‘THE GRAND ILLUSION’

Please feel free to comment on my review.

This is a fun ‘It Ain’t Half Hot Mum’ episode where Sgt-Major ‘SHUT UP’ Williams gets into trouble and the Concert Party help him out of a scrape. It’s interesting to see the Concert Party help the Sgt-Major out of a scrape, especially when he can be so hard and mean on them. It’s also quite hilarious.

The Sgt-Major goes to Bombay and Rangi Ram accompanies him. On the train, he meets another Company Sgt-Major – David Lodge as Sgt-Major Sharp. Sharp is just as bad as Williams, especially when bossing Rangi Ram on the train and dismissing the merchants selling things aboard the train. 😐

I don’t know if all Sgt-Majors were like that in the army with bossing soldiers about. It’s a contrast to how officers like Reynolds and Ashwood can be with being quite mild-mannered in the series. Incidentally, David Lodge has been in two ‘On the Buses’ episodes and 1970’s ‘The Railway Children’.

Saad Ghazi plays a book-reading Wallah on the train and Rudolph Ramillo plays a watch-selling Wallah. When on the train, Sgt-Major Williams brags to Sharp about his men at the Deolali camp being crack shots. Unfortunately, Williams gets into trouble when Sharp decides to visit the camp. 😐

Williams panics of course, but help is at help. The night before, the Concert Party see the Indian rope trick being performed by Minoo Golvala as the magician. Apparently, it involves hypnosis. The only other time I’ve heard of the Indian rope trick mentioned is in the ‘Doctor Who’ story ‘Time-Flight’.

When Sharp visits the Deolali camp, he’s soon hypnotized by Minoo Golvala as the magician into believing that the Concert Party are a tough fighting force. It was funny to watch, especially when all the men had to match the exact same height as Lofty, who’s the smallest of the men in the group. 😀

Williams and Sharp end up on their knees to examine the Concert Party, and Sharp is convinced that they’re crack shots like Williams said. I did wonder whether the magician’s hypnosis on Sharp would really work, so it was quite a surprise to see that nothing was being slipped up in the proceedings. 😀

Gloria also gets chosen to be the new Bombardier of the Concert Party group. Whilst I’m happy for Gloria to get a promotion, what did he do to earn it since he did nothing when he and Parkin went in together? Graham doesn’t get a chance, which is unfair, and Lofty failed pretty miserably in the test.

‘The Grand Illusion’ rating – 8/10