This is a classic example of where a great classic British TV series was transformed to the big screen, dragged out for an hour and a half, BUT, superbly edited for the super 8 home screen making it a much better fast moving version, more suited to the length of this reel. We all know this stars one of ~Britain's funniest comedians, sadly no longer with us along with Richard Beckinsale and Fulton Mackay and many other familiar faces from Television of the 70s and 80s. In the USA the film was released as the title Doing Time.
The film, set a year before the final episode of the TV series, includes one of the last appearances by Richard Beckinsale, who played Godber. He died in March 1979, a few weeks after its completion.
The celebrity team arrive in a coach. During the match, Oakes feigns an injury and is taken to the changing rooms where he meets the coach driver, revealed as an accomplice. They exchange clothes and Oakes ties the coach driver up to throw off any suspicion. Shortly afterwards, Godber has a head injury on the field so Fletcher takes him to the changing rooms. Taking no chances, Oakes forces Fletcher and a dazed Godber into the coach's luggage compartment at gunpoint then drives out of the prison under the guise of topping up the fuel.
Oakes meets further accomplices and they drive the three inmates away in another vehicle.
Fletcher tells Oakes that they don't want to escape as he and Godber only have a short time left to serve, and that they won't tell anyone about Oakes plan because it's 'Them and Us'. Oakes releases them and they find a barn to catch their breath. Fletcher explains to Godber that there is possible way that being caught outside ends well for them, the only solution is to break back into prison.
Making their way through fields to sneak back into the coach just as the police let the prison officers take it back to the prison. Once inside the prison walls, both convicts slip out of the coach and smuggle themselves into the prison officers' club storeroom, where Fletcher quickly consumes several bottles of alcohol to become inebriated enough to make their story pass.
Mr Mackay visits them in there cell and tells them that, while the Governor believes they have been locked in the storeroom all day, it doesn't explain the mysterious UFO Sightings (Unidentified Fleeing Objects) and the various happenings they created on their journey. Realising he will never be believed, he tells them that he will always be watching, and that his day will come, as the two chomp on an apple they had taken from a bar, Freeze frame on Fulton’s classic head shrug followed by a small section of the original end titles and Walton did well to include that Cell door Slam right at the end of the last title and before the Walton logo comes up.(this was heard at the start of every tv episode)
A very well edited movie and better for it to in my opinion and of course a great souvenir on Super 8 of a great British TV Series.
The print is excellent with very vibrant colours and excellent sound.

Time to rewatch mine too :-)

A cracking print there Tom of one of the best loved comedy series of the 70's here in the UK.
A time when real comedy was allowed here (The Good Life, love thy neighbour, Rising Damp etc etc etc) ,A time when comedy was king and we here in the UK were the kings of comedy!

A time when you could all rip the piss out of one another with nobody taking offense, just seeing it all for what it was, just having a laugh!
Well it's better than being a miserable ******* isn't it?

Have you noticed how there's almost no traditional sitcoms on telly these days? Too expensive! (I'm in the business) The channels get more bang for their buck with the cheapo house renovation, cookery, 'scripted reality' shite and all that. Depressing.

Too right Andy, all those you mention were all classics and now the PC twats of today say they were shocking and disgusting, my my how a generation can be brainwashed by a bunch of total tossers. Do gooders, the world is full of them mate,
I know a do gooder who went to Africa to help the starving, and they ate him.

Too politically correct, that's the problem Stuart!
Whatever you wrote into a script nowadays to make any comedy, someone somewhere would see their arse and claim they have been offended and violated!
Next news, you'd see them a week later on daytime tv with Lorraine Kelly explaining how traumatized they've become and how only a spot on celebrity big brother will solve the crisis by paying for the therapy with the proceeds!

Andy wahol, eat your heart out!

It wasn't Bob Geldof btw was it Tom? He looks like he has been eaten and spat out again these days!

America can still churn them out though. Any time I catch Frasier on Channel 4 I drop everything to watch it. Mind you, that's probably 20 years old now... :/

I have the full feature of this on optical, lovely print, must dig it out and give it a watch. Totally agree with everything said, you will NEVER see a decent comedy program any more, not without it being completely politically correct, i.e someone has to be gay etc and nobody must be offended. I watch next to no TV anymore, I'm in my 50's and nothing is designed for me at all, just reality crap for the kids.

As we say, the police cant arrest certain people without being called prejudice, TV go on about how many more women there are than men, Government go on about needing more women, who really gives a shit as long as the job is done,
Love thy neighbour,Rising Damp, Porridge, Alf Garnet were all great st coms, along with others like on the buses Please Sir, and every one of them actually stuck up for the minorities and they always came out the winners as the script writers say time and time again in documentaries. If you want to see a great example of someone sticking up for the real world ways go on youtube and tap in Jim Davidson Hells Kitchen and watch that guy try and be all PC, he is completely shot down brilliantly, yet after this Jim had to leave.

This 400 footer is among the best edited of the TV film versions and as you chaps say is classic British comedy, and not a swear word in site, no filth and toilet gags all of which today's comedy is fully reliant on.

Tom, I saw an Abba scope trailer sell on ebay last year, I had to double check the length as it went for around £100.00, I thought it must have been a 400' but no it was just the trailer.

Thats simply lunacy at its best. I most certainly wouldn't pay that, or even half.