Neat and Tidy: Adventures Beyond Belief
Neat and Tidy: Adventures Beyond Belief (also known as Adventures Beyond Belief) is a British comedy adventure television series that aired for five episodes from February 12 to March 11, 1988, on Channel 4 and was created by Tony Brooke, Kevin Lygo and Marcus Thompson.[1] It featured a soundtrack of original Elvis Presley music including Guitar Man (song) as the theme song.[2][3][4]
Series overview
[edit]Wimpish hero, Nick Neat (Skyler Cole) is a motor mechanic riding around the world on a Harley Davidson motorcycle on the run for a murder he did not commit. He comes across Tena Tidy (Jill Whitlow), the daughter of a gangster, on the run from school in search of "beer and biology". Assorted evil villains pursue the pair, including Elke Sommer, Graham Stark and Thick Wilson.
Cast
[edit]- Nick Neat (motor mechanic) - Skyler Cole
- Tena Tidy (little rich girl) - Jill Whitlow
- Bruno von Kleff (headmistress) - Elke Sommer
- Scratcher (villain) - Graham Stark
- Ten Percent (villain) - Thick Wilson
Episodes
[edit]| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TBA | Marcus Thompson | Kevin Lygo, Anthony Rooke, Marcus Thompson | February 12, 1988 | |
| 2 | "Morocco" | Marcus Thompson | Kevin Lygo, Anthony Rooke, Marcus Thompson | February 19, 1988 | |
|
Nick and Tena find themselves in a casbah | |||||
| 3 | "Wild West" | Marcus Thompson | Kevin Lygo, Anthony Rooke, Marcus Thompson | February 26, 1988 | |
|
Nick and Tena are in the Wild West fighting against barroom bullies and a half-naked sheriff | |||||
| 4 | "India" | Marcus Thompson | Kevin Lygo, Anthony Rooke, Marcus Thompson | March 4, 1988 | |
|
Nick and Tena are in India, where Tena is tricked into joining the harem of a Maharaja | |||||
| 5 | TBA | Marcus Thompson | Kevin Lygo, Anthony Rooke, Marcus Thompson | March 11, 1988 | |
|
Final episode | |||||
Reception
[edit]Brian Taylor of Hull Daily Mail wrote, "If you like humour which is bizarre in situations which are highly improbable, Neat and Tidy is your kind of programme."[5] Ian Macfarlane said in Cambridge Evening News, "Look out for an explosion of action, adventure and wild humour, to the sound of original Elvis Presley recordings, in this new series."[6]
In a review of the first episode, critic Renata Rubnikowicz suggested it would be a "zany, wacky, a cult comedy hit", writing it was "definitely a jolly first episode, with Mafia connections and Euro locations".[7] The Guardian's Sandy Smithies stated, "this wildly camp new comedy is worth taking the earplugs out for".[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Terrace, Vincent (1997). Experimental Television, Test Films, Pilots, and Trial Series, 1925 Through 1995: Seven Decades of Small Screen Almosts. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 413. ISBN 0-7864-0178-8. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "Elvis on the upbeat". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. 1988-02-12. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "'Neat & Tidy' On The Run: Movie On WMDT Saturday". The Daily Times. 1987-01-03. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Calling all Elvis fans". Nottingham Evening Post. 1988-02-12. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Taylor, Brian (1988-02-12). "Neat and Tidy—with Presley". Hull Daily Mail. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Macfarlane, Ian (1988-02-12). "Pick of the day: Neat and Tidy". Cambridge Evening News. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Rubnikowicz, Renata (1988-02-06). "Highlights of TV and radio". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Smithies, Sandy (1988-02-12). "Watching brief". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-07-17 – via Newspapers.com.