It Ain't Half Hot Mum

*It Ain't Half Hot Mum*
It Ain't Half Hot Mum
	Series title card
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	Jimmy Perry; David Croft;
Written by	Jimmy Perry; David Croft;
Directed by	David Croft; Graeme Muir; Bob Spiers; Ray Butt; Paul Bishop; John Kilby;
Starring	Michael Bates; Windsor Davies; Melvyn Hayes; George Layton; Don Estelle; Donald Hewlett; Michael Knowles; Christopher Mitchell; John Clegg; Stuart McGugan; Kenneth MacDonald; Mike Kinsey; Dino Shafeek; Barbar Bhatti;
Theme music composer	Jimmy Perry
Opening theme	"Meet the Gang"
Ending theme	"Meet the Gang"; "Land of Hope and Glory";
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	8
No. of episodes	56 (list of episodes)
Production
Producers	David Croft; Graeme Muir;
Running time	30 minutes
Original release
Network	BBC1
Release	3 January 1974 –; 3 September 1981
	Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

It Ain't Half Hot Mum is a British television sitcom about a Royal Artillery concert party based in Deolali in British India and the fictional village of Tin Min in Burma, during the final months of the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who had both served in similar roles in India during that war.

Fifty-six episodes were broadcast across eight series on BBC1 between 1974 and 1981, covering a real-time historical period of approximately thirteen weeks. Each episode ran for thirty minutes. The title originates from the first episode, in which young Gunner Parkin (Christopher Mitchell) writes home to his mother in England.^[1] In 1975, a recording of "Whispering Grass" performed by Don Estelle and Windsor Davies in character as Gunner "Lofty" Sugden and Sergeant Major Williams (respectively), reached number 1 on the UK Singles Chart and remained there for three weeks.

The series, which attracted up to seventeen million viewers in its heyday, has been accused of racism, homophobia and a pro-imperialist attitude.^[2]^[3] One specific criticism has been the casting of a white actor, Michael Bates, as an Indian character, with darkening makeup that some have described as brownface.^[4]^[5]

^ Lewisohn, Mark (2003). Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy (2nd ed.). London: BBC Worldwide. p. 414. ISBN 0563487550.
^ Cite error: The named reference Jeffries was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ "Windsor Davies, starred as the bellowing Welsh sergeant major in 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' – obituary". The Telegraph. 20 January 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ Jeffries, Stuart (22 July 2024). "'I lied to get the part': Melvyn Hayes on his 'angry young man' beginnings – and It Ain't Half Hot Mum". The Guardian.
^ Govinda, Manick (16 November 2017). "Apu is an American hero". www.spiked-online.com. Retrieved 21 August 2024.

[:0-1] Lewisohn, Mark (2003). Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy (2nd ed.). London: BBC Worldwide. p. 414. ISBN 0563487550.

[Jeffries-2] Cite error: The named reference Jeffries was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Tgraph2019-3] "Windsor Davies, starred as the bellowing Welsh sergeant major in 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum' – obituary". The Telegraph. 20 January 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[4] Jeffries, Stuart (22 July 2024). "'I lied to get the part': Melvyn Hayes on his 'angry young man' beginnings – and It Ain't Half Hot Mum". The Guardian.

[5] Govinda, Manick (16 November 2017). "Apu is an American hero". www.spiked-online.com. Retrieved 21 August 2024.

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It Ain't Half Hot Mum

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