Rising Damp: For the Man Who Has Everything


10:00 pm - 10:30 pm, Today on Great! TV (34)

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About this Broadcast

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For the Man Who Has Everything
Season 2, Episode 8

Rigsby jumps to the conclusion that Philip has bought him the kind of curvaceous Christmas cracker every man dreams of, but, as usual, his happiness is short-lived. Vintage 1975 seasonal special, starring Leonard Rossiter, Don Warrington, Richard Beckinsale and Gay Rose


Movie/Drama Sitcom

Cast & Crew

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Leonard Rossiter (Actor) .. Rigsby
Richard Beckinsale (Actor) .. Alan Moore
Don Warrington (Actor) .. Philip Smith
Gay Rose (Actor) .. Brenda
Helen Fraser (Actor) .. Gwen
Vernon Lawrence (Series director)

More Information

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Did You Know..

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Leonard Rossiter (Actor) .. Rigsby
Born: October 21, 1926 in Liverpool
Best Known For: Rising Damp, The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin and the Cinzano adverts with Joan Collins.
Early-life: Born on 21 October 1926 in Liverpool. He lived above a barber shop owned by his father, and attended The Liverpool Collegiate Grammar School for boys. Rossiter had wanted to carry on his studies by doing modern foreign languages at Liverpool University, but he couldn't afford to go: in 1942 his father, who was a volunteer during the war, was killed in an air raid, so he was left to look after his mother. He was forced to grow up faster than his peers and he spent six years working as an insurance clerk in the claims and accidents department of the Commercial Union Insurance Company. He was a dedicated sportsman: he was a fan of Everton Football Club and he also played squash, tennis and football regularly. At 27 his girlfriend challenged him to do better than everyone at her amateur dramatics group - he had shown a lack of enthusiasm for their talents - and he never looked back. The latecomer showed a remarkable prowess in a number of productions and decided to abandon his mundane nine to five lifestyle to pursue an acting career.
Career: After shining in stage performances during the 1950s, Rossiter was handed the opportunity to shine on-screen in A Kind of Loving (1962). His comedic timing and dedication to the craft was equally at home on TV with a number of guest appearances on shows such as Z Cars, The Avengers and Steptoe and Son. During this time he continued to work in theatre, memorably starring as Adolf Hitler in 1969 play The Resistible Rise Arturo Ui. It was the 1970s that saw the hardworking star emerge from being a well respected actor within the industry to become a household name. Star turns in Rising Damp and The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin proved he was sitcom master; at the end of the decade he appeared in a number of much-loved adverts for Cinzano with Joan Collins. Rossiter played Collins's bumbling partner who amusingly always wrecks her splendorous attire by emptying copious amounts of the drink all over her. In the 1980s Rossiter continued to star on TV in shows such as Tripper's Day, but his life would tragically be cut short 16 days before his 58th birthday as he had a heart attack backstage at the Lyric Theatre in London during a performance of Loot.
Quote: "It's not that I can't tolerate fools, I can, providing that I don't have to put up with them for too long."
Trivia: In 1964 Rossiter married Gillian Raine, who was also an actress, and he was with her until the day he died. Prior to marrying Raine, he wed Josephine Tewson in 1959, but it ended in divorce two years later.
Richard Beckinsale (Actor) .. Alan Moore
Don Warrington (Actor) .. Philip Smith
Born: May 23, 1951 in Trinidad
Best Known For: Playing Philip Smith in ITV sitcom Rising Damp.
Early-life: Born Don Williams in Trinidad on May 23, 1951. He has an older brother. His father, Basil Kydd, died suddenly in Trinidad at the age of 48 in 1958 when Don was six. His mother, Shirley, decided to make a new life for herself in England while Don and his brother were looked after back in Trinidad by his grandmother. Shirley settled in Newcastle with a job at a metal factory and returned to Trinidad to collect her two sons. When Don was 12, his mother left for America to retrain as a nurse. Don and his brother were then looked after in England by his Auntie Lena. Don was 17 when he landed his first job as an assistant stage manager at Newcastle's Flora Robson Playhouse. He moved to London to train at the Drama Centre and then landed the role that made him famous.
Career: Warrington began playing Philip Smith in ITV sitcom Rising Damp in 1974 alongside Leonard Rossiter and Richard Beckinsale. The hugely popular series ran until 1978 and led to a spin-off film. Decades later, Warrington directed the first UK stage tour of Rising Damp in 2013. He has also starred in Triangle, Crown Court, CATS Eyes, To Play the King, Grange Hill, Manchild, Holby City and The Crouches. More recently, he has appeared in Doctor Who, New Street Law, Casualty, Waking the Dead, Lewis and Death in Paradise. He has also performed with the National Theatre, The Royal Shakespeare Company, and the Bristol Old Vic. He competed in the sixth series of Strictly Come Dancing with professional dancer Lilia Kopylova. They were eliminated in week five.
Quote: "My brother and I were the only black kids in our school. The way you survive in those circumstances is to become like the locals, so I became a Geordie who was good at football."
Trivia: Warrington was awarded an MBE in 2008.
Gay Rose (Actor) .. Brenda
Helen Fraser (Actor) .. Gwen
Eric Chappell (Writer)
Vernon Lawrence (Series director)