- Hardcover: 544 pages
- Publisher: Granada Media (4 Mar 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0233999442
- ISBN-13: 978-0233999449
- Product Dimensions: 23.5 x 16.3 x 5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 54,573 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Review
For the first time the scripts from all four series of Rising Damp have been collected together. Introduction by Eric Chappell, the award-winning creator of the show, and showbusiness writer Richard Webber introduces every script.
Product Description
Rising Damp has become a much-loved institution in British TV and it's the remarkable writing talent of Eric Chappell that ensures the continuing success of the show. Rising Damp: The Complete Scripts celebrates exactly that - the writing that brought Rising Damp ITV's first best situation comedy BAFTA. Meet Rigsby, the miserly landlord with an inflated sense of his own importance made famous by the comic genius of Leonard Rossiter. His delapidated house is home to an ever-changing population of hapless tenants, and three long-standing and long-suffering, residents: Alan the student; Philip, the African Prince; and of course Miss Jones, the lonely spinster who becomes the unwilling recipient of Rigsby's affections. For the first time, the scripts from all four series of Rising Damp have been collected together. There's an introduction to the book by Eric Chappell, the award-winning creator of the show, in which he explains 'Our success was assured, as long as I didn't blow up'. And each individual script is introduced by show business writer Richard Webber. Rising Damp: The Complete Scripts is a pays tribute to what made the show one of the great British comedies of the twentieth century, a classic that continues to thrill audiences twenty-five years on. To read the scripts is to re-enter the world of Rising Damp, and it is certainly to laugh out loud.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Never have I enjoyed a book of scripts more than this one, which contains the original scripts to the entire series (28 episodes in all) of Rising Damp. I say the "original" scripts because changes were made to some of the scripts during rehearsals, during filming, or prior to transmission. In addition to minor changes, an entire scene was eliminated in a few cases, and in at least one instance a scene was added, and it is interesting to read the scripts the way writer Eric Chappell originally intended.
While the dialogue in the scripts is clever and witty and makes for enjoyable and relaxing bedtime reading, it is particularly nice to have the scripts for reference in conjunction with viewing the series. There is a large amount of physical comedy in the series which is at most only alluded to in the scripts, with phrases such as "Rigsby demonstrates" or "Rigsby winces." Although I appreciated Leonard Rossiter's comic genius the first time I saw the series, my appreciation has only deepened for having read the scripts. It wasn't until then that I realised just how very little guidance was provided in the scripts and conversely how very much of the interpretation and antics were down to Rossiter himself. As Chappell himself says of Rossiter: "I may have provided the words, but he provided the punctuation. His whole body would form a question mark, the twist of his head was an exclamation, his eyes blazed italics, and the open-mouthed stare was a line of dots going into infinity" (p. 9).
Another nice feature of the book that sets it apart from the other books of scripts I've come across is the introductory materials provided by Chappell. There is a two-page general introduction and a further two pages of comments on the actors. There are also 3-4 pages introducing each of the four series, wherein Chappell tells us specifics about the creation of each series and the episodes. Much of the information provided will be familiar to those who have read Richard Webber's excellent tribute book, Rising Damp A Celebration (which I highly recommend). Nevertheless, there is much fresh material in this book (in addition to the scripts, of course!), particularly regarding the specifics of individual episodes.
Finally, this 543-page book contains 16 pages of photos, 14 of which contain colour stills from the series and 2 of which are b/w shots of Chappell. The book concludes with a cast list for each episode and includes the dates of recording and original transmission as well as rehearsal locations. Highly recommended to fans of the series.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Rising Damp was ITV's most successful sitcom - ever. Apart from the brilliant performances given by its stars, in particular Leonard Rossiter, the main reason for its success was the hilarious, wonderfully-written scripts. This book was a long time in coming, but it was definitely worth the wait. In more than 500 double-columned pages, Eric Chappell's brilliance as writer shines through. Unlike so many sitcoms of the 1970s, Rising Damp very rarely dates - the setting, situations, problems and humour remain as fresh and valid today as they were then. Eric Chappell has written the introduction, and also provides an in-depth description of the writing process for each series of scripts, and his personal tributes to the four main actors. The scripts presented here are those originally submitted, complete and unedited - consequently there are many changes from what's on the page to what we remember seeing on the screen (many due to the technical genius of Leonard Rossiter). There are also many scenes which were filmed, but had to be edited out due to time constraints, the dialogue for which have never been seen before. It is incredible to think that there were additional material originally slotted in to the scenes of each episode (which have become so familiar to us from the shows' constant repeats over the years), yet which never saw the light of day - until now. When comedy can be read as hilariously as it can be viewed on screen, it is brilliant writing. Eric Chappell is a brilliant writer, one of Britain's best. Any fan of comedy, or of the writing of good comedy, should own this book.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
The Best Book of Scripts I've Read to Date!
13 May 2002
Format:Hardcover
Never have I enjoyed a book of scripts more than this one, which contains the original scripts to the entire series (28 episodes in all) of Rising Damp. I say the "original" scripts because changes were made to some of the scripts during rehearsals, during filming, or prior to transmission. In addition to minor changes, an entire scene was eliminated in a few cases, and in at least one instance a scene was added, and it is interesting to read the scripts the way writer Eric Chappell originally intended.
While the dialogue in the scripts is clever and witty and makes for enjoyable and relaxing bedtime reading, it is particularly nice to have the scripts for reference in conjunction with viewing the series. There is a large amount of physical comedy in the series which is at most only alluded to in the scripts, with phrases such as "Rigsby demonstrates" or "Rigsby winces." Although I appreciated Leonard Rossiter's comic genius the first time I saw the series, my appreciation has only deepened for having read the scripts. It wasn't until then that I realised just how very little guidance was provided in the scripts and conversely how very much of the interpretation and antics were down to Rossiter himself. As Chappell himself says of Rossiter: "I may have provided the words, but he provided the punctuation. His whole body would form a question mark, the twist of his head was an exclamation, his eyes blazed italics, and the open-mouthed stare was a line of dots going into infinity" (p. 9).
Another nice feature of the book that sets it apart from the other books of scripts I've come across is the introductory materials provided by Chappell. There is a two-page general introduction and a further two pages of comments on the actors. There are also 3-4 pages introducing each of the four series, wherein Chappell tells us specifics about the creation of each series and the episodes. Much of the information provided will be familiar to those who have read Richard Webber's excellent tribute book, Rising Damp A Celebration. Nevertheless, there is much fresh material in this book, particularly regarding the specifics of individual episodes.
Finally, this 543-page book contains 16 pages of photos, 14 of which contain colour stills from the series and 2 of which are b/w shots of Chappell. The book concludes with a cast list for each episode and includes the dates of recording and original transmission as well as rehearsal locations. Highly recommended to fans of the series.
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