Bizarrely enough, it was also employed as an ironic taunt on the tapes sent to police by Yorkshire Ripper hoaxer "Wearside Jack". Hence the popular "Bea Arthur Is Innocent" graffiti seen around the area at that time.
2 Diff'rent Strokes One of those theme songs that expertly weaves the show's premise into its lyrics: "a man is born, he's a man of means, then along come two who've got nothing but their jeans." Genius.
3 Cheers Ben Folds based his career around Garry Portnoy's buoyant blast of piano-led AOR. A heartfelt ode to the communal joys of the humble boozer. Or indeed, any establishment in which "people know your troubles are all the same". Prison, for example.
4 Dad's Army The ever popular Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Mr Hitler? was a cheerful anti Nazi anthem sung by Bud Flanagan. Often mistaken for a genuine wartime ditty, it was actually co-written in 1968 by Jimmy Perry.
5 Chico And The Man The groovily uplifting theme to this US sitcom was written and performed by José Feliciano. "Chico, don't be discouraged," urged the sightless magus of flamenco. "The Man, he ain't so hard to understand." Tell it like it is, brother.
6 Are You Being Served? An avant-garde fusion of cash-register rhythms, automaton vocals and saucy brass stabs. As powerful a satire of the capitalist machine as you're ever likely to hear. Ronnie Hazlehurst, take a bow.
7 Some Mother's Do 'Ave 'Em This instrumental – also written by Hazlehurst – was actually based around a Morse Code refrain which spelled out the programme's title. Clever that.
8 Happy Days One of the most irresistibly cheerful TV theme songs ever. Always puts me in mind of Showaddywaddy on quad bikes, which can only be a good thing.
9 The Flintstones Just what is that indecipherable line in the middle? "Through the courtesy of Fred's two feet" is the rather disappointingly clunky answer.
10 Only Fools And Horses Owner of two cracking theme tunes, both written and sung by series creator John Sullivan. The closing theme is a cockney Subterranean Homesick Blues listing the Trotter manifesto in a nutshell. As a child I misheard the line "c'est magnifique" as "sad man defeat" which I took as a kind of trenchant evocation of Del Boy's thwarted dreams.
The full article contains 416 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
