I actually cried today when I heard that Victoria Wood had died.
And it's rare that the death of a celebrity will do that to me.
Victoria scratched around for some years before finding fame, winning New Faces and singing her way through a brief stint on That's Life!
But then came the '80s...
Back, back, back in the early 1980s, Victoria starred in a Granada Television comedy sketch series with her friend Julie Walters called Wood and Walters.
Well, it didn't greatly impress me and I soon forgot it.
But, in 1985, with more creative control of her own over a new series, she returned to my telly screen - this time on the BBC.
And this time she was marvellous.
Victoria Wood - As Seen On TV.
Here was a show written by a woman which did not exclude men. Victoria had fun with human foibles of either gender, but there was no misandrist nonsense here.
This was a show for everybody.
And I loved it...
Bessie!... The Trivia Pursuit obsessed flatmates... Shopping... the guy with the telephone deodorising service... At The Chippie... Margery and Joan... Knock Knock On Your Knocker... Kitty... Let's Do It... Acorn Antiques... "It's Tofu" and so much more...
"Is it on the trolley?"
"They got on to politics, I ended up watching Take The High Road with the sound down."
"Never touch prawns, they hang around sewage outlet pipes, treading water, with their mouths open - they love it!"
"All the way to Nottingham, all the way back..."
Victoria Wood - As Seen On TV brought Miss Wood stardom. And it was well deserved.
Victoria was a wit unequalled. And I always felt that if I'd ever met her I wouldn't be awe stricken (not like I was when I met Bill Waddington, Percy Sugden from Corrie!). No, Victoria seemed wise, witty, puzzled by life, funny, down to earth and a kind of absentee friend really.
I will miss her.
Our main blog post on Victoria Wood - As Seen On TV , from 2009, can be found here - http://80sactual.blogspot.co.uk/2009/02/victoria-wood-as-seen-on-tv.html
And here we honour Victoria's fabulous comic creation Miss Babs of Acorn Antiques - http://80sactual.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/soap-opera-heroines-of-1980s-no-1-miss.html
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