Ever Decreasing Circles

The first time I tried to watch this show I must have been in a bad mood, but I could not stand Richard Briers' character Martin and gave up after about 2 episodes.

Many years later (about 15-20) I was given the DVDs and decided to give it another go. Glad I did, it is bloody brilliant, my partner and I basically binge watched it over a few weeks, close to one of the best shows I have every watched.

So as the saying goes, if you at first you do not succeed, do not give up, second time round can be the charm and what you thought was a pigs ear can turn out to be a gem.

This is a GEM of a show. So many brilliant characters. All those featured on the poster are the ones, bloody brilliant.

Easy 9/10 and really probably a 10.

Richard Briers has appeared in some terrific TV comedy series but this must surely be his best performance to date. His character, Martin Bryce, runs 'The Close', his local neighbourhood by organizing all the committees and cajoling his neighbours to take part in various activities. His job, at Mole Valley Valves is seen to be fairly humdrum. His wife (Penelope Wilton) just about puts up with his irritating, though well-meaning ways, but his dream world has a rude awakening with the arrival of new next door neighbour, Paul Ryman (Peter Egan). Paul is everything Martin is not that in that he is successful in business without seeming to bother, has played cricket at Lords, is handsome with a succession of beautiful girlfriends, has many 'mates' to help him pull strings and is charming to all and sundry.

The series shows Martin's vain attempts to prove he is the better man, often to his wife, Anne, but also to other neighbours from the close, notably Howard & Hilda Hughes. These two are another classic creation from writers Esmonde and Larbey. They do everything together, have a daily set routine which can never be interrupted and a genius for unintentional and innocent double-entendres usually only picked up by Paul and Anne. Howard (brilliantly portrayed by Stanley Lebor) is Martin's best friend but the latter cannot understand why he falls for Paul and his 'nice guy' image.

One of the funniest episodes of the series comes when Anne is in hospital for a few days and Martin boastfully promises to spring clean the house single-handedly in her absence. He uses charts, colour-coding and a stop-watch but everything goes wrong that could go wrong and it's Paul who inevitably has to come to the rescue. The series ended with a one-off extended edition which saw Anne expecting a baby (rather late in life) and the couple's move from The Close to Oswestry, brought about by the merger of Martin's firm.

An essential purchase on DVD for anybody who appreciates subtle comedy writing and great performances by the entire cast.

Sorry to see this excellent series damned by faint praise in another review. A quiet home-counties close is the setting for some complex characters and relationships, brought out superbly by the principals, Richard Briers, Penelope Wilton and Peter Egan. Admittedly, Howard & Hilda were a bit two-dimensional, but that was kind of the point.

While stopping short of biting satire, it nevertheless touched nerves in suburban households in much the same way as the first Reginald Perrin series. The ability to make a character like Martin Bryce likable (well, occasionally) highlights the consummate skill of Briers, who has ranged from farce to the RSC with equal ease. At first it's hard to understand how the wonderful Anne (Penelope Wilton) married him, and yet eventually you see how it could happen. A poignant and very English comedy that should see the light of day again.

What makes Ever Decreasing Circles so charming and fascinating ? Basically, it's the old world values of love and fidelity.

Martin, fastidiously played by Richard Briars, is a man struggling against his own mediocrity. We can all recognise his situation and the men whose lives mirror his, he tries so hard at everything but his best is never quite good enough, while the charmer Paul, oily played by Peter Egan, achieves everything with effortless ease.

It's a play and a counter-play of a man who struggles through life compared to a man who is gifted by nature.

What redeems Martin from a lifetime of ennui is that he is married to Anne, played by the simply gorgeous Penelope Wilton. Would be Hollywood actresses should note that Penelope Wilton manages to convey as much sex appeal through a smile as do many talentless actresses through heaving bosoms.

Anne is the rose in Martin's life and we are left with the feeling that Martin wakes up everyday thanking God for giving him such a wife.

What gives the show its appeal is that although Anne is undoubtedly attracted by Paul and his charm , she remains loyal to Martin.

Ever Decreasing Circles tells us that there is still a place for Fidelity in married life and the World.

I prefer this to the better-known _The Good Life_, in which Briers appeared with the adorable Felicity Kendal. Martin is maddening, the man who "means well" but takes everything to excess: a man of basic decency and love for his wife who manages to infuriate or confound all. Wilton is deft as the wife and and Egan superb as a neighbor and rival; "Howard & Hilda" provide further comedy as a devoted couple who don't always quite keep up. A funny commentary on life in community associations as well as marriage, commitment, and temptation.