THIS week in 1977 saw two instantly-recognisable celebrities come to Swindon.

One was Eric Morecambe, whose appearance has been mentioned in a previous Rewind.

“There can be little doubt,” we said, “that as far as Swindon is concerned Eric Morecambe is the tops.

“When Eric officially opened Hills of Swindon’s Home Improvement Centre at Kingshill Road today, hundreds of fans turned out to give him a warm welcome.

“No-one was disappointed as Eric gave a comic performance that had the whole store in stitches. A true professional, Eric kept the laughs coming thick and fast, joking with the crowd and staff.”

Eric, a director of Luton Town FC, said he’d last been in Swindon for a fixture in 1969, when Luton were beaten.

“I didn’t come back after that!” he added.

The other very famous celebrity of the era to be found in Swindon that week was actor Clive Dunn. Best known for playing the befuddled but good-hearted Corporal Jones in Dad’s Army, he also released a string of singles in the character of a loveable old man, including chart-topper Grandad in 1970.

He was in Swindon to appear in a comedy play called The Chiltern Hundreds.

An Adver reviewer wrote: “It may well have been Clive Dunn’s first appearance at the Wyvern, but last night’s packed audience greeted him like an old friend.

“There is a delicate and natural eccentricity to the man and in the roles he plays which brings out an easy and genuine pleasure – whether it is on the small screen, where most have seen him or, more critically, on stage, where the full effect and impact of slight gesture can count most.

“His part as Lord Lister in The Chiltern Hundreds is perfectly cast and brilliantly carried. The absent-minded, non-political Lord Lieutenant weaves a continuous comic thread through a play which is itself a set piece of light humour.”

The cast included two other people with claims to a place in cultural history.

Carol Cleveland had appeared in two thirds of the Monty Python’s Flying Circus episodes and all of the films, and with other comedy stars including Morecambe and Wise.

Jeremy Sinden, son of Donald, had a range of credits under his belt, including brief appearances in Chariots of Fire and Star Wars. Alongside his brother, Marc, he also took part in a piece of rock history.

In 1968 the two had been among the audience invited to Twickenham Studios to appear with the Beatles in a pioneering promotional video for the Hey Jude/Revolution single.

The two ended up behind Ringo Star, joining in with the A-side’s chorus.

Of those four celebrity visitors to Swindon in 1977, only Carol Cleveland survives. Eric Morecambe died in 1984, Jeremy Sinden at just 45 in 1996 and Clive Dunn in 2012.

Audiences waiting to take their seats for The Chiltern Hundreds had the chance to admire paintings in the theatre’s gallery space.

The well-executed rural scenes were the work of Wally Hammond, a firefighter who had never given a thought to exhibiting until his daughter’s art teacher suggested it.

We said: “Wally’s daughter, Janine, 16, showed one of his paintings to Mr Brian Hamley at Hreod Burna School.

“He was so impressed that he went to see Wally and suggested that he exhibited his work at the Wyvern.”

The artist himself said he was shocked when Janine told him what her teacher had suggested: “I thought it was a joke when she first told me.”

Leon Street, chairman of the Wyvern Arts Committee, said: “This has been the best amateur work we have had here.”

An exhibition of a different kind elsewhere in the town had to be put on hold.

Queen’s Drive Service Station had been due to display one of reigning Formula One champion James Hunt’s Grand Prix cars in the near future. The car was on a nationwide publicity draw.

The service station placed an advert saying: “We apologise for any inconvenience cause by the non-appearance of the James Hunt racing car, but owing to his recent mishap at Long Beach, California, the car we were to have on display has been temporarily withdrawn from its scheduled tour by his sponsors.”

Shortly after the start of the American Grand Prix the British driver – nicknamed Hunt the shunt by certain disgruntled rivals – had collided with Argentinian driver Carlos Reutemann.

The service station’s advert didn’t go into further detail, but perhaps the team felt they needed to keep any spare cars handy.

A rather more sedate form of transport was offered to pet owners by a Mr Ken Lewis, who lived in Cambria Place.

For a small fee of £1.50, he would drive animals and their humans to and from vet’s appointments in his Morris Traveller estate car.