Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?

In 1965 two very young northerners were on a directors course for the BBC. As part of their final exam Ian La Frenais and Dick Clement wrote a sketch about two young workers in an electrical components factory. The BBC liked it. They were short of series. They phoned Clement and asked if he could write a pilot. He and La Frenais got to work on their kitchen table... and so launched the careers of three sets of Likely Lads: Bob Ferris and Terry Collier; James Bolam and Rodney Bewes;...
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In 1965 two very young northerners were on a directors course for the BBC. As part of their final exam Ian La Frenais and Dick Clement wrote a sketch about two young workers in an electrical components factory. The BBC liked it. They were short of series. They phoned Clement and asked if he could write a pilot. He and La Frenais got to work on their kitchen table... and so launched the careers of three sets of Likely Lads: Bob Ferris and Terry Collier; James Bolam and Rodney Bewes; Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. By 1969, 26 episodes had been recorded and Terry and Bob had become icons of the age. In 1973 they returned in Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? which was even more popular than the original series. Today both series are still shown achieving audience figures of between six and seven million. Ian La Frenais and Dick Clement have gone on to write the classic shows Porridge, Auf Wiedersehen Pet and Lovejoy as well as the hit Hollywood movies, The Commitments, The Rock and Still Crazy. This is the first time writers Clement and La Frenais have collaborated on a book about their most famous creations.