George & Mildred

British television sitcoms of the '70s have acquired a reputation for being shallow and purile, and 'George and Mildred' is often cited as a supreme example of this.

Nothing could be further from the truth, this sitcom really worked. There was real chemistry between the characters, and while the plots were shallow there was a great deal of comedy present.

Developed as a spin-off from 'Man About The House', it centres around a working class couple (George and Mildred) who move into a middle class neighbourhood. Mildred (Yootha Joyce) is determined to overcome her lowly roots, whilst George (Brian Murphy) is working class and proud of it!!

Their new neighbours are the Fourmiles, Geoffrey is a out-and-out snob, but his wife, Ann, is down to Earth. They have a young son, Tristram.

Most of the comedy revolves around the antics of George antagonising Geoffrey, whilst their respective wives try desperately to maintain tranquility.

The concept of neighbour / class conflict is the mainstay of many a sitcom, but seldom works as well as this. The chemistry between the characters is perfect, especially George and Mildred, I think that the sitcom would probably have failed with anyone else playing these parts.

The success of this sitcom lead to a film version in 1980, but the film never really captured the vital spark that made the television series such a hit.

Feb 2022

Just watched all these episodes for the first time since i was a kid and i really enjoyed them, i rate them on par with Man about the house, which is the series which introduced us to the Ropers.

So lots of fun.

8.5 out of 10.

Very good comedy actors that do their job very well. Many of the individual scenes are funny.

However, the story lines are very predictable. You can normally guess how the story will develop or end in, about 5 or 10 minutes into episode, which was typical of ITV sitcoms churned out during this time, which were normally second division to those produced by the BBC. I feel sorry for the actors having to act out such weak storylines.

Surprised this went as far as a 5th Series, and probably more if Yootha Joyce had not died in 1980. Nevertheless decent enough period 70s comedy to watch.

A hilarious spin-off for Yootha Joyce and Brian Murphy from 'Man about the House'. George and Mildred have moved into a different house in another part of London and are now confronting their new neighbours, the Fourmiles. The snobbish Geoffrey Fourmile thoroughly detests them and that's where the fun starts. Pretty much the same thing that used to happen in 'Man about the House', except you see more of them.

Brian Murphy is one of the greatest at playing the dumba**.His teaming up with Yootha Joyce was an inspiration. They really could make you believe that they were married! Don't miss this great comedy series it will sure put a smile on your face......