Andrew's Top 10 British Sitcoms: The 70s

As a child who would sit in front of the idiot box devouring hours of television it's only natural that I've formed strong nostalgic memories for the likes of Mrs Slocombe, Lurcio and Robin Tripp. Now this list won't be purely based on critical merit or indeed success. However they are all gems from a time when the merest mention of "My pussy..." or "I'll have half" would raise a smile.

10. Love Thy Neighbor
Yes, this is an incredibly dated and racist program which would not bear repeating in the same timelsot it used to have on Channel 7 here in Australia. In retrospect the tension between the self-parodying racism of Eddie Booth (Jack Smethurst) and the actual 'comedy' wrought by using terms like "Nig Nog" knocks down the pretension that some may had for this show as being another "Till Death Us Do Part". Admittedly the racism could be even handed, and both the lead women characters (Joan Booth, played by Kate Williams and Barbie Reynolds, played by Nina Baden-Semper) provided much of the more positive hunour. But The racist bantering between Eddie and Bill (Rudolph Walker) is probably unwatchable today. Perhaps the best aspects of "Love Thy Neighbour" were those times when Eddie and Bill actually sided together (usually against Joan and Barbie), or the rambling Jacko (Eddie and Bill's drinking friend...hence the expression "I'll have half..."). "Love Thy Neighbour" was also one of those culture cringe examples of Australian TV when they made an "...in Australia" version.


9. Citizen Smith
I've not as strong memories of "Citizen Smith" as some of the other shows listed here but I do recall that the basic premise was one of the funnier (the Tooting Popular Front lead by Wolfie, played by Robert Lindsay). There were equal amounts of ridicule thrown at the conservatives and the socialists, some archetypal domestic shenanigans (Florence Johnson, played by Hilda Braid kept up the tradition of slightly dotty mothers) and some funny minor characters (Tucker and Speed). The suburban eccentric is a staple of British humour and "Citizen Smith" is one of the more worthy examples of British 70s TV.


8. Up Pompeii
There were several British sitcoms that revolved around a major TV or film personality. Ronnie Barker had several ("Open All Hours" and "Porridge" for example), as did Barry Evans ("Doctor In the House" and "Mind Your Language"). In the case of "Up Pompeii" it was all Frankie Howard. A past master of the double entendre and the risque joke, Howard made "Up Pompeii". It certainly helped that there were plenty of plunging tunicas woren by the female characters. Sad to say when it was shown on local TV I didn't see too many episodes (what with it being too rude for a small child) but I have fond memories of what I saw. Plus looking back on its skewed debt to the Roman comedies of Plautus the classicist in me is happy to see Latin dirty jokes getting a re-run.


7. Robin's Nest
Whilst not quite as enjoyable as "Man About The House" (see below) "Robin's Nest" gave us a chance to see what happened to Richard O'Sullivan's character of Robin Tripp after he left the Chrissy and Jo. Created in a very traditional format (i.e. young couple have trouble with the in-laws; in this case Tony Britten's James Nicholls, father of Robin's girlfriend then wife Vicki, played by Tessa Wyatt) "Robin's Nest" was arguably more gentler than "Man About The House". However where the spin-off excelled was in the character of Albert, the one armed Irish dish-washer and dogsbody. Played by David Kelly, Albert added just the right amount of surrealism, slapstick and Irish jokes to "Robin's Nest" to make it a 70s classic. And Tessa Wyatt was quite easy on the eye too!


6. Get Some In
Military comedies were a standard of British TV and radio after the war, and the 70s saw quite a few. There was "Dad's Army" set during WW2 in a Home Guard unit, "It Ain't Half Hot Mum" which was about a group of army entertainers in Burma and India also during WW2, and "Get Some In", which was set during the 50s in the RAF. It wasn't so much the writing that makes this show stick in the memory, and there were some clichéd roles (i.e. Tony Selby's Corporal Marsh was probably a British cousin of Sgt Carter from "Gomer Pyle") . However it was the launching pad for Robert Lindsay as a comic actor (always called Teddy Boy by Marsh) and the ensemble of recruits (Ken Richardson a.k.a. 'Poofhouse', Matthew Lilley and Bruce Leckie) were risible targets for toned-down barracks room humour. My fondest memory of this show was watching episodes during the lunch breaks in Channel 9's coverage of the 1977 Ashes series.


5. Open All Hours
Ronnie Barker was probably the greatest British TV comic actor of the seventies and perhaps of all time. His work in "The Two Ronnies" was brilliant, and his appearances in such other notable series as "The Frost Report", "The Magnificent Evans", "Porridge" and its sequel "Going Straight" are legendary, but for me it was always his work as Arkwright in "Open All Hours" which sets his mark on the British sitcom. The devious, randy and stuttering Arkwright was perpetually berating David Jason's Granville or lusting after Nurse Gladys Emmanuel (Lynda Baron) and for such a simple set up there were always plenty of laughs. Some of it was no doubt derived from the Yorkshire setting plus much came from Barker's impeccable timing in using his stutter. David Jason's Granville was more interesting as a secondary character contrasted with Richard Beckinsale's Godber in "Porridge", but in the end this is Barker's finest hour. How can anyone not laugh at an avaricious lecher selling canned goods?


4. Dad's Army
One of the most beloved shows of British TV history, and certainly a fixture on the ABC TV viewing schedule in my house during the 70s, "Dad's Army" was a favourite which may not have stood the test of time still sits prominently in my memory. The whole cast were marvellously portrayed, however it was the duo of John Le Mesurier (Sgt Wilson) and Arthur Lowe (Captain Mainwaring) that formed the centre. I actually found the work of Clive Dunn (L/Cpl Jones), John Laurie (Private Jones) and James Beck's Private Walker more enjoyable. There were heaps of catch-phrases ("They don't like it up 'em", "You stupid boy", "Napoleon", "Permission to...") and the mix of slapstick and astute observational comedy with a sizeable ensemble cast elevates this show to legendary status. Perhaps not as anarchic or as shocking as some of my other fave 70s sitcoms it's had a far more significant impact on my memory on so many others.


3. Fawlty Towers
Yes, I know it's the all time most perfect British sit com! Yes I know it has John Cleese in it who wrote and performed in Monty Python's Flying Circus and is a comedy GOD! Yes I know that they only ever made 12 episodes and it is almost impossible not to lose a lung laughing at epsiodes like "The Germans" and "Basil The Rat". But it can only come in third place on this list for me because it is so painful to watch. Not painful bad, but painful "oh my god what will be said or done next that will make me hide my eyes and giggle at the same time?" painful. There are heaps of other more erudite commenst available on the show, but when all is said and done for me I can laugh at "Fawlty Towers" but underneath is just too much agony for all involved. And by the way, I actually like Basil. In fact if you have ever done any customer service work before (as I have) then you'll know just scratch the surface and a little bit of Basil comes out in us all.


2. Are You Being Served
This was almost the perfect British 70s sitcom. There were jokes made about class, about sex, about sex again, about being British, about work and about sex. Oh, and did I mention it was a comedy that made sexual jokes and double entendres? The balance between all the major characters (Captain Peacock, Mrs Slocombe, Mr Humphries, Miss Brahms, Mr Grainger and Mr Lucas) was fantastic and the work of sitcom veteran writers John Lloyd and David Croft (the latter also responsible for writing epsiodes of "It Ain't Half Hot Mum", "Dad's Army" and later "Hi-De-Hi" and "Allo, Allo") kept the giggles coming. John Inman's Mr Humphries was probably the first camp comic superstar and his catch phrase of "I'm free..." will get almost anyone over 30 laughing even today. then there was Mollie Sugden's Mrs Slocombe. It was amazing what her character's pussy experienced over 10 seasons of this classic. Like "Father Dear Father" and "Love Thy Neighbour" "Are You Being Served" made it down under in a local spin off, but it was always the original which was the best. At times politically incorrect (hell, what was during the 70s?), "Are You Being Served" is the very model of a British TV comedy with knickers and boobs on the mind, being played far more cleverly than such tawdry themes would nominally allow.


1. Man About The House
I know...how can a mildly smutty comedy about a male culinary student living with two young women in a flat which has a arguing married couple as their landlords be my favourite British 70s sitcom? Why not "Fawlty Towers" or "Porridge" or "It Ain't Half Hot Mum" or...? Well it's simple. First off this was a show I'd watch often with my parents, particularly my father, and being able to laugh at what grown ups did was very important for a kid during the 1970s (and probably still is today). Secondly, in the characters of George and Mildred Roper there are two of the finest bickering husband and wife characters ever seen on TV. In fact I wonder if Yootha Joyce's Mildred wasn't somehow the mild inspiration for Peggy Bundy in "Married With Children". "Man About the House" also set up two spin-offs, and made excellent use of the talents of all the actors. The unrequited attraction between Chrissy and Robin is also a huge selling point for this show. Richard O'Sullivan's Robin is a decent but sex-mad young man and his efforts to bed Paula Wilcox's Chrissy always end in disappointment. However the main reason I love "Man About the House" is because of Paula Wilcox. She is the cutest, funniest actress in British sitcom history and up there as a true 70s dolly bird (in the truest non-sexist but slightly frisky 70s sense of the phrase). She knocks Wendy Richard's Miss Brahms aside and makes Felicity Kendall from "The Good Life" look drab and dowdy. As long as Paula Wilcox in her role of Chrissy is stuck in video amber on DVDs and repeats of "Man About The House" then I'll be a happy chappy with my fave Brit-sitcom from the 70s.