Hallelujah! (1981–1984)

TV ShowEndedITV1Comedy2 seasons, 15 episodes
Hallelujah! poster
Trailers & clips

Plot

Hallelujah! was a British sitcom made by Yorkshire Television for the ITV network and was broadcast from April 1983 to December 1984. The series was set in a Salvation Army citadel in the fictional Yorkshire town of Brigthorpe during series 1. Captain Emily Ridley has been posted there, having been an active member of the Salvation Army for 42 years. Despite the town and residents being seemingly pleasant, Emily is determined to flush out sin from behind the net curtains. Assisting Emily are her niece Alice Meredith. The programme was a repeat collaboration between Hird and the creator Dick Sharples, having worked together on the comedy series In Loving Memory between 1979 and 1986. The show even featured guest appearances from guest stars like Hird's Last of the Summer Wine co-star actor Michael Aldridge and television presenter & Countdown Legend Richard Whiteley Himself.

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Episodes by season

Season017Episodes1981Aired—Season avg
  1. S01E01RetirementJune 3, 1981—For 42 years, Emily Ridley has fought a tireless battle against the Devil and his works. Now, it seems her uncompromising brand of evangelis
  2. S01E02RepentanceJune 10, 1981—Emily believes that Brigthorpe is teeming with unrepentant sinners. Persuading them to turn their backs on the Devil is proving more difficu
  3. S01E03CounsellingMay 13, 1983—Emily's first counselling session confirms her very worst fears: behind the net curtains of the pleasant little town is a snake pit of origi
  4. S01E04Poor BoxJune 24, 1981—Emily's latest door-to-door collection for the poor yields little more than £1.20, two 'drop dead's and an improper suggestion. Then she ope
  5. S01E05Luncheon ClubJuly 1, 1981—Emily's new Senior Citizens' Luncheon Club gets off to a flying start - with an even more interesting finish.
  6. S01E06Mobile CanteenJuly 8, 1981—Emily takes delivery of a new mobile canteen, but attempts to offer tea, sympathy and a bowl of soup to the poor and needy don't work out qu
  7. S01E07Struck DownJuly 15, 1981—With Emily in hospital, struck down by a renegade ham sandwich, Sisters Alice Meredith and Dorothy Smith are left to run the Citadel. Their

Season 1 ranked & reviewed

Season028Episodes1983–84Aired—Season avg
  1. S02E01Marching OrdersApril 29, 1983—Captain Emily Ridley receives her marching orders to take up a new posting, but to where? To another northern Sodom or Gomorrah - or to the
  2. S02E02Just a Song at TwilightMay 6, 1983—Emily puts the Sally Army's reputation at stake when she agrees to compete in a musical festival - without a band, singers, or even a comb a
  3. S02E03Holy DeadlockMay 13, 1983—Despite weeks of fighting the good fight, Emily still hasn't saved a single soul. Then she hits the jackpot of original sin.
  4. S02E04The Snake Pit (Part One)November 23, 1984—Emily is convinced she is about to get her longawaited promotion, but what she actually gets is something rather different.
  5. S02E05The Snake Pit (Part Two)November 30, 1984—Accused of running her citadel like a house of ill repute, Captain Emily Ridley's Sally Army career seems to be almost over...
  6. S02E06Rock BottomJune 3, 1983—Songster, Alice Meredith tries to save a middle-aged dropout from himself, but is Brother Gibson quite what he appears?
  7. S02E07It Happened One NightJune 10, 1983—The secrets of Captain Emily Ridley's private life are about to be revealed...
  8. S02E08A Goose For Mrs. Scratchit (1984 Christmas Special)December 21, 1984—Captain Ridley attempts to explain to a group of children what Christmas used to be like, using as illustration the tale of Ebenezer Dickins

Season 2 ranked & reviewed

Cast

Patsy Rowlands
Patsy RowlandsSister Alice MeredithThora HirdThora HirdCaptain Emily Ridley

Photos

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Hallelujah!

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