The Armoured Might of Lance Corporal Jones
Encyclopedia
The Armoured Might of Lance-Corporal Jones is the first episode of the third series of the British
comedy series Dad's Army
that was originally transmitted on Thursday 11 September 1969.
to use his butcher's van as an armoured car and Mainwaring meets the new Chief ARP
Warden, William Hodges the greengrocer.
) doesn't entitle him to be Chief Warden. Wilson agrees by saying that he has dirty finger nails. When Hodges arrives, he and Mainwaring have a brief argument about who should get the church hall on which day.
Some time afterwards, Walker talks to Jones about his delivery van. He reckons that he should lend it to Mainwaring as platoon transport. Jones is suspicious, so Walker admits that it will help his black market activities, but offers Jones petrol coupons in return. Jones reluctantly agrees.
The next day, Mainwaring congratulates Jones and Walker on their efforts with the van. Jones tells Mainwaring that it not only serves as a troop carrier and armoured car, but it also serves as an ambulance. Wilson demonstrates with some of the platoon to Mainwaring, their new embarking and disembarking strategy, which interrupts Hodges' ARP lecture. He demands to know the reason why, and is intrigued to learn that the van doubles up as an ambulance. He asks the men to come down to Saturday's air raid practice and act as stretcher-bearers for the ambulance. Mainwaring concludes the lecture by telling Jones and Walker that the van is being converted to gas.
Jones and Walker reluctantly travel to the church hall with a giant gas-bag on the roof. Jones' bayonet accidentally punctures the gas supply pipe and Jones and Walker succumb to the gas. When they recover, they learn that the gas bag is nearly empty. They reach the church hall to find it empty except for Frazer, who tells them that everyone's already at the practice. Frazer decides to use the Vicar's gas fire to refill the gas bag. The Vicar interrupts, but Frazer passes it off as filling the Vicar's gas fire.
The trio arrive at the practice, and they prepare to load an old man onto the back of the van, but Jones has left the keys at the hall. They attempt to put the old man through the window of the van, while Jones 'borrows' an irate man's bike to fetch the keys. When he arrives, they prepare to load the old man into the van, but it drives off before they can fully load him on. After two unsuccessful attempts, the old man gets up off the stretcher, declaring he'll walk to the "flippin'" hospital.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comedy series Dad's Army
Dad's Army
Dad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
that was originally transmitted on Thursday 11 September 1969.
Synopsis
Lance Corporal Jones allows the platoonPlatoon
A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two to four sections or squads and containing 16 to 50 soldiers. Platoons are organized into a company, which typically consists of three, four or five platoons. A platoon is typically the smallest military unit led by a commissioned officer—the...
to use his butcher's van as an armoured car and Mainwaring meets the new Chief ARP
Air Raid Precautions
Air Raid Precautions was an organisation in the United Kingdom set up as an aid in the prelude to the Second World War dedicated to the protection of civilians from the danger of air-raids. It was created in 1924 as a response to the fears about the growing threat from the development of bomber...
Warden, William Hodges the greengrocer.
Plot
Following a lecture on the gases the enemy will use, Captain Mainwaring reads a communiqué sent by GHQ, which says that there isn't enough communication between the ARP and the Home Guard, so the new Chief Warden is coming to discuss co-operation. Mainwaring is disgusted to learn from Wilson that the new Chief Warden is that 'common fellow' Mr Hodges. Mainwaring believes that Hodges' occupation (a greengrocerGreengrocer
A greengrocer or fruiterer is a retail trader in fruit and vegetables; that is, in green groceries. Greengrocer is primarily a British and Australian term, and greengrocers' shops were once common in suburbs, towns and villages...
) doesn't entitle him to be Chief Warden. Wilson agrees by saying that he has dirty finger nails. When Hodges arrives, he and Mainwaring have a brief argument about who should get the church hall on which day.
Some time afterwards, Walker talks to Jones about his delivery van. He reckons that he should lend it to Mainwaring as platoon transport. Jones is suspicious, so Walker admits that it will help his black market activities, but offers Jones petrol coupons in return. Jones reluctantly agrees.
The next day, Mainwaring congratulates Jones and Walker on their efforts with the van. Jones tells Mainwaring that it not only serves as a troop carrier and armoured car, but it also serves as an ambulance. Wilson demonstrates with some of the platoon to Mainwaring, their new embarking and disembarking strategy, which interrupts Hodges' ARP lecture. He demands to know the reason why, and is intrigued to learn that the van doubles up as an ambulance. He asks the men to come down to Saturday's air raid practice and act as stretcher-bearers for the ambulance. Mainwaring concludes the lecture by telling Jones and Walker that the van is being converted to gas.
Jones and Walker reluctantly travel to the church hall with a giant gas-bag on the roof. Jones' bayonet accidentally punctures the gas supply pipe and Jones and Walker succumb to the gas. When they recover, they learn that the gas bag is nearly empty. They reach the church hall to find it empty except for Frazer, who tells them that everyone's already at the practice. Frazer decides to use the Vicar's gas fire to refill the gas bag. The Vicar interrupts, but Frazer passes it off as filling the Vicar's gas fire.
The trio arrive at the practice, and they prepare to load an old man onto the back of the van, but Jones has left the keys at the hall. They attempt to put the old man through the window of the van, while Jones 'borrows' an irate man's bike to fetch the keys. When he arrives, they prepare to load the old man into the van, but it drives off before they can fully load him on. After two unsuccessful attempts, the old man gets up off the stretcher, declaring he'll walk to the "flippin'" hospital.
Cast
| Cast | Characters |
|---|---|
| Arthur Lowe Arthur Lowe Arthur Lowe was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. He was best known for playing Captain George Mainwaring in the popular British sitcom Dad's Army from 1968 until 1977.-Early life:... |
Captain Mainwaring |
| John Le Mesurier John Le Mesurier John Le Mesurier was a BAFTA Award-winning English actor. He is most famous for his role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the popular 1970s BBC comedy Dad's Army.-Career:... |
Sergeant Wilson |
| Clive Dunn Clive Dunn Clive Robert Benjamin Dunn OBE is a retired English actor, comedian and author, best known for his role as Lance-Corporal Jack Jones in the BBC sitcom Dad's Army.-Early life:... |
Lance Corporal Jones |
| John Laurie John Laurie John Paton Laurie was a British actor born in Dumfries, Scotland. Although he is now probably most recognised for his role as Private James Frazer in the sitcom Dad's Army , he appeared in hundreds of feature films, including films by Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Powell and Laurence Olivier... |
Private Frazer |
| James Beck James Beck Stanley James Carroll Beck was a British actor best remembered for his role as Private Joe Walker, the cockney spiv in the popular BBC sitcom Dad's Army. The cast was mainly composed of older actors, but Beck was one of the younger members.-Early life:Beck was born in Islington, North London and... |
Private Walker |
| Arnold Ridley Arnold Ridley Major William Arnold Ridley, OBE was an English playwright and actor, first notable as the author of the play The Ghost Train and later in life for portraying the elderly Private Charles Godfrey in the popular British sitcom Dad's Army .-Early life:Ridley was born in Walcot, Bath, England where... |
Private Godfrey |
| Ian Lavender Ian Lavender Arthur Ian Lavender , better known as Ian Lavender, is an English stage, film and television actor, best known for his role as Private Frank Pike in the BBC comedy series Dad's Army.-Early life and career:... |
Private Pike |
| Janet Davies | Mrs. Pike |
| Bill Pertwee Bill Pertwee William Desmond Anthony Pertwee MBE is a British comedy actor. He is best known for playing the part of antagonist ARP Warden Hodges in the popular sitcom Dad's Army.-Early and personal life:... |
ARP Warden Hodges |
| Frank Williams Frank Williams (actor) Frank Williams is an English actor.Williams was educated at Ardingly College. He starred in The Army Game and as the Vicar in Dad's Army. In 1970, he starred in the short-lived sitcom As Good Cooks Go... |
Vicar |
| Queenie Watts Queenie Watts Queenie Watts was an English actress and singer of film and television.... |
Mrs Peters |
| Pamela Cundell Pamela Cundell Pamela I. Cundell is a British character actress. Her best known role was Mrs Fox in the long-running TV comedy Dad's Army.... |
Mrs Fox |
| Jean St. Clair | Miss Meadows |
| Olive Mercer | Mrs Casson |
| Nigel Hawthorne Nigel Hawthorne Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne, CBE was an English actor, perhaps best remembered for his role as Sir Humphrey Appleby, the Permanent Secretary in the 1980s sitcom Yes Minister and the Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister. For this role he won four BAFTA Awards during the 1980s in the... |
Angry Man |
| Harold Bennett Harold Bennett Harold Bennett was an English actor best remembered for having played 'Young Mr. Grace' in the 1970s British sitcom Are You Being Served?.-Biography:... |
Old Man |
| Dick Haydon | Raymond |