More classics for Britbox including Rentaghost and Worzel Gummidge Down Under

BritBox January 2022 Highlights…

BritBox today announced box sets and films launching on the service throughout January 2022 including a selection of programmes that will boost their Old School collection. These include Worzel Gummidge Down Under, Ivor the Engine, A Little Princess and additional seasons of Rentaghost and Maid Marian & Her Merry Men amongst others.

BritBox’s vast film collection will also be expanding, with titles such as The Escapist starring Damian Lewis and Dominic Cooper, and Last Orders starring Michael Caine and Helen Mirren, landing on the service at the beginning of the month.

The latest collections added to The Old School Collection arrive on January 6th with A Little Princess series one (1986-87). Sara Crewe enters a London boarding school as a wealthy lady when she bids her father farewell as he enters the British Army, but her lifestyle quickly vanishes when her father suddenly dies, and Sara must endure a life of servitude. Starring Maureen Lipman and Amelia Shankley.

Series one and two of Fantomcat (1995-96) are added and we can join the 17th-century swashbuckling hero Fantom the Cat as he awakens in modern times and helps officers Tabs Wildcat, Mouse MacDuff and Pigeon Lindbergh, fight crime ring leader Marmagora the Giant Spider and her henchmen. Animated series starring Jimmy Hibbert and Lorelei King.

Ivor the Engine in Colour (1976-77) in an exclusive to BritBox these episodes come to the streaming service. In the ‘top-left-hand corner of Wales runs an archaic railway line staffed by such characters as Jones the Steam and Dai Station. Their pride is Ivor, the steam engine with a will of his own and a penchant for such things as looking after dragons in his firebox. Starring Olwen Griffiths, Anthony Jackson and Oliver Postgate.

Another popular series with children and adults alike is Worzel Gummidge Down Under (1987-89) both series will be added following on from the original 1970s Southern Television episodes already on BritBox. The continuing adventures of Worzel Gummidge, the magic scarecrow, only this time he’s in New Zealand! Children’s fantasy series starring Jon Pertwee, Bruce Phillips and Una Stubbs.

More 1990s classics include The Ink Thief (1994), starring Richard O’Brien and Toyah Wilcox, Whizziwig (1998-99) starring Tyler Butterworth and Brian Bovell and Widget (1990) starring Russi Taylor and Jim Cummings.

Maid Marian & Her Merry Men series three and four (1993-94)  and the 1993 Christmas Special joins earlier episodes in the The Old School Collection. The true story of Sherwood Forest is finally revealed: Robin was a cowardly tailor from Kensington, and Marian was the brains behind the Merry Men. With her ruthless band of freedom fighters, Marian seeks to save the villagers of Worksop from the tyranny of King John and his cunning henchman, the Sheriff of Nottingham… Comedy series starring Tony Robinson, Mike Edmonds and Mark Billingham.

If your mansion house needs haunting, just call… Rentaghost (1976) as series one and two haunts the streaming offering, these episodes join the already present series nine. Harold and Ethel Meaker live in South Ealing, and run a business called `Rentaghost’, where they rent ghosts and poltergeists out to the public on a daily or weekly basis. Children’s comedy series starring Michael Staniforth, Edward Brayshaw and Molly Weir.

If you fancy some action classic then Roger Moore is back with more of ITC production for ATV, The Saint. Series five and six (1966-68) come to BritBox from January 6th. The final two series’ of Sir Roger’s crime drama following Simon Templar, a 20th Century Robin Hood, who travels the world to solve the unsolvable and right wrongs committed against the beautiful, wealthy and elite. Also starring Ivor Dean, Leslie Crawford and Justine Lord.

The Saint, behind the scenes with Roger Moore at the Elstree Film and TV studios.

Drama from January 6th also includes the much-loved biopic of Dame Barbara Windsor in 2017’s Babs. Windsor, the Cockney kid with a dazzling smile and talent to match ended up one of Britain’s best-known personalities from Carry On’s to EastEnders. Preparing to perform in the theatre one cold evening in 1993, the cheeky, chirpy blonde Babs recounts the people and events that have shaped her life and career over fifty years from 1943 to 1993. Starring Samantha Spiro and Jaime Winstone. Barbara makes a cameo too.

If its drama based on real-life events then you’ll like 2010’s When Harvey Met Bob. This feature-length drama is about how singer Bob Geldof and promoter Harvey Goldsmith put together Live Aid, the global charity music event. Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Ian Hart and Antonia Campbell-Hughes.

From the 13th January series five and six of Ballykissangel (1999-2001) is added. A young British priest adjusts to life in a rural Irish community where life revolves around the church and the local pub. Everyone knows everyone else’s business, and everyone usually has an opinion on it. While characters come and go, the small-town qualities remain. Starring Stephen Tompkinson, Dervla Kirwan and Tony Doyle.

On January 20th Daphne (2007) can be streamed. Daphne Du Maurier, author of “Rebecca” and “Jamaica Inn,” becomes attracted to the wife of a publisher and to an actress. Biographical drama starring Elizabeth McGovern, Janet McTeer and Geraldine Somerville. On the same day, The Crimson Field series one (2014) also comes to BritBox. During the First World War, Kitty Trevelyan tries to put the past troubles behind her as she joins two other girls to volunteer at one of the busy war hospitals in northern France. Drama series starring Oona Chaplin, Kevin Doyle and Suranne Jones.

January 27th brings us Maxwell (2007) a feature-length television drama based on the life of the media magnate Robert Maxwell, father of Ghislaine; a man obsessed with wealth, power and his rival Rupert Murdoch. He tried everything in a desperate attempt to stop his world from falling apart. But in the end, he was sunk.

Also from January 27th BritBox adds The Gentle Touch (1980-82). Drama series following the life of British Inspector Maggie Forbes as she works in a male-dominated profession. Starring Jill Gascoine, William Marlowe and Paul Moriarty, the first three series will be added to the streaming offering while series one to four of Bugs (1995-99) also comes on the same day.

Ed, Ros, Alex and Beckett form the high-tech crime-fighting team who work for the mysterious, secretive Bureau 2 chief, Jan, and are only assigned the most difficult and dangerous cases. Action-fiction series starring Jaye Griffiths, Jesse Birdsall and Craig McLachlan.

Hotel Portofino (2021) a BritBox Original also is added on January 27th. Starring Natasha McElhone, Hotel Portofino follows a British family who open a hotel for upper class travellers on the magical Italian Riviera during the ‘Roaring 20s’.

The Hotel has only been open a few weeks, but the guests including the imperious Lady Latchmere (Anna Chancellor), are demanding and hard-to-please. Bella Ainsworth (McElhone) the co-proprietor and moving spirit behind the hotel, quickly finds herself being targeted by a scheming and corrupt local politician, Signor Danioni (Pasquale Esposito), who threatens to drag her into the red-hot political cauldron of Mussolini’s Italy.

Babs, the life of Barbara Windsor comes to BritBox.

In documentary, from January 13th, head inside Hampton Court with Hampton Court: Behind Closed Doors series-one (2021). An intimate look behind the scenes of King Henry VIII’s beloved royal palace on the Thames. Now a popular tourist attraction, this series follows the team who care for the palace, its parklands and historic rooms, and who cope with the thousands of visitors every year. Also How We Forgot to Save the Planet (2021). In this irreverent one-off special, comedian Kieran Hodgson explores the history of climate change in Britain. Kieran and an all-star cast guide viewers on a journey to understand how we forgot to save the planet and what we need to do to fix it.

In a 60-year family saga, three-part documentary series Queen Victoria’s Children (2021) explores the reign of Victoria through her personal relationships with her husband and her nine children.

On January 20th The Battle of Britain (2020) is added. Dan Snow and Kate Humble tell the story of the critical aerial battle that changed the course of the Second World War, as the German Luftwaffe amassed large attacks against the RAF to gain air supremacy to land the invasion ‘Operation Sealion’ and all that stands in their way are the brave men and women of the Royal Air Force.

Comedy sees from the 13th January The Wrong Mans (2013-14) Sam Pinkett and Phil Bourne abruptly become entangled in a far-fetched, but the deadly serious web of crime, after Sam answers a ringing phone at the site of a car crash. Both series will be added starring Mathew Baynton and Sarah Solemani. And from January 20th Coupling series one to four (2000-2004) streams. Sitcom following the trials and tribulations of six thirty-somethings struggling with life in general, but above all, relationships. Starring Jack Davenport, Gina Bellman, Sarah Alexander, Kate Isitt and Ben Miles.

Also on the 20th of January Wodehouse in Exile (2013) completes the comedy offering next month. An all-star cast heads up this intimate film about how author, P.G.Wodehouse, came to face a charge of treason during the Second World War and how this quintessential Englishman, creator of Jeeves and Wooster, became an exile from his own country and never set foot on English soil again. Starring Tim Pigott-Smith, Zoë Wanamaker and Curran McKay.

The Film Collection welcomes from January 1st, The Escapist (2008). Frank’s 14 years into a life sentence when he decides to break out of the London prison to set things right with his ill junkie daughter. He plans an ingenious escape requiring 4 inmates with different skills. Starring Damian Lewis, Joseph Fiennes, Liam Cunningham, Dominic Cooper and Brian Cox.

Last Orders (2001) an exclusive to BritBox movie. Charismatic butcher Jack Dodds instructs his lifelong friends to make a special journey in the wake of his death to deliver his ashes to the sea. Starring Michael Caine, Helen Mirren and Ray Winstone. Martha, Meet Daniel, Frank and Laurence (1998) an exclusive to BritBox movie. Three childhood friends all separately fall for cute American Martha and within three days of her arrival at a London airport, their friendship is at risk. Starring Joseph Fiennes, Monica Potter and Rufus Sewell.

From 6th January The Film Collection adds Byzantium (2012). Residents of a coastal town learn, with deadly consequences, the secret shared by two mysterious women who have sought shelter at a local resort. Starring Saoirse Ronan, Gemma Arterton and Sam Riley. High Rise (2015). The lives of the members of a high-rise tower in London run into chaos, violence and murder when a young doctor moves into one of the apartments of the building. Starring Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons and Sienna Miller.

I Give It a Year (2013). Newlywed couple Nat and Josh are deliriously happy despite their differences, though friends and family aren’t convinced that they can last. With their first anniversary approaching and attractive alternatives in the mix, can they last? Starring Rose Byrne, Rafe Spall and Anna Faris. Journeyman (2017). Boxer Matty Burton suffers a serious head injury during a fight. This is the story about the impact on his marriage, his life, and his family. Starring Paddy Considine and Jodie Whittaker. Also Our Kind of Traitor (2016). A couple finds themselves lured into a Russian oligarch’s plans to defect, and are soon positioned between the Russian Mafia and the British Secret Service, neither of whom they can trust. Starring Ewan McGregor, Damian Lewis, Stellan Skarsgård and Nadine Harris.

The 6th of January also sees the arrival of The Mercy (2017). The incredible story of amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst and his solo attempt to circumnavigate the globe. The struggles he confronted on the journey while his family awaited his return is one of the most enduring mysteries of recent times. Starring Colin Firth and Rachel Weisz. The Sense of an Ending (2017). A middle-aged business owner who lives a quiet life in London reunites with his first love after his mother unexpectedly receives a letter from his ex-girlfriend from school which forces him to confront the past. Starring Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling and Emily Mortimer.