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A Very Peculiar Practice

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David McAnally

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Nov 9, 1993, 2:12:11 AM11/9/93
to
Was this final episode after Jock McCannon started his affair with the
VC's wife? I can't remember what happened in the individual episodes
that well. At the end (probably in the last episode), the students
finally revolted and moved to occupy the Administration building. The
VC called in the police (led by Stephen's policewoman girlfriend of the
first season, and whom Stephen introduced to Greta). She wanted to
reach a fairly peaceful solution, but soon the police moved in to arrest
the demonstrators. The student Jock had connected up with started to
suffer a bad asthma (or heart?) attack, and Jock, who was there with the
students, supporing them, tried to get him out of harm's way when they
met with an overzealous policeman and toppled over on the steps. Jock
and the student both died, and the episode ended with the University
having been converted into a Defence Establishment (which was the VC's
great dream of course), and a marker on the boundary marking the spot
where Jock and the student had died. The policewoman met with Stephen
and Greta at the marker to look at it, and Stephen announced that he and
Greta were going to Poland as there was nothing left for them here. I
think that during the episode, Bob was offered the job with Hamburger,
and decided to join them.

David McAnally

Robert Turner

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Nov 9, 1993, 4:55:00 AM11/9/93
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d...@maths.uq.oz.au (David McAnally) writes:
% Was this final episode after Jock McCannon started his affair with the
% VC's wife? I can't remember what happened in the individual episodes
% that well. At the end (probably in the last episode), the students
% finally revolted and moved to occupy the Administration building. The
% VC called in the police (led by Stephen's policewoman girlfriend of the
% first season, and whom Stephen introduced to Greta). She wanted to
% reach a fairly peaceful solution, but soon the police moved in to arrest
% the demonstrators. The student Jock had connected up with started to
% suffer a bad asthma (or heart?) attack, and Jock, who was there with the
% students, supporing them, tried to get him out of harm's way when they
% met with an overzealous policeman and toppled over on the steps. Jock
% and the student both died, and the episode ended with the University
% having been converted into a Defence Establishment (which was the VC's
% great dream of course), and a marker on the boundary marking the spot
% where Jock and the student had died. The policewoman met with Stephen
% and Greta at the marker to look at it, and Stephen announced that he and
% Greta were going to Poland as there was nothing left for them here. I
% think that during the episode, Bob was offered the job with Hamburger,
% and decided to join them.

And the fourth doctor - the female one (can't remember the name) joined
the nuns!

Robert

--
_________________________________________________________________________
/ | \
| Rob Turner, PC Support | email : Robert...@brunel.ac.uk |
| Brunel University | |
| London, England | Oi, Who switched on reality ? |
\____________________________|____________________________________________/

Happy Halibut VI

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Nov 9, 1993, 11:39:36 AM11/9/93
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Robert Turner (Robert...@brunel.ac.uk) wrote:
: And the fourth doctor - the female one (can't remember the name) joined
: the nuns!

No no. The fourth Doctor was Tom Baker and he used to be a monk, not a nun.
Davison was the fifth.

:-)


: Robert

Happy Halibut IV
--
Richard Salter -- ri...@cogs.sussex.ac.uk -- "from rags to richs"
Official Story, Module and Article contributor to DIGITAL DISK - Amiga
---- Now that's a pretentious .sig file ----

W Mark Schneider

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Nov 10, 1993, 4:31:55 AM11/10/93
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Still, _A Very Peculiar Practice_ may be the funniest, most
well-written comedy I have ever seen. [What's Andrew Davies done
since?]

No tapes available here in the States. How about the UK?


Mark Schneider
w...@cup.portal.com

Mr Philip Arthur Riebold

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Nov 10, 1993, 6:06:36 AM11/10/93
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ri...@syma.sussex.ac.uk (Happy Halibut VI) writes:

>Robert Turner (Robert...@brunel.ac.uk) wrote:
>: And the fourth doctor - the female one (can't remember the name) joined
>: the nuns!

>No no. The fourth Doctor was Tom Baker and he used to be a monk, not a nun.
>Davison was the fifth.

Not as I remember it. There were only four doctors Jock McCannon (?) played
by ??? (the male lead in Waiting for God - whose name I will remember
as soon as I send this), Bob Buzzard, ??? played by Peter Davison and
finally Dr. Rose Marie (sp) played by the wonderful Barbara Flynn (Fitz's
wife in Cracker and Jill Chaplin in the Beiderbecke trilogy.

Tom Baker _may_ have appeared in the series (I don't remember) but if
he did it was only as a minor character.


Philip

PS. I don't think Dr. Rose would have joined the nuns since she was
a lesbian.

Mr M J Newton

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Nov 10, 1993, 7:44:37 AM11/10/93
to
In article <95...@cup.portal.com>,

w...@cup.portal.com (W Mark Schneider) writes:
>
>Still, _A Very Peculiar Practice_ may be the funniest, most
>well-written comedy I have ever seen. [What's Andrew Davies done
>since?]

It might be easier to ask what *hasn't* Andrew Davies done. He is currently
one of the leading British drama writers, currently specialising in
adapting books for tv. In the last couple of years he has adapted "The
Old Devils", "Anglo-Saxon Attitudes", "House of Cards" and the pilot
to "Anna Lee". His sequel to "House of Cards", called "To Play the King",
starts in a couple of weeks.

Andrew Davies also used to work here at the University of Warwick, although
he denies that "A Very Peculiar Practice" was based on this place, though.
However, I have heard reports that a couple of the doctors at the medical
centre do bear certain similarities to some of the characters... :)

>No tapes available here in the States. How about the UK?

No.

Matthew Newton.

M P Clifton

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Nov 10, 1993, 8:05:09 AM11/10/93
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In the referenced article, tvl...@ucl.ac.uk (Mr Philip Arthur Riebold) writes:
>ri...@syma.sussex.ac.uk (Happy Halibut VI) writes:
>
>>Robert Turner (Robert...@brunel.ac.uk) wrote:
>>: And the fourth doctor - the female one (can't remember the name) joined
>>: the nuns!
>
>>No no. The fourth Doctor was Tom Baker and he used to be a monk, not a nun.
>>Davison was the fifth.
>

>Tom Baker _may_ have appeared in the series (I don't remember) but if


>he did it was only as a minor character.
>
>
> Philip

Oh dear, I think Halibut's sense of humour has been misunderstood once more.
It was a joke, Philip, at least I hope so.


>
>PS. I don't think Dr. Rose would have joined the nuns since she was
>a lesbian.


Well, she did actually. One of the last shots was of the two bog-standard
nuns plus Rose Marie wearing their habits and trotting off over the horizon.

The other actors, btw, were Graham Crowden and David Troughton.


Matt Clifton.


--
Chang: So, what did honorable Jago think of Chang's worthless show?
Jago: You were shit. Piss off out of my theatre, and if I ever see you again,
I'll slit your throat.

Mr Philip Arthur Riebold

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Nov 10, 1993, 11:57:39 AM11/10/93
to
tvl...@ucl.ac.uk (Mr Philip Arthur Riebold) writes:


>>No no. The fourth Doctor was Tom Baker and he used to be a monk, not a nun.
>>Davison was the fifth.

Sorry I missed the smiley at the end of this message which caused me
to send the reply.

Philip

jm...@waikato.ac.nz

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Nov 10, 1993, 6:05:32 PM11/10/93
to
In article <1993Nov10.1...@ucl.ac.uk>, tvl...@ucl.ac.uk (Mr Philip Arthur Riebold) writes:
> ri...@syma.sussex.ac.uk (Happy Halibut VI) writes:
>
>>Robert Turner (Robert...@brunel.ac.uk) wrote:
>>: And the fourth doctor - the female one (can't remember the name) joined
>>: the nuns!
>
>>No no. The fourth Doctor was Tom Baker and he used to be a monk, not a nun.
>>Davison was the fifth.
>
> Not as I remember it. There were only four doctors Jock McCannon (?) played
> by ??? (the male lead in Waiting for God - whose name I will remember
> as soon as I send this),

Graham Crowden.

> Bob Buzzard, ???

Played by David? Troughton (any relation to the second doctor, Patrick? This
is getting confusing.)

> Tom Baker _may_ have appeared in the series (I don't remember) but if
> he did it was only as a minor character.

Don't you love it when people miss a :=)

> PS. I don't think Dr. Rose would have joined the nuns since she was
> a lesbian.

I certainly remember her with a nun's habit on, cavorting around with the other
nuns. Can anybody think of a complicated, deep and meaningful reason why Davies
added this to the script? I certainly got a laugh out of it, but I think I
missed the point :=)

Cheers, Jason the Kiwi.

Scott Barkla

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Nov 10, 1993, 10:44:36 PM11/10/93
to
In article <1993Nov10.1...@ucl.ac.uk> tvl...@ucl.ac.uk (Mr Philip Arthur Riebold) writes:
>Not as I remember it. There were only four doctors Jock McCannon (?) played
>by ??? (the male lead in Waiting for God - whose name I will remember
>as soon as I send this), Bob Buzzard, ??? played by Peter Davison and
>finally Dr. Rose Marie (sp) played by the wonderful Barbara Flynn (Fitz's
>wife in Cracker and Jill Chaplin in the Beiderbecke trilogy.
>Tom Baker _may_ have appeared in the series (I don't remember) but if
>he did it was only as a minor character.
> Philip
>PS. I don't think Dr. Rose would have joined the nuns since she was
>a lesbian.

Well, the original "4th Doctor" reply was a pun on The Doctor (as in Who).
Jock was played by Graham Crowden who was in Who (The Horns of Nimon) and Bob
(Robert, please) was played by David Troughton who was also in Who (The Curse
of Peladon, The War Games), Peter Davison was Dr Stephen Daker, and WAS The
Doctor (No. 5) and yes, Dr Rose Marie (Barbara Flynn - who has never been in
Who) did run off with the Nuns at the end of the second series "Death of A
University".

Tom baker was not in AVPP.

Scott
OB VPP Quote: "Of course we use our students in the experiments. They're
thicker on the ground than rats and you don't get so attached to them"
- Prof Middling - Bad Vibrations, A Very Peculiar Practice.

*****************************************
Scott Barkla: __
Curtin University / \-< _|
of Technology ==== _|
Western Australia |o o\---{ _|
|o o \ _|
INTERNET: s.ba...@admin.curtin.edu.au |o o o\ _|
***************************************** {********} _|
"When you have an unscalable cliff before you, and an unstoppable
monster behind you, you go sideways."
Stephen Donaldson

Simon Reap

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Nov 11, 1993, 7:01:26 AM11/11/93
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M P Clifton (ch0...@midge.bath.ac.uk) wrote:
: Well, she did actually. One of the last shots was of the two bog-standard

: nuns plus Rose Marie wearing their habits and trotting off over the horizon.

Lovely series, but what *were* those nun's up to? I can only ever
remember them skulkying (skulking scurrily!) around the campus. Did we
ever see more of them than that?
--
yerluvinunclesimon

Andy Clews

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Nov 11, 1993, 4:06:52 AM11/11/93
to
jm...@waikato.ac.nz wrote:
: > Bob Buzzard, ???

: Played by David? Troughton (any relation to the second doctor, Patrick? This
: is getting confusing.)

Indeed yes, he is Patrick Troughton's son.

--
Andy Clews, Computing Service, Univ. of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QJ, England
JANET: an...@uk.ac.sussex.syma OTHER NETWORKS: an...@syma.sussex.ac.uk

Frances L. Rivers

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Nov 11, 1993, 7:26:32 PM11/11/93
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In article <1993Nov11.1...@waikato.ac.nz> jm...@waikato.ac.nz
writes:

> In article <1993Nov10.1...@ucl.ac.uk>, tvl...@ucl.ac.uk (Mr
Philip Arthur Riebold) writes:
> > Bob Buzzard, ???
>
> Played by David? Troughton (any relation to the second doctor, Patrick?
This
> is getting confusing.)
Yes. he is Patrick Trougton's brother

Fran

Andy Clews

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Nov 12, 1993, 5:32:44 AM11/12/93
to
Frances L. Rivers (fri...@butterfinger.journalism.indiana.edu) wrote:
: > > Bob Buzzard, ???

: >
: > Played by David? Troughton (any relation to the second doctor, Patrick?
: Yes. he is Patrick Trougton's brother

No, no. *Son*. Not brother. He is the late Patrick Troughton's *son*.

Dr A. N. Walker

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Nov 12, 1993, 3:00:21 PM11/12/93
to
In article <1993Nov11.1...@datcon.co.uk> s...@datcon.co.uk

(Simon Reap) writes:
>Lovely series, but what *were* those nun's up to?

Can I commend the book (same name, same author)? It's the best
example I know of a recursive novel [it's about an author on a fellowship
at the univ who decides to write a book about an author on ...]. As the
nuns appear in the book, they have to appear in the book in the book, and
the series of the book in the book, etc. If the nun's weren't up to
whatever they're up to, then the author wouldn't have seen them, so they
wouldn't have been in his book, and therefore not in .... That's about
it, really.

--
Andy Walker, Maths Dept., Nott'm Univ., UK.
a...@maths.nott.ac.uk

G.D. Pratt

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Nov 15, 1993, 6:24:13 AM11/15/93
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Simon Reap (s...@datcon.co.uk) wrote:
: Lovely series, but what *were* those nun's up to? I can only ever

: remember them skulkying (skulking scurrily!) around the campus. Did we
: ever see more of them than that?
: --

They filmed the Nuns here at Keele University outside the building where
I work. Specifically the frisbee-throwing bit was filmed one Sunday Morning
when I went down early (and hence half asleep) to the Laundrette - I really
thought I was hallucinating and spent the remainder of the weekend in bed.

gerry
--
gerry pratt -- workstation support -- university of keele
email: ge...@seq1.keele.ac.uk -------- tel: (0782) 583072
"I want to be a non-conformist - just like everyone else."

Conrad Longmore

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Nov 18, 1993, 4:47:40 AM11/18/93
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In article <2c7ost$1...@gabriel.keele.ac.uk> cc...@cc.keele.ac.uk (G.D. Pratt) writes:
>
>They filmed the Nuns here at Keele University outside the building where
>I work. Specifically the frisbee-throwing bit was filmed one Sunday Morning
>when I went down early (and hence half asleep) to the Laundrette - I really
>thought I was hallucinating and spent the remainder of the weekend in bed.

They filmed AVPP at Keele, Birmingham and Warwick. The nuns generally appear
only at the beginning of the programme, but I seem to remember that one if
them turns up in the episode about ummm... social diseases, and they have
a habit of running over people's feet in their mini. :)


--
// Conrad Longmore / Janet: c...@uk.ac.dmu / //
// Bedford College / Internet: c...@dmu.ac.uk / "Tanj!" //
// c/o De Montfort / Phone: +44 234 345151 / //
// University / Fax: +44 234 342674 / //

Mr M J Newton

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Nov 19, 1993, 5:09:09 AM11/19/93
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In article <1993Nov18.0...@dmu.ac.uk>,
c...@dmu.ac.uk (Conrad Longmore) writes:

>They filmed AVPP at Keele, Birmingham and Warwick.

^^^^^^^

No - AVPP was only filmed at Keele and Birmingham. The BBC did apparently
want to film it here, and the Vice Chancellor initially gave permission, but
when he found out that they wanted to cover most of the campus with litter
he revoked this as it didn't fit in with the image of the University that he
wanted to present to the world.

The main Warwick connection comes from writer Andrew Davies, who used to
work here. He claims that AVPP is not based on Warwick, but I've heard
rumours that some of the doctors at the medical centre bear an incredible
resemblance to certain doctors in AVPP. Also Warwick was the first ever
UK university to have an American vice chancellor - and there is an
American VC in series two of AVPP.

--
Matthew Newton "Strangely enough, I don't particularly feel
like taking advice from a man who spends
ma...@csv.warwick.ac.uk his time behind a sofa with his arm up an
University of Warwick, UK artificial cat!" Lynda Day: PRESS GANG

Mark Charlton

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Nov 19, 1993, 5:20:59 AM11/19/93
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In article <2ci605$g...@cheddar.csv.warwick.ac.uk>,

ma...@csv.warwick.ac.uk (Mr M J Newton) writes:
>In article <1993Nov18.0...@dmu.ac.uk>,
> c...@dmu.ac.uk (Conrad Longmore) writes:
>>They filmed AVPP at Keele, Birmingham and Warwick.
> ^^^^^^^
>No - AVPP was only filmed at Keele and Birmingham.

... stuff deleted ...

And I always thought that they filmed the swimming pool bits at Warwick.
If they didn't, the pool still looks very like Warwick. Still, all
swimming pools look alike, don't they?

So, am I right or am I wrong? Do tell.

Mark
--
Mark Charlton, Computing Services, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
INET: cu...@warwick.ac.uk JANET: cu...@uk.ac.warwick _ _ _ _ /
--------------------------------------------------------- / / /(// /<
When faced with complete disaster, TOTAL defiance is the only recourse.

Mr M J Newton

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Nov 19, 1993, 5:26:29 AM11/19/93
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In article <2ci6mb$m...@crocus.csv.warwick.ac.uk>,

cu...@csv.warwick.ac.uk writes:
>In article <2ci605$g...@cheddar.csv.warwick.ac.uk>,
> ma...@csv.warwick.ac.uk (Mr M J Newton) writes:
> ^^^^^^^
>>No - AVPP was only filmed at Keele and Birmingham.
>
>... stuff deleted ...
>
>And I always thought that they filmed the swimming pool bits at Warwick.
>If they didn't, the pool still looks very like Warwick. Still, all
>swimming pools look alike, don't they?
>
>So, am I right or am I wrong? Do tell.

A couple of years ago, one of my friends who worked on the Student Union
newspaper interviewed Clark Brundin, the previous VC at Warwick, and
specifically asked him about AVPP. He stated categorically that he refused
the BBC permission to film here (see my previous post). So, that's from the
horses mouth.

Yes, swimming pools do look alike.

Robert Turner

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Nov 22, 1993, 2:53:35 AM11/22/93
to
c...@dmu.ac.uk (Conrad Longmore) writes:
% In article <2c7ost$1...@gabriel.keele.ac.uk> cc...@cc.keele.ac.uk (G.D. Pratt) writes:
% >
% >They filmed the Nuns here at Keele University outside the building where
% >I work. Specifically the frisbee-throwing bit was filmed one Sunday Morning
% >when I went down early (and hence half asleep) to the Laundrette - I really
% >thought I was hallucinating and spent the remainder of the weekend in bed.
%
% They filmed AVPP at Keele, Birmingham and Warwick. The nuns generally appear
% only at the beginning of the programme, but I seem to remember that one if
% them turns up in the episode about ummm... social diseases, and they have
% a habit of running over people's feet in their mini. :)

This was the Professor (Doctor ?) of Creative writing, who came to the
conclusion that whatever he wrote, life would top it......

Robert

--
_________________________________________________________________________
/ | \
| Rob Turner, PC Support | email : Robert...@brunel.ac.uk |
| Brunel University | |

| London, England | Live long and Prosper |
\____________________________|____________________________________________/

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