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COLLECTION · Series · 1990

Spatz

Spatz is a children's comedy series that ran on CITV during the 1990s, produced by Thames Television and created by Andrew Bethell. The show originally ran from 21 February 1990 to 10 April 1992. The show centred around a fast food restaurant situated in a fictional shopping mall in Cricklewood, London. It was operated by two Canadians, Karen Hansson, Spatz International's European Co-ordinator, and Thomas "TJ" Strickland, the restaurant's manager. Vas Blackwood, Stephanie Charles, Jonathan Copestake, Sue Devaney, Joe Greco, Katy Murphy and Ling Tai appeared as Spatz restaurant employees. Guest stars included David Harewood, Rhys Ifans, Gary Lineker, Danny John-Jules and Nicholas Parsons.

Source: TMDB
* 6.3 (3)ComedyUnited Kingdom
Creators
Andrew Bethel
Countries
United Kingdom
Studios
ITV1 · Thames Television
Runtime
30 min/ep
Release
21/02/1990
Score
6.3 / 10 (3)
Where to watch
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Seasons and episodes
Season 1
13 episodes · 1990
Episode 1. Royal Visit
1990-02-21

It's opening day at Spatz, London’s latest fast-food sensation. But with only 4 hours to go, the manager, TJ Strickland, has much on his plate: the building is half finished and short-staffed, and Mrs. Frapelli, the owner’s wife, is about…

Episode 2. Sound of Musak
1990-02-28

Heavy metal man Vince Powers quickly changes his tune when he realises that the girl he’s got a crush on, Chloe, is a Mozart freak. Music of another sort is driving the staff out of their minds – it’s the brain-numbingly jolly Spatz…

Episode 3. Toni's Tall Tale
1990-03-07

Toni Gordon is a girl with a problem. Two problems, actually: one, her mother and two, her father. The reason? In a moment of crisis and low self-esteem she wrote and told her Scottish parents that she's been promoted to the position of…

Episode 4. Karen's Birthday
1990-03-14

Karen takes a tip from the Spatz Tokyo outlet and introduces an early morning exercise programme designed to keep the hard-pressed staff on their toes. After Karen has publicly humiliated Vince and Jo during one of the workouts, the duo…

Episode 5. Local Hero
1990-03-21

While Karen racks her brains dreaming up yet more publicity gimmicks, TJ's much-derided first aid class gets a shot in the arm when Lily uses what she learnt to save a choking customer's life. Karen quickly sees a chance for some free…

Episode 6. Death of a Spatzman
1990-03-28

Dexter sets his sights high when TV soap star Cindy Stewart blows in for a bite at the restaurant. The question is, will she swallow fast-talking Dexter's outrageous claim that he's not really a greasy nobody but is in fact the son of the…

Episode 7. The Wild Brunch
1990-04-04

A gang of teenage hoodlums starts hanging around the restaurant and Karen orders TJ to get rid of them. But when the self-styled Diablos return it's with revenge on their minds. When it is revealed that Vince used to belong to the gang,…

Episode 8. Greenpieces
1990-04-11

A protest group calling itself Planetwatch pickets the restaurant, ruining Karen's quarterly profit figures. It may be friendly to the environment, but Planetwatch is downright hostile to Spatz – that is, until its ringleader Sebastian…

Episode 9. Clowning Around
1990-04-18

TJ conjures up a plan for Spatz to host kids' parties and reckons he’s come up with a wizard scheme. But as usual (since it wasn't her idea) Karen is deeply unimpressed and soon the whole enterprise seems doomed to failure. But when Head…

Episode 10. The Strike
1990-04-25

The staff of Spatz is revolting. When Vince discovers that rival hamburger chain Blimpy's is paying their staff 10p more an hour than Spatz, it's a case of down with the pickle choppers and up with the workers when Karen lets it be known…

Episode 11. Sing For Your Supper
1990-05-02

The staff are used to Karen calling the tune, but there's dischord in the ranks when she instructs the staff to sing out the customers' orders. Will Debbie and Derek ever make sweet music again, or will her hot date with good-looking…

Episode 12. Smart Cookies
1990-05-09

A battle of wits is in danger of escalating into an all-out war when TJ challenges Ivor Willis, the manager of Blimpy's, to a friendly trivia quiz. With secret weapon Lily up their sleeve, the Spatz team is confident of blasting the…

Episode 13. Bye Bye TJ
1990-05-16

TJ gets promoted. It seems like great news, but the downside is he's got to return to Canada (that's somewhere just north of the USA). For Karen this is the upside; that is, until TJ's replacement arrives, in the shape of Melvin Frapelli,…

Season 2
13 episodes · 1991
Episode 1. Star Attraction
1991-01-03

Freddy joins the Spatz team as they prepare to welcome football star, Gary Lineker - but is Dexter really the friend of the stars he claims he is?

Episode 2. Karen's Mother
1991-01-10

Karen rashly tells her mother that she is engaged to TJ, and the staff get to grips with Spatz's new weapon in the fast-food war - a delivery bike.

Episode 3. Time and Efficiency
1991-01-17

Karen calls in an expert to help improve efficiency levels, and Freddy frets about her relationship with boyfriend, Dave.

Episode 4. The Poster
1991-01-31

Karen has her sights set on marriage, and the other staff have their eyes on a cash prize.

Episode 5. Fire Alarm
1991-02-07

TJ's girlfriend, Julie, fills in at the restaurant when Vince goes AWOL, and the staff deal with the annoyance of a faulty fire alarm.

Episode 6. The Siege
1991-02-14

Four doughnuts are missing - and it's not long before the Spatz staff start disappearing too, as an armed man begins taking hostages.

Episode 7. Debbie's Wedding
1991-02-21

Debbie has finally agreed to marry her boyfriend, Derek, and Vince can see the money-making potential if he is given permission to organise the reception.

Episode 8. Talent Contest
1991-02-28

TJ is in trouble with Karen when he allows a talent contest to be held in Spatz.

Episode 9. Things That Go...
1991-03-07

The staff come to the conclusion the restaurant is haunted, while TJ and Karen prepare for the annual Spatz costume ball.

Episode 10. Charlie
1991-03-14

An important food critic is coming to review the Spatz menu, and a young boy has become separated from his parents.

Episode 11. Loot
1991-03-21

Karen has lost her contact lens, the bank manager has lost his marbles, and Freddy has managed to lose £3,000 - twice.

Episode 12. From Russia with Love
1991-03-28

A Russian delegation comes to visit Spatz, and Vince goes into the black-market perfume business.

Episode 13. Takeover
1991-04-04

Louis Frapelli has gambled away the London branch of Spatz, and it now belongs to bitter rival, Roland Blimpy. The staff must find a way to win it back.

Season 3
7 episodes · 1992
Episode 1. High Flier
1992-02-28

Dexter's new job isn't what he thought it was, and Vince's wind-up hamburger toy venture winds him up in trouble.

Episode 2. Witness
1992-03-06

Freddy becomes a crucial witness to a serious burglary, and Karen wants to tap into the lucrative American tourism market.

Episode 3. Tango
1992-03-13

Rivalry between Spatz and Blimpy's raises its ugly head again, when TJ and Willis agree to hold a ballroom dancing competition.

Episode 4. Extortion
1992-03-20

The local mafia put the squeeze on the Spatz management, and while TJ wants to take a stand, Karen is all for giving the mobsters what they want.

Episode 5. The Curse of Karen
1992-03-27

Karen's mean-spiritedness backfires when an old woman puts a curse on her, and the rest of the staff prepare for a visit from Lenny the Lion.

Episode 6. Driving Miss Wesley
1992-04-03

Debbie's boyfriend Derek thinks she's seeing another man, and so takes a job as a security guard so he can watch her. Meanwhile, the rest of the staff take to assembling Christmas crackers for a bit of extra cash.

Episode 7. Poetry & Music
1992-04-10

Vince is in love, the buskers are in trouble, and TJ and Karen are under the mistletoe.

Cast by season
?
Paul Rothery
T.J. Strickland
Vas Blackwood
Vas Blackwood
Dexter
?
Jonathan Copestake
Stanley
Joe Greco
Joe Greco
Vince
Stephanie Charles
Stephanie Charles
Debbie
Jennifer Calvert
Jennifer Calvert
Karen Hansson
Sue Devaney
Sue Devaney
Jo
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