'No 73' was the most original Saturday morning children's variety programme ever. Not only did it turn the tables on the usual Saturday morning concept, it spoofed all the conventions of sit-coms and soaps as well. Like most shows from the same time slot, 'No 73' featured cartoons, competitions, musical guests and interviews. But since this was supposed to be broadcast from a 'normal' house in Maidstone, Kent, the cartoons were shown on an old fashioned projector, the band had to perform in the basement, the competitions were 'made up on the spot' and interviews ended when the doorbell rang. Every guest, be they pop stars, roof thatchers to morris dancers, had to settle either in the kitchen, the lounge, the backyard, or the shed. Usually the plot revolved around one or more of the acts being wrongfully booked so they had to be kept secret from Ethel or someone else.
Landlady and owner of the house Ethel Davis was played by Sandi Toksvig. The other main characters were: gullible Harry (Nick Staverson), rollerskating Dawn (Andrea Arnold), artistic Neil (Neil Buchanan) and musical Kim (Kim Goody). Adding to the crazy situations were regulars like Fred the postman (Tony Aitken), local con-man Tony Deal (Nick Wilton) and of course the long suffering neighbours from # 75, Martin and Hazel Edwards (Richard Addison and Jeannie Crowther). In order to dispense disbelieve when promoting No 73 on other shows, all these actors usually appeared in character. In the early years, they even remained uncredited.
Around lunch time, just before the show ended, everybody would gather in the kitchen for the Sandwich Quiz. Here two of the guest would answer general knowledge questions, and whoever had the biggest sandwich at the end was the winner. Occasionally the presenters got to appear in 'home made' movies produced by 'Front Door Productions'. These serials would usually feature four of them playing up to 30 different parts, so they certainly could no longer complain about having to be the same character each week. Most seasons would end in a cliffhanger, such as the house being on the brink of demolition or that other soap opera cliché: Ethel having second thoughts on her wedding day.
When Ethel 'immigrated to Australia' during the 1986 summer break the Sandwich Quiz became the 'Duster Muster'. The other four main characters remained, but steadily all of the supporting castmembers were replaced by new, younger characters. Late 1986 the 'Sunday at 73' edition of the show was developed, featuring less guests and more programmes to introduce such as 'The Gummi Bears' and 'Black Beauty'. Instead of showing these on the projector, they would simply settle down in front of a TV. At the start of 1988, the show had to move out of the TVS studios and into a Wild West Theme park. '7T3' only lasted three months.
Watching 'No 73' always made me wonder how they managed to perform the whole show live while running around the different parts of the set and still remembering all the puns in the script. Not once did I spot a microphone or crewmember. Mind you I was very young and gullible when the show originally aired, and since the chance of it ever being repeated is next to nothing, 'No 73' will forever remain perfect in my mind. That may be the best place for it to stay, for if I had to see all those atrocious eighties hairstyles and fashions again now, I might change my mind about this high rating:
Rating : 10 out of 10
