The Brothers

An interesting and intelligent 'soap opera' from the '70s. The dialogue and acting are first-rate and constructive while the very ''70s' bourgeois props and costumes are evocative: I saw a framed print of Vermeer's ''Girl With A Pearl Earing'' in one domestic scene showing good taste. The young graceful English actor - the Chaucerian Malcolm Stoddard was in the brilliant scientifically fascinating documentary series, ''The Voyage of Charles Darwin'' (1978). Prim and proper actress, Jean Anderson was born in the remote year of 1907! The series was a big hit in Holland. The first episode was aired in 1972 - that greyest of hippy years although the early-'70s were pioneering years.

This was a great if guilty Sunday night drama on the BBC, often alternating with The Onedin Line. The earlier series were particularly noted for the portrayal of bitchy and sexy Ann Hammond by Hilary Tindall, and the stormy relationship with her husband Brian became one of the main story lines in the 3rd and 4th series. Tindall made a brief return in the final series. Later series suffered slightly by taking the focus away from the Hammond family, with too much emphasis on Paul Merroney. Sadly it looks like only series 1 is available on DVD. Other notable performances include Jean Anderson as the matriarch Mary Hammond and Richard Easton's portrayal of Brian Hammond. The series had a great signature tune. If it were around nowadays a great deal more would be made of it.

It's great to see this show has been picked up for a re-run from Series 1 by Talking Pictures TV.

The children of a highly successful businessman fight to carry on the business, each with their own idea of how it should be run and ultimately seeking overall control. Various outsiders including rival entrepreneurs and financial whizzkids want a slice of the action. Add in the spice of a long-hidden illicit relationship, ongoing conflicts between hurt and betrayed parties, and you have a storyline which could easily find its place on mainstream TV today. No, it's not "Succession", but could easily be seen as a 1970's "ancestor" to that phenomenon.

I have just re-watched all 92 episodes (not having seen them since I watched the original broadcast in the 70s) and greatly enjoyed them.

The drama centres on a family-run road haulage firm whose ownership becomes complicated after the death of its founder with business, family, and other personal issues becoming intertwined.

All the acting is of high quality and the balance of personal vs business story strands is largely OK although in series 3 and 4 things get a bit bogged down in one particular marriage and the balance suffers somewhat.

One major quality that distinguishes it from modern drama touching on similar topics is that the financial and business content is written realistically and from an informed perspective. Today's TV (and radio) is written by children who know damn all about business and trot out rubbish plucked out of thin air with no basis in reality.

Series 1-6 are truly excellent. In series 7 things do start to get a bit tired. The characters are still compelling but the plot ideas are becoming thin and it is a blessing that it was stopped before it became a disappointing soapy shell of itself.

All in all after episode 92 one is left with entirely happy memories of an excellent drama.

I had heard of The Brothers for years before I actually saw it. Luckily, Talking Pictures TV began their repeats of it on Thursday nights paired with the original Van Der Valk, which is top class scheduling.

The Brothers is the story of three brothers (the clue is in the title) who inherit a haulage business when their Dad dies, but they have to run it alongside his mistress, which causes tensions with the Mum. The characterisations are brilliant, particularly Alpha Male eldest brother Edward who wants things his way or not at all. His two younger brothers bring their own talents to the boardroom table too, and the prim, manipulative Mother orchestrates things from afar, gently influencing their professional and personal lives.

I love the wives in this - model Jill and vamp Ann Hammond. Ann is a forgotten gay icon, always with a cigarette, an arched eyebrow, and a waspish comment (and always in the midst of an affair). The old school Mother is well worth it too with her curiously dated diction and delicate accent. She's a piece of work on the quiet.

The boardroom scenes remind me of the "BUSINESS, MARJORIE!" sketches from A Bit Of Fry and Laurie, but they are good studies of class at the time. The Hammonds are working class done good, and Bill Riley is the uneasy working class guy who somehow found himself on the board. Above all of them are the bankers (notably Colin Baker), and you can really sense the Thatcher years on the horizon.

It really sucks you in, and it would be interesting to see it done nowadays.