Love Thy Neighbour

Watching this for the first time on DVD. Updating as I'm getting through them. I had only watched the movie back in the early eighties as the show was never repeated on TV.

So, yes it's very racist, but also misunderstood by many critics. Did it promote racism or mock the bigotry? Depends on your point of view. Both sides seems valid. My view is both, but any promotion of it was unintentional, and unforeseen at the time due to less culture awareness during the 1970's. These days, racism is far worse than it ever was back then (and not due to this show). Besides, both Rudolph Walker (who still defends the show) and Nina Baden-Semper would never have taken part otherwise. Who'd think they'd be naive enough to? Personal view over.

This show reverses political sides from "Til' Death Us Do Part". Alf Garnett is a right wing Tory whilst Eddie Booth is a left wing socialist. It showed that anyone can be racist. What's even more interesting is that Bill is a tory. For back then that is progressive which shows that nobody is politically pigeonholed.

Although Bill is black, he only ever retaliated with racist remarks back at Eddie after he is pushed to by him. Bill's wife understands his frustration but reminds him that his racist slurs back are unacceptable too. Why stoop to Eddie's level as Bill clearly isn't a racist she is really saying. Onto a brief review of each series.

Series 1-3: Starts off strong. It has plenty of great comedic moments. Few duff episodes towards the end of series 3 with some overly silly moments.

The movie adaption was released between series 3 & 4. Worth a watch.

Series 4-5: Apart from the racial slurs from Eddie they then tamed it right down turning it into a more mild conventional ITV comedy sitcom, moving the focus more away from Bill & Eddie onto other characters, and then just making them all completely bonkers making less sense. They even broke the fourth wall right at the end of series 4. I'll say no more on that. Series 5 was marginally better.

It becomes too repetitive with weaker storylines and jokes and doesn't get any better as it goes on. They made Eddie more a clueless gullible buffoon than before. Stories become a bit too ridiculously silly. Bill also becomes way too soft on Eddie's racism, and that's apart from Bill still often threatening to give him "a bunch of black fives" in anger and never does. Gets old quickly by then. Why does he still try so hard to be friends with someone so continuously unbearable? His own added gullibilities and foolishness helps kill these seasons. He should remain the more sensible if the two.

Series 6 & 7: Better storylines. Making it more fun to watch again. Eddie is still gullible as ever. Fewer duff moments, particularly a silly medieval dream scene. Haven't gotten around to watching the final eighth series yet, so will update again in due course.

Barbie is is very likeable but also a bit too sweet, she should have been just as cutting as Joan (who's hilarious). The original Joan in the unaired episode was too nice for Eddie, so good switch. They both put up with cheating hubbies though. I'm more dismayed by the wive's attitudes of only mildly chastising their husbands for whenever being caught cheating, like they were just being late home from the club. This kind of further tarnished their characters a little for me too. I feel this aspect is more dated today rather than anything else. Eddie always seems like a fool for anything though.

Jacko & Arthur are great extras though. Particularly "I'll have half" Jacko. Always perplexing Eddie. "...Pardon?". Arthur on the other hand often cracks funny jokes about his mostly unseen overbearing wife. The original landlord was more background. The new meaner landlord who is more hostile towards Eddie plays a bigger role, but his character quickly gets toned down into someone more likeable.

I feel that they missed a big opportunity in not making the racist slurs cut both ways equally towards each other. Eddie's slurs are continuous whilst Bill's remain too few and far between. Perhaps more people might have understood the shows intentions better if they had not these few issues. This is worth watching at least once or twice anyway. It has never been aired on TV since its original run but is available in a complete DVD boxset.

This is far from being racist and I remember this series as an adolescent in Sydney Australia. It was such a popular show it was discussed in school and role plays created.

I would love to see something like this now with a typical Muslim family and white Christian family. Something that is in your face and not politically correct. This type of shows destroys the myths that keep people apart in the first place.

Look at the problems around the world now because people are afraid of what they do not understand.

This was a great show and a great message.

Most of these PC fools are worse than Nazis.

I have just tonight starting watching this, since my childhood. Now I was only young when I was first allowed this, I think maybe around thirteen. At that time it was all about the phrases " I'll hav alv" " sambo" "nignog" " honkey" "snowflake" etc.

As so rightly stated often by other reviews, it is not racist in the slightest. Eddie did tend to come off worse, but always came across as ignorant and bigoted. Did it make me racist, not all. In fact this show perhaps embedded the pointlessness of being racist and the stupidity of racist people. It is also not so far fetched as one might imagine. It's set up in the north of England, I lived up north, Yorkshire, in a town with a large Asia population. They was a lot of prejudice about. One example, when the holidays came, a lot of the kids would go what they called " paki bashing". Even my dad was a racist, though I would rather prefer to say ignorant, perhaps still is. I am thankful of this show, it showed me that people are people and race and skin shade should not be a barrier. There's good and bad in everyone. Actually I think the powers that be, need us to have prejudice against each other.

* not word for word but was a line Bill said in series 1 episode 3. Eddie had been his normal ignorant self.

This would have gone over my head in my youth, although I might not have seen it before.

Still funny as I remembered, but perhaps for very different reasons this time around.

A controversial, yet classic sitcom from the 70's. Based around the lives of Eddie (the proud British unionist), his wife Joan, Bill (the proud black ethnic tory)and his lovely wife Barbie. Often stereotyped by those who have never really watched the series as 'racist', Love Thy Neighbour was far removed from such a stereotype. Looking at the lighter side of the attitudes at the time, Eddie's and Bill's disagreements were perfectly balanced with friendship (who could forget the episode when Eddie drags Bill out on the town?!).

Eddie and Bill's characters are presented as equals, and both have different views on life (whether it'd be labour, tory, or black power!) but more often than not, when they argue and bicker, both come out looking as bad as each other.

Anybody faulting Love Thy Neigbhour for it's views should take a closer look at the series first. A show that positioned Bill (Rudolph Walker) in such a prominant powerful role, and presented him as such a strong upstanding character was way ahead of it's time (when other shows were still presenting ethnic minorities as 'comedy' characters).

I absolutely loved this show when I was a kid in the early/mid 1970s and was interested to see it running on an Australian network several years ago. I imagined it would have dated badly and no longer seem funny, but no, it's still hilarious. The format of Love Thy neighbour was quite simple. It explores the culture clash and constant bickering between bigoted working-class trade unionist Eddie (Jack Smethurst) and his upwardly mobile Black neighbour played by Rudolph Walker. Their wives constantly act as both 'straight men' and referees in the battles between Bill and Eddie. Was it racist? That's the question everyone asks. I'm confident in saying, no. Eddie often refers to Bill as "sambo" or "nig-nog", but then Bill calls Eddie a "white honky" just as often. Either both sides are guilty, or neither, and I don't see anything nasty or 'dark' in these jibes. Eddie's not hostile to Bill because he's Black, he's hostile because he's JEALOUS of him and in 9 out of 10 episodes it's Eddie who comes off worse. I particularly loved the episode where Bill convinces Eddie he's the victim of a voodoo spell and has him dancing - naked - round a tree at midnight yelling "pinky ponky, me white honky". I grew up in a 99% White town and my abiding memory of Love Thy neighbour is how beautiful Nina Baden-Semper was. I had quite a 'crush' on her as a pimply youth. I don't know what became of this lovely talented lady or Jack Smethurst, but Kate Williams (Eddie's wife) and Rudolph Walker remain familiar faces on British TV. They both have current roles in 2 of our most popular 'soaps'. The humour in Love Thy Neighbour was always the stupidity of Bill and Eddie's prejudices, so I think it presents an ANTI-racist message. Sadly, that's not much of a defence in the Britain of 2004. BBC2 recently had a major show in several parts to find "Britain's Favourite Sit-com" and Love Thy Neighbour was completely airbrushed out. To quote the Amon Goeth character in Schindlers List: "It never happened". That's a shame because it was funny and extremely popular at the time. it also showed that Black British characters can be attractive, successful and get the upper hand. we take this for granted now, but it was a brave thing to portray 30 years ago. It's worth watching, IF you ever get the chance to see it.