or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
Trade in Yours
For a £0.80 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Colour:
Image not available

 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.
Tell the Publisher!
I’d like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The Phenomenon That Was Minder [Paperback]

Brian Hawkins (Author)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £15.99
Price: £13.91 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.08 (13%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Only 1 left in stock (more on the way).
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.
Want delivery by Monday, 20 May? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
Books Trade-In
Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. Learn more.

Book Description

Publication Date: 20 Nov 2002
With an audience of countless millions in more than 80 countries around the world, the Thames Television series Minder was one of Britain's top television programmes of the 1980s. The show ran for 15 years and 108 episodes, and is still gaining new fans as it is released on video and DVD.

Conceived by veteran script-writer Leon Griffiths as a crime show with a sprinkling of humour, the razor-sharp scripts, crisp direction and on-screen chemistry between George Cole as Arthur Daley and Dennis Waterman as Terry (who was later replaced by Gary Webster) saw the humour gradually overtake the crime. With the added appeal to the female audience of Dennis Waterman as the minder, the programme became a feel-good icon, and turned such expressions as "a nice little earner" and "'er indoors" into national catch-phrases.

What made the programme tick? Who were the people involved? Who played whom in a particular episode? The answers are all here in Brian Hawkins' entertaining and comprehensive look at The Phenomenon that was Minder.

Praise for The Phenomenon that was Minder:
"The only guide to Minder you'll ever need."
--George Cole ("Arthur Daley")
"Hugely entertaining and informative -- the essential Minder companion."
--Patrick Malahide ("Sergeant Chisholm")

Frequently Bought Together

The Phenomenon That Was Minder + Shut It!: The Inside Story of The Sweeney + Sweeney! The Official Companion (Updated Edition)
Price For All Three: £35.65

Buy the selected items together

Product details

  • Paperback: 240 pages
  • Publisher: Inkstone Books (20 Nov 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 9628681214
  • ISBN-13: 978-9628681211
  • Product Dimensions: 15 x 1.5 x 23 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 248,829 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

  • See Complete Table of Contents

Product Description

About the Author

Brian Hawkins is a medical scientist now living in Hong Kong. Of Cockney origin himself, his fascination with rhyming slang piqued his interest in Minder. As he studied the programme in more detail he found very little reference material, and so he wrote this book to chronicle this important chapter of British television history.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Prelude to a phenomenon

Autumn 1979 was not a glorious time in Great Britain. Unemployment and inflation were reaching record levels. Public morale was low. The new Conservative government under Mrs Margaret Thatcher had recently unveiled a highly unpopular budget. The country was still reeling from the effects of months of industrial strikes that had brought down the Labour government and led to the 'Winter of Discontent'. One such industrial dispute at London's Thames Television came to an end on 24 October after blacking out the entire Independent Television network for close to eleven weeks.

Against this dismal background, Thames Television introduced its new action series for the autumn season on Monday 29 October -- a programme with the intriguing title Minder. The show was already weeks overdue, the new season's line-up traditionally being unveiled in early to mid-September.

At that time, nobody could possibly have imagined the eventual success that Minder would enjoy. Today, probably due in large part to the series, the term 'minder' is generally understood to mean a bodyguard or assistant. In 1979, this usage was much less familiar, and the idea that such a relationship could sustain a television series for over 100 episodes would have seemed highly improbable. But by the time the programme ended in 1994 it could account for 10 seasons, 104 52-minute episodes, a 60-minute Christmas special, a Christmas compilation of excerpts, two feature films and two different characters playing the minder. The programme became a major hit not only on British television but was also sold to over 70 countries around the world, making it one of Britain's top TV exports. At the peak of its success, in 1985, nearly 18 million people a week in Britain were watching the show.

But in Autumn 1979, Minder was unashamedly intended as a vehicle for its leading actor, Dennis Waterman, to capitalise on his popularity in an earlier Thames Television series The Sweeney, that had recently come to an end.

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?

› Explore similar items

Customer Reviews

3.8 out of 5 stars
6 reviews
3.8 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant 11 May 2007
By Paddy Best
A fitting tribute to the greatest TV series of all-time.

Arthur Daley is the best fictional character since Robin Hood - and George Cole deserved a KNIGHTHOOD for his performances.

I have every episode on video - and still watch them - my kids say I am like Arthur Daley - and I cannot think of a better compliment.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointing 1 May 2010
By Del Shole
Given the very positive reviews other people have offered, I found this a crushing disappointment.

The second half of the book - over 100 pages - is just an episode guide. There's lots of those on the 'net, and most are better than this one. Directly before that, from page 85 to 128 is a reference section: lists of who wrote and directed which episodes, stuff like that. If you really want to know it, it's on the 'net. It's hard to see why anyone would want to read it in a book. The 'Artist Index', for example, is a 15 page list of people's names. Before that in the book is a 12 page section on rhyming slang. Once again, it's all on the 'net and it's hardly the sort of content you'd want to settle down to read in a book. The section on what the actors are doing now is at least worth reading, but since it was written in 2002 it's already completely out of date.

That leaves the real meat of the book, the 50 pages from 11 to 61. Unfortunately this is largely a rehash of the episode guide, described series by series. The author mostly just describes his favourite episodes from each series. There's precious little analysis on the characters or their development, the locations, the weightiness of the storylines. Aside from a few nice quotes from the actors (not Waterman, I notice), it's hardly worth reading. The title of the book, describing the programme as a phenomenon, would imply Minder had an impact on the society of the day and the people, like me, who grew up in those years. It did, but this book pays the phenomenon precious little regard.

I get the impression the book was written by a fan. The writing style is amateur, and the content thin. I'm as big a Minder fan as anyone else who might have written a review of this book, but I honestly can't recommend it.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Recommended 15 Feb 2009
By J. Pees
This book is very detailed about all aspects of the original Minder series. Only bad point was I thought they could have wrote about the main actors George Cole and Dennis Waterman a little bit more, other than that a great read and informative book. Recommended to anybody with an interest in Minder.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No

There's a problem loading this menu at the moment.

Learn more about Amazon Prime.

    Your Shopping Basket is empty.

    Give it purpose -- fill it with books, DVDs, clothes, electronics and more.

    If you already have an account, sign in.

    There's a problem previewing your shopping basket at the moment.

    Check your Internet connection and go to your cart, or try again.

    View Shopping Basket (0 items)

      Customer Discussions

      This product's forum
      Discussion Replies Latest Post
      No discussions yet

      Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
      Start a new discussion
      Topic:
      First post:
      Prompts for sign-in
       


      Active discussions in related forums
      Search Customer Discussions
      Search all Amazon discussions
         
      Related forums

      Listmania!

      Create a Listmania! list

      Look for similar items by category

      Feedback


      Amazon.co.uk Privacy Statement Amazon.co.uk Delivery Information Amazon.co.uk Returns & Exchanges