Editing Going Straight

{{Short description|1978 British TV sitcom}}
{{Other uses|Going Straight (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image                = Going straight.jpg
| caption              = ''Going Straight'' main title
| runtime              = 30 minutes
| creator              = {{plainlist|
* [[Dick Clement]]
* [[Ian La Frenais]]
  }}
| writer               = {{plainlist|
* Dick Clement
* Ian La Frenais
  }}
| director             = [[Sydney Lotterby]]
| producer             = [[Sydney Lotterby]]
| editor               = Bill Wright
| starring             = {{plainlist|
* [[Patricia Brake]]
* [[Ronnie Barker]]
* [[Richard Beckinsale]]
* [[Tony Osoba]]
* [[Fulton Mackay]]
* [[Ronald Lacey]]
* [[Nicholas Lyndhurst]]
  }}
| country              = United Kingdom
| network              = [[BBC1]]
| first_aired          = {{Start date|1978|02|24|df=yes}}
| last_aired           = {{End date|1978|04|07|df=yes}}
| num_episodes         = 6
| list_episodes        = List of Porridge episodes#Series 1 (1979)
| related              = {{Plainlist|
* ''[[Porridge (1974 TV series)|Porridge]]'' (1974–77)
* ''[[Life Beyond the Box: Norman Stanley Fletcher]]'' (2003) 
}}
}}
'''''Going Straight''''' is a British television [[sitcom]] created and written by [[Dick Clement]] and [[Ian La Frenais]], and starring [[Ronnie Barker]] and [[Richard Beckinsale]]. 

The programme was a direct sequel to the sitcom ''[[Porridge (1974 TV series)|Porridge]]'', which all four were involved in, with its premise surrounding the exploits of Barker's character [[Norman Stanley Fletcher]] following his release from prison and his attempts to not commit another crime for the sake of his family, despite the allure that crime brings. The programme also featured the appearance of [[Patricia Brake]], reprising her role in ''Porridge'', and [[Nicholas Lyndhurst]]. Both [[Fulton Mackay]] and [[Tony Osoba]] guest starred in the first episode, also reprising their earlier roles.

==Cast==
{{See also|List of Porridge characters}}

===Main cast===
{{div col}}
* [[Ronnie Barker]] as [[Norman Stanley Fletcher]]
* [[Richard Beckinsale]] as Lennie Godber
* [[Patricia Brake]] as [[Ingrid Fletcher]]
* [[Nicholas Lyndhurst]] as Raymond Fletcher
{{div col end}}

===Recurring cast===
{{div col}}
* [[David Swift (actor)|David Swift]] as Mr McEwan
* [[Rowena Cooper]] as Shirley Chapman
{{div col end}}

===Guest cast===
{{div col}}
* [[Fulton Mackay]] as [[Principal officer]] Mr MacKay
* [[Tony Osoba]] as [[Characters of Porridge (TV series)#Jim McClaren|Jim McLaren]]
* [[Timothy Bateson]] as Oaksey
* [[Roberta Tovey]] as Penny
* [[Alfred Lynch]] as Dave Pipers
* [[Norman Jones (actor)|Norman Jones]] as Mr Tanner
* Freddie Earlle as Tony
* [[Nigel Hawthorne]] as Worm Wellings
* [[Pete Postlethwaite]] (credited as Peter Postlethwaite) as Thomas Clifford Crowther
* [[Ron Pember]] as Percy
* [[Royston Tickner]] as Sergeant
* [[Michael Turner (actor)|Michael Turner]] as Mr Scotcher
* [[Dave Hill (actor)|Dave Hill]] as Arthur Boyle
* [[Milton Johns]] as Mr Kirby
* [[Robert Raglan]] as Inspector
* Elizabeth Cassidy as Pamela
* [[Lally Bowers]] as Mrs Appleby
* [[Stephen Tate]] as Canadian Tourist
* [[Paul McDowell (actor)|Paul McDowell]] as Mr Collinson
{{div col end}}

==Episodes==
{{Main|List of Porridge episodes#Going Straight}}
Six episodes of ''Going Straight'', all written by [[Dick Clement]] and [[Ian La Frenais]], were produced for the BBC. The show began airing on 24 February and ended on 7 April 1978. All episodes had a running time of approximately 30 minutes.

== Production ==
A single series of six episodes was made and aired across 1978, attracting an audience of over 15 million viewers<ref>Information published on DVD back cover.</ref> and winning a [[British Academy Television Award for Best Scripted Comedy|BAFTA TV Award for Best Situation Comedy]] in March 1979.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Situation Comedy |url=https://www.bafta.org/awards/television/situation-comedy |access-date=26 January 2024 |website=[[BAFTA]] |language=en}}</ref> In addition, the series was featured on the front cover of the 18 February 1978 edition of the ''[[Radio Times]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Issues for 1978 |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/years/1978 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241127051533/https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/years/1978 |archive-date=27 November 2024 |access-date=26 January 2025 |website=[[BBC Genome Project]]}}</ref> Plans for further episodes were allegedly shelved after the premature death of Beckinsale in 1979, although in an interview published in ''Porridge: The Complete Scripts and Series Guide'' (2001), the writers stated that only one series was ever planned as Ronnie Barker would only agree to do the six episodes.

The theme tune, sung by Ronnie Barker, detailed Fletch's determination to go straight, an ambition first laid out in the ''Porridge'' episode "[[Men Without Women (Porridge)|Men Without Women]]":<ref>{{cite web |title=The Full Lyrics to the Theme Tune from Going Straight |url=http://www.porridge.org.uk/gslyrics.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240722174417/https://www.porridge.org.uk/going-straight-lyrics |archive-date=22 July 2024 |access-date=25 January 2009 |website=Porridge - The Unofficial Homepage}}</ref> This was released as 7-inch single by EMI records. The B-side is a track called "The String Bean Queen".

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{BBC programme}}
*{{IMDb title|0077016}}
*{{British Comedy Guide|tv|going_straight}}

{{Porridge}}
{{BAFTA TV Award for Best Situation Comedy 1973–1980}}
{{Clement and La Frenais}}

[[Category:1970s British sitcoms]]
[[Category:1978 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:1978 British television series endings]]
[[Category:BBC television sitcoms]]
[[Category:British television spinoffs]]
[[Category:British English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Television shows set in London]]
[[Category:Television series by BBC Studios]]