Enn Reitel recalls The Optimist with hopes for a DVD release

Video Feature: Enn Reitel hopes to be The Optimist once more…

The video (which you can see below) is part of a campaign to help fund the DVD release of The Optimist, the programme was written and produced by Robert Sidaway across two series in the early 1980s. Robert has also been busy promoting the venture with memories of his time on shows such as Crossroads and Doctor Who.

Enn Reitel as Nigel in The Optimist follows a bumbling everyman who inevitably finds himself in extraordinary situations. In the first series, Nigel’s American adventures see him in a gunfight at a Wild West ranch; entering a mini Grand Prix; enduring a stay at the world’s strictest health farm, and duelling his way across Hollywood.

The final series sees Nigel back in London where he dances in Swan Lake; becomes involved in international espionage, and inherits a crumbling mansion with some very strange relatives! For Crossroads fans the second series also has an appearance by Annette Lynton who played Helen Booth in the soap.

Related Feature: Robert Sidaway remembers Crossroads

The programme was the very first situation comedy commissioned by Channel 4, and two dialogue-free series were broadcast between 1983-5.

One of the most ambitious and ground-breaking British television comedies, it was filmed in Mexico, the USA, and the United Kingdom. The programme was nominated for The Golden Rose of Montreux in 1985. All thirteen episodes of The Optimist are being released on a 2-DVD set via Kickstarter.

All supporters will have their names credited in the booklet, and this should be a fascinating addition to any collection. Signed copies will also be available.