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 Mr Thwaites in "Double Image" in 1956 (with Olivier), "Camino Real" (directed by Hall) in 1957, French gangster Robertoles-Diams in "Irma La Douce" for two years from 1958, Lord Slingsby-Craddock in "Mr Whatnot" in 1964 and Birdboot in "The Real Inspector Hound" in 1968. He also appeared in several Royal Court Theatre productions, including "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as Quince. Barker's theatrical success enabled him to move into radio work. Barker, who had previously been known by his birth name "Ronald", was now referred to as the less formal form "Ronnie", after a director changed it in the credits, although