YMMV / Hi-de-Hi!

• Alternative Character Interpretation: Jeffrey is being divorced by his wife, and is always turning down Gladys. Either he's simply at the end of a bad marriage, and understandably terrified of Gladys, or he's gay, or he simply doesn't fancy her.
• Base-Breaking Character: Gladys. To some, she is a rather detestable character, whose selfishness, nastiness towards the other female staff and having Spike and Ted dumping praise on her at every chance they get, nudge her into Jerk Sue territory. On the other hand, to some, her sensitivity and misfortune of being in love with a man who has little to no interest in her make her a sympathetic Jerkass Woobie.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: Peggy. The audience adores her. Su Pollard gets more applause and cheers from the audience than the rest of the cast put together.
• Fridge Brilliance: Maybe the reason Clive can't take anything seriously is due to all the horror he saw in World War II? You don't get to be a Squadron Leader and earn a DFC by shuffling paper at a supply depot in Sidcup, so he may have seen a lot of horrific things.
• Jerkass Woobie: Pretty much a show full of them, nearly every bitter and unpleasant character has a reason behind their actions.
  • Ted is immoral, dishonest and greedy, but he is a lowly comic who never made it to the big time, who's desperate to move up in his career, knowing any window for advancement is rapidly closing. He's been on camp for twenty years by this point and knows he's not a young man anymore. All his efforts to move up end badly. And to top it off his marriage fell apart a long time ago, but he's still giving out alimony.
  • Mr Partridge is certainly a foul mouthed, mean and bitter man who hates kids. But he is also a former big time entertainer, whose career was ruined by an injury he suffered during World War I. Likewise he's well aware that he's at the end of his rope, and is crushed by the fact that all he has left is performing Punch and Judy shows for children that he hates. It's also well drove him to drink by this point.
  • Yvonne and Barry, both are snooty, elitist and crass. But at the same time even Jeffrey admits a level of sympathy for them, as they are former champion dancers, left with no other prospects but carrying on a job they hate.
• Retroactive Recognition:
  • Val from Series 2 is played by Gail Harrison, who would later be best known for playing Isobel Hardacre in Brass.
  • Harold Fox is played by Gavin Richards, who would later be best known for playing Captain Bertorelli in 'Allo 'Allo! and Terry Raymond in EastEnders.
  • Winifred Dempster is played by Mavis Pugh, who would later be best known for playing Lady Lavender in You Rang, M'Lord?.
  • The Hulk from "The Society Entertainer" is played by Arthur Bostrom, who would later be best known for playing Officer Crabtree in 'Allo 'Allo!.
  • Doreen from "Wedding Bells" is played by Barbara New, who would later be best known for playing Mabel Wheeler in You Rang, M'Lord?.
  • Three guest characters from between 1984 and 1988 are played by Brenda Cowling, who would later be best known for playing Mrs. Lipton in You Rang, M'Lord?.
  • A bailiff from "Trouble and Strife" is played by John D. Collins, who would later be best known for playing Fairfax in 'Allo 'Allo!.
  • Trevor from "Tell It to the Marines" is played by Perry Benson, who would later be best known for playing Henry Livingstone in You Rang, M'Lord?, while Trevor's father, Charlie, is played by Mike Burns, who would later be best known for playing Colin Weatherby in The Brittas Empire.
  • The panicky camper from "Who Killed Mr Partridge?" is played by Robin Parkinson, who would later be best known for playing the third LeClerc in 'Allo 'Allo!.
  • A man from "Lift Up Your Minds" is played by Roy Heather, who would later be best known for playing Sid in Only Fools and Horses.
• Tear Jerker: In "Peggy's Big Chance" things look like they finally could be going Peggy's way. Jeffrey arranges for her to have an appointment with one of the entertainment manages visiting from head office, finally giving her a chance to become a Yellowcoat. To try and impress him, she volunteers to play the shark in a whole new performance at the pool for the visitors, despite them still working out the specifics. Sure enough the performance goes horribly wrong and Jeffrey is forced to stop the events due to Peggy nearly drowning. To add insult to injury, it turns out the entertainment manager's train was delayed and he never saw her try. Later her interview fails miserably (though Peggy herself is not told this, but is left under the impression that they will keep her in mind), Jeffrey gets the call just before Peggy turns up to thank him for the opportunity, and tries to remain positive promising to keep on trying, all the while clearly on the verge of tears. Even Gladys, who spent the whole time dismissing her chances, clearly feels sorry for her.
• Values Dissonance: One episode has Ted reveal he was a member of a blackface minstrel group in the late 1940s. Granted, we never see a flashback or image of him in blackface, but even mentioning blackface in a non satirical or ironic manner wouldn't fly today.
• The Woobie:
  • Peggy is a lowly scullery maid who dreams of being a Yellowcoat, but is held back by class boundaries. She never gives up in her dream, but her every effort seems doomed to failure. She finally succeeds and becomes a Yellowcoat, just before the whole program is scrapped.
  • Jeffrey has shades of this as well, he's come out of a failed marriage to a woman he's still clearly in love with. He only came to Maplin's due to feeling unfulfilled in his career. The majority of his well meaning efforts to help around the camp don't end well and he's often forcibly dragged into matters he would like to avoid at all costs. It's likewise implied he didn't have a happy childhood, admitting his parents sent him to boarding school when he was seven, that in his own words consisted of "Bare boards, cold baths and being beaten with alarming regularity."

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