WARREN CUMMINGS on television characters and likeability.

First broadcast on FAB RADIO INTERNATIONAL at 19:00 on June 15th 2025.

Likeability is an elusive thing. I certainly have spent a lot of my life not feeling that I have any of it, but on television, the likeability, or otherwise, of the characters, the situation, or even the programme itself can have a lot of bearing upon whether a show is ultimately successful, or memorable, and the likability of the stars, or the characters they are playing, can shape or break careers in the area of comedy, drama, and light entertainment alike.

Many TV personalities have benefitted from the perception of likeability that the general public has about them, and many have risen to great heights in the public consciousness, and some have fallen just as quickly if that likeability gets scratched away or is revealed to be nothing more than a light veneer.

Similarly, some great and popular TV shows have become forgotten once their likeability has faded and the whims of a fickle public have moved onto other things.

But what exactly is “likeability” anyway. Some dreadful people have become the Nation’s Favourites, and some truly depressing television programmes have somehow seized the public’s affections and become runaway hits despite looking appallingly unlikeable when they first appear.

I’ve recently been watching a couple of seventies sitcoms that still bear the distinction of being “much loved” featuring performances by “much loved” actors playing “much loved” characters, despite those characters, with the benefit of hindsight, being some of television’s most selfish and monstrous creations.

To discuss this quandary, I’ve invited back the always likeable WARREN CUMMINGS, for what I hope is an entertaining conversation which takes this notion as our starting point, and which takes us on a journey which considers the pros and cons of such likeable characters as TOM & BARBARA GOOD, TERRY MEDFORD, DEN & ANGIE WATTS, BERT LYNCH, THE MASTER, BLAKE’S SEVEN, ALF GARNETT, and even ANGELA RIPPON.

PLEASE NOTE - For Copyright reasons, musical content sometimes has to be removed for the podcast edition. All the spoken word content remains (mostly) as it was in the broadcast version. Hopefully this won't spoil your enjoyment of the show.