What's On Your Mind?

The early 1980s: Joe confides in Mr Wilks at The Woolpack.

A lot of e-mails/comments in my absence. There's a few, with answers, here...

"Sandie Merrick" writes:

The feminist fight seems pretty rampant in 80's media. Do you think Annie Sugden was a positive image for women, tied to the Aga all day long? Or, as you're a man, do you think feminism is all a load of clap trap?

As a blokey type bloke I daresay I shouldn't venture an opinion, Sandie, but yes, I think Annie was fine. She was the rock, the person who kept the farm and family together. She was also a prominent figure in Beckindale - with her work as a churchwarden and on the WI.

No, I don't think feminism is a "load of clap trap" - but I must say I think gender issues are far more complex than feminism allows. The biggest influence pushing me towards a traditional working class English male stereotype personality when I was a child was my mother's! What is it they say? "The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world"!

From Mark:

Your Walter stuff is most excellent. Do you think Geoffrey Hooper and Al Dixon were playing the same character, because they seemed so different?

A friend of mine recently asked me the same question, Mark. Geoffrey Hooper was originally simply an extra in Woolpack scenes, and the production team later decided to name him and bring him forward a little.

I think Geoffrey Hooper's Walter was more of a prop than a character - on-screen for Amos to chunter to. He looked far more ordinary too - he was seen in the background in Woolpack scenes, interacting with other regulars and talking!

Al Dixon's Walter looked strikingly different and was far more prominent and silent. It was in the Al Dixon era (1980-1985) that Walter became a cult. Mr Dixon was actually recruited to play Walter as a character.

Al Dixon's Walter was not recruited to resemble Geoffrey Hooper's version, and producer Anne W Gibbons simply stated that there had been a tradition of having a Walter in The Woolpack. She seemed keen to expand on that tradition and flesh it out. I believe that the two Walters were linked, one based on the tradition established by the other, but not actually intended to be the same person.

I think Walter was a fun gimmick.

For ease of reference, I personally refer to the two Walters as Walter Hooper and Walter Dixon!

These are simply my opinions - but if you watch a Geoffrey Hooper episode of Emmerdale Farm, then an Al Dixon episode, it is evident that Al Dixon was not trying to imitate his predecessor. And Walter was quite a common Christian name amongst elderly men in those days.

From Sara P:

Can we have some more late 1980's stuff on here? Lately you seem to be favouring the first few years!

LOL, Sara! Up until recently comments were telling me I was favouring the last few years of the '80s! Coming up is more info on 1981 and 1982, then I intend to move on up the decade to 1986!

Christopher says:

I'm told Emmerdale was all about sheep in the 1980's. Was it?

No! But there were a lot about. I was watching a 1986 episode whilst eating my dinner a few months back and was not terribly keen to see Matt Skilbeck actually delivering a lamb - in full detail! But '80s Emmerdale Farm was also about Matt and Dolly, and Annie and Sam, and Amos and Mr Wilks, and Walter and Seth, and Archie and Nick, and Alan Turner and Mrs Bates, and Kathy and Jackie, and Sandie and Phil, and Jack and Pat, and Joe and Barbara, and the Rev Donald Hinton and Harry Mowlam, and...

More comments answered very soon! Thanks for all the e-mails!

1981: The Cat And The Hat

Amos and Mr Wilks admire the new hat in 1981. Inset: Auntie Emily Brearly on her first visit to The Woolpack in 1980.

Emily Brearly's first visit to The Woolpack had caused much disruption. She had been horrified to find her nephew, Amos, meddling with the occult - bog-a-boos no less! - and departed in a great flurry - telling Amos that he should have the pub exorcised!

In 1981, Auntie Emily sent Amos a gift - a wonderfully classy hat. Very dressy. Too dressy in fact.

"This is the type of hat as history is made in," said Amos.

Amos' pleasure soon turned to disgust as his friends and neighbours sniggered to themselves whenever he came into view in his natty headgear, and Seth Armstrong serenaded him across Main Street: "Where did you get that hat, where did you get that hat?"

Mr Wilks and Walter were not impressed.

Amos did not want to give into the local philistines - he certainly didn't want to give into Seth Armstrong - and, besides, his feared Auntie Emily had bought him the hat and she would be not happy if she knew he wasn't wearing it.

Finally, he hit on a solution: Mr Wilks had adopted a pregnant cat, due to have her kittens any day. Amos decided that the hat was the perfect home for the new family - and organised things so that it looked like the cat had chosen it herself.

Of course, he couldn't possibly wear it now!

But Mr Wilks secretly guessed what he'd done, and told Amos that he felt dreadful about the loss of the hat (he, after all, had adopted the cat) and that he was going to buy Amos a new one, just the same as the original, from the very same shop.

Amos squirmed, and owned up.

1980: September: Al Dixon Becomes Walter Of The Woolpack...

Walter's very first screen close up, October 1980.

Before The Beckindale Bugle, confusion reigned over the character of Walter, the silent Woolpack bar propper. When did he first appear? Did he ever speak? Why was he so quiet? What was his surname?

Well, The Beckindale Bugle couldn't, and can't, solve the last two mysteries, but we did manage to solve the others.

Regular readers of this blog will know that there were two Walters, one played by Geoffrey Hooper on-screen from circa 1974-1980, and the other played by Al Dixon from September 1980 to December 1985.

Geoffrey Hooper's Walter was often heard to speak - from episodes available to me and my readers, I can state that in 1976, he informed the Woolpack that there had been a train crash at the junction; I'm reliably informed he told Annie Sugden at a village dance that he would rather be having a drink with Amos. In an episode from early 1980 he told Amos that he wouldn't have his usual pint of beer, he'd have a half!

Al Dixon's 1980s Walter said much less - I heard him mumble "Thank you" when Mr Wilks handed him his change in a scene from November 1980, and he laughed out loud when Amos planned to fix the plumbing at The Woolpack - but then who wouldn't have?! Anyway, if you want to know more about Walter and Al Dixon, simply click on the labels below.

Actually there was a third Walter in Emmerdale Farm, played by Meadows White in a few early episodes, but as that Walter wasn't particularly quiet, nor a Woolpack bar-propper, I assume he was unrelated to the subject of this article! According to Meadow White's IMDB entry, he died on 20 November 1973. Read it here.

Today we're thrilled to be able to show you, in screen captures, how Al Dixon's Walter was introduced into the story. The Woolpack was absolutely Walter-less for much of 1980. A non-silent character called Wilfred was sometimes seen at the bar, but then the Emmerdale Farm production team decided that a new Walter was required. And a new, rather different, rather quirkier Walter at that!

Al Dixon was auditioned and later revealed: "They asked me to take my teeth out and that's how I got the part."

His on-screen introduction - episode 597, broadcast in September 1980 - went like this...

Amos was ranting away to Mr Wilks - in high dudgeon about "summat and nowt" - one morning before Opening Time. As he stalked out of the bar, there was a knock at the door. Amos told Mr Wilks it was Walter knocking, it was time to open up, they had the good name of the house to consider, and so on.

Amos went into the living quarters, leaving easy-going Mr Wilks to open the pub. He made his way to the door and the episode switched scenes to elsewhere in Beckindale so that we didn't get to see Walter at that point.

Screen capture from Walter's very first scene, September 1980.

Later in the episode, Amos was putting Seth Armstrong to rights in no uncertain terms and Walter made his very first appearance, sitting quietly in the shadows. Walter would soon become associated with the corner of the bar nearest the till, but made his debut at the opposite end by the hot food cabinet. In his early episodes, he switched bar ends several times.

At first, Walter was quite low key, but he quickly became more prominent. It was in October 1980 that he got his first screen close up.

Walter's bizarre silence and highly expressive face added something very distinctive and slightly surreal to the atmosphere at The Woolpack. He contributed to Amos' growing reputation as a barmpot as the Woolpack landlord stood wittering away to him about all his latest fads. Walter never answered, but this didn't bother Amos who simply wanted to be heard and not ridiculed. Very occasionally, early on, Walter was heard to laugh at certain particulars of Amos' daft doings, but in the main Amos' chunterings were greeted by an attentive (or sometimes blank) expression and much head nodding.

Bliss for Amos - somebody who would listen to his strange flights of fancy.

Although Walter was silent, his facial expressions spoke volumes. Neither he nor Amos were at all impressed when the uncouth John Tuplin, NY Estates worker, rapped on the bar with his glass in an attempt to get service in October 1980.

Mr Wilks is bemused, bothered and bewildered by Amos' behaviour, Seth is amused, Walter is blank.

By 1983, viewers were campaigning for Walter to speak. But Al Dixon said in 1984: "I hope Walter never speaks. If he did, I think I'd be finished because the character wouldn't be a novelty any more!"

Al Dixon suffered a stroke in late 1985, and Walter last appeared on screen in December of that year, in the village's Christmas play Toad Of Toad Hall. The scenes had been recorded before Mr Dixon was taken ill.

In early 1986, Walter was reported to have gone to visit his sister in Worthing. The production team hoped that Mr Dixon would be well enough to return to the role soon. But, sadly, this was not to be and he died a few months later.

Walter was a tremendous favourite of mine - he brought a great deal of fun to the show from 1980 to 1985, and was a lovely, quirky and gentle character.

Fondly remembered.

Dark Side Of 1980...

It wasn't all daft fishing contests and horticultural shows in 1980. There was family life in a grotty caravan for Pat Merrick and her kids for a start...

Never mind. In November 1980 Walter, who had only been on-screen for a couple of months, got a snazzy new cap. Great! But who's that coming through the door behind him?

Oh no - it's Tom Merrick - just in time for Christmas!!

But the nasties weren't all earth bound...

... strange moving lights in the sky terrified Amos Brearly... was it aliens? Or bogles?

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Oh yes, there was certainly a dark side to 1980 down Beckindale way...

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We'll be taking a closer look soon.

The Wonderful World Of Amos And Mr Wilks

Arthur Pentelow as Henry Wilks (or should that be Mr Wilks?!) and Ronald Magill as Amos Brearly. These two ran The Woolpack Inn and shared the living accommodation from 1973 to 1991.

Actually there were TWO Woolpacks. The first was declared unsafe due to subsidence in 1976, so the pair relocated to premises elsewhere in the village.

Mr Wilks was a warm hearted retired businessman. Amos was... well... erm... it's not easy to summarise Amos. He was childish. Pompous. Usually rigidly formal. Given to rapid fads and enthusiasms. He was also naive and very good hearted. Underneath it all.

The character of Amos evolved. When he became Beckindale correspondent on the Hotten Courier, he puffed himself up like a peacock. But it took until the early 1980s before the character was refined and honed to perfection. Watch any 1970s episode of Emmerdale Farm, and I think you might agree that Amos was quieter, more restrained and dour than in the 1980s - when he was gloriously potty, pursuing fad after fad in quick succession, bridling at Mr Wilks' attempts to bring him down to earth and generally being a wonderful nuisance.

1980 was an absolutely pivotal year for the Amos character - with Seth Armstrong leaving The Malt Shovel bar to become a regular at The Woolpack, and Al Dixon joining the cast as Walter, Amos became more animated, fad-ridden and bizarre than ever before!

The '80s were a truly splendid era during which Amos and Mr Wilks story lines abounded, as the show became an all-year-round soap.

Do you remember the time when Amos got into transcendental meditation? The time he went "upwardly mobile" and took up golf with Alan Turner? The time he turned to bee keeping? The time he baked a cake? The time he was cursed by a gypsy? The time...

If all these sound like Amos-only story lines, rest assured that Mr Wilks was always there, advising, trying to moderate his friend's behaviour, and generally suffering!

Fortunately, Mr Wilks had friends elsewhere or he would, no doubt, have gone insane!

Amos and Mr Wilks have a disagreement in 1980...

... and they're still at in 1989. Dolly Skilbeck (Jean Rogers) looks on.

A pain in the neck to Amos was one of his best 1980s customers and arch enemy, Seth Armstrong (Stan Richards). How he loved to wind the big key in Amos' back! In 1980, Amos commented disapprovingly on Seth's loyalty to the Malt Shovel. Seth was just becoming established as a regular character back then, having first appeared in a few episodes in 1978. From 1980 onwards, Seth switched to The Woolpack, and absolutely loved to get under Amos' skin! Remember the time he booked two strippers (and a python!) to perform at The Woolpack - much to Amos' horror? Amos ordered them out and the pub was wrecked by irate customers!

Seth holding court at The Woolpack in 1983. Walter (Al Dixon) says nowt and concentrates on his ale. Al Dixon first appeared as the silent bar propper in September 1980.

Seth and pal.

"Sunday People", June 9, 1985. Apparently Jenny the donkey's braying could sometimes be heard when the "Emmerdale Farm" crew were attempting to film in Esholt - so it was decided to bring her into the story!

Joint Pipe Smokers Of The Year, 1986.

Picture the scene: it's 1980 and only 5% of UK households have video recorders. In fact, video technology had been around for yonks, but domestic players and recorders only a few years and they were highly expensive. So, unable to tape your favourite shows to keep and keep again, you bought novels of all the storylines.

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Shadows From The Past, by Lee Mackenzie, was the 10th Emmerdale Farm novel (there would be many more) and was published in 1980. The author was excellent at bringing Amos and Mr Wilks to life on paper. Here, Amos has been awakened by a strange noise, and goes to investigate. Mr Wilks, disturbed by Amos' movements, follows and demands an explanation...

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"There was somebody here. I heard him."

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"Heard what?"

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I heard a... There was a... A sound."

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"You probably woke yourself with your own snoring, Amos."

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"I do not snore, Mr Wilks," said his partner, offended.

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"How do you know if you don't? Have you ever stayed awake to listen?"

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"How could I stay awake and..." Amos realised his leg was being pulled. "I'm serious, Mr Wilks. Someone is in the Woolpack."

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"Rubbish."

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"I tell you I heard a sort of a thud -"

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"A sickening thud?"

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"Eh?" Amos read very little and knew nothing about well-worn cliches from the thrillers of bygone years. "It was more of a... chunk."

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"A chunk of what?"

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"A sound like a chunk. Like this." Amos picked up a jug from the top of the fridge and put it down on the metal top. "Like that, only louder."

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"It was something falling over."

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"What, then?" Amos waved a hand. "Nothing's fallen over."

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"Aye," Henry said, rather dry. "Everythings just as usual."

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"In here." Amos agreed. "But who knows where else he's been? He suddenly clutched his dressing-gown in the region of his heart. "The till!" he cried.

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He rushed out into the bar. Henry followed, much more slowly. Accustomed as he was to Amos' funny ways, this amused him only a little. As a man approaches the golden years, he needs his sleep.

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Amos went to the till, rang up 'no sale' and found the money still there. It's to be understood that this money wasn't the whole day's takings. Those were upstairs under lock and key in a box below Amos' bed. The money in the till was a peace-offering to any burglar who might get in: Amos reasoned that if a man got something, he wouldn't creep upstairs and murder you in your bed.

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He had a low opinion of how much a burglar would be satisfied with. Nevertheless the one pound note, one fifty pence piece, and four twopence pieces were still there.

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"You see?" Henry said. "Nobody's got in. If they had, they'd have taken that."

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Amos was shaken. Then he said, "I disturbed him at it. That's what it is! The chunk I heard - that was the till being pushed shut."

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"Funny sort of burglar who bothers to close the till when he's disturbed," Henry rejoined, rubbing the back of his neck and stifling a yawn. "Come on, Amos, let's get back to bed."

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"Nay, Mr Wilks, I tell thee - someone's been in here. I can feel it."

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"Clairvoyant, are you?"

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"Mr Wilks, I'm C of E as well you know..."

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Excellent stuff - and the best was yet to come!

Some Beckindale Cast And Characters - September 1984

Some of the cast and character details from the Hotten Courier, Yorkshire TV's publicity pamphlet for Emmerdale Farm, September 30, 1984. Did you know that Hugh Manning (the Rev Donald Hinton) also starred in the highly successful 1960s series Mrs Thursday? That Arthur Pentelow (Mr Wilks) was a keen birdwatcher, just like his character? That Al Dixon (Walter) hoped his character would never speak? Or that Sheila Mercier (Annie Sugden) is the sister of Brian Rix?

Also from The Courier, Al Dixon, who played the second Woolpack Walter, and contributed so much to the pub's atmosphere, celebrated four years at the bar in 1984, having debuted in September 1980. Mr Dixon suffered a stroke in late 1985, but continued to appear on-screen until Christmas, when he had a small role in the village play, Toad Of Toad Hall. The play sequence, plus another scene with Walter knocking on the door of the Woolpack at opening time, to be admitted by Amos, had been filmed on location in Esholt before the actor fell ill.

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In early 1986, Walter departed from Beckindale to stay with his sister in Worthing. It was hoped that Al Dixon would recover from his stroke and return to the show, but he died not long afterwards.

Walter - The Mystery Man!

Did you guess who the mystery man featured a few posts back was? Yep, it was Al Dixon, Beckindale's second silent Walter actor, who made the role his very own from 1980-1985.

The article above, from the 1985 Yorkshire Evening Post's Emmerdale Farm 1000! supplement, reveals that Mr Dixon was actually born in Lancashire, and went to Leeds during the war as part of a group called Fred Musson's Select Entertainers. The group thrilled the crowds at open-air shows in Roundhay Park.

Walter Altered - And Others Too!

I always thought that a change of actor was preferable to a death in Beckindale. Because of actors and actresses leaving, we saw several tragedies in the '70s and '80s which began to make the Sugdens seem just a little too tragic!

In 1972, the show began with the funeral of Jacob Sugden, and the following year his daughter, Peggy, died suddenly - as actress Jo Kendall had decided to leave the show. Recasting would have been perfectly acceptable in this fledgling serial, but it was not something English TV soaps were very "into" at that time - Coronation Street appeared to have set the standard there! The Skilbeck twins, Sam and Sally, were killed off in 1976 in a most appalling manner - killed in an accident at a level crossing, which was obviously a way of doing away with a loose thread from the Peggy/Matt marriage, and winning viewers.

In the 1980s, both Pat Sugden and Jackie Merrick died tragically when the actors playing the roles left the show.

And so the Sugdens built up a grim saga of tragedy - for purely off-screen reasons.

Sometimes, central characters were recast - although very rarely were they residents of Emmerdale Farm itself. But in 1980, the improbable happened twice...

From the Yorkshire Evening Post supplement Emmerdale Farm 1,000! - 1985.

HELLO DOLLYS

"Emmerdale" has had four "doubles" in the cast, but the mos startling lookalikes have been Jean Rogers, the present Dolly, and Katharine Barker, the original one.

Dolly Skilbeck is expecting her second youngster - much to the delight of Jean Rogers, who plays Matt's pretty wife.

Jean just loves kids. She's a proud off-screen mum to Jeremy, 17, and Justin, 14.

And on screen, it's difficult to believe that she's not the real mother of Benjamin Whitehead, the little boy who takes the part of Dolly's son, Sam.

It's a relationship which Jean has worked hard at ever since three-year-old Ben joined the series as a baby.

One of her secrets was getting to know Ben's parents, Richard and Susan Whitehead, who own a butcher's shop in Otley.

And the Whiteheads took to Jean so much they asked her to become Ben's godmother.

Jean, who is divorced, goes to playgroup with Ben and his real mum and has become deeply involved in promoting the Pre-school Playgroups Association.

"Ben and I know each other well so now he acts perfectly naturally when he's in a scene with me," says Jean.

"The rest of the cast, too, make an effort to know him and win his confidence, which makes filming a lot easier."

Ben is so relaxed, that unlike some children, he doesn't mind if his mum isn't around on the set.

She goes off into another room and watches her son in action on a monitor.

Viewers can look forward to some authentic scenes when the new addition to the Skilbeck family comes along.

Sam's arrival was heralded as a great acting achievement for Jean, who said she just relied on her unforgettable experiences while giving birth to her own children.

"I think I gave the acting performance of my life that day," says Jean. "I let my mind go back to my own children's births and practically lived through them again.

"At the end I was quite exhausted. The nurse said I'd been so convincing she felt she should be handing me a new-born baby.

"And one cameraman was so overcome by my gasps, straining and cries, he felt ill and had to rush off for a glass of water!"

[Andy's note: Actress Helen Weir, Pat Sugden in Emmerdale Farm, became pregnant in real life at the time of the Dolly pregnancy storyline. Helen's pregnancy was written into the plot, and, sadly, there was room for only one baby on set, so Dolly's screen pregnancy ended in a miscarriage.]

A PAIR OF JACKS

The original Jack Sugden was played by Andrew Burt. The call of literature led to Jack cutting his ties with Emmerdale Farm and floating off to Rome to write a book of poetry.

However, Annie Sugden's elder son returned to the fold in the shape of Clive Hornby and revived his interest in the land... only to land the family with a few problems born of Jack's single-mindedness.

Andrew Burt, after leaving the series, went on to play many other TV roles.

So, two of the central characters up at the farm were boldly recast in 1980! Around and about the village, the Yorkshire Evening Post Emmerdale Farm 1,000th episode supplement noted a couple of other face changes...

TOM TOM

The two actors who played the roguish Tom Merrick have also portrayed characters on the right side of the law. Edward Peel, the first Tom, is now to be seen as Chief Inspector Perrin in "Juliet Bravo", and Jack Carr, the second Tom Merrick who did a stretch in jail, played a police sergeant in "Coronation Street".

Merrick, who has disappeared again, probably to the oil rigs, is the father of Sandie and for a long time thought he was Jackie's Dad until it was revealed Jack Sugden had sired him in a long-ago affair with Pat.

[Andy's note: Tom was also played by actor David Hill in the show's early days. ]

Walter altered

Another "double", of course, was the two Walters....

Geoffrey Hooper was the original silent*, bar-propping regular at the Woolpack, but sadly, he died some time ago, and he was replaced by the present Walter, former music hall entertainer Al Dixon.

*In actual fact, Geoffrey Hooper's Walter often spoke.

Al Dixon As Silent Walter Of The Woolpack...

Here's Walter, the silent Woolpack regular, played by Al Dixon from episode 597, broadcast in September 1980. The character last appeared onscreen in December 1985. Mr Dixon had previously posed as Jacob Sugden with Sheila Mercier for a "props" photograph of Annie and her husband, Jacob, used in the original farmhouse set back in the show's early days.

During the 1,000th episode celebration programme in 1985, Al Dixon, who attended the celebration despite being in very poor health, was interviewed by Richard Whiteley who made reference to Mr Dixon never having spoken in 13 years in the show! This may have been an error, or a slightly confusing reference to Al's two silent Emmerdale incarnations - as Jacob Sugden in the photograph on the mantelpiece at the farm in the early days, and as Walter from 1980 onwards.

Sheila Mercier states in her autobiography, Annie's Song (1994), that she was unhappy with the choice of Al for her photographic husband. She wrote: "I thought that Annie should have a great lion of a man for a husband".

"Sunday Mirror", June 1983 - "I'd be out of 'Emmerdale' if I ever spoke any lines."

Al Dixon was the not the first actor to play a Woolpack Walter. Both Amos and Mr Wilks are seen chatting to a very different-looking Walter in episode clips from 1977 recently featured on YouTube and I have recently seen episodes from early 1980 featuring this "other Walter".

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Actor Geoffrey Hooper was the first Woolpack Walter and, although various publications published since his reign proclaim him as being "silent", he did actually speak - quite often. From examples of episodes avalable to me and my readers, he broke the news to The Woolpack that there had been a train crash at the junction in 1976, and I'm reliably informed he told Annie Sugden at a village dance that he'd rather be having a drink with Amos. In an episode broadcast in early 1980 he told Amos he'd have a half pint of beer, not his usual pint! When Geoffrey Hooper died, The Woolpack was Walter-less for several months, before producer Anne W Gibbons decided that a new version was needed, as there was a tradition of having a Walter at the pub.

The Al (short for Albert) Dixon version debuted in September 1980 and was, of course, usually absolutely silent. I heard him mutter "Thank you" once in his very early days and he laughed out loud at Amos' plans to undertake some plumbing at The Woolpack in 1981 - but apart from that! Fans petitioned for him to speak, but Al Dixon thought it best not - or the character wouldn't be a novelty any more.

A clipping from the 1985 "Yorkshire Evening Post" "Emmerdale Farm 1,000!" supplement. Geoffrey Hooper's Walter was known to break his silence!

1983: Amos (Ronald Magill) was Walter's genial host.

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Amos and his business partner Mr Wilks (Arthur Pentelow) with Walter - another shot from 1983.

Although Al Dixon's version of Walter hardly ever spoke, he had a highly expressive face and was one of my favourite Emmerdale Farm characters - one of Beckindale's unsung heroes of the 1980s. Sitting at the bar, supping his pint whilst the action went on all round him, he was absolutely priceless!

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So, to sum up, Geoffrey Hooper was the Woolpack Walter of the mid-1970s to 1980, and Al Dixon was the Woolpack Walter of September 1980 to December 1985. There was another Walter in Emmerdale Farm, and he was on-screen earlier than either of the bar-propping Walters. Meadows White played a Beckindale Walter in episode seventeen in 1972, and in one or two subsequent early episodes. That particular Walter wasn't in the Woolpack, nor particularly quiet!

As Mr Dixon had such a distinctive face and was usually so absolutely silent, it is hard to know if he was supposed to be a continuation of Geoffrey Hooper's Walter character or simply another Woolpack regular with the same name. And the delightful thing was, as the two Walters were not fully-fledged characters whose lives were detailed in the show, you could believe what you liked!

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"Daily Mirror", 23 May, 1985.

A TV TIMES tribute to Mr Dixon, published after his death in 1986. He had been in showbusiness for 74 years.

1986: A Fond Farewell To Walter!

Al Dixon as Walter in one of his last "Emmerdale Farm" appearances in 1985.

Al Dixon became the Woolpack's second Walter in September 1980 - rather quirkier than the first, and also rather more silent! Mr Dixon, from his debut onwards, stood out as a memorable face in The Woolpack crowd.

The second Walter became a much loved feature of the series. Then, in the autumn of 1985, Al Dixon suffered a stroke. It was hoped, initially, that he would recover and be able to return to the Woolpack bar in the near future. In the meantime, advance location filming kept Walter on screen (outside the Woolpack and at the village hall) until Christmas.

A cover story was needed to explain Walter's absence at the Woolpack. In an episode broadcast in January 1986, Harry Mowlam commented: "No Walter today?"

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Amos: "Nay, 'e's not 'ere."

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Harry: "So I can see."

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Amos: "Walter, I regret to say, has gone down South - Worthing. Humph! He'll be there weeks an' all. Oh, I know 'e'll be glad to see 'is sister, but I'm not sure what 'e'll make of all them fancy licenced 'ouses down there - I think yer know what I mean!"

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Al Dixon's death in March 1986 put paid to any hopes of a return to Beckindale for Walter.

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As far as I know, Walter was not killed off in the show.

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So, I'm left to conclude that the Sussex sea air, the Worthing public houses and his sister's cooking were very much to his liking!

1988: Amos, Seth, A Hot Air Balloon And A Dead Rabbit...

Amos, Seth and Walter at the Woolpack in 1983. Sadly, Walter last appeared in 1985, and actor Al Dixon, who stepped into the role c. 1980, died in 1986. But Amos and Seth's continuing feuds and rivalries made the whole of the '80s decade in Beckindale simply wonderful to watch!

From the Sun newspaper, September 15, 1988:

The balloon goes up at Beckindale Fete as Seth sets out to prove that Amos' tales of daredevil flying are so much hot air.

From the same edition of the Sun - what's all this about Amos, Seth and a dead rabbit?! Does any reader know the full details of this and/or the 1988 Beckindale Fete episode? If so, please drop me a line!

1981: Amos And The Cube - An Original Back To Beckindale Short Story - Part 1

“They say it’s going to be the next big thing, Mr Wilks,” said Amos.

Henry looked doubtfully at the small plastic cube, composed of even smaller plastic cubes, six different colours, sitting on the bar top. “They do? Who’s they?”

“Those in the know,” said Amos, puffing himself up. “The trend watchers at the Courier. We’re in for a fascinating new era, Mr Wilks, a fascinating new era of computers and microbe technology. The Year 2000’s just round the corner.”

Henry let the “microbe” and the fact that the Year 2000 was in fact nineteen years away pass without comment, and picked up the cube. “So, what do you do with it?”

“You twist it,” said Amos.

Henry gingerly tried to twist the cube. Crrrk, it went.

“Hmm, very impressive,” said Henry. “You could amuse yourself for hours. Pretty colours!”

Amos sniffed. “Mr Wilks, I’d thank you not to poke fun at what you don’t understand. That cube is a mathematical masterpiece. It’s got…. Oh, BILLIONS of combinations and you’ve got to get each side ’t same colour.”

“Oh, I see!” Henry was grateful for the chink of light. “Well, why didn’t you say so? Bit like one o’ them Chinese puzzles, isn’t it? Piece of cake, Amos. I’ll have it done in no time…”

“Where’s Henry?” asked Joe Sugden some hours later, lifting a foaming pint pot of Monk’s finest to his parched lips.

“He’s in’t back,” said Amos. “Trying to do the Rubik Cube.”

“Oh, you’ve got one of them things!” Joe grinned. “There’s a couple going around amongst the Estate workers. They reckon it’s going to be the next big thing.”

“I reckon they’re right. Mind you, us journalistic types have to keep our finger on the pulse of events, so to speak,” said Amos, puffing himself up a little. “It’s come from’t behind’t Iron Curtain, Joe. Imagine that!”

Henry appeared from the back room.

“Henry, I hear you’ve been doing one of them cube thingies,” called Joe cheerfully. “Have you managed it?”

“No I have not!” said Henry, uncharacteristically sharp. “Three hours and not even one side done. And yet it looks so easy… like a tiny tot’s toy!”

“I told you, Mr Wilks!” said Amos, “I said, didn’t I, as ’ow it were mathematical? Work o’ genius, I’ve heard. It takes a special kind of mind to work out all the perlitations.”

Henry let “perlitations” pass. “And I suppose you have that kind of mind?” he queried.

“Eh?!” Amos hadn’t anticipated this.

“The cube - you can do it,” Henry elaborated obligingly.

“Aye, well… I haven’t done yet,” Amos admitted. “But I only got it yesterday. I’ve not had time to get to grips with it, as it were. But I’ve a very logical mind, you know that, Mr Wilks… Now then, Walter, another pint is it?” He escaped, gratefully.

Henry and Joe chuckled together.

Over the next couple of months, the Rubik’s Cube did indeed become the “next big thing”, just as Amos’ source at the Hotten Courier had predicted. The craze gripped local school kids the most - and it was reckoned that Andy Longthorn could “do” the cube in 53 seconds. There was some interest amongst the elders of Beckindale.

“People have got far too much time on their hands, that’s the trouble!” said Sam Pearson, “Getting all het up over kiddies’ toys - whatever next!”

Amos, who had been toying with a Lady Diana Spencer and Prince Charles cube behind the Woolpack counter bridled. “It’s got some of the world’s finest brains baffled!” he said.

“Well, Sharon Henshaw from below Demdyke can do it and, good girl though she is, I’d hardly call her a genius,” said Sam. “She’s only nine-years-old!”

“Amos has a book on the subject - and we still can’t do it,” said Henry. “I can manage one side, but that’s it.”

Amos glowered at him for this piece of treachery - fancy telling Sam Pearson that! It was at this point that Seth Armstrong came in. “Can I have a word, Amos?”

“I’m busy!” Amos snapped. “Mr Wilks will serve you!”

“I’ve a message for you from’t Malt Shovel,” said Seth, gravely.

“And what have you been doin’ at the Malt Shovel?” Amos demanded

“Oh, I ’aven’t been in,” said Seth quickly. “I saw Ernie Shuttleworth in’t post office just now.”

“Well, what’s this message?” Amos sniffed.

“I’d tell you, Amos, but I’m a bit parched,” said Seth. “I got all the way up to Primrose Dingle this mornin’ and found me flask ’ad sprung a leak. I’ve ’ad nowt to drink since breakfast…”

He made strange rasping noises deep in his throat to labour the point.

Amos was not about to submit to this outrageous piece of blackmail, but Henry stepped in. “Have a pint with me, Seth.”

“That’s right kind of yer, 'Enry,” said Seth, beaming. “You’ve a good ’eart, so you ’ave. Our Meg were only sayin’ this mornin’…”

“Never mind all that,” said Amos, icily. “You said you ’ad a message from Ernie Shuttleworth.”

“Oh, aye, that’s right. Now what were it now…” Seth was thoroughly enjoying Amos’ agony of curiosity. “Oh, that’s it - he wants to hold a contest wi’t’ Woolpack - Rubik Cube, he sez. Reckons he’s the got the champion Cubist of Beckindale as a regular at t’ Malt Shovel.”

“A contest?!” Amos made it sound obscene.

“Aye, that’s right - his best Cube man against Woolpack’s best Cube man,” said Seth and took a long swig of his pint.

“But we ’aven’t got…” started Henry.

Amos broke in: “Ahem, Mr Wilks! Tell Ernie Shuttleworth if he wants to ring me here we’ll confirm the details, Seth Armstrong. I‘m sure these licenced premises can hold their own in any contest wi’t Malt Shovel!”

Henry was agape: “But Amos!”

“I got the potatoes like you asked, Mr Wilks,” Amos was being very cool. “So if you want to make a start on the shepherd’s pie…”

“Annie’s recipe is that?” asked Sam.

“That’s right,” said Amos. “Mr Wilks?”

Henry sighed. “Oh, all right!” But as he went through to the back room to begin his task, he was sure of one thing: the Woolpack had no “champion Cubist” amongst its regulars. Henry was the best at the Cube in that establishment, and he could only complete one side of the blasted thing. What on earth was Amos playing at?

And, truth to tell, as Amos held his head high and discussed the virtues of Annie’s shepherd’s pie recipe with Sam, he didn’t really know either.

But if the likes of Ernie Shuttleworth thought they were going to get the better of him in any way, shape or form, they had another think coming!

Meanwhile, one of the Cubes sat happily beside old Walter’s pint pot, a multi-coloured jumble. It kept catching Amos’ eye, and finally he tucked it away under the bar. If he hadn’t known better, he would have sworn it was mocking him. It looked so simple, as Mr Wilks had said, just like a tiny tot’s toy. “Come on, solve me - surely you can?” it seemed to be saying.

And yet nobody at the Woolpack could.

And now Amos had committed the pub to a contest with the Malt Shovel, and Ernie Shuttleworth was bragging of having a “champion cubist” supping there.

Amos groaned inwardly: “Oh ’eck!”

PART TWO COMING SOON! Read the history of the Rubik's Cube here.

Screen Captures Request

I've had an e-mail from Tom requesting some larger screen captures of Amos, Mr Wilks and Walter. A pleasure, Tom - above we see Amos and Mr Wilks in 1983. Amos had been out the night before to a licenced victuallers' "do" and is suffering from a hang... er, sorry, I mean "nervous exhaustion". Mr Wilks' offer of a delicious full English breakfast is not appreciated.

1983 again - a typical evening at the Woolpack.

A final visit to 1983 (for this post!) - Walter soaks up the happy atmosphere at the Woolpack. Al Dixon stepped into this role c. 1980 and appeared until 1985. He is still fondly remembered.