''Spatz'' is a children's comedy series that ran on

Children's ITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...

during the 1990s, produced 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 ...

and created by Andrew Bethell. The show originally ran from 21 February 1990 to 10 April 1992. The show centred on a

fast food Fast food is a type of Mass production, mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. ''Fast food'' is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheat ...

restaurant situated in a fictional

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a large indoor shopping center, usually Anchor tenant, anchored by department stores. The term ''mall'' originally meant pedestrian zone, a pedestrian promenade with shops along it, but in the late 1960s, i ...

Cricklewood Cricklewood is a town in North London, England, in the London Boroughs of Camden, Barnet, and Brent. The Crown pub, now the Clayton Crown Hotel, is a local landmark and lies north-west of Charing Cross. Cricklewood was a small rural hamlet ...

, London. It was operated by two Canadians, Karen Hansson (

Jennifer Calvert Jennifer Calvert (born 7 December 1963 in Ontario) is a Canadian actress with many years' experience on stage and primarily UK television. She trained at RADA and is most famous for her role in children's comedy drama ''Spatz'' in the 1990s. She ...

), Spatz International's self-centered European Co-ordinator, and Thomas "TJ" Strickland (

Paul Michael Paul Michael (August 15, 1926 – July 8, 2011) was an American actor. He was a regular guest star on American television appearing in ''Kojak'', ''Hill Street Blues'', '' Alias'' and ''Frasier''. He also played King Johnny Romano on ''Dark Sh ...

), the restaurant's kind-hearted manager.

Vas Blackwood Vasta Roy "Vas" Blackwood (born 19 October 1962) is a British actor. Blackwood played Lenny Henry's sidekick Winston Churchill in ''The Lenny Henry Show'' (1987) and David Sinclair in ''Casualty'' (1996–97). Since playing Rory Breaker in ...

, Stephanie Charles, Jonathan Copestake,

Sue Devaney Sue Devaney (born Susan Barber, 2 July 1967) is an English actress. Her roles include Debbie Webster in ''Coronation Street'', Rita in ''Jonny Briggs'', Liz Harker in ''Casualty'' and Jane in '' Dinnerladies''. Career Devaney has played variou ...

, Joe Greco,

Katy Murphy Katy Murphy (born 8 December 1962) is a British actress and teacher from Glasgow, Scotland, who has appeared in many television programs, most of them for the BBC and ITV. While most associated with television drama, she has worked across a vari ...

Ling Tai Ling Tai is a Chinese actress, remembered for being a presenter on the final year of children's programme ''Crackerjack!'' as well as playing Lily in the first series of children's comedy ''Spatz''. Early life In 1960, she was found abandoned ...

and

Samantha Womack Samantha Zoe Womack (''née'' Janus; born 2 November 1972) is an English actress, singer, model and director who has worked in film, television and stage. Womack initially planned a career in singing and she represented the United Kingdom in ...

appeared as Spatz restaurant employees. Guest stars included

David Harewood David Michael Harewood (born 8 December 1965) is a British actor, presenter and the current president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He is best known for his roles as CIA Counterterrorism Director David Estes in ''Homeland'' (2011–2012 ...

Rhys Ifans Rhys Owain Evans (; born 22 July 1967), known as Rhys Ifans, is a Welsh actor. He has portrayed roles in ''Notting Hill'' (1999), '' Kevin & Perry Go Large'' (2000), and '' Enduring Love'' (2004), in addition to Xenophilius Lovegood in ''Harry ...

Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker ( ; born 30 November 1960) is an English Sports broadcasting, sports broadcaster and former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Lineker is the only player t ...

Danny John-Jules Daniel John-Jules (born 16 September 1960) is a British actor, singer and dancer. He is best known for playing Cat (Red Dwarf), Cat in the sci-fi comedy series ''Red Dwarf'', Barrington in the comic children's series ''Maid Marian and Her Merry M ...

and

Nicholas Parsons Christopher Nicholas Parsons (10 October 1923 – 28 January 2020) was an English actor, straight man and radio and television presenter. He was the long-running presenter of the comedy radio show ''Just a Minute'' and hosted the game show '' S ...

History

''Spatz'' was devised by Andrew Bethell as a drama for

teenagers Adolescence () is a transitional stage of human physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with ...

set in a 1930s themed burger bar, so named because spats might have been worn there. Alan Horrox at

bought the concept and title and passed them to Grant Cathro and Lee Pressman, already established at Thames Television as the writers of ''

T-Bag ''T-Bag'' is a British television series about the eponymous witch-like character and her assistant, T-Shirt. The series ran from 1985 to 1992 on Children's ITV. Written by Grant Cathro and Lee Pressman, each series adopted a different title ...

'' and creators of ''

Mike and Angelo ''Mike and Angelo'' is a British children's television, sci-fi sitcom series, that ran on CITV between 16 March 1989 and 7 March 2000. The show is ITV's longest running sitcom (as per series count). Plot The shows initially centred on Mike Ki ...

'', to develop ''Spatz'' as 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 ...

. While updating the setting to a standard fast food restaurant, the name ''Spatz'' was retained, with the writers noting that it suggested spats or disagreements. Series 1 of ''Spatz'' was a co-production between

and Canada's YTV. From Series 2 onwards, ''Spatz'' was produced solely by Thames Television.

Old Skool Weekend

On 6 January 2013, an episode of ''Spatz'' from 1992 ("Tango", the third episode of Series 3) was repeated on CITV as part of its 30th anniversary.

Transmissions

References

External links

*
Glad You Remember - Spatz
1990 British television series debuts 1992 British television series endings 1990s British children's television series 1990s British teen sitcoms British English-language television shows ITV children's television shows Television series by FremantleMedia Kids & Family Television series set in restaurants Television shows produced by Thames Television Television shows set in London {{UK-kids-tv-prog-stub