respond to any emergency. The trio explored the world around them, experiencing a second childhood with no wives, jobs, or responsibilities. They passed the time by speculating about their fellow townspeople and testing inventions. Regular subplots in the first decade of the show included: Sid and Ivy bickering over the management of the café, Mr Wainwright and Mrs Partridge having a secret love affair that everyone knows about, Wally trying to get away from Nora's watchful eye, Foggy's exaggerated war stories, and Compo's schemes to win the affections of Nora Batty. The number of subplots on the show grew as more cast members were added. Regular subplots since the 1980s included: Howard and Marina trying to have an affair without Howard's wife finding out (a variation of the Wainwright-Partridge subplot of the 1970s), the older women meeting for tea and discussing their theories about men and life, the police officers trying not to work, Auntie Wainwright trying to sell unwanted merchandise to unsuspecting customers, Smiler trying to find a woman, Barry trying to better himself (at the insistence of Glenda), and Tom trying to stay one step ahead of the repo man. Episodes [[File:Trio-collage.jpg|thumb|right|A collage illustrating the different compositions of the main characters during Last of the Summer Wine'''s 37 year run. From left to right: Series 1–2, Series 3–8 & 12–18, Series 9–11, Series 19–21, Series 21, Series 22–25, Series 26–27, Series 28–29, Series 30–31.]]Last of the Summer Wine is the longest-running comedy programme in Britain, and the longest running situation comedy in the world. Each series has between six and twelve episodes; most were thirty minutes in length, with some specials running longer. There were 295 episodes and 31 series between 1973 and 2010, counting the pilot, all episodes of the series, specials, and two films. Specials In 1978, the BBC commissioned a Last of the Summer Wine Christmas special instead of a new series. Titled "Small Tune on a Penny Wassail", it was broadcast on 26 December 1978. Other Christmas programmes followed in 1979 and 1981. The 1981 special, "Whoops", gained 17 million viewers and was beaten only by Coronation Street for the number one spot. Christmas shows were produced infrequently thereafter and sometimes were the only new episodes in years without an order for a new series. This happened often during the 1980s when Roy Clarke's commitment to Open All Hours prevented the production of a