Dad’s Army Studies

Analysing and understanding the success of Dad’s Army

Kultura Press- dedicated to Open Access Publishing

Dad’s Army has been described as the most successful situation comedy in the history of British television and one of the most successful even in world television entertainment. Created and scripted by Jimmy Perry and David Croft with the first broadcast episode in July 1968, it ran for eighty television instalments until 1977. There was a film spin-off and also a very successful radio drama series version recorded before live audiences, like the television series, between 1973 and 1976.

The radio drama scripts were adaptations by Harold Snoad and Michael Knowles.

Dad’s Army is iconic in terms of social entertainment history. It created comedy out of extraordinary and catastrophic events of 1940 at a time when the genration which experienced it were a very large part of the audience as well as the cast.

Features and analysis by Professor Tim Crook, who watched the original broadcasts during the 1960s and 1970s coming soon.

The research and content is strictly copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Some Artificial Intelligence assistance from ChatGPT Plus and Gemini has been engaged in the research and development of this work.

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Postings on Dad’s Army Studies in progress and under construction

Making comedy out of history and creating a version of the British as they liked to see themselves.

This online resource intends to be a comprehensive cultural study of the Dad’s Army phenomenon in all its multimedia dimensions. Why does it endure so well, more than half a century after its creation and first broadcast? What are the elements of the television series which are intrinsically successful for television and how did the radio version transfer so successfully to the sound medium and auditory imagination?

What are the parts which are now out-of-date, and potentially offensive to contemporary audiences in the 2020s? The characters and format sustained the making of a second feature film and the production of ‘the lost episodes’ with a new cast and the original productions are still repeated.

When the generations who lived through the early 1940s and indeed constituted the first television and radio audiences are passing on, why does this sitcom concept find new and appreciative audiences? In recent years it was even a GCSE media studies option for sitcom analysis.

In May 2025 the actor Toby Jones presented a one-hour programme ‘Dad’s Army At The BBC.’

‘Ever since the first episode was broadcast in 1968, Dad’s Army has been one of the most familiar programmes on British television – much-loved and shown repeatedly, thanks to the affection it is held in by viewers of all generations. But despite its seemingly constant presence on screen, lots of Dad’s Army moments have remained unseen inside the BBC’s archives – until now.

Narrator Toby Jones – who himself played Captain Mainwaring in the 2016 Dad’s Army film – shares a selection of classic clips that feature everyone’s favourite Home Guard platoon in appearances that took them beyond the confines of Walmington-on-Sea. Amongst the many delights are Mainwaring dancing and sparring with Morecambe and Wise, the whole cast defending Buckingham Palace at the 1970 Royal Gala, Private Pike invading the Lulu Show, and a special song and dance tribute to Noel Coward – all must-see moments for fans of the show.’

It has been available on BBC iPlayer at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002bwrp/dads-army-at-the-bbc

Learning On Screen. Wednesday, 14 May 2025, 02:05 60 mins BBC2 England
Synopsis: ‘Toby Jones presents a set of must-see Dad’s Army moments from the BBC’s archives.’

Learning on Screen citation: Dad’s Army at the BBC, 02:05 14/05/2025, BBC2 England, 60 mins. https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ondemand/index.php/prog/3C4CE556?bcast=143052954 (Accessed 26 Jul 2025)

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