Figure 1.--Here is the Larkin family with the children wearing their school uniforms. |
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H.E. Bates wrote the novel The Darling Buds of May. It is set in England durung the 1950s. It was adapted for television in 1991. The series used period-appropriaste clothing. Ben Tucker appeared in his school uniform as the character Montgomery Larkin. The series is set in Kent and revolves around the Larkin family. The seies is done in three diiferent sets od episodes. The rural family confronts various problems of post-War Britain. Oaying tazes seems a problem. A lot of social history in the series that is largely forgotten in the modern age. Strawberry picking was a popular activity and later freesing them turns into a business venture. There is romance and a wedding. There s also trouble with the law. Then there is a vacation in Brittany (France) which does not live up to modern British holiday making in Spain. The Vicar gets involved with christening. There is a lot of buying and selling and cheating relatives as well as shady property developers. . A fun fair becomes a major undertaking. A bunch of louts appear--although not yet football louts. An itinerant worker named Pieter encounters hotility toward Germans as a result of the War. There is also a trip to Paris. The Larkin twins cause trouble at school so they are sent to Brockhurst College, a local boarding school. A financial crisis develops at Brockhurst College. will be forced to close. Then Pop Larkin steps in with a rescue plan. Then their is the great pig swindle and the sand affair. A British reader tells us that "The Darling Buds of May" is quite an entertaining program. It is set in the 1950s. It is a wonderful depiction of rural Britain after the War."
The H.E. Bates novel was adapted for television in 1991. The seies is done in three diiferent sets of episodes. It was a comedy set in a seemingly idyllic rural Kent. and depicts the life of a lively, large farm family. It was actually filmed in Kent, around Pluckley.
H.E. Bates wrote the novel The Darling Buds of May. Bsates took the title of the book from Shakespeare who coined it in his celebrated Sonnet 18. "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?; Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May; ..." It refers to the freshness and newness of the bud that appear in spring.
The series is set in rural Kent during the 1950s, I think 1958.
The main characters are Pop Larkin (David Jason), Ma Larkin (Pam Ferris), their eldest daughter Mariette (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and tax-collector Charley (Philip Franks). Ian Tucker appeared in his school uniform as the character Montgomery Larkin. I've never seen him in any other TV series or movie. The curious thing is that he is actually far older than he appears. Montgomery is meant to be about 13 (and Tucker could possibly pass for it at the time) but in fact he was about 19 when the series was made. In spite of the grey shorts and V-neck, I don't recall him in school uniform as such - certainly, he wasn't ever seen in a tie to the best of my recollection and the stories are set in the summer for the most part as none of the episodes refer to school in them.
In the final series Tucker's character goes off to Naval College.
The series revolves around a farm family and their way of life. It is the Larkin family. The rural family confronts various problems of post-War Britain. Paying tazes seems a problem. They are completely self-sufficient, but do not hasve much cash money. And have not paid a penny in income tax. The father drives a vintage Rolls Royce. When the taxman comes calling to collect unpaid income tax, they befriend him to persuade him not to pursue the tax collection. He sees how much they enjoy their rural life, so he eventually leaves his job and stays with them, marrying their eldest daughter.
A lot of social history in the series that is largely forgotten in the modern age. Strawberry picking was a popular activity and later freesing them turns into a business venture. There is romance and a wedding. There s also trouble with the law. Then there is a vacation in Brittany (France) which does not live up to modern British holiday making in Spain. The Vicar gets involved with christening. There is a lot of buying and selling and cheating relatives as well as shady property developers. . A fun fair becomes a major undertaking. A bunch of louts appear--although not yet football louts. An itinerant worker named Pieter encounters hotility toward Germans as a result of the War. There is also a trip to Paris. The Larkin twins cause trouble at school so they are sent to Brockhurst College, a local boarding school. A financial crisis develops at Brockhurst College. It faced closing. Then Pop Larkin steps in with a rescue plan. Then their is the great pig swindle and the sand affair.
The series used reasonably accurate period-appropriaste clothing.
A British reader tells us that "The Darling Buds of May" is quite an entertaining program. It is set in the 1950s. It is a wonderful depiction of rural Britain after the War." Another reader tells us, "This is one of my mum's favourite programmes!"
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