''Get Some In!'' is a
British television
Television broadcasts in the United Kingdom began in 1932, however, regular broadcasts would only begin four years later. Television began as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transm ...
sitcom
A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
about
National Service
National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...
life in the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
, broadcast between 1975 and 1978 by
Thames Television
Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992.
Thames Television broa ...
. Scripts were by
John Esmonde and
Bob Larbey, the team behind sitcoms such as ''
The Good Life''.
The programme drew its inspiration from late 1950s – early 1960s National Service situation-comedy ''
The Army Game
''The Army Game'' is a British television sitcom that aired on ITV from 19 June 1957 to 20 June 1961. It was the first ITV sitcom and was made by Granada, and created by Sid Colin. It follows the exploits of Hut 29, a dysfunctional group of ...
'' and from nostalgic BBC TV sitcom ''
Dad's Army
''Dad's Army'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard (United Kingdom), Home Guard during the World War II, Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft (TV producer), David Crof ...
'' but the RAF setting gave it enough originality not to seem formulaic. Thirty-four (commercial) half-hour episodes were made.
The title is a contraction of "Get some service in!", which was a piece of Second World War-era military slang sometimes shouted by conscripted soldiers at civilians of conscription age whom the conscripts may have believed were avoiding call-up. By the 1960s the expression had a clear and self-evident sexual connotation which replaced the original meaning and resulted in a convenient double entendre for the programme.
Many episodes aired on
UK Gold between 1994 and 1996, with
Forces TV (UK) later repeating the whole series in 2016 and 2019. Further repeats aired on
Talking Pictures TV
Talking Pictures TV (TPTV) is a British free-to-air vintage film and nostalgia television channel. It was launched on 26 May 2015 on Sky. Later it also became available on Freeview, Freesat and Virgin Media.
It is on air 24 hours a day and fe ...
in 2019, 2021 and 2022. It was screened in Australia in the early 1980s.
Premise
The overarching concept follows a single hut of recruits at RAF Skelton in 1955. They are a group of social misfits of which, through default, Jakey Smith is the
alpha male
In the zoological field of ethology, a dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social animal, social groups interact, creating a ranking system. Dif ...
. Most stories concern their ongoing conflict with the sadistic corporal who runs the hut. The corporal lives in married quarters on site, and this female dimension gives an occasional sexual dimension to the plots.
Relocation in series 3 to RAF Midham next to a WAAF station allowed an additional sexual angle, as did Corporal Marsh moving into married quarters on-site (albeit a caravan). Marsh also decides to retrain and effectively becomes an equal rather than superior to the other boys as all train to be medics. Series 4 ends with the main group posted to
Malta
Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
as medics.
Series 5 is effectively a hospital comedy, and whilst the characters are the same, the change of atmosphere and recasting of Jakey Smith impact heavily and detaches this series from the first four.
Characters
National Service recruits
* Ken Richardson. A former
grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...
pupil, Ken is very well-mannered much to the disgust of Corporal Marsh. Due to his education, he often finds himself on the receiving end of insults from Corporal Marsh such as "poofhouse" and "Nance" (short for "Nancy Boy", i.e.
homosexual
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...
). Far from being homosexual, Richardson falls quickly for the charms of Lilley's sister Agnes, and later for Mrs. Fairfax - an officer's wife. Richardson is kind to all the other national servicemen, despite exhibiting obvious differences from them. Played by
David Janson
David Janson (born David Jackson, 30 March 1950) is an English actor and theatre director whose stage debut was in ''Oliver!'' in 1962. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1963 in ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' and appeared as the young ...
.
* Jakey Smith, a former
Teddy Boy
The Teddy Boys or Teds were a mainly United Kingdom, British youth subculture originating in the early 1950s to mid-1960s and then revived in the 1970s who were interested in rock and roll and Rhythm and blues, R&B music, wearing clothes part ...
from
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Jakey soon finds himself at odds with Corporal Marsh, and dislikes the whole concept of National Service. He has little or no respect for authority but is at heart a decent individual. Marsh delights in calling him "Edward VII", an allusion to his former Teddy Boy culture, though on leave Jakey finds himself no longer accepted amongst the Teds. Played by
Robert Lindsay (Series 1–4) until Lindsay left to star in his own show ''
Citizen Smith
''Citizen Smith'' is a British television sitcom written by John Sullivan, first broadcast from 1977 to 1980.
It starred Robert Lindsay as Walter Henry "Wolfie" Smith, a young Marxist "urban guerrilla" in Tooting, south London, who is attempti ...
'', and then by
Karl Howman (Series 5).
* Matthew Lilley, a vicar's son who plays the
harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. Depressing a key raises its back end within the instrument, which in turn raises a mechanism with a small plectrum made from quill or plastic that plucks one ...
and is very well-mannered. Raised to be God-fearing, Lilley prides himself on not hating anybody - not even Marsh. Though naturally shy, Matthew is usually the first to object to Corporal Marsh's shady schemes. Marsh sometimes calls him "Holy Joe" or "Christopher Robin" - the latter an allusion to the poem ''
Vespers
Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a Christian liturgy, liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgy, Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental O ...
'' by
A.A. Milne (in which the first and final stanzas end with the line "Christopher Robin is saying his prayers"). In series 3 and 4 Lilley shows a phobia for blood and body parts which causes him to faint but nevertheless he scores high as a medic and passes the exam. Played by Gerard Ryder.
* Bruce Leckie. A Scotsman from
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
and is a supporter of
Glasgow Rangers, Bruce has a very cynical view of life and is a pessimist. Cpl. Marsh called him "Jockstrap" and "Jock". Like Jakey, he does not like being conscripted for National Service. Bruce is very shy around women but eventually falls in love with and finds happiness with Corporal Wendy (Jenny Cryst), though this happiness is short-lived as after Bruce completes his trade training they are both posted to different RAF stations, but get married in series 4. Played by
Brian Pettifer.
Officers and instructors

* Corporal Percy Marsh GM. Corporal, later Sergeant, later Corporal, later AC1, later Corporal, Marsh is a drill instructor who becomes the bane of the recruits' lives. A man with a sadistic sense of humour and few (if any) friends, he continually makes his charges' lives miserable. He has an
eidetic memory
Eidetic memory ( ), also known as photographic memory and total recall, is the ability to recall an image from memory with high precision—at least for a brief period of time—after seeing it only onceThe terms ''eidetic memory'' and ''photogr ...
and an eerie aptitude for mental arithmetic, which are sometimes mistaken for high intelligence, although he is actually quite stupid. (For instance, in his nursing attendant's examination he states that the function of the
pancreas
The pancreas (plural pancreases, or pancreata) is an Organ (anatomy), organ of the Digestion, digestive system and endocrine system of vertebrates. In humans, it is located in the abdominal cavity, abdomen behind the stomach and functions as a ...
is to digest carrots.) Marsh always craves promotion but his own schemes usually backfire preventing him from attaining his goal. At the end of series 4 he is demoted for cheating in an exam, though he later regains his rank by faking an act of heroism (for which he also receives the
George Medal
The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically ...
). Played by
Tony Selby
Anthony Samuel Selby (26 February 1938 – 5 September 2021) was an English actor. With a career that spanned 71 years, he was known for his roles as Corporal Percy Marsh in the ITV (TV network), ITV British sitcom, sitcom ''Get Some In!'' (1975� ...
.
* Squadron Leader Clive Baker. Medical Officer of RAF Skelton and later anatomy instructor at RAF Midham. Played by
John D. Collins.
* Flight Lieutenant Roland Grant. Officer commanding C Flight and Marsh's superior at Skelton. He dislikes Marsh's bullying but his
public school code of conduct prevents him from doing much about it; when forced to exert his authority he generally sides with Marsh. Played by
David Quilter.
* Group-Captain Ruark. Played by
Nigel Pegram.
* The Padre. A mild-mannered priest who caters for the recruits' spiritual needs - though only Lilley ever has much to do with him. Played by
Tim Barrett.
Other characters

* Alice Marsh. Corporal Marsh's wife. She is constantly irritated by her husband's lack of advancement in the RAF, but she is a kind-hearted woman and is good to the recruits, much to the irritation of Marsh. She left him during the fourth series, only to return in the end. Played by
Lori Wells.
* Mrs Fairfax. Wife of one of the senior officers, a beautiful and compassionate lady who despises Marsh and is kind to recruits. Richardson develops a
crush
Crush may refer to:
* Infatuation or limerence, the romantic attraction to another person
* Puppy love, feelings of love, romance, or infatuation felt by young people
Crush may also refer to:
Film
* Crush (1972 film), ''Crush'' (1972 film), a H ...
on her in Series 2. Played by
Angela Thorne.
* Corporal Wendy Williams/Leckie. A
WRAF corporal who marries Bruce Leckie in the fourth season. Played by Jenny Cryst (a.k.a. Jenny Clarke) married name Jenny Grant wife of Keith Grant (Olympic Studios) Barnes, London
Theme song
The theme song composed by
Alan Braden, quickly communicated to audiences that national service would not be a fulfilling experience for the recruits with the lines "Though you're in the RAF, you'll never see a plane" and "There's only one way to get out and that's to get some in. Get Some In!"
Episodes
Series overview
Series 1 (1975)
Special (1975)
Series 2 (1976)
Series 3 (1977)
Series 4 (1977)
Series 5 (1978)
Stage show
A stage version of ''Get Some In!'' was produced for a 1977 summer season at the Princess Theatre, Torquay.
Setting and filming locations
Series 1–2 were set at the fictional
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
station RAF Skelton. They were filmed at Hobbs Barracks near
Felbridge in Surrey.
The barracks are, as of 2017, an industrial estate.
At the beginning of the third series, the recruits' barracks hut is destroyed by fire and so in series 3–4 events were set at fictional RAF Midham. Series 5 was set at fictional RAF hospital Druidswater which was filmed at RAF Halton, the very first scene was filmed outside the old Guard room.
The Christmas special (broadcast between Series 1 and 2), set at RAF Skelton, was captioned "Christmas 1955", but the remainder of the series (involving two changes of camp) continued to be set in 1955.
Home release
All five series including a 5-
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
set of the complete series of ''Get Some In!'' have been released by Network.
References
External links
*
''Get Some In!''at British TV Comedy
''Get Some In! episode guide''on ComedySeries.info
{{Esmonde Larbey
1975 British television series debuts
1978 British television series endings
1970s British sitcoms
British aviation television series
British military television series
British English-language television shows
ITV sitcoms
Military comedy television series
Television series about the Royal Air Force
Television shows produced by Thames Television
Television series by Fremantle (company)