Humphrey Barclay Movies
- 1998
Broadcast by ITV in 1998, Stuff the Week was a lampoon of Britain's major newspapers and supermarket tabloids. Each episode found four bright young comedians skewering the screaming headlines of the "tabs" and in general poking savage fun at the passing scene. Humphrey Barclay, no stranger to the TV comedy-variety format, served as one of the producers. Stuff the Week was assembled by the whimsically clept Curried Goat Productions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Simon Moore directed this British musical drama. The story follows five friends over a 15-year span. In 1979, students Scott (Adrian Lester), Bryony (Amy Robbins), Angela (Clare Cathcart), Tim (Billy Carter) and Keith (Daniel Ryan), in their last year at the University of Hull form a vocal group directed by Scott. Climbing atop their shared house one day, they team for a greatest-hits medley, delivered a cappella. Heartbroken over Scott, Bryony moves in with her tutor Gavin (Robin Herford), while Scott makes plans for an ascent to fame as a pop star. Facing the uncertain future, the quintet vows to reassemble when they are "halfway through life" -- on July 1, 1994 at the Cote d'Azur villa of Tim's parents. Instead, they're back together in 1985 for Bryony's wedding to Gavin. Scott has failed as a pop performer, Keith runs a chain of gardening shops, Tim is a children's TV personality, and Angela is a waitress who sings professionally. As the years pass and more surprises surface, it becomes evident their lives can never harmonize in a manner as perfect as their music. South African locations substitute for the French Riviera. Music by Alan Parker, with a cappella arrangements by Tot Taylor. More than 20 tunes are featured. Shown at the 1997 London Film Festival, Up on the Roof did not do well in its London opening but bounced back with a highly positive reaction at the 1997 Fort Lauderdale Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Carter, Clare Cathcart, (more)
- 1993
In this British "ethnic" sitcom, Trevyn McDowell was cast as Jane Wainwright, the leader of a youth club catering to tough inner city kids. So far as the local authorities were concerned, the most hard-boiled of Jane's youthful charges was a bloke named Trevor (Robert McKewley), aka "Too-Bad." In truth, Trevor was a deep-down decent kid, something of a cockney Fonzie; and yet, every time something went wrong or some local crime was committed, poor Too-Bad was held responsible. The seven-episode What You Lookin' At? was broadcast from July 17 to August 28, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Trevyn McDowell, Robert McKewley, (more)
- 1990
Imelda Staunton starred in this British sitcom as lovelorn schoolteacher Izzy Comyn. Throughout the series' three-year run, Izzy searched and searched for romance, but the right man never seemed to come along -- though there were plenty of "wrong" men along the way. Helping matters not at all was Izzy's habit of playing fast and loose with the truth whenever she found herself in a jam. The 18 half-hour episodes of Up the Garden Path were seen via ITV's Granada Television division from May 2, 1990 to July 1, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
Acid-tongued comic actress Nicola McAuliffe was the star of the weekly, 30-minute British sitcom Surgical Spirit. McAuliffe was cast as Sheila Sabatini, an undeniably brilliant but irredeemably caustic surgeon. The series chronicled Sheila's trials and tribulations both on and off the job, including her ongoing war of wills with her indolent son Daniel (Andrew Groves) and her erstwhile romance with fellow doctor Jonathan Haslam (Duncan Preston), who much to the amazement of his colleagues, found something attractive and charming in the much-despised Dr. Sabatini. Created by Peter Learmouth, Surgical Spirit was produced by Granada Television and ran for 50 episodes, from April 14, 1989 to July 7, 1995. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Made for British television, 1989's Look Back in Anger is the third film adaptation of John Osborne's legendary "kitchen sink" stage drama. Kenneth Branagh plays working-class roisterer Jimmy Porter, the archetypal "angry young man" whose college education has led nowhere. Stuck in a go-nowhere job at a candy store, Porter rebels against the establishment through his boorish treatment of his wife (Emma Thompson) and mistress (Siobhan Redmond). Branagh's forceful performance allows us to ignore the structural shortcomings inherent in the play (Osborne writes in fluent tract). Earlier filmizations of Look Back in Anger starred Richard Burton and Malcolm McDowell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Jimmy Mulville and Diana Hardcastle starred on this British sitcom, respectively cast as Donald and Patsy. A pair of unmarried thirtysomethings, Donald and Patsy carried on a hot-and-cold romance. Somehow or other, their ardor never quite culminated in matrimony, but not from a lack of effort on the part of the couple's friends and family members. A TVS production, That's Love debuted in England on January 19, 1988, and yielded 26 half-hour episodes before its cancellation in 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Celebrated British actress Emma Thompson briefly headlined her own wacky sketch-comedy series on the BBC, beginning November 10, 1988. It was difficult to accurately describe Thompson, since no two episodes were quite alike. Appearing in support of the star were her then-husband, Kenneth Branagh, her actress mother Phyllida Law, and her older sister Sophie Thompson. Among the guest stars were such British luminaries as Robbie Coltrane, Joanna David, and Harold Innocent. Though many viewers were entertained and fascinated by the series' off-the-wall sense of humor, Emma Thompson herself regarded the show as a failure, and shed no tears when BBC pulled the plug on Thompson after six episodes on December 15, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on a novel by Catherine Heath, the four-part British miniseries Behaving Badly starred Judi Dench as Bridget, a typically dutiful upper middle-class wife and mother. Upon learning that her husband is a philanderer, Bridget is shocked but willing to forgive. But when hubby walks out, she decides to kick over the traces and have some fun of her own, which -- in time-honored "double standard" fashion -- thoroughly scandalizes her family and friends. Behaving Badly first aired in 1988 over Britain's Channel 4. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Douglas Hodge, (more)
- 1976
As indicated by its title, this British comedy series was a continuation of the popular sitcom No, Honestly (1974), in which a married couple periodically broke down the "fourth wall" and addressed the audience about their various trials and tribulations. Differentiating the two series was the fact that the latter effort boasted an entirely new cast and crew. This time around, the sweethearts were songwriter Matt Browne (Donal Donnelly) and his secretary Lili Pond (Liza Goddard). Halfway through the second season, the two protagonists became husband and wife, but the basic "This is how it all happened" premise remained intact. Twenty-six half-hour episodes of Yes, Honestly were telecast in Britain between January 10, 1976 and April 23, 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donal Donnelly, Liza Goddard, (more)
Not to be confused with the earlier Granada Television variety series of the same name, the British sitcom Two's Company was unveiled by London Weekend Television on September 6, 1975. American actress Elaine Stritch starred as Dorothy McNab, an acerbic Yankee writer who lived and worked on a country estate in Chelsea. Dorothy's prickly personality was offset by the cool unflappability of her "veddy" British butler, Robert Hiller, played by Donald Sinden. Although Robert could give back as good as he got when subjected to Dorothy's insults, a palpable mutual affection existed between the two protagonists. Created by Bill MacIlwraith, the 29-episode Two's Company ran until March 4, 1979. In America, the series was rebroadcast over the A&E cable network, and also spawned a 1981 remake, The Two of Us, starring Mimi Kennedy and Peter Cook. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elaine Stritch, Donald Sinden, (more)
- 1974
Based on the books by Charlotte Bingham, the 1974 Brit-com No, Honestly starred real-life husband and wife John Alderton and Pauline Collins as a witty married couple. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 1974
David Jason starred in this British sitcom as minor civil servant Edgar Briggs. Through one of those bureaucratic blunders so beloved of TV comedy writers, Edgar found himself promoted to the Secret Intelligence Service. Despite his ineptitude and overall stupidity, Edgar managed to perform one remarkable deed "for the good of the service" on each episode, usually as a result of good old-fashioned dumb luck. The 13 episodes of The Top Secret Life of Edgar Briggs were beamed out by ITV's London Weekend Television service from September 15 to December 8, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Comic actor Ronnie Barker starred in all six half-hour episodes of this British anthology series. The gimmick was that each installment was penned by a different comedy writer, among them The Goon Show's Spike Milligan, Monty Python's John Cleese, and Barker himself, writing pseudonymously as Gerald Wiley. One episode, "The Removal's Person," eventually matriculated into the weekly series Clarence -- nearly 17 years later. Six Dates With Barker was carried over London Weekend Television in 1971. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
