The Adventures of Robin Hood is a British television series comprising 143 half-hour, black-and-white episodes broadcast weekly from 25 September 1955 to 1 March 1959 on ITV. It starred Richard Greene as the outlaw Robin Hood and Alan Wheatley as his nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham. The show followed the legendary character Robin Hood and his band of merry men in Sherwood Forest and the surrounding vicinity. While some episodes dramatised the traditional Robin Hood tales, most were original dramas created by the show's writers and producers.
The programme was produced by Sapphire Films Ltd for ITC Entertainment, filmed at Nettlefold Studios with some location work, and was the first of many filmed shows commissioned by Lew Grade. In 1954, Grade was approached by American producer Hannah Weinstein to finance a series of 39 half-hour episodes, at a budget of £10,000 an episode, of a series she wished to make called The Adventures of Robin Hood. She had already signed Richard Greene to the project as Robin Hood and been given the backing of US distribution company, Official Films Inc, which were confident of selling it to the US market. Grade was so impressed by her proposal that he agreed immediately to back the series, hoping to make large profits by selling programmes to the lucrative American market. In the UK, the series premiered on ATV London, on Sunday 25 September 1955. ATV Midlands began the series on Friday 17 February 1956, with a staggered start across other regions from 1956 to 1961 as the ITV regional stations came on-air for the first time in the UK. The US premiere was on Monday 26 September 1955 by CBS. The series was shot on 35 mm film to provide the best possible picture quality and had fade-outs where US commercials were intended to slot in (the series was sponsored in the US by Johnson & Johnson (baby products, Band-Aid) and Wildroot Cream-Oil).
In Australia, the show aired on TCN9 in Sydney NSW and HSV7 Melbourne Victoria, actually being the first drama series broadcast by this station and CBC in Canada, and on CBS in the US. In France, RTF1 aired the show from 1965 to 1969 and RTF2 from 1969 to 1972. In Italy, Rai 1 aired the show from 1959 to 1964 and Rai 2 from 1965 to 1967. In Malaysia, RTM aired the show from late 1974 to early 1978. In the Philippines, ABS-CBN aired the show from 1963 to 1967, RBS (now GMA Network) from 1967 to 1972. In Indonesia, TVRI aired the show during the 1970s. In Romania, TVR aired the show from 1966 to 1980. In Poland aired the show in the late 1960s/early 1970s, in a popular programme for young people (each episode of the weekly programme ended with the broadcast of one episode of the series).
The programme continues to air in the United Kingdom on the Talking Pictures TV channel, shown regularly on Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons.
Characters
thumb|Richard Greene as Robin Hood
thumb|Maid Marian (Patricia Driscoll) with the Merry Men
Main characters
- Robin Hood (Robin of Locksley), a Saxon nobleman returned from the Crusades and forced into outlawry in Sherwood Forest. Played by Richard Greene.
- The Sheriff of Nottingham, a Norman baron and Robin Hood's enemy, who schemes to capture the outlaw. Played by Alan Wheatley.
- Little John, Robin Hood's trusted friend and his second in command. Played by Archie Duncan. Duncan was briefly replaced by Rufus Cruikshank for ten episodes after Duncan was injured when a horse bolted toward the spectators, mostly children, watching the location filming of the episode "Checkmate" on 20 April 1955. Archie Duncan grabbed the bridle, stopping the horse, but the cart it was pulling ran him over, causing a fractured kneecap and cuts and bruises. He received the Queen's Commendation for Bravery and £1,360 in damages from Sapphire Films.
- Maid Marian (Lady Marian Fitzwalter), a Norman-Irish noblewoman and Robin Hood's lover. Played in series one and two by Bernadette O'Farrell and in series three and four by Patricia Driscoll.
- Friar Tuck, a member of Robin Hood's band. Played by Alexander Gauge.
- Will Scarlet, a member of Robin Hood's band. Played by Ronald Howard (two episodes, series 1) and Paul Eddington (series 4).
- Derwent, a member of Robin's band. Played by Victor Woolf. Woolf played several other guest roles in the series such as villagers, villains and other outlaws. Excepting Richard Greene, he appeared in the most episodes of the show, a total of 112.
- Joan, the barmaid at the Blue Boar Inn, a friend of Robin and his band's. Played by Simone Lovell.
- Sir Richard of the Lea, a friend of Robin and his band's. Played by Ian Hunter. Hunter had earlier played King Richard the Lionheart in the 1938 production The Adventures of Robin Hood starring Errol Flynn.
- Lady Leonia, wife of Sir Richard of the Lea. Played by Patricia Burke in five episodes.
- The Deputy Sheriff of Nottingham, (the Sheriff's replacement in series 4), played by John Arnatt.
Minor characters
- Alan-a-Dale, a member of Robin Hood's band. Played by John Schlesinger (two episodes, series 2), Richard Coleman (three episodes, series 4).
- Ethel, Derwent's wife played by Paula Byrne.
Historical characters
- Queen Eleanor, the mother of King Richard and Prince John. Played by Jill Esmond (two episodes, series 1).
- King Richard the Lionheart, the King of England, elder son of Queen Eleanor and older brother of Prince John. Played by Patrick Barr (two episodes, series 1).
- Prince John, the scheming friend of the Sheriff of Nottingham and younger brother of King Richard. Played by Donald Pleasence, Hubert Gregg, and Brian Haines.
- Princess Avice of Gloucester, the first wife of Prince John. Played by Helen Cherry and Doris Nolan (although Nolan was credited as "Prince John's Wife")
- Isabella of Angoulême, the second wife of Prince John. Played by Zena Walker.
- Prince Arthur played by Peter Asher (three episodes, series 1 & 2), Richard O'Sullivan (one episode, series 3) and Jonathan Bailey (one episode, series 4).
- Constance, Duchess of Brittany (Prince Arthur's mother), played by Dorothy Alison (three episodes, series 1 & 2), Pamela Alan (one episode, series 3), and Patricia Marmont (one episode, series 4).
- King William the Lion of Scotland played by Duncan McKintyre.
Other actors
Actors appearing in the series who later became better-known included: Lionel Jeffries, Leslie Phillips, Jane Asher, Anne Reid, Edward Mulhare, Patrick Troughton (who in 1953 had been the first actor to portray Robin Hood on TV in a live BBC series), Irene Handl, Nicholas Parsons, Sam Kydd, Desmond Llewelyn, Sid James, Joan Sims, Bernard Bresslaw, Leo McKern, Alfie Bass, Harry H. Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell, Billie Whitelaw, Paul Eddington, Ronald Allen and Gordon Jackson. John Schlesinger appeared as an actor in three episodes as singing minstrels (Hale and Alan a Dale (series 2)). A number of well-known actresses appeared as Saxon or Norman ladies, including Greta Gynt and Brenda de Banzie.
A number of actors appeared in supporting roles in most episodes: in series 1 these included: Victor Woolf, Willoughby Gray, and John Longden, and for later series included: Paul Hansard, Morris Barry, Nigel Davenport, Kevin Stoney, Ronald Hines, and Max Faulkner, who also did stunt/double work. Frank Maher (later Patrick McGoohan's stunt double) played many small non-speaking parts, and stuntman Terry Yorke, who doubled for Richard Greene, played many small roles throughout all four series. In Series 3, Paul Eddington played a different character in many episodes, before settling down to Will Scarlett. Among these were Ring Lardner Jr., Waldo Salt, Robert Lees, and Adrian Scott. Howard Koch, who was also blacklisted, served for a while as the series' script editor. The blacklisted writers were credited under pseudonyms, to avoid the attention of studio executives.
After the blacklist collapsed, Lardner said that the series' format allowed him "plenty of opportunities to comment on issues and institutions in Eisenhower-era America"; presumably "A Tuck in Time" was such an episode, in which a twin of Friar Tuck arrives boasting of his willingness to sell a weapon that could destroy the world. In addition to the redistributive themes of a hero who robs from the rich and gives to the poor, many episodes in the programme's first two seasons included the threat that Robin and his band would be betrayed to the authorities by friends or loved ones, much as the blacklisted writers had been.
This song was parodied many years later on the 1970s TV series Monty Python's Flying Circus, in their Dennis Moore sketch, which depicted a masked highwayman from the 18th century (intended to mimic in appearance the real life highwayman Dick Turpin) stealing lupins (parodied as "... He steals from the poor, Gives to the rich, Stupid bitch!"). It's also played at every Nottingham Forest home match. The song, the titles, and the whole show were also parodied in the Hancock's Half Hour television episode "Ericson the Viking" in 1958, where Sid James talks Hancock into appearing in an on-the-cheap historical drama, "Ericson, Ericson, Ericson the Good: Ericson, Ericson, nipping through the wood...ole!"
"Robin des Bois" was the theme recorded for the French TV market. Sung in French, it can be heard on the 3rd series episode "Farewell to Tuck" released by Network on DVD. The series was first broadcast in France as "Aventures dans la Foret de Sherwood" in 1965 on ORTF. Other countries to broadcast the series included Canada in 1955–1958 on CBOT, Toronto, and CKCO, Kitchener, Ontario; Australia in 1956–1961 on HSV7 (The Seven Network); Finland in 1964 on NORDEEZE; the Netherlands in 1965/66 on AVRO; and Germany between 1971 and 1974 on ARD.
First series episodes also exist with a variant downbeat instrumental end theme by Edwin Astley, which can be heard on the episode "The Highlander" released by Network DVD.
Artistic details
Art director Peter Proud, an expert at wartime camouflage, hit on the idea of putting many props on wheels to facilitate quick set changes, since one 26-minute episode was shot every four and a half days. The show boasted "140 set pieces (baronial fireplaces, staircases, stone walls, entrance halls, and the like)". There was some outdoor location filming, mainly involving horse-riding doubles and stuntmen, and without dialogue recording. Sets were designed from parchments and sketches from the British Museum, and modelled on the castles of Harlech, Farleigh, and Framlingham. Some of the 100 soldiers who manned the battlements of Nottingham Castle were miniature toy soldiers.
Sponsorship
thumb|1958 advertisement featuring the series' alternative title, The Adventures in Sherwood Forest.
In the US, the original CBS syndication prints had a few diffrences from the original UK prints. After the brief title sequence, the US prints would repeat this sequence but with "Brought to You By" and, after the arrow strikes the tree, the sponsor's name "Wildroot Cream-Oil" superimposed. "Johnson & Johnson" sponsored episodes had a voice-over over the opening titles "Richard Greene in The Adventures of Robin Hood" and over the repeated sequence "presented by" followed by the names of two Johnson & Johnson products, images of which would appear over the shot of the arrow in the tree. A commercial featuring one of the products would then be shown, the Wildroot Cream-Oil sponsored episodes would then feature an animated commercial showing a Robin Hood–type figure with lank hair and a dinosaur. A minstrel song would then be sung at the beginning of each episode, over the episode title, providing a playful poetic synopsis in short prose of what could be expected to be seen. After the final fade to black, a sequence featuring an actor playing the Minstrel would be shown as he sang these lyrics to the tune of "Early One Morning": "We'll have the merry time again with Robin and his Merry Men and the folk who'll bring him to you then now beg a word with you", followed by a commercial for the next week's sponsor before the end titles would be shown (Wildroot Cream Oil and Johnson & Johnson sponsored alternate episodes), the end credits start with the opening sequence, with Sandy Becker mentioning the sponsor's name again, and the sponsor's product appearing on screen through the end titles which are shown over the shot of the tree. This caption also appeared: "This film was flown to the USA via Pan American World Airways". The opening minstrel tunes were also sung to the tune of "Early One Morning." There were two sponsors of the CBS syndicated screenings, Wildroot Cream-Oil (a hair tonic company), and Johnson & Johnson (known in the UK and US for its baby powder). The commercials involved "within" the episodes appeared originally on all three Seasons broadcast at 7.30pm (eastern standard time) /6.30pm (central standard time) Monday nights on CBS (not series 4). Alpha Video has released 22 single volume collections of the series, featuring various episodes.
In Region 2, Network DVD has released all 4 seasons on DVD in the UK. Three DVD boxsets of the series have also been released in Germany by KNM Home Entertainment as "Die Abenteuer Von Robin Hood" with German-language soundtracks in 2009.
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2"|DVD name
! rowspan="2"|EP#
! colspan="2"|Release dates
|-
! Region 1
! Region 2
|-
| The Complete First Season
| align="center"|39
| 18 March 2008
| 3 March 2008
|-
| The Complete Second Season
| align="center"|39
| 14 October 2008
| 1 December 2008
|-
| The Complete Third Season
| align="center"|39
| 31 March 2009
| 1 November 2008
|-
| The Complete Fourth Season
| align="center"|26
| 25 August 2009
| 24 January 2005
|-
| The Complete Series
| align="center"|143
| 25 August 2009<br>14 May 2019 (re-release)
| 12 December 2011
|}
Compilation episodes
In the early 1990s, in the wake of the Kevin Costner film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, three movie-length compilation features (approx. 90 min. each) were created from the series by producers Philip May & Joseph Shields, through editing and computer-colourising parts of the various episodes, though not necessarily in chronological order. These were as follows:
- Robin Hood: The Movie (1991), featuring edited material from episodes: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 and 27. Notably, Will Scatlock who dies at the end of episode 2 in the series (thereby transferring the outlaw leadership to Robin Hood), is not killed until the end of the 90 min feature.
- Robin Hood's Greatest Adventures (1991)
- Robin Hood: Quest for the Crown (1991)
Film
Sidney Cole and Richard Greene produced the feature film Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960), for Hammer Film Productions (in association with Yeoman Films), directed by Terence Fisher, written by Alan Hackney, director of photography was Ken Hodges, and the film editor was Lee Doig, all TV series alumni. Richard Greene starred as Robin Hood with Peter Cushing as the Sheriff of Nottingham; blonde-haired Sarah Branch played Maid Marian with Nigel Green as Little John, Jack Gwillim as Archbishop Hubert Walter, and Richard Pasco as Edward, Earl of Newark. Oliver Reed also had a small role. It was filmed in colour and in a widescreen process referred to as "Megascope" on the opening titles. The film itself was a retelling of how Robin first met Marion.
See also
- List of films and television series featuring Robin Hood