The Vital Spark is a BBC Scotland television series set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the Para Handy books by Neil Munro. It starred Roddy McMillan as Peter "Para Handy" MacFarlane, captain of the puffer Vital Spark.
The series followed the Vital Spark's adventures around the coastal waters of west Scotland and the various schemes that Para Handy would get himself and his crew involved in.
The comedy was first broadcast in August 1965 as an episode of the BBC’s Comedy Playhouse series. Following this two series, of six and seven episodes respectively, were commissioned by BBC Scotland and transmitted in early 1966, and autumn 1967. Both series were made in black-and-white. Of these only "A Drop O’ The Real Stuff" survives.[1] In March 1973 an hour-long TV Special was made, in colour, featuring the same cast. After the success of this, a further six episodes (essentially remakes of previous scripts but in a more contemporary setting) were commissioned, broadcast in autumn 1974. Four of the seven colour episodes survive complete.[2]
^"Missing or incomplete episodes for programme The Vital Spark". Lost Shows. Kalidescope. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
^"Missing or incomplete episodes for programme The Vital Spark". Lost Episodes. Kaleidoscope. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
TheVitalSpark is a fictional Clyde puffer, created by Scottish writer Neil Munro. As its captain, the redoubtable Para Handy, often says: "the smertest...
TheVitalSpark is a BBC Scotland television series set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the Para Handy books by Neil Munro. It...
things." Where vitalism explicitly invokes a vital principle, that element is often referred to as the "vitalspark", "energy", "élan vital" (coined by vitalist...
He is the crafty Gaelic skipper of theVitalSpark, a Clyde puffer (steamboat) of the sort that delivered goods from Glasgow to Loch Fyne, the Hebrides...
small captain's cabin in the stern. When publication of theVitalSpark stories began in 1905 the ship's wheel was still in the open, but later a wheelhouse...
involved transporting a bull aboard theVitalSpark, trying to marry Sunny Jim off, avoiding the sale of theVitalSpark by Campbell and being held hostage...
television series, TheVitalSpark. He also played the lead role in Edward Boyd's private eye series, The View from Daniel Pike. The Glasgow-born McMillan...
"That Spark of Life", a 1943 novel by Pavel Bazhov Spark of Life (album), a 2014 album by Marcin Wasilewski Vitalism, the belief in a "vitalspark" of life...
Left the Building in 1996. Rainbow produced Wolfstone's album The Half Tail in 1996. Rainbow built and ran theVitalSpark Music Studio on the Isle of...
Beat of Love – 1981 The Things That You Dream – 1983 I Am – 1988 Every Now and Then – 1990 The Third Child – 1994 TheVitalSpark – 1994 (Alternate title:...
of the soul: Khet or the "physical body" Sah or the "spiritual body" Ren or the "name, identity" Ba or the "personality" Ka or the "double" or "vital essence"...
A Boy (Space Theatre) Cinder Eddie & the Sleeping (Space Theatre) TheVitalSpark (Wet Arts Theatre) Death & the Maiden (C'est Tous Theatre) Romeo & Juliet...
Clyde puffer captain. The story was inspired by Neil Munro's short stories of theVitalSpark and her captain, Para Handy. The Maggie is an aged Clyde...
Obi-Wan: the reclusive master. ...Thevitalspark in the musical emergence of Dr. Luke was meeting Max Martin". Dr. Luke himself says of the chemistry...
actor at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and his early work includes an appearance on the first series of TheVitalSpark (in the only surviving...
"Work and Play" / "Saved by the Bell" (1982) "Price You Pay" / "The Groove Line" (1983) - UK No. 56 "Tear Soup" / "TheVitalSpark" (1983) - UK No. 66 "Tuesday...
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