Francie and Josie were a double act performed by Scottish comedians Jack Milroy as Francie and Rikki Fulton (of Scotch and Wry) as Josie, from 1958 until the 1990s.

History

The Francie and Josie act first appeared on The Five Past Eight Show at the Alhambra Theatre Glasgow during the 1958 season, and was a brainwave of Stanley Baxter, Stan Mars and Rikki Fulton. Over the season, the idea grew and they refined the concept. There would often be a solo sketch from Francie and Josie separately, and then one with the two together at the end. In 1962, Scottish Television gave them their own show, The Adventures of Francie and Josie, which also starred Clement Ashby, Glen Michael, and Ethel Scott (the first wife of Rikki Fulton). The show became a hit, being broadcast by Anglia, Border Television, Grampian Television, Tyne Tees and UTV, resulting in the pair appearing at the opening of many British Relay TV rental shops. Their first shop opening, in Airdrie, caused such mayhem that crowds smashed the store's windows. In 1965, the last television series was produced, with the pair returning to The Five Past Eight Show the following year. Both Milroy and Fulton were given their own show on Scottish Television. The double act toured around Scotland, and also inspired a pantomime. In 1970, the pair successfully toured Northern Ireland. In 1970, they released an LP, Francie & Josie, on Pye's Golden Guinea label, recorded at the Ashfield Club in Glasgow and produced by Cyril Stapleton. It featured a number of Fulton's compositions.

Episodes

Over its course, 32 episodes were made between 1962 and 1965. There was no series made in 1964, due to a technicians' strike.

Series 1: 1962

The first series consisted of reworkings of the original stage scripts.

Series 2: 1963

Series 3: 1965

No episodes of The Adventures of Francie and Josie are known to have survived. Much of Scottish Television's early output was wiped and recorded over, a common practice in the television industry at the time.

Characters

Revivals

After the success of the television series, the duo returned to the stage. Fulton suggested that he take over as scriptwriter as Stan Mars was moving on to America. The latter agreed, and gave Fulton licence to write the scripts. Two revival shows were recorded at the King's Theatre, Glasgow, reuniting Fulton and Milroy: Francie and Josie (1989), which was broadcast on BBC Scotland, and The Farewell Performance (1996), which was direct-to-video. In 2015, a show called Francie & Josie: The Return toured Scotland, starring Liam Dolan as Francie and Johnny Mac as Josie (credited as playing Milroy and Fulton, respectively).