To the Manor Born

I'm usually not a sucker for formula shows like this. They chase, they chase, but they never get together. The comedy and chemistry of Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles overcomes my initial reluctance to shows of this sort. In short, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT... It's worth watching the series in its entirety just to have their history in your memory banks so you can enjoy the final episode of the show. It paints a lovely picture. The show ended complete. There was no more to be said. A truly classy ending to a truly classy show and cast....

When I first watched To The Manor Born one Friday night on my local PBS afilliate, I was immediately hooked from the start! In this British sit-com, Penelope Keith plays Audrey Forbes-Hamilton a charismatic and independent widow who might have to leave her stately manor that her family had lived in for years only to find out it's now being owned by Richard Devere (Peter Bowles) an owner of a supermarket chain, and not to mention a widower. I enjoy all the other characters in this like The Rector, and I haven't seen an episode I didn't like!

I really enjoy watching Audrey's and Richard's relationship develop. They're like the Emma Peel and John Steed of the show, in the fact that when they interact, they just don't know how they feel about each other! What makes this show so intriguing is it's high-brow sophisticated humor, the characters, and the in-depth storylines.

To The Manor Born is an impeccable British sit-com that deserves to be watched by anyone who's a fan of British humor. It's a lot better than the garbage they have on nowadays. :)

Fresh from her success in the BBC sitcom "The Good Life", Penelope Keith ("Audrey") is the lady of "Grantleigh" - a Gloucestershire stately pile she shares with husband "Martin". The first of the 22 episodes informs us that he has died, and that her world is about to be turned upside down. He squandered all the "fforbes-Hamilton" family money and she is going to have to sell up! The auction ensues and this estate, which they have managed for 400-odd years, ends up in the hands of a self-made millionaire Czech immigrant "Richard de Vere" who made his money in supermarkets. Imagine - it's almost sacrilegious to her! Anyway, the remainder of the series' depict their constant sparring; she the superior, broke, aristocrat; he the nouveau riche upstart. Essentially a two hander, there are a couple of fun foils: "Marjorie" (Angela Thorne) her down-trodden best friend; her stoic butler "Brabinger" (John Rudling) and his mother, the wonderful Daphne Heard ("Mrs. Polouvicka") who has an old Czechoslovakian saying for every situation, and they all keep the well written comedy flowing well. It's a very British thing, this - I doubt if the humour will travel particularly well, but at the time up to 24 million of us watched their drama unfold. The combination of snobbery, pomposity and witty repartee from the pen of Peter Spence really clicks. The characters, gently stereoptyped as they are, work really well with a sophistication that endures still.

To the Manor Born is about how old money and new money don't necessarily mix very well. The show stars the wonderful Penelope Keith CBE OBE (a comedy veteran) who plays Audrey Fforbes Hamilton who represents old money and Peter Bowles as Richard Devere who represents new money. After Audrey's husband and lord of the manor has died much to Audrey's dismay, they didn't have a good marriage. She lets out a scream that she finally free to rule the Manor. Unfortunately, Audrey learns that she is in debt after his death. She must sell her beloved home to Richard Devere, a self-made millionaire entrepreneur who really is both Czech and Polish heritage. She sells but she moves close by and is still active in her community with her best friend played by a terrific actress whose name I can't remember. Daphne Heard plays the wonderful foreign born mother of Richard. The episodes are all classically funny and it is one of Britain's best exports. Penelope Keith is one of Britain's brilliant funny ladies up there with Patricia Routledge CBE OBE and Dame Judi Dench.

As a Yank who once lived in the U.K. and married a Brit, I really enjoy watching the British comedies. I find TTMB quaint, aged, and overtly "English". This is a series that actually pokes fun at the aristocratic, hyphenated namesakes who at times come across as snobbish. To me, it is the quintessential English comedy with deliberate exaggeration for comic effect, without taking itself too seriously. A mainstay for the rerun (repeats) circuit. It reminds me of the way in which Brits viewed the American series "Dallas" as a stereotypical view of life from across the pond. A much-beloved classic TV series for audiences on both sides of the Atlantic.