The Culture Vultures

The Culture Vultures is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 in 1970. The series starred Leslie Phillips as a university lecturer and three episodes were co-written by Tim Brooke-Taylor. The entire series was wiped and is no longer thought to exist.

The Culture Vultures
Genre	Sitcom
Written by	Colin Mares Tim Brooke-Taylor David Climie
Starring	Leslie Phillips, Jonathan Cecil, Peter Sallis, Sally Faulkner
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	5
Production
Producer	Graeme Muir
Running time	30 minutes
Release
Original network	BBC1
Original release	24 April – 22 May 1970

Background

The Culture Vultures was originally going to be piloted in Comedy Playhouse, but it was decided it was good enough to go straight to a series.[1] After the second episode, the lead Leslie Phillips collapsed with an internal haemorrhage.[2] He recovered enough to return to the series.[1] His next sitcom lead would be Casanova '73.

Cast

• Leslie Phillips - Dr Michael Cunningham
• Jonathan Cecil - Dr Ian Meredith
• Peter Sallis - Professor George Hobbes
• Sally Faulkner - Vivienne

Plot

Dr Michael Cunningham is a senior lecturer in anthropology at the University of Hampshire. A gambler and womaniser, his quest for an easy life is frequently interrupted by his friends and colleagues. His casual attitude leads to clashes with his seniors.[2] He enjoys the campus nightlife and is always looking for an opportunity to travel.[1]

Episodes

The series aired on Fridays at 7:55 pm.[2] In line with the BBC's archival policy of the time, all five episodes were wiped and none are thought to survive.[3]

#	Title	Original airdate
1	"Episode One"	24 April 1970
Dr Cunningham is in trouble with the Vice-Chancellor after an indiscreet television interview and he fights to keep his job.
2	"Rake's Progress"	1 May 1970
One of Cunningham's colleagues says he has invented a foolproof system of predicting the roulette wheel.
3	"Double, Double, Toil and Trouble"	8 May 1970
An efficiency expert looks into the running of the University and threatens Cunningham's trip to the West Indies.
4	"Practical Demonstrations"	15 May 1970
Dr Cunningham has to look after a visiting American professor and discovers he could get a round the world the trip investigating student unrest.
5	"Spring Fever"	22 May 1970
Cunningham overlooks management selection tests and is forced to use some apparatus for a different purpose.

References

General

• "The Culture Vultures - Episode Guide". British Comedy Guide. 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013.

Specific

1. "The Culture Vultures". British Comedy Guide. 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
2. Lewishohn, Mark (2003). Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy. London: BBC Worldwide. ISBN 0-563-48755-0.
3. "LostShows.com". LostShows.com. 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013.