Outside Edge

Well I know where I was and what I was doing in 1994-6, so how I missed this series I honestly don't know, but I am so glad I found it in 2021.

I've only watched episode 1 but it had me laughing out loud.

I'll comment more as I watch subsequent episodes.

This is a series that I watched so long I had forgotten all about it at a loose end, I decided to catch up with it from the beginning.

It's set amoung the frankly bucolic environs of the home counties and cricket, one of the remaining male bastions.

With their other half's, left doing the matches catering.

We have two couples the Dervish's Miriam and Roger, and the Costello's Maggie and Kevin.

On the face of it the Dervish's are a fairly typical close knit unit, but once you scratch the surface you can start to ascertain that's not necessarily the case.

Roger is a control freak who likes to imagine that he is in sole charge, but in reality he enjoys lumbering Miriam with responsibilities.

When anything goes awry Roger has someone to blame, and he never misses an opportunity to berate her.

The reality that if he, actually bothered to give her a thought. Let alone a helping hand matters may have worked out, never appears to occur to him at all.

Miriam is the sweet unassuming character, that has become accustomed to her lot in life. She is someone Roger never fails to take advantage of, and never hears a single word she says.

The Costello's on the other hand appear to be a thoroughly miss-matched pair, but they actually gell fairly well in their own manner.

Maggie who is good with her hands and appears to be, the one doing all the odd jobs and maintenance.

Kevin is the one with the culinary interests and aspirations, who is in his elements when slaving over the stove.

Any thoughts that Miriam and Maggie could possibly be able to relate to one another, let alone have things in common may appear preposterous.

But when circumstances involving their ridiculous other half's, conspire against them they are flung together.

A fair amount of the story lines revolves around cricket, as indeed apparently does Roger's whole existence.

He is the local team captain, and takes every opportunity to let it known to all and sundry.

Roger's ego is such that he deludes himself, with the notion that everything revolves around him.

Whereas far from being the oil that lubricates the gears, Roger provides the grit that gums up the works.

Although the picture quality is inevitably poor due to its age, the programme isn't too dated. It's evident from the first couple of episodes that it's from a play. The acting is always good with Brend Blethyn and Timothy Spall particularly notable. Another gem is Josie Lawrence makes the most of her part. Towards the the middle of the three series the repetition of some of the catch phrases becomes a bit tiring. There is some pathos and that serves to contrast the humour well. Anybody who has lived in a small village will identify with the story lines and it manages to capture the relationships between the team members very well. Overall this a hidden gem of a comedy that I'm glad I found and would recommend it to everyone.

A much too often overlooked sitcom, especially when 'Talking Heads' come together to decide such nonsense in those the 'Best' Ever British Sitcoms' shows. Based on Richard Harris' play, the theme revolves around Robert Daws' stodgy Roger character who is a dyed in the wool stickler for tradition, detail and doing it (cricket)'the right way' and his relationships with his friends and team mates, the unconventional Kevin and Maggie, and his long suffering wife, Miriam (Mim). All the cast shine. Played out against a backdrop of a (long gone) pastoral semi-rural England (Supposedly Surrey but actually filmed in Wollaton in Nottingham) the combination of the whimsical characters, the idiosyncrasies and cultural niceties which surround the Beautiful Game make for a rich final product which cold have run for years but sadly only lasted a few series. I actually used this show to introduce my Thai wife to the above mentioned idiosyncrasies which she would encounter as a Cricket Wife in her life in England which worked a treat as her Thai themed teas have become a byword in our local league....

'Outside Edge' must stand as one of the best, if not one of the most overlooked, comedies of the 90's. The casting was absolutely superb, Daws, Spall and Lawrence were each brilliant, but it was the 'dowdy down-trodden' 'Mim' played by Brenda Blethyn that stole the show. It's crafted blend of subtle satire and drama rarely fail to hit the right notes, it has the power to both amuse and deeply move, all within the space of thirty minutes. Admittedly the last series never truly recaptured the glory of the first, but then the whole of the first series is an absolute gem. In short an a must see for both cricket and non cricket enthusiasts.