Arkwright (Open All Hours) to be too small for the act. Arkwright and Gladys apparently never got married before Arkwright's death; Gladys claims he died to save the cost of the church. 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
Ronnie Barker he would reveal himself. Barker, who had told Corbett earlier in the day, stood up and announced he was Wiley, although initially nobody believed him. In 1969 Barker was able to write, produce and star as General Futtock in the film "Futtocks End" which featured no dialogue and only "grumble[s] and grunt[s]". "The Ronnie Barker Playhouse" had been designed to find a successful idea for a sitcom, and the episode "Ah, There You Are" by Alun Owen, which introduced the bumbling aristocratic character Lord Rustless, was chosen. The character returned for the 1969–1970 series "Hark at Barker" as the main