''Rudy's Rare Records'' is a

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 ...

series created by

Lenny Henry Sir Lenworth George Henry (born 29 August 1958) is a British Jamaicans, British-Jamaican comedian, actor and writer. He gained success as a Stand-up comedy, stand-up comedian and impressionist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in ' ...

, Danny Robins and

Dan Tetsell Dan Tetsell (born 2 July 1974) is a British actor, comedian and writer for radio, television and stage. He has worked on a number of projects, including '' The Museum of Everything'', '' That Was Then, This Is Now'', ''Newsjack'' and ''Parsons an ...

, broadcast on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

. Originally a radio comedy series from 2008–2014, it was later adapted for the stage in 2014. A not-for-broadcast TV pilot was reportedly shot in 2014, but was not developed for broadcast. The plot follows Adam Sharpe, who returns to Birmingham from London after a breakdown, and is forced to move in with his father Rudy Sharpe. They squeeze into the flat above the eponymous Rudy's Rare Records, his dad's shambolic record shop selling reggae, ska and soul. While Adam is anxious and straight-laced, Rudy is exuberant, opinionated and brash. Other characters include Adam's adult son Richie, shop employee Tasha, the self-proclaimed first black goth girl in Handsworth, Doreen, Rudy's girlfriend, and Clifton, his friend. The series features a majority

Black British Black British people or Black Britons"Black Briton, N." ''Oxford English Dictionary''. Oxford UP. December 2024. https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1136579918. are a multi-ethnic group of British people of List of ethnic groups of Africa, Sub-Saharan ...

cast and a soundtrack that focuses on reggae, ska and hip-hop.

Episodes

Series 1 (2008)

source
# "Take Me Home, Country Roads" # "Roots Manoeuvres" # "Get Up, Stand Up" # "The Heart of Saturday Night"

Series 2 (2009)

# "Ill Communication" # "Oh Carolina" # "Daddy Cool" # "Ride With Me"

Series 3 (2011)

# "No Richie, No Cry" # "It's A Family Affair" # "Redemption Song" # "Rudy's Rare Record" # "Lights Out" # "Girls and Boys"

Series 4 (2012)

# "Three's a Crowd" # "Best Local Business" # "Let It Grow" # "It's Grim Up North" # "Miss Reenie Comes to Stay" # "Sound of da Police"

Cast

* Larrington Walker as Rudy Sharpe *

as Adam Sharpe * Natasha Godfrey as Tasha * Joe Jacobs as Richie Sharpe *

Claire Benedict Claire Benedict (born 28 July 1951) is a British actress known for her work in classical productions on the British stage, but best known for portraying the principal character Mma Ramotswe in the continuing radio adaptations of '' The No 1 La ...

as Doreen *

Jeffery Kissoon Jeffery Kissoon (born 4 September 1947) is an actor with credits in British theatre, television, film and radio. He has performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company at venues such as the Royal National Theatre, under directors including Peter B ...

as Clifton *

Tracy-Ann Oberman Tracy-Ann Oberman (born Tracy Anne Oberman; 25 August 1966) is an English actress, playwright and narrator. She is known for roles including Chrissie Watts in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' (2004–2005, 2024) and Valerie Lewis or "Auntie Va ...

as Alison – Source:

Stage adaptation

A stage adaptation by Henry and Robbins also titled ''Rudy's Rare Records'' opened at the

Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre ...

on 4 September running until 20 September, before transferring to the

Hackney Empire Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in Hackney in the London Borough of Hackney. Originally designed by Frank Matcham it was built in 1901 as a music hall, and expanded in 2001. Described by ''The Guardian'' as "the most beautiful theat ...

from 24 September to 5 October 2014. The production was directed by

Paulette Randall Paulette Randall, MBE (born 1961) is a British theatre director of Jamaican descent.

and featured Henry, Walker, Kissoon and Godfrey reprising their roles from the sitcom alongside

Joivan Wade Joivan Wade ( ; born 23 July 1993) is an English actor known for playing Manyou in the BBC comedy television series '' Big School'', Jordan Johnson on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', and Victor Stone / Cyborg in the Max series ''Doom Patro ...

as Ritchie and Lorna Gale as Doreen.

References

BBC Radio comedy programmes BBC Radio 4 programmes 2008 radio programme debuts 2014 radio programme endings {{UK-radio-show-stub