Don't Forget to Write!

I can only echo the other comments. Don't know how I stumbled across this when it was being broadcast as it didn't seem to be promoted. It was genuinely funny, intelligent, and engaging. It was unlike anything else being broadcast at the time, and I cant really think of anything else that resembled it, so it was unique then. The recent Metal Detectorists resembles it insofar as there was much rich humour in dialogue without jokes. Superb cast: it gave George Cole a chance to shine in something other than the Arfur Daley character for which he had become so well known. I couldn't believe that it wasn't repeated as I certainly didn't get a chance to see all episodes. I have never forgotten it and certainly agree that it should be available on DVD.

The recordings of this series do exist and I believe they are in the archives of York University. In spite of the wonderful performances by George Cole and Gwen Watford the BBC didn't like this series at all for some reason best known to them. They played the usual trick of putting the second series out later and later at night - why they play this game is beyond me but play it they do once it has been decided, presumably by the Drama Controller (if there is such a thing) that they wish to be disassociated. I doubt if anything can be done about getting them to change their minds and show it again and it would probably not find favour with present day audiences. Perhaps the University of York could do a special showing but I think it is unlikely for copyright reasons. It would in itself make a very good episode. Of course Gordon Maple (George Cole) would find that he was refused admission while his friend would be a guest of honour.

The most wonderful thing about this wonderful series is that it was broadcast with no moronic audience soundtrack - neither real nor manufactured. There was no canned laughter. The real live audience was allowed to listen for itself and react accordingly. Was this the last time on British television that this happened ? I rather think so. I must confess to being very depressed that only one of the preceding comments mentions this - but on the other hand I am reassured that at least one other person remembers. I was starting to doubt my own memory. I confess that I only saw the first series - thankfully all of it, devotedly, despite working swing shifts at the time which made any TV watching very difficult. However for the same reason I was totally unaware until half an hour ago that there had ever been a second series. Maybe that did have a laughter track - who knows?

I remember this as a really enjoyable comedy series, with some lovely performances by skilled actors, such as George Cole, Gwen Watford, Francis Matthews, and Daphne Heard, to mention just four.

Light comedy at it's best! Series of this quality are just not made any more - too civilised, I suppose, and not sensational enough...

Another aspect of the series was it's uniqueness - I don't recall any other comedy series that was centred around a writer's inability to write, set within a family context!

I noticed that a previous reviewer said that it should be released on DVD - well, I, for one, would buy it!

In my time as a BBC Video Tape engineer I managed to find several Phillips VCR recordings of episodes from both series. I made copies and lent them to a play writer friend - now famous - who loves them. I have been told by contacts that all the episodes do still exist in the BBC archives, but I failed to find them when I did a search many years ago. It was the Video Tape editor who told me they existed, so I expect they do! No reason not to release or repeat them then is there? I believe that this series is a favorite of Mr. Cole too!