Maid Marian and Her Merry Men facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Maid Marian and Her Merry Men |
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Series 1 DVD cover
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| Genre | Situation Comedy |
| Created by | Tony Robinson |
| Directed by | David Bell |
| Starring |
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| Composer(s) |
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| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Richard Callanan |
| Cinematography | David Gautier |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 25 minutes 1x 50 Minutes |
| Production company(s) | BBC |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC1 |
| Original release | 16 November 1989 – 16 February 1994 |
Maid Marian and her Merry Men was a super fun British TV show for kids! It was created and written by Tony Robinson and directed by David Bell. The show started in 1989 on BBC1 and ran for four series, ending in 1994. It was a funny, partly musical comedy that retold the famous legend of Robin Hood. But here's the twist: Maid Marian was the real leader of the Merry Men, and Robin was just a clumsy former tailor!
Many people compared the show to Blackadder, another historical comedy. This is because Tony Robinson was in both shows, and they had a similar funny style. Lots of actors from Maid Marian, like Howard Lew Lewis, Forbes Collins, and Patsy Byrne, also appeared in Blackadder.
The show was very popular! It led to a stage play and a cartoon strip by Paul Cemmick. The TV show was repeated on BBC One in 2001 and on the CBBC Channel in 2002 and 2007. Later, in 2009, the channel Gold showed all four series again. You can even find all four series on DVD! Tony Robinson has also talked about bringing the show back in recent years.
Contents
Funny Storylines and Parodies
The show loved to make fun of other famous movies and TV shows! For example, they spoofed films like Jurassic Park and It Came from Outer Space. They also made jokes about TV programmes such as The Crystal Maze and charity events like Children in Need and Comic Relief.
The series often referenced other versions of the Robin Hood story. They especially poked fun at ITV's Robin of Sherwood. Its theme song by Clannad, "Robin (The Hooded Man)", was even parodied in an episode called "The Whitish Knight". The 1991 movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was also a target for jokes. Interestingly, Howard Lew Lewis, who played Rabies in Maid Marian, was also in that movie!
Meet the Main Characters
Let's get to know the heroes and villains of the show!
The Good Guys: Marian's Merry Crew
- Maid Marian (Kate Lonergan): Marian is the true leader of the "Merry Men." She's a passionate and smart freedom fighter. She always wants to do what's right, even if the rest of her gang isn't very good at it! She's the smartest of the group but sometimes her big ideas make her miss what's really happening.
- Robin of Kensington (Wayne Morris): Robin is a very proud and self-centered tailor. He accidentally became known as the leader of Marian's gang. He keeps up the act because he thinks it makes him look cool. His biggest idea for the outlaws was making them all wear green to "match the trees"!
- Barrington (Danny John-Jules): Barrington is the Rasta Merry Man. He often raps during the songs in the episodes. Sometimes, he acts like a narrator, telling parts of the story, similar to Alan-a-Dale in other Robin Hood tales.
- Little Ron (Mike Edmonds): This Merry Man is very short, aggressive, and often faces the wrong way during ambushes! He's a funny take on the character Little John. He's the second strongest in the group, only beaten by Rabies.
- Rabies (Howard Lew Lewis): Another Merry Man, Rabies is super strong but not very smart. However, he always means well and has a good heart.
The Bad Guys: King John and His Gang
- King John (Forbes Collins): King John is a mean and unstable ruler. He loves himself and gets very angry if he thinks the peasants don't like him. Forbes Collins also played King John's brother, Richard the Lionheart, and Guy of Gisbourne's mother, Queen Eleanor, in the show!
- The Sheriff of Nottingham (Tony Robinson): The Sheriff is a sneaky planner who loves collecting taxes. His first name is 'Arnold', which was used for a funny joke later on. Even though he tries to stop Marian, sometimes he and Marian agree on how silly everyone else is!
- Gary and Graeme (Mark Billingham and David Lloyd): These two are the King's castle guards and the Sheriff's helpers. They are "bestest mates" and very friendly, but not very clever. They often get along well with the Merry Men, except when they're doing their jobs. Graeme has a brother named Kevin who is never seen. Gary is super dedicated to his job; he even kept working as if he hadn't been fired when he was sacked!
- Guy of Gisbourne (Ramsay Gilderdale): Guy is King John's clumsy nephew. He's a bit of a village idiot and a mummy's boy, even though he's 27! He acts like he's about 5 years old, has an imaginary friend, and sometimes wears a tutu. He often talks nonsense and interrupts the bad guys' meetings. King John doesn't want Guy around but obeys his sister (Guy's mom) because he's scared she'll do "that nasty thing with the pencils" to him, just like when they were kids.
- "Rotten" Rose Scargill (Siobhan Fogarty): Rose is Maid Marian's rival, but also her best friend and worst enemy! She's Robin Hood's biggest fan.
Other Villagers and Characters
- Gladys and Snooker (Hilary Mason and Robin Chandler): These two are villagers from Worksop. Gladys is an old and very silly peasant who loves telling stories. Snooker (sometimes called "Stinker") is another very silly peasant. He's famous for inventing a game with a long stick and colored balls, which is where his name comes from! They often speak for the village but aren't much smarter than the other peasants.
- Nettle (Kerry Potter): A young female villager who is just as smart as Marian.
- Chickweed (Karen Salt): A very young peasant girl.
- Hayley (Carly Britnell): Another smart young female villager. A comet was named after her when she threw up as it flew across the sky! This happened in the episode "Hayley's Vomit".
- Nigel Pargetter: This peasant often had bad luck! He was punched, crushed by a radiator, and even had a cucumber stuck in his head. He's named after a character from a famous BBC radio show called The Archers.
Music and Songs
The music and songs for Maid Marian and Her Merry Men were created by Nick Russell-Pavier and David Chilton. Almost every episode had one or two songs. Most were original, but some were funny parodies of other songs. The actors often had their singing voices dubbed by professional singers, but Gary, Graeme, Guy, and Barrington usually sang their own songs!
Awards and Recognition
Maid Marian and her Merry Men won several awards! It won the 1990 BAFTA for "Best Children's Programme (Entertainment/Drama)". It was also nominated for the same award in 1991. The show also won an award from the Royal Television Society and the special "Prix Jeunesse Variety Award" at an international children's TV festival in Munich.
Filming Locations
The show was set in the real town of Worksop in Nottinghamshire, England. This town is close to the famous Major Oak tree, linked to the Robin Hood legend. However, the entire show was actually filmed in Somerset. The outdoor scenes were shot in woods near Porlock, and the castle scenes were filmed at Cleeve Abbey. The beach at Porlock also appeared in some episodes, like "The Whitish Knight".
Video and DVD Releases
Video Tapes
The first series was released on four video tapes, with three episodes on each.
- "Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: How the Band Got Together" (episodes 1-3) – Released: 5 November 1990
- "Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: The Miracle of St Charlene" (episodes 4-6) – Released: 5 November 1990
These tapes were re-released on 8 February 1993. The other series were not released on video.
DVDs (Region 2)
Fans campaigned online for the DVDs to be released, and they finally were!
- Series 1 – Released: 20 March 2006
- Series 2 – Released: 24 July 2006
- Series 3 – Released: 23 October 2006 (This includes the 1993 Christmas special!)
- Series 4 – Released: 19 February 2007
- Series 1-4 Box Set – Released: 22 September 2008
Comic Books
Tony Robinson wrote and adapted comic books for the show, with drawings by Paul Cemmick. They were published by the BBC between 1989 and 1992. Some titles include:
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: How the Band got Together
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: Robert the Incredible Chicken
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: The Whitish Knight
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: The Beast of Bolsover
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: The Worksop Egg Fairy
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: Rabies in Love
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: It Came from Outer Space
- Maid Marian and Her Merry Men: Driving Ambition and Keeping Mum
Other Fun Stuff
The TV show was also turned into a stage musical by Tony Robinson, Mark Billingham, and David Lloyd. It toured many theatres in Britain. The script for this musical was even published as a book in 1992, to be used in classrooms for students aged 11–14!
See also
- When Things Were Rotten, a 1975 sitcom also based on Robin Hood.
- Blackadder, a historical BBC sitcom from 1983–1989, which also starred Tony Robinson as Baldrick.
