Come Back Mrs. Noah

Come Back Mrs Noah, known as Operation Noah in the US,[1][2] is a British sitcom starring Mollie Sugden that aired on BBC1 from 17 July to 14 August 1978 with a pilot broadcast on 13 December 1977. It was written by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft, who had also written Are You Being Served? which also starred Mollie Sugden. Lloyd and Croft went on to write 'Allo 'Allo! which would star Gorden Kaye. Come Back Mrs Noah was not a success, with some regarding it as one of the worst British sitcoms ever made.[3][4]

Come Back Mrs Noah
Titlescreen of the series, featuring the Britannia Seven spacecraft.
GenreSitcom
Created byJeremy Lloyd
David Croft
Written byJeremy Lloyd
David Croft
StarringMollie Sugden
Ian Lavender
Donald Hewlett
Michael Knowles
Gorden Kaye
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
ProducerDavid Croft
Running time30 minutes
Release
Original networkBBC1
Original release13 December 1977 (1977-12-13) –
14 August 1978 (1978-08-14)

Cast

Plot

In 2050, British housewife Gertrude Noah wins a cookery competition, and is awarded a tour of Britannia Seven, the UK's new Space Exploration Vehicle. The craft is accidentally sent blasting off into space with a crew consisting only of Mrs Noah, proton physicist Carstairs, neutron physicist Fanshaw, lightbulb-changer Garstang, and BBC reporter Clive Cuncliffe. The series then centres on efforts to bring them back to Earth. The program Far and Wide (a parody of Nationwide) features frequent updates read by Gorden Kaye. These reports present a reality in which Britain is the most successful nation on Earth, providing aid to countries like Germany and the United States.

Episodes

All of the episodes are directed by Bob Spiers and written by the team of David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd.

Nº Title Original air date
1"Pilot"13 December 1977 (1977-12-13)
As part of her prize for winning Modern Housewife Magazine's cookery competition, Mrs. Noah visits the Pontefract International Space Complex (PISC) to tour the flight deck of Britain's £700 billion space station. She witnesses unproductive tea-making technology, tries on a pleasure hat, and is on the verge of testing the dream stimulation machine when the shuttle is accidentally launched into space, providing her a crash course in weightlessness.
2"In Orbit"17 July 1978 (1978-07-17)
Mr. Carstairs' wife Rowena (Diana King) and Mrs. Noah's husband (Norman Mitchell) send messages to the space ship via Far and Wide. Shortly after, the crew attempts to make scrambled eggs utilizing unpredictable robotic technology. Mr. Cunliffe and Mrs. Noah then go to the sleeping quarters, but they find themselves locked together in a cubicle for eight hours. Worsening their situation, the toilet is at the top of the wall, requiring magnetic shoes and gravity-defying skill.
3"To the Rescue"24 July 1978 (1978-07-24)
Mr. Cuncliffe and Mrs. Noah have a rude sideways awakening followed by an equally disorienting trip to the automatic clothes-changing machine. As a ship manned by Garfield Hawk and his mistress, Scarth Dare, prepares to rescue them, the physicists attempt to explain the technical dynamics of the rescue operation to Mrs. Noah, Messrs. Cunliffe and Garstang, using food to represent the planets and space craft.
4"Who Goes Home?"31 July 1978 (1978-07-31)
The rescue vehicle is damaged, and to offset the load, the group tries to decide who will stay behind. However, the issue become moot when they realize the craft can only accommodate the two rescue crew members. Teleportation is explored as an alternate method of escape, but since it's never been successful with living subjects, they decide to first test it with a clone. Unfortunately, the cloning process requires Mrs. Noah to consume a ridiculous amount of liquid, and she can't help moving while the computer scanners molest her, causing the clone to emerges with an extended nose and third leg.
5"The Housing Problem"7 August 1978 (1978-08-07)
Realizing that they may be there for quite some time, Mr. Garstang tries to lay claim to Mrs. Noah, but she reveals that the only one whom she might be interested in is Mr. Carstairs -- who's utterly disinterested. Everyone decides to move into the living quarters, but they're unfinished, so they're forced to pair up. Mrs. Noah and the increasingly-antagonistic Mr. Cuncliffe bunk together in a pad with a high-speed robot butler, the physicists share a more lavish flat with both a butler and a maid, and Mr. Garstang is relegated to a closet. Later, Mr. Carstairs decides to throw a tea party, but he doesn't invite Mr. Garstang.
6"The Last Chance"14 August 1978 (1978-08-14)
The crew decides to take advantage of the facilities, so they play a round of virtual golf. Unfortunately, their game is spoiled by a freak rainstorm that short-circuits the machinery. Later, everyone is attired in silver spacesuits and taught how to eject from the spacecraft when it enters the earth's atmosphere, but back at Mission Control, Mr. Hawk is so distracted by Ms. Dare that he pushes the wrong button, catapulting the vehicle to the outer limits of the solar system.

Other countries

Come Back Mrs Noah was also shown in the Netherlands, starting on 30 June 1979. It was also aired in Australia and on several public television stations in the United States including WPBT in Miami, Florida and WNED-TV in Buffalo, New York.

References
  • Mark Lewisohn, "Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy", BBC Worldwide Ltd, 2003

Footnotes
  1. https://nostalgiacentral.com/television/tv-by-decade/tv-shows-1970s/come-back-mrs-noah/
  2. http://andydrewz64.blogspot.com/2015/08/come-back-mrs-noah-on-bbc-dvd-and-vhs.html
  3. "BBC Comedy Guide". BBC.
  4. Come Back Mrs. Noah at the former BBC Guide to Comedy, URL accessed 7 July 2010
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