h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I have two PIFs I remember with fondness; first, the one where the old woman stands on a stool to change a lightbulb and is miraculously converted into a muscular stuntman with a badly fitting wig just before leaping through a glass-fronted bookcase, and secondly the one where a young Bay City Rollers fan climbs a power pylon to retrieve his kite, cutting to firework sparks shooting out of his trouser legs while an off-camera voice shouts "Jeeeeemmmmmyyyy!!!!!" in a Glasgow accent.

When I worked for Aberdeen Cable TV, we had an archive collection of all the classic PIFs on low-band U-matic tapes. I wanted to have a weekly vote for which one should be shown on a Friday night, but was told that this would "devalue" the messages, as if the public were asking to see them they must already be familiar with the message. Spoilsports.

I've recently become hooked on the things.
My TOP TEN ARE:-
1)Spirit of Dark and Lonely Water
2) The Amber Gambler
3)Know your Exits (Ray Brooks voiceover)
4)Polish a floor and put a rug on it!
5)The kid introducing his family(Road Safety)
6)Road testing the pedestrian(Frank Thornton)
7)I wish I didn't keep losin' me birds
8)All the Jo and Petunia ones
9)All the Charley ones
10)The Two Second Rule

PS ...Does anyone know who does the voiceover for The Spirit of Dark and Lonely Water

What? None of Dave "Darth Vader" Prowse's "Green Cross Man" in your top ten?

http://www.acp.freewire.co.uk/carpark/level2/water.html

(It doesn't answer your question, but it is funny... The joy of Google! )

You can also try http://www.mcm2002.abelgratis.co.uk/pif_m-z.html but it has sporadic bandwidth problems. ***NOTE TO MODERATOR*** A message saying the page "...has exhausted its weekly bandwidth allocation." is ***not*** a broken link! Hands off!

There are a lot of PIFs available via the main entrance: http://www.acp.freewire.co.uk/carpark/

I wonder where they came from.

EV, your "Alternative Car Park" e-mail is bouncing...

I know, it's a long story. I must go and fix it...

i think its donald pleasance

Donald Pleasance does the voiceover. More information can be found at http://625.uk.com/pifs/lonelywater.htm

the green cross code man actually made a visit to my school in the 1970's. he was really tall !

other public information films i like are the

man trudging through the snow - DO NOT LIE DOWN AND SLEEP ( hypothermia )


little boy playing in an old fridge and he gets stuck and suffocates

"charlie says" do not talk to strangers

mike swims like a fish -- coast guard

what to do in a fire. animated fat woman and skinny man



i think that they should release a dvd of all the public information films. especially the ones that harry enfield takes the mickey out of in the 30's and 40's ie masturbation and smoking cannabis. they are hilarious.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charley-Says-Public-Information-Films/dp/B0001HK0JI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1198786181&sr=1-1

and

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charley-Says-Public-Information-Films/dp/B00005KFVL/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1198786181&sr=1-2

great i'll have a look for those

Blimey, this is an old favourite! At night, make it bright. In the dark, make it light. But get yourself seen!

clunk click with every trip ........ jimmy saville