I remember this being broadcast late on Sunday evenings so I saw one or two as a child. I remember thinking that it was just silly. In recent years I have have said to people who revert to "Love Thy Neighbour" and 'It Ain't 'Alf hot Mum!' As being the pinnacle of racism in British television, that if they think that is offensive you should watch 'Curry and Chips'. It starred Eric Sykes and Spike Milligan. One of my comic heroes was Spike Milligan, but I am afraid I can only look at it now and cringe. It was actually written by the great Johnny Speight, the creator and driving force behind Alf Garnet, but I feel this went well off kilter simply due to it's crassness.
I Suppose if the lead character is born in Pakistan of an Irish dad and called Kevin O'Grady it is not going to be easy. He arrives at a factory from the labour exchange and manager (Sykes) offfers him a job, and shares digs with him. The fun starts!! Spike Milligan was born in and spent his early life in India. That in itself is "they are all the same"!. Weirdly in one of his BBC Q shows he there was a sketch featuring a Pakistani catholic Dalek coming home cross from work.
The cast simply said their lines, did not act, if you can call Spikes accent acting, then he did but he spoke quietly. Apart from him and Sykes, the other faces were known usual suspects from British TV and film (Geoffrey Hughes, Kenny Lynch, Sam Kidd and Norman Rossington). Often they seemed to forget their lines, ad. Lib or Time them badly. fact Kenny Lynch (a black guy born in the End of London) took willing part in the workplace racism and even sent himself up.
It could be seen as a reflection of the times and indeed it did reflect life and social interaction but had none of the subtlety and counterbalance of the Garnet sitcoms. I would actually think now that all the white characters in it were just awful caricatures, maybe Speight was saying if you think like this you are awful! That is Garnet after all.
It did actually satire the political and economic of the times where politicians and trade unions were panned. It also suggested, well in the end we all tolerated each other and had to get on, it's better than fighting. Unfortunately the racism in it was like machine gun fire in your face constantly and antidotal lines, particularly Milligan's are missed (Milligan seemed to speak his lines quietly).
Overall it is an interesting peak into how we were to a point. That's why I gave it 3, but not a particularly funny show,badly made with a few clever gags, a few! More of an uncomfortable viewing than an enjoyable one. Not surprisingly it flopped and there was only one series.
