"Never mind the quality, feel the width"I grew up in an extended family and, one night a week, all three generations would crowd round the small black and white television to watch a comedy show about a couple of tailors - one Jewish, the other Irish Catholic.
The show starred John Bluthal and Joe Lynch as two tailors in business together in London's East End. The characters had an uneasy relationship and it often required the intervention of a priest and a rabbi to sort out their differences. According to TV Heaven: "The show was once held up by the World Council of Churches as an example of inter-religious unity."
I was seven or eight when the show was broadcast, so I can't remember much about it, except that it could be very funny. It's difficult to imagine any show dealing with interfaith dialogue in a similar fashion these days. Back then, writers were free to explore ideas around race and religion in ways that just aren't possible today. Some people might think that's a good thing since the writers, Vince Powell and Harry Driver, also brought us "Love Thy Neighbour".
Still, being reminded of "Never mind the quality" brought back many happy childhood memories.
