Oh, Miss Jones

Chris Hallam looks back at the origins and legacy of Rising Damp, ITV's most successful sitcom

- Chris Hallam

On Monday 2 September 1974, ITV broadcast the pilot of a new series for Yorkshire Television which would soon become the most successful situation comedy the channel had ever produced. Rising Damp seemed to come from nowhere, although as we shall soon learn, it had in fact been brewing for some time. In an era awash with sitcoms and legendary comedy characters, in Rupert Rigsby, writer Eric Chappell and actor Leonard Rossiter conjured up one of the most memorable comedy creations of all time.

The premise of that first pilot, The New Tenant (sometimes also called The Lodgers the first full series would run through the Christmas period of November 1974 and January 1975) was simplicity itself. Rigsby is the landlord of a shabby Victorian townhouse which has been converted into bedsits currently occupied by two tenants, Ruth Jones (Frances de la Tour), an unmarried college welfare officer, and Alan Moore (Richard Beckinsale), a young and amiable medical student at the college where Ruth works.

In the pilot, Rigsby, who clearly has feelings for the woman he always addresses as "Miss Jones", agrees to let a room to one of her friends, another student called Philip. On seeing Philip (Don Warrington) Rigsby is horrified to learn that he is black, a revelation that in 1974 serves as a comedy punchline in itself in a way that it would not today. Rigsby, whose prejudices were not uncommon at the time, wants Philip out and immediately views him as a potential love rival for the affections of Miss Jones. In truth, she is far more interested in Philip than the other way round. By the end of the episode, Rigsby is persuaded to keep Philip on having been persuaded that he is an African prince.