Dear John....

Alongside the over-rated and welcome-outstaying Only Fools & Horses, John Sullivan wrote this little beauty. It only ran for two years, in my early teens, but I remember it as if it were yesterday. Rewatching it on VHS recently has been such a treat.

Pathos. Bittersweet. These are some of the best words to describe the rather cynical and negative look at love that is presented here. Poor old John: living in a vile flat, paying for his ex-wife's nice house and the ex-wife's boyfriend's new car. Unfulfilled at work. Desperate for excitement. The "One 2 One Club" is a club for divorcées, singles and lonely-hearts, and the complex personalities who attend, week-in week-out, become the stars of the show. Some very understated performances and some startlingly heart-rending moments give Dear John a real element of ordinariness that OF&H lacks.

Louise's catchphrase, "were there any sexual problems?", as she leans in for a bit of gossip. Ralph's bizarre Polish ex-wife and his curious mode of transport. The OTT Kirk, who hides a truly shocking secret. The Ice Maiden "Frigid Brigid" (wonderfully played by Belinda Lang), whose determination to remain single raises many questions about why she attends the club. Mrs Arnott, who rarely says anything. The terribly cackling woman whose nerves always get the better of her. These people, mostly, seen very real: again something lacking in OF&H.

Best moment? When John is offered the chance to spend Christmas with his ex-wife. Something he has been dreaming of for weeks. Until Mrs Lemenski, the angry next-door neighbour, gives him a better offer. Marvellous stuff. Truly believable, and very much worth tracking down on VHS (it's out there somewhere!).

The late great John Sullivan was one of the finest comedy writers this country has ever produced, and whilst his other shows Fools and horse's and Just Good Friends get repeat airings this gem from the mid 80s hardly gets a look in. Which is a real shame as it's every bit as funny as those shows. Maybe the idea of a divorced and singles club isn't relevant today in a world of internet dating and Tinder. The characters are terrific each with there own individual relationship issue with Ralph Bates(John) the only sane one amongst them. Full of very funny set pieces and some great one liners from Sullivan Dear John is a minor classic which deserves more exposure.

When John Lacey (the wonderful Ralph Bates) finds a letter from his wife announcing she's leaving him, he signs up to a singles club to try to find the next 'someone special'.

John's adventures and the hilarious supporting characters (sex-mad Louise, played by Rachel Bell; medallion man Kirk, played by Peter Blake; weedy Ralph ('Rafe'), played by Peter Denyer; and flighty Kate, played by Belinda Lang), made this short series a must-watch, although it has only been given one re-run on the BBC since.

Ralph Bates played John as an vulnerable, accident-prone, bumbler who gets very little right in his life. His landlady Mrs Lemenski (Irene Prador) is a thorn in his side, and his son (played by Bates's real-life son) is at that difficult age where he's asking questions and up to all sorts. Watching all this is great fun and I prefer this comedy to others of John Sullivan's such as 'Only Fools and Horses'.

What a shame this was binned after 2 seasons. John Sullivan needs more time to develop his characters and this could have run for years and tears if it had the right backing.

Let us not forget that OFAH was close to being binned after series 2 ..but they stuck with it...same as Dear John,the character development was so important..but alas we never got the chance to watch this beauty grow.

Real funny characters here..a real bunch of people with issues thrown together to stew a great feed-line comedy.

Sullivan's work is very similar in that the characters gel over 3 or 4 seasons . Think Kirk St Moritz..think Mickey Pearce...think Trigger..think Ralph..it all fits that this was a precursor to character work in OFAH . I would personally have liked more of this and less of OFAH!

In a nutshell..a gem and will live on in DVD forever..

This was a great series. I just wish it would get repeated so I can enjoy it some more, now that I am older there may be some subtle stuff I missed first time round. As someone else commented about, it was a tragi-comedy, like a lot of the classics (Steptoe and Son as an example) and I think this is one of the keys to its success. I did like the episode where Kirk tries to take a leaf out of Johns book and take some of the heat for a party host with a bit of gas. I saw it was released on video, but decided to wait for the DVD.... still waiting. Although I recently found out there were ninety episodes, which seems a lot for a British comedy of that time. Of course if that is the case, then there was an awful lot of episodes that I missed.