18-513: David Croft may refer to: David Croft (TV producer) (1922–2011), English writer, producer and actor David Croft (rugby union) (born 1979), Australian former rugby union player David Croft (broadcaster) (born 1970), English broadcaster for Sky Sports David Croft ( Home and Away ) , a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away [REDACTED] Topics referred to by
36-694: A commercial which aired in cinemas. After that, his acting career in films "began and ended" with his uncredited appearance as Perkins in the film Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939). The family lived in Poole, Dorset. Nearby is St Aldhelm's Church, Poole and Croft later gave that name to the church in Dad's Army. He was educated at two [independent] schools: at St John's Wood prep school in North London, followed by Rugby School in Warwickshire. He enlisted in
54-599: A major is a crown . The equivalent rank in the Royal Navy is lieutenant commander , and squadron leader in the Royal Air Force . By the time of the Napoleonic wars , an infantry battalion usually had two majors, designated the "senior major" and the "junior major". The senior major effectively acted as second-in-command and the majors often commanded detachments of two or more companies split from
72-663: A number of Beatrix Potter stories. Croft wrote the scripts and lyrics for a series released on His Master's Voice Junior Record Club, narrated by Vivien Leigh and starring several singer-actors and actresses including Barbara Brown, Graham Stark and Cicely Courtneidge . David Croft himself played a number of roles, including Timmy Willie in Johnny Town-Mouse , Kep in Jemima Puddle-Duck , and Old Brown in Squirrel Nutkin . Croft relocated to
90-545: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages David Croft (TV producer) Major David John Croft , OBE (born David John Andrew Sharland ; 7 September 1922 – 27 September 2011) was an English television comedy screenwriter , producer and director . He produced and wrote a string of BBC sitcoms with partners Jimmy Perry and Jeremy Lloyd , including Dad's Army , Are You Being Served? , It Ain't Half Hot Mum , Hi-de-Hi! and 'Allo 'Allo! Croft
108-843: The Royal Artillery in 1942. He served during the Second World War in North Africa, India and Singapore. After contracting rheumatic fever in North Africa, was sent home to convalesce and then underwent officer training at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst . Croft was posted to India, arriving as the war in Europe ended, and was assigned to the Essex Regiment , rising to the rank of Major . When his military service ended he began working in
126-564: The Northeast of England to work at Tyne Tees Television , where he produced many editions of the variety show The One O'Clock Show . For Tyne Tees, Croft also directed and produced the admags Ned's Shed and Mary Goes to Market , as well as producing his first sitcom, Under New Management , set in a derelict pub in the North of England. After leaving Tyne Tees Television to work at the BBC in
144-497: The cuff badges were abolished. From 1 April 1918 to 31 July 1919, the Royal Air Force maintained the rank of major. It was superseded by the rank of squadron leader on the following day. By World War I , majors were often commanding independent companies, squadrons , and batteries , but those that were organically part of a regiment or battalion were still usually commanded by captains. After World War II , major became
162-558: The entertainment industry, as an actor, singer and writer. Croft met Freddie Carpenter , who produced many pantomimes for Howard & Wyndham across the UK, resulting in Croft writing scripts such as Aladdin , Cinderella and Babes in the Wood . Through his lifelong friend, composer/conductor Cyril Ornadel , Croft met the producer Fiona Bentley , who had obtained rights to adapt and musicalise
180-476: The industry. Croft's awards include: In addition to writing most of the episodes for these television series, Croft also worked as producer , director and, later, executive producer . Major (United Kingdom) Major ( Maj ) is a military rank which is used by both the British Army and Royal Marines . The rank is superior to captain and subordinate to lieutenant colonel . The insignia for
198-458: The main body. The second-in-command of a battalion or regiment is still a major. During World War I, majors wore the following cuff badges: During World War I, some officers took to wearing similar jackets to the men, with the rank badges on the shoulder, as the cuff badges made them conspicuous to snipers. This practice was frowned on outside the trenches but was given official sanction in 1917 as an alternative, being made permanent in 1920 when
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#1732800729013216-571: The mid-1960s, he produced several of the Corporation's sitcoms such as Beggar My Neighbour , A World of His Own , Further Up Pompeii! and Hugh and I . It was while producing Hugh and I that he was introduced to actor Jimmy Perry , who handed him an unsolicited script for a pilot called The Fighting Tigers about the British Home Guard during the Second World War. Croft liked the idea. The two men co-wrote nine series of
234-404: The same term This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=David_Croft&oldid=741303871 " Category : Human name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
252-507: The show, which was retitled Dad's Army , as well as a feature film and a stage show based on it. While Dad's Army was still running, Croft began to co-write Are You Being Served? with Jeremy Lloyd . He was to continue both writing partnerships for the rest of his career in several hit series including It Ain't Half Hot Mum , Hi-de-Hi! and You Rang, M'Lord? (with Perry) and 'Allo 'Allo! (with Lloyd). His last full series Oh, Doctor Beeching! , broadcast from 1995 to 1997,
270-464: Was born into a show business family: his father, Reginald Sharland (1886–1944), had a successful career as a radio actor in Hollywood, and his mother, Annie Croft (1896–1959), was a famous stage actress who had starred in the 1927 silent film On With The Dance, she was also the first woman to own a West End theatre company. His first public appearance was at the age of seven, when he was seen in
288-416: Was co-written with Richard Spendlove . He created a television pilot in 2007, entitled Here Comes The Queen , with Jeremy Lloyd. This starred Wendy Richard and Les Dennis , but the show was not continued as a series. Of these, It Ain't Half Hot Mum "was David’s and my favourite", Jimmy Perry told journalist Neil Clark for a Daily Telegraph article in 2013. As a producer, Croft's regular practice
306-661: Was surprised by Michael Aspel outside BBC Television Centre . David Croft died in his sleep at his home in Portugal on 27 September 2011. He was 89 years old. His widow Ann died on 11 June 2016. Croft became an Officer of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire with Jimmy Perry in 1978 for services to television. He also received the 1981 Desmond Davis award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts , for his outstanding contributions to
324-415: Was to signal the end of an episode with the caption "You have been watching ...", followed by shots of the main cast. Croft married theatrical agent Ann Callender on 2 June 1952; the couple had seven children and sixteen grandchildren. In 1986, one daughter, Rebecca, married Simon Cadell , a star of Croft's comedy Hi-de-Hi! . Croft was the subject of This Is Your Life on 20 December 1995, when he
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