List of Dad's Army books and memorabilia
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

This is a list of books and memorabilia relating to the BBC television and radio sitcom '' Dad's Army''.


Annuals

Publishing annuals based on a current television series was common in the 1970s. World Distributors published six ''Dad's Army'' annuals between 1973 and 1978. Aimed mainly at children, they included short stories (some loosely based on TV episodes but most written for each annual), games, puzzles and historical information about World War II and the Home Guard. Photographs in the 1973 Annual were mainly from the film, with photographs in other issues taken from the TV series. ''Dad's Army Annual 1973'', .
Text stories: ''Which Way To Walmington?, Parachute Invasion, The Anti-Jerry Device, Souped-up Tactics!, The Platoon on Manoeuvres, False Alarm!, The New Recruits''
Cartoon strip stories: ''Guerilla Warfare, Invasion'' ''Dad's Army Annual 1974'', .
Text stories: ''Horror for Hodges, The Regimental Mascot, Mum's Army, The Official Inspection, Sealed Instructions, A Ghoul on the Loose, Dad's Army Joins the Navy''
Cartoon strip stories: '' Jones Saves the Day, The Great Defenders'' ''Dad's Army Annual 1975'', .
Text stories: ''Operation Evacuees, Down on the Farm, The Riding Lesson, Midnight Marauders, Take Shelter, The Social Evening, Ready Steady Blow!, The Captain's Lucky Day''
Cartoon strip stories: ''Sausage and Bash, Enemy Invasion'' ''Dad's Army Annual 1976'', .
Text stories: ''Yo Ho Hodges, The Usurper, Tomorrow's Heroes, Ladies First!, Roll 'Em!, The Captain Plays Cards''
Cartoon strip stories: ''Fishy Business, The Documents'' ''Dad's Army Annual 1977'', .
Text stories: ''Gorilla Warfare, Night Manoevres, Tank Tactics, A Case Of Mistaken Identity, A Star Is Born, The Captains Clanger''
Cartoon strip stories: ''Raising a Stink, The Magnificent Eleven'' ''Dad's Army Annual 1978'', .
Text stories: ''Fire! Fire!, Once a Soldier Always a Soldier, On Course With the Captain, Friends or Foes?, Operation Evacuees!''
Cartoon strip stories: ''Getting to Betsy, The Hero''


Fiction

''Dad's Army Sketches'' by Nico Broekhuis. City Stone Publishing, 2023. . A book of sketches of the main characters from episodes of Dad’s Army.
''Dad's Army'' by John Burke, Hodder, 1971. .
A novelisation of the film. ''Dad's Army Cartoon Book'', Piccolo, 1973. . This contains six comic stories written by R.A.G Clarke and drawn by Bill Titcombe (in black and white) : ''Operation Spycatcher, Dad's Army Goes to Sea, Operation Blunderbuss, Dad's Army in the Red, Operation Spit-and-Polish, Sure-fire Mainwaring!''. 96 pages. Price 20p. ''Dad's Army - The Defence of a Front Line English Village'' by Paul Abelman, BBC Books, 1989. .
A retelling of some events in the TV series, based on Captain Mainwaring's diary and "edited by Arthur Wilson M.A."


Script books

''Dad's Army'' by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Elm Tree Books, 1975. .
Foreword A foreword is a (usually short) piece of writing, sometimes placed at the beginning of a book or other piece of literature. Typically written by someone other than the primary author of the work, it often tells of some interaction between the ...
by
Arthur Lowe Arthur Lowe (22 September 1915 – 15 April 1982) was an English actor. His acting career spanned 36 years, including starring roles in numerous theatre and television productions. He played Captain Mainwaring in the British sitcom ''Dad' ...
.
TV scripts of " Asleep in the Deep", "
The Deadly Attachment "The Deadly Attachment" is the first episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on Wednesday 31 October 1973. It has become one of the best known episodes of the series due to the ra ...
", " The Godiva Affair", "
Everybody's Trucking "Everybody's Trucking" is the first episode of the seventh series of the British television sitcom ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on 15 November 1974. Synopsis Mainwaring's platoon have to signpost the route for a military convoy ...
" and " Keep Young and Beautiful". It included character and actor profiles, production notes, historical information and period newspaper articles about the Home Guard. ''Dad's Army - The Lost Episodes'' by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Virgin Books, 1998. .
TV scripts of "
Operation Kilt "Operation Kilt" is an episode in the British comedy series ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on Saturday 1 March 1969. Synopsis The platoon have to defend the church hall from a platoon of Highlanders on an exercise. Plot Captain ...
", "
The Battle of Godfrey's Cottage "The Battle of Godfrey's Cottage" is an episode in the British comedy series ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on Saturday 8 March 1969. Synopsis The church bells are to be removed to provide metal for the war effort, so the vicar h ...
", "
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Walker "The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Walker" is a missing episode in the British comedy series ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on 15 March 1969. One of the three missing ''Dad's Army'' episodes, only a few short clips and screensh ...
", " Sgt. Wilson's Little Secret", "
A Stripe for Frazer "A Stripe for Frazer" is a missing episode of the British television comedy series ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on 29 March 1969. Of the three missing ''Dad's Army'' episodes (all from the second series) it is the only one to h ...
" and "
Under Fire Under Fire may refer to: Books * ''Under Fire'' (Barbusse novel) (French: ''Le Feu''), a novel by Henri Barbusse * ''Under Fire'' (Blackwood novel), by Grant Blackwood in Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan Jr. franchise series * ''Under Fire'' (North book ...
". ''Dad's Army - Walmington Goes To War'' by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Orion Books, 2001. .
The complete TV scripts of series 1–4, including " Battle of the Giants!" ''Dad's Army - The Home Front'' by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Orion Books, 2001 .
The complete TV scripts of series 5–8.


Non-fiction

''Dad's Army - The Making of a Television Legend'' by Bill Pertwee, Foreland Films, 1989. .
Republished by Pavilion Books, 1997. . ''Dad's Army - A Celebration'' by Richard Webber with Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Virgin Books, 1997. . ''Dad's Army Song Book'', Wise Publications, 1995. .
Music and lyrics of ''Who do you think you're kidding Mr. Hitler?'' and other wartime songs. ''The Dad's Army Handbook'' by Tony Pritchard and Paul Carpenter, Dad's Army Appreciation Society, 1998.
The first attempt at a comprehensive ''Dad's Army'' reference book. ''The Complete A to Z of Dad's Army'' by Richard Webber with Jimmy Perry and David Croft, Orion Books, 2000. . ''Dad's Army - The Story of A Classic Television Show'' by
Graham McCann Graham McCann is a British author and historian who has written extensively on film and television stars and British comedy series. He is a former lecturer and fellow at the University of Cambridge where he taught social and political theory. Mc ...
, 4th Estate, 2001. . ''The Best of British Comedy-Dad's Army'' by
Richard Webber Richard Webber, M.D., F.A.C.S is a fictional character from the ABC medical drama television series ''Grey's Anatomy''. The character was created by Shonda Rhimes and is portrayed by actor James Pickens Jr. since the start of the show in 2005. ...


Memorabilia

In addition to books, memorabilia and merchandise were manufactured throughout the run and continued many years after. * At least 10 jigsaw puzzles with pictures from the TV series. * A set of 25 cigarette cards featuring scenes from the film was released in 1971. * Two board games, one as a promotion by Ovaltine in 1971 and another in 1974. * A Pan/Piccolo book of their adventures in comic form with storylines by R.A.G. Clarke and pictures by Bill Titcombe. It was released in 1973 and cost 20p in the UK. It contained six stories. * Models of Jones’ and Hodges’ vans, a
Walmington-on-Sea Walmington-on-Sea is a fictional seaside resort that is the setting of ''Dad's Army'', including the BBC Television sitcom (1968-1977), the BBC Radio 4 series and two feature films ( 1971 and 2016). Walmington-on-Sea is on the south coast of E ...
taxi, and a Walmington newspaper van were part of a ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' promotion. * Corgi released 1:50 scale models of a
Thornycroft Thornycroft was an English vehicle manufacturer which built coaches, buses, and trucks from 1896 until 1977. History In 1896, naval engineer John Isaac Thornycroft formed the Thornycroft Steam Carriage and Van Company which built its firs ...
van as
Jones Jones may refer to: People *Jones (surname), a common Welsh and English surname *List of people with surname Jones * Jones (singer), a British singer-songwriter Arts and entertainment * Jones (''Animal Farm''), a human character in George Orwell ...
the butcher's van and Bedford 0 Series as Hodges’ van. Each came with a figurine of the character. * The Imar Models series of 1:32 scale World War II figurines includes a "Home Guard Captain" which, although not advertised as such, bears a striking resemblance to Captain Mainwaring. * Foundry Models released a series of Home Guard figurines as part of the "England Invaded!" series. Although not directly advertised as such, the figurines were clearly based on characters from the series. Available were different models depicting members of the platoon (Mainwaring, Wilson, Pike, Frazer, Jones and Godfrey) in various poses, along with a “civilian” collection featuring figurines based on Hodges, the Vicar, Verger and Mrs Pike.
Warlord games
has released a box of 18 Dad's Army figurines in army and civilian clothes.


Museums

A large collection of ''Dad's Army'' memorabilia can be seen in the
Bressingham Steam Museum Bressingham Steam & Gardens is a steam museum and gardens located at Bressingham (adjacent to a garden centre), west of Diss in Norfolk, England. The site has several narrow gauge rail lines and a number of types of steam engines and vehicles in ...
in Norfolk, close to where most of ''Dad's Army'' was filmed. The
Dad's Army Museum The Dad's Army Museum is a museum located in Cage Lane in Thetford in Norfolk, England, dedicated to the BBC comedy series ''Dad's Army''. Many of the outdoor locations were filmed in the local area. The museum is housed in the old fire station ...
in Thetford, the Norfolk town where the TV series was filmed, is dedicated entirely to ''Dad's Army''. The town has established a tourist attraction The Dad's Army Trail, which guides fans of the show through Thetford to all the major filming locations and places of significance. Blitz and Pieces is a museum in Scratby in
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
based on the British Home Front during World War II and on ''Dad's Army''. The museum has a replica of Captain Mainwaring's church hall office and has screen-used props including half of the string used in
The Deadly Attachment "The Deadly Attachment" is the first episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom ''Dad's Army''. It was originally transmitted on Wednesday 31 October 1973. It has become one of the best known episodes of the series due to the ra ...
. The museum is open to the public by appointment.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dad's Army Books And Memorabilia
Books A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical ar ...
Books based on television series Lists of books based on works