Characters

Prof. Jeffrey Fairbrother
(Simon Cadell)

Jeffrey was born in 1921 to a respectable Upper Class family. He was a Professor of archaeology at Kings College, Cambridge. He was married, but had separated from his wife and become disillusioned with University life. He joined the holiday camp as Entertainments Manager, but was ill suited to the role. Throughout the job he felt out of place, and at the end of the season he decided to return to academia. He took the chair in archaeology at Wisconsin University.

Sqdn-Ldr. The Honourable Clive Dempster DFC
(David Griffin)

Clive was born in 1921, the only son of Lord Dempster, he grew up in Cambridgeshire at the family estate of Dempster Hall. In 1940 he joined the RAF and became a Squadron Leader, winning the DFC. He then joined Maplins as Entertainments Manager after Jeffrey Fairbrother. He married Gladys at the end of the 1960 season and they emigrated to Australia, where he had been offered a job flying commercial planes by his former RAF Wing Commander who was running chartered flights there.

Gladys Pugh
(Ruth Madoc)

Gladys was born in 1922 and spent her youth living in the Rhondda Valley. She joined the holiday camp in 1955 and rose through the ranks to become sports organizer and chief Yellowcoat. She won the competition for Most Popular Yellowcoat every year since she joined, until Sylvia took the title from her. She eventually married, Clive Dempster and emigrated to Australia.

Ted Bovis
(Paul Shane)

Ted is the camp host and very popular with the campers. He was born in November 1916 and grew up in an orphanage. He joined Maplins upon demobilization in 1946. He was married to Hillary in 1951 but they separated soon after.

Spike Dixon
(Jeffrey Holland)

Spike is the camp comic. Spike was born and bought up in Edgbaston. After leaving school he gained a good position in the Income Tax Office, but resigned in 1959 and joined the entertainment staff at Maplin's. It is not known how long he had known Ted, but they were already well acquainted by the time they travelled on the train to the camp, and it was suggested that it was Ted who had got Spike the job.

Peggy Ollerenshaw
(Su Pollard)

Peggy was the chalet maid who looked after the staff lines under the supervision of the fearsome Miss Cathcart. She always aspired to be a Yellowcoat. In addition to her regular duties she often helped out the entertainments staff, and could frequently be seen in the evenings in the Hawaiian ballroom often joining in with the evening entertainments. Peggy had a rather vivid imagination and was often easily taken in by others' lies, particularly Ted's tall tales.

Fred Quilly
(Felix Bowness)

Fred was the camp riding instructor. He originally worked and qualified as a jockey at the Brighton Race Course. From 1940 – 1946 he was conscripted into the RAF, but after the War returned to the Race Course. After various dubious dalliances with a small time gangster known as ‘Big Mac’ he had his Jockey’s licence revoked for race fixing and was forced to leave Brighton for fear of further reprisals from the underworld. He eventually joined the staff of Maplins in 1951.

Barry & Yvonne Stuart-Hargreaves
(Barry Howard and Diane Holland)

Yvonne was born in Southport in 1914, and it would seem led a somewhat promiscuous youth. Barry was born in Nottingham in 1921. They met when they were staying in digs together in Sunderland, but she left him for a brief affair with a Hungarian Acrobat. She later returned to Barry and got married when they became professional ballroom dancers. Their careers took a downturn after the War and in 1956 they were forced to join Maplins.

Mr Partridge
(Leslie Dwyer)

Mr Partridge is the camp Children’s Entertainer; and the most senior of the entertainment staff. He was born in 1885. After leaving school he began a successful Music Hall career. During the War Years he was badly wounded in service which meant his career successes in Music Hall were short lived and he eventually became a children’s entertainer. Down on his luck, he was forced to take a job at Maplins which resulted in him slipping into seasonal alcoholic benders and regularly taking it upon himself to discipline the unruly children.