have people wasting the judge's time now, can we?
18:13We can't afford 50 pounds.
18:15The rules are quite clear.
18:16A 50 pound forfeit must be paid if your candidate does not come up to scratch.
18:20Well, Mr. Pledge, do you have a candidate?
18:23Yes, of course.
18:25Hey, you had me worried for a minute.
18:28And what is your candidate's name?
18:30Nellie Pledge.
18:36And now, representing Gutter's Biz, our friendly Miss Sabrina Clegg.
18:51And now, finally, representing Pledge's Pickles from Home,
18:56Miss Nellie Pledge.
19:12Shut up, you idiot.
19:13Hey, I backed you to win.
19:15I'm very touched.
19:16It's not you that's touched, it's him.
19:19You'll be touched in a minute with this.
19:20Peace, peace, peace.
19:22Sorry.
19:23And now, now, ladies and gentlemen, you have seen the four lovely contestants
19:28competing for the title of Miss Pickle, our pickle industry's very own leading lady.
19:33Get on with it, you lovey duck.
19:34Order, please, order.
19:36These four lovely ladies competing for the title and the EPNS cup,
19:40kindly donated by Mr. Gutter's Ben.
19:44Sit down, big head.
19:47But the judges are not looking for personality poise and charm alone.
19:51I hope, Nellie, you're in with a chance.
19:55Shut up, will you?
19:56I mean, shut up.
20:01The judges also require each contestant to offer a slogan,
20:05which will boost the pickle trade in this great country of ours.
20:08Come on, Sabrina, give us a slogan.
20:10Right, excuse me.
20:12And the slogan is, our Lily loves her pickle, Lily.
20:16Brilliant, brilliant.
20:18Hector Swindle, sit down.
20:20Order, order, order, please, please.
20:23Oh, right.
20:24Well, then, if there are no further slogans...
20:27Hang on, Nellie's got a slogan.
20:28Come on, Nellie, give me a slogan, go on.
20:31You don't know what my slogan is, do you?
20:33No, no, I don't.
20:34Very well, then, everyone, we will now have Miss Pledge's slogan.
20:39What's the matter, Pledge, has the cat from the chippy got your tongue?
20:44I'll forget I'm a perfect lady and give you a pug in the log.
20:47You're a pickle queen.
20:48It's ridiculous, she's wearing a puddy bra.
20:53Well, they're all my own, I tell you that.
20:55They're false.
20:56False nothing.
20:57Oh, shove a gherkin up your jerky.
21:02I didn't mean you, love.
21:03I just said to him, shove a gherkin up your jerky.
21:06That's the slogan we want.
21:10Yes, yes, the judges are unanimous.
21:13Miss Nellie Pledge is declared Pickle Queen of Great Britain and Lancashire.
21:24I crown thee Queen Nellie.
21:36Sir Fiddle, you're not fit to be a pickle queen, you're too common.
21:39I'm not common, shut your gob.
21:43Hang on, I wouldn't say that to him, you know.
21:48You like first prizes, don't you?
21:50No, I what?
21:50I'm not out with him.
21:53I'm nearly sorry I won.
21:56And now, fellow picklers, it only remains to announce the Golden Gherkin Award
22:00for the finest pickle product at this year's show.
22:03And it is in the pickle lily section.
22:05That's our pickle lily of fluvia.
22:07The Golden Gherkin Award for this superb pickle lily goes to its creator.
22:12Hold me crown while I go up and get it.
22:15Guttersby's Aunt Burnley.
22:16Come out, sir.
22:21Well, I'll gut you out.
22:24I think I'll come with you.
22:28That flaming Arnold Guttersby.
22:30I mean, that flaming horse and all.
22:33Ah, well, you can say that again.
22:36And he's got the Golden Gherkin.
22:37Ah, but never mind, Nellie.
22:39We've still got the horse, love.
22:43Let's cut off his supplies.
22:49How do you mean?
22:50Let's go home and put a big padlock on that stable door.
22:54Come on, love.
24:12Hello, ma'am, what are you doing?
24:42Get to work.
24:43There's a lot of you.
24:44I should think so.
24:45Doggling your time away.
24:47That's my agony.
24:50I should think so.
24:57Who's been pickling in this jar?
25:01Me, Miss Nellie.
25:03Yeah?
25:04Well, I'll have a sample.
25:06Let's see.
25:08Ah, tasted worse.
25:10Oh, thanks very much, Miss Nellie.
25:12And I've tasted better.
25:15Look at that collie, eh?
25:16Just look at it.
25:18Now, I've told you about this before, haven't I?
25:20That's all stalk and no head, isn't it?
25:24What I expect from you is a short stalk and a big head.
25:30Ah, he's all slept death, Miss Nellie.
25:34He won't be told.
25:35You've got some room to talk.
25:37When I felt your gherkins just now, they'd gone soft.
25:40Now then, get the, uh, the box ready.
25:45That's right, Stanley.
25:46Come on now, the lot of you.
25:48I want you over here.
25:49Come on, gather round.
25:50Quick, quick's the word.
25:52Sharp's the action.
25:53You're getting so much in an hour.
25:55Now, as you all know, the picklers of Great Britain and Lancashire
25:59are giving their exhibition of pickles at Blackpool on Saturday.
26:05Now, this year, our pickles are going to be the starter.
26:10Our top picklers will be there, Miss Nellie.
26:13We are not pickling tops.
26:17We shall win.
26:19Ah, but, but, I mean, the Blackpool exhibition,
26:22it's the Olympic Games at Pickletwade.
26:25We can win, and we shall win.
26:27Because this year, our...
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