Arkwright (Open All Hours) Arkwright (Open All Hours) Albert E. Arkwright, usually referred to simply as Arkwright, is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the British sitcom, "Open All Hours", played by Ronnie Barker. Arkwright is the uncle of Granville and the proprietor of an old fashioned Yorkshire corner shop, which in the era of the programme (1970s and 1980s) was a product of a bygone age. Arkwright's signature characteristic is his stutter, which Granville never misses an opportunity to mock. Arkwright is a pragmatic, miserly man with old-fashioned values, whose world seems to stop at his shop door, except for his
Ronnie Barker a cat lover. In 1964 he appeared in Galton & Simpson's gentle comedy, "The Bargee," as "Ronnie", the illiterate cousin of Harry H Corbett's rascally "Hemmel Pike." He did his first bit of on-screen 'porridge' as fellow convict to Charlie Drake in "The Cracksman" (1963). Other film work at that time included: "Doctor in Distress" (1963), "Father Came Too!" (1963) and "A Home of Your Own" (1965). In 1966, Barker got his break with the satirical sketch series "The Frost Report", having been recommended for the show by producer James Gilbert. The show starred David Frost, John Cleese and Barker's