Unofficial title: There's something funny and 'awful' about the British Sitcom/Non-sitcom.
First of all, let's 'get it on', here it is, list of British Sitcom/non-Sitcoms:
Quick view: May To December - Monarch of the Glen - Ever Decreasing Circles - Semi-Attached/Semi-Detached (one of them) - Don't Wait Up! - Heartbeat (not The Royal) - Harbour Lights - Keeping Up Appearences - Fresh/French Fields - September Song - Russ Abbot's Madhouse - On The Up - The River - Bergerac - Lovejoy - Allo Allo - The Likely Lads (film) - Duty Free - Casualty 1911/1909 (fairly recent drama) - You Rang M'Lord - One By One - All Creatures Great and Small - Midsomer Murders - Waiting For God - One Foot In The Grave - As Time Goes By - Goodnight Sweetheart - Bread - The Liverbirds - Just Good Friends - The Vicar of Dibley - Brush strokes - Born and Bred - Campion
Details:
Lovejoy - Not a sitcom, but fabulous. Ian McShane antiques detective, a sidekick Eric, Tinker (Dudley Sutton), and car chases, love his unattached cool with Lady Jane Felsham, and his cottage.
Ever Decreasing Circles - Howard and Hilda that wore the same clothes.
Starred Peter Egan who crops up every now and then. We know where you are Richard Briers...
Monarch of the Glen - The dogs, hiding the gin barrels, the castle, hilarious antics, Kilwilly making trouble, Duncan, the scenery...
Hamish Clarke come back to our screens!
The first 2 series were epic, then the 'actor that plays Archie' (Alasdair MacKenzie) thought he could make it bigger in America and left the show, so we got a replacement. Laterly when the series was finishing the character of Duncan lost his personality and suddenly wasn't Duncan... it was Monarch no more, shame. Rebecca Lacey (cook in Monarch kitchen) link with May To December. Rebecca Lacey come back on the TV/theatre! :)
The Good Life - Briers Alert! (Briers link with 'Circles, Monarch of the Glen)
Semi-Attached (or Detached) - This was recorded for me, did anyone else see it? I rather like Jasper Britton's ubiquitous brown blazer... a bit of the old corduroy.
Don't Wait Up! - Dorothy and Eric visit all of a sudden so Toby had to hide behind the sofa, Felicity loses her contact lenses, Toby and Tom disembarking the ship on rope ladder, Toby being scared of Felicitys driving - but his arm was in a sling! "Angela! Angela! cover yourself up at once!"... Epic.
My Dad's the Prime Minister - Jasper Britton as Duncan Packer (link with Semi-Attached, 'Circles, Midsummer)... Mr Britton in short hair style. Some well thought out scenes.
Keeping Up Appearences - the first few series were funny. Onslow! (better than Bread)
May To December - 80s/90s. The first Zoe (Eve Matheson) was the better actress, Kurt Weill theme tune, classic. Miss Flood, Rebecca Lacey (secretary) link with Monarch of the Glen. Anton Rogers where are you?! (Anton Rogers is sadly deceased 1st December 2007).
Fresh Fields - Anton Rogers alert! Thank goodness Julia McKenzie didn't sing.
French Fields - Anton Rogers alert! Fresh but in France.
September Song - Russ Abbot being serious and Michael Williams, didn't run for long, I think it was a detective thing based at the seaside, wasn't that good (apologies to its fans!).
Harbour Lights - Nick Berry alert! Post-Heartbeat, Nick Berry wearing a turtle neck sitting on the cob.
Russ Abbot's Madhouse - Scottish impression, fat suits - the one who paved the way for others. So funny they would never dare to show it today.
The Likely Lads - Including the film version, on ya bike!
On The Up - Dennis Waterman sings the theme tune! With Sam Kelly as butler.
The River - A good one. A David Essex vehicle, and he sang the theme tune. Canal barges, a scottish lady (she played a witch in The Scottish Play), a 'Tinker' like character, and Essex's sidekick who was Lovejoy's sidekick Eric (it looked like him anyway).
Bergerac - In a class of its own, Epic. Ex-army John Nettles, Jersey, the old cars, the action, John taking down the baddies, the actors in their early careers like Floella Benjamin and Celia Imrie. Maximum Oi! Factor.
Hi-De-Hi - I used to think Geoffrey Holland was hilarious! The manager who was sideways, the one that replaced him, or did he replace him when he was replaced, don't know! but Gladys (Ruth Madoc) fancied him/them, (- it was just one character but was played and replaced by another actor, not sure who).
'Allo 'Allo - Actors were truely gifted! Especially: "The candle with the handle in the cake with the (something else) and the painting of the Fallen Madonna with the Big Boobies by Van Klompf!". "It is I - Leclerc", "my dickie-ticker!", "Ohhhh Rene!", the quotes are never ending... Helgar, Von Schmallhousen, Gruber, Herr Flick, The British Airmen, Inspector Crabtree "Good Moaning", The Flashing Bedknobs... Genius.
Casualty 1909/11 - Far too modern, shouldn't have added it here, but anyway. William Houston, I saw him at the RSC in Coriolanus, indeedy.
One By One - 80s. About a Vet called Donald Turner (unless that was his real name!). The whole series was about him. The actor turned up years later (90s) on This Is Your Life as a guest. Perhaps aired on a sunday evening, before All Creatures' came into existence. Donald's appearence: dark, beard, a lot of hair, clothes-wearer, male.
Midsomer Murders - Not a sitcom. It's on here with Nettles link to Bergerac, Jasper Britton link to Semi-Attached, My Dad's The Prime Minister, 'Circles (here in Sauce for the Goose wearing jodhpurs), and because John Nettles' tenure as Inspector Barnaby is coming to an end. Heavy Metal hit album-sounding episode names like Dead Man's Eleven, A Ghost in the Machine, Written in Blood, Faithfull Unto Death, Death in Disguise. Rock on..............
Waiting For God - Sitcom, perhaps a bit morbid. With the brilliant Janine Duvitski as Jane (from Abigail's Party, lately of Benidorm), also Daniel Hill as Harvey Bains. Daniel Hill was in Teachers (a Lenny Henry vehicle), his character shouted at Henry's character and did him a mischief! Come back to our screens Daniel Hill preferably playing someone downright devious.
Goodnight Sweetheart - Not as off-the-wall as 'Allo 'Allo, but some elements are unique. Gary singing songs in a pub in 1940s London 20 years before they were written. In one master episode either the dimensions of space & time had been twisted, or Gary's imagination was running riot... Gary started to sing 'Two Little Boys' on the piano and when he looked up Rolf Harris (who wrote the song in the '60s) was there leaning against the piano! Total disbelief. Gary went to see a psychologist (in his own time) but she suddenly shape-shifted into Reg and started to strip! Priceless look on Nicolas Lindhurst's face, totally freaked out, like aliens had landed. Victor Mcguire (Ron Wheatcroft in GS) link with Bread as Jack.
Just Good Friends - Paul Nicolas sang the theme tune, and he was one half of the 'good friends', the other half was called Penny. They were never together but sometimes might have been, the audience never knew, but that was what the whole series was about!
The Liverbirds - Not very good, but it has its fans. On here because of John Nettles link with Midsomer Murders, Bergerac.
Brush Strokes - Carl Howman chaneling a painter/decorator and being up for a lark! The cheek of 'im. He seems to have changed appearence quite radically since 'Strokes. Carl (his character) worked for/knew Jan (I think that was her name), they might and might not have been together 'sometimes', you never knew, this coupled with Carls' paint-splattered dungarees kept the programmes' enduring edge. [Not a good idea to appear in a terrible populist 'soap opera' recently, Carl.]
You Rang M'Lord - 'Replacement' for Hi-De-Hi, featuring most of the cast of Hi-De-Hi. A low-ranking Upstairs Downstairs-comedy-immitation type thing, it wasn't very good. Characters included: Poppy, who you might think was an adult playing a child but was actually meant to be a rather loopy adult, Sissy (a lesbian), Paul Shane playing someone, some cooks, a few aloof characters, and I think there was a 'crazy loony' brother (??!!). Geoffrey Holland was in it ...well that's good isn't it?! A 'late' sitcom, started when the classics were finishing, including Hi-De-Hi.
Campion - Not great, Peter Davidson as a bit of a weak detective. (Apologies to it's fans!)
Oi! British sitcoms and the eclectic, raving, down right funny, and clever British TV that now only exists in repeats.
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