What do you do when you're a ghost with time on your hands? Start an agency hiring out ghosts, of course. Rentaghost haunted BBC One's children's schedule from 1976 to 1984, and many of us remember the theme tune long before anything else.
The agency
The idea came from writer Bob Block. Fred Mumford has recently died, and as a ghost he is no better at business than he was alive. He sets up Rentaghost, an agency offering spooks for hire, from a small office rented from the long-suffering Harold Meaker.
The jobs always went wrong. The ghosts appeared and vanished at the worst possible moments, and the Meakers spent nine series trying to explain the chaos to their neighbours.
The ghosts and friends
- Anthony Jackson as Fred Mumford, the first ghost
- Michael Staniforth as Timothy Claypole, a mischievous medieval jester
- Michael Darbyshire as Hubert Davenport, a Victorian gentleman
- Edward Brayshaw as Harold Meaker
- Ann Emery as Ethel Meaker
- Sue Nicholls as Nadia Popov, who vanished every time she sneezed
- Molly Weir as Hazel the McWitch
And then there was Dobbin, the pantomime horse, who became one of the show's best-loved characters without ever saying a word.
Pure children's TV magic
Rentaghost was knockabout comedy for after school. It used simple video effects for appearances and disappearances, slapstick and silly costumes, and it didn't mind being a bit ridiculous. Claypole in particular, bouncing around in his jester's outfit, was a favourite with children.
The cast changed a lot over the years. Later series brought in characters such as Catastrophe Kate, a ghost from the Wild West, and a new landlord, Adam Painting, played by Christopher Biggins.
A small connection
Anthony Jackson, who played Fred Mumford, was also Trevor, Sid's neighbour in Bless This House. Ann Emery, who played Mrs Meaker, was the sister of comedian Dick Emery.
Can you still sing the theme tune?