De reeks draait rond het vakantiekamp Maplins en zijn personeel en speelt zich af in de jaren 1959-1960. Het personeel bestaat onder meer uit entertainment-manager Jeffrey Fairbrother (Simon Cadell, tot 1984) en DFC Clive Dempster (David Griffin, vanaf 1984), "yellow-coats" (aangevoerd door Gladys Pugh, gespeeld door Ruth Madoc), een komiek (Spike Dixon), gastheer Ted Bovis (Paul Shane) en schoonmaakster Peggy Ollerenshaw (Su Pollard).

Hi-de-Hi! is a British sitcom set in Maplins, a fictional holiday camp, during 1959 and 1960, and was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, who also wrote Dad's Army and It Ain't Half Hot Mum amongst others. It aired on the BBC from 1980 to 1988.

The series revolved around the lives of the camp's management and entertainers, most of them struggling actors or has-beens.

The inspiration was the experience of writers Perry and Croft: after being demobilised from the army, Perry was a Redcoat at Butlin's, Pwllheli during the holiday season.

The series gained large audiences and won a BAFTA as Best Comedy Series in 1984. In 2004, it came 40th in Britain's Best Sitcom and in a 2008 poll on Channel 4, 'Hi-de-Hi!" was voted the 35th most popular comedy catchphrase.