Gosh, this brings back memories.
It was one of the most successful daytime television dramas ever created and launched the careers of dozens of actors who went on to become household names. Now "Crown Court" is set to return with a rerun of the 250 cases that gripped daytime television audiences between 1972 and 1985.
I hate to think how many hours I frittered away on it when I was bunking off from school as a teenager. (A true telly addict, I was capable of watching straight through from 5pm to close-down on most nights. That's why I hate to see my own kids flopped in front of the screen.)
The other lunchtime programmes still linger in the memory. Fred Trueman signing off the pub games show with a gruff "Ah'll see thee...". Public information films about Trieste or the history of petroleum (those were on BBC2, for use by TV engineers installing new-fangled colour tellys). I think I could well be one of the very few people who ever watched Stephanie Beacham's first TV series, Marked Personal, about a personnel officer in some huge company. Better than Dynasty, I'd say. I recently discovered that one of my neighbours - now retired - was a scriptwriter on the show (as well as on The Prisoner.) He was amazed that I remembered it.