Rising Damp

The sitcom was indeed one of the best from Uk. A lot of people in Britain will be surprised to learn that the sitcom is often on TV in countries in Africa. I fell in love with it a long time ago when I first saw an episode in Africa. Just watched an episode on ITV today (2015) and could not stop laughing. Rigsby got into a boxing match with Philip. The plot was hilarious. I can understand why some people find the comedy racist in today's PC world.

In my view the writers were using the sitcom to educate people with views similar to those of Rigsby back then. If they succeeded in changing the thinking a few such people then they achieved a lot. That crusade is still relevant today.

I don't find it racist even after years in the Uk as a black man. Art is a great way to initiate change and in my view to seek to remove from TV anything that we perceive as controversial or uncomfortable is a wrong approach.

Despite the fact that many posters seem to think Rising Damp was guilty of racism, the reverse was actually true. Don Warrington's character Philip was often the target of boorish remarks by Leonard Rossiter's landlord Rigsby (not really malicious by the standards of 1970s England, just ignorant: a real 1970s racist wouldn't rent a room in his own house to a black man anyway), but it's Rigsby that we find ridiculous, not Philip. Throughout the series, Philip is consistently portrayed as the most intelligent, charming, attractive, sophisticated and grown-up of all the characters, and he's certainly no deferential Uncle Tom. ... that's not racism, is it?

Rigsby was the third of the golden trio of bigots on British TV sit coms in the 70's, the others of course being Alf Garnet and Eddie Booth. Alf Garnet was an obnoxious and overbearing loud-mouth who never knew when to shut up ( he mellowed a bit by the 1980's in the revamped IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH). LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR was a comedy centered at all times on blatant "in your face" racial goading as well as infantile boorish insults that even back then was tiresome .

I can't say this about RISING DAMP or the main character Rigsby. Sure racial remarks were part and parcel of Rigsbys repertoire.For example in one episode you only had to look at the expression on Rigsbys face to see what he was thinking when Philip said he did not like the color of an ashened face sick tenant, or the episode when Rigsby mocked hunger and poverty in Africa!

However, by contrast with RISING DAMP you could also laugh at Rigsbys Scrooge like and eccentric behavior over money and his shortcomings when dealing with women; i.e his narcissistic obsession over Miss Jones is point in case. No matter how hard he worked he couldn't get this man hungry spinster to take an interest in him! In addition his pre WWII upbringing and social values were often at odds with the social changes in 1970's, i.e long haired students living on a grant. Also his insensitivity and impatience towards his tenants and their problems provided an extra dimension of comedy.

In one episode he was trying to reason with a suicidal tenant to come down off his roof rather than jump then asked him while up there if he could straighten the TV aerial to improve the reception. This was a real party piece that had a Tony Hancock style of incompetence to it rather than it being mean spirited.

He was not well educated but he was likable and despite obvious flaws in his character, when forced to, often displayed loyalty towards Alan and Philip despite there different values. For example in the episode PERMISSIVE SOCIETY he stood up and confronted an irate father of one of Alans girl friend's also, in the episode NIGHT OUT he stood no nonsense and made a fool of the waiter and insulted the owner.

Lastly, women were not spared Rigsbys rudeness, the episode WINE AND ROSES he runs into an old battle-axe who he mistakingly thinks is his blind date. "I've never been so insulted in all my life" she barks, "well you should try to go out more often!" Rigsby snaps -- utterly hilarious. I.e. he spread his ignorance and rudeness evenly across class and gender boundaries! Politically incorrect? Of course, what isn't nowadays, yet, certainly watchable today which I can't say for TILL DEATH AS DO PART or LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR.

Apparently Leonard Rossiter was a complete perfectionist and very difficult to work with. It was his obsessive perfectionism that made Rising Damp so much better than it's actual content. Of course the casual racist remarks would not be tolerated today, but funny is funny and it was very funny. Eric Chappell's creation of Rigsby was a work of genius and the casting of the show was ideal - it is always what makes a sitcom really work. Francis de la Tour's Miss Jones is played perfectly and Don Warrington's Philip was sophisticated and urbane and much more intelligent than Rigsby as was Richard Beckinsale's Alan. They revolved around Rigsby and had great lines which they delivered wonderfully. It is a great series and I appreciate the decision to show it again , even in these PC times. As a black man I guess I am supposed to be horrified at it but as I said before funny is funny - my dad always loved it way back when too.

'Rising Damp' was recently repeated on I.T.V.-1 in an afternoon slot, and some chump wrote an angry letter to 'Teletext', claiming that the show 'was axed due to its racist content'. Nobody bothered to correct him. 'Rising Damp' ran for four successful seasons in the '70's, only coming to an end because it had reached the end of its natural life. Yes, 'Rigsby' is ignorant when it comes to foreign cultures, but a racist? I think not. If he were, he'd never have tolerated Philip in his house, son of a chieftain or not. Besides, the complainant seems to have overlooked Frances De La Tour's wonderfully prissy 'Ruth', Don Warrington as the clever and charming Phillip, the late Richard Beckinsale as naive medical student 'Alan' and, of course, the magnificent, much-missed Leonard Rossiter as the seedy landlord 'Rigsby'. This superb cast, combined with the fabulous scripts by Eric Chappell, made 'Rising Damp' a classic, one that has not diminished with age. I pity those unable to appreciate its greatness.