First of the Summer Wine original series making an appearance in the prequel. With the success of "Last of the Summer Wine", the BBC approved a new series which Roy Clarke would carry over characters of the original show. With the new series, Clarke hoped to show the lives of his characters as they were in the "first summer" of their lives, as opposed to the last summer depicted in "Last of the Summer Wine". While there would still be the "shadow of the Grim Reaper" hanging over them, this time it would be because of World War II, not due to their old age.
Last of the Summer Wine and the actors love being involved" and that it would be a terrible blow to the shops and businesses in Holmfirth who have come to depend on tourist revenue. The BBC denied these claims, saying that a decision had not yet been reached whether to commission another series or not. It was confirmed on 26 June 2009 that a 31st series of 6 episodes had been commissioned for transmission in 2010. In June 2010 the BBC announced that it would not renew "Last of the Summer Wine" after its thirty-first series was broadcast during the summer of 2010. Tom Owen