Send Callow round to bellow at him Beaky.
One Foot In The Grave Page 9
The Rebel. You can look it up on this website.
He bellows in a very cultured way, Alfred!
The opening scene of Series 2, Episode 4:
VICTOR AND MARGARET ARE WATCHING AN EPISODE OF POIROT
VICTOR: Who do you reckon did it then?
MARGARET: His nephew, Basil.
VICTOR: Why?
MARGARET: Because when they found the old man's body in the herb garden, that's what he was clutching in his hand - a piece of Basil.
VICTOR: Aaaah! (THREE SECOND PAUSE) Lucky he wasn't killed by his Uncle Dick.
90s comedies don't seem to get the credit they deserve in this day and age - at the time, yes, but they haven't seemed to aged well (not my opinion).
Men Behaving Badly
One Foot in the Grave
Goodnight Sweetheart
2.4 Children
Quote: chipolata @ 6th February 2008, 3:42 PMI think this has to be one of the most experimental mainstream shows ever. David Renwick really did try to do different things each series, and often delighted in shrinking the action to a traffic jam or waiting room. And then ending it all by killing Victor, and having his wife kill the driver was dark genius.
You assumed she killed the driver do you?
I thought it was left open as to what she did.
Quote: Godot Taxis @ 6th February 2008, 6:32 PMI actually find Meldrew quite reasonable and his wife an annoying moaner, but it's a brilliantly plotted show, although Renwick not much good at one-liners.
That is incredibly harsh.
This show was all about the one-liners.
"I could stuff a matress with your pubic hair"
Okay I could only quote one from the top of my head but it is very subjective to decide what are good and what are not so good one-liners. A funny one-liner doesn't need to be a saracastic gag. It could be a very clever build-up to a hilarious moment in the show.
Quote: Jacob Loves Comedy @ 2nd June 2009, 6:55 PMMy ideal ending in the final episode would have been Victor just getting angry about something that has gone wrong. Just the usual.
David Renwick & Richard Wilson both said they wanted to kill Victor because:
1. It had never been done in sitcom
2. It would stop people asking when they were going to make more.Just because it hasn't been done in sitcom before, doesn't mean you should do it. And if people ask you to make more, all you have to say is no.
I think it is a trait of Renwick's to do screw things up for the sake of it - Like he did with Jonathan Creek's character. Knocking down his Windmill house, making him some corporate inner-city suit worker etc - change for the sake of change and paranoid the audience wouldn't believe Creek had moved on.
There was no reason to knock down his Windmill. There was no reason to give him a drastic change in career.
Quote: Ben @ 13th April 2011, 10:52 PMI guess you're right, Peter, but there's definitely something different about the first series. Can't put my finger on it though.
I hear what you're saying.
But I feel like that about a fair few sitcoms - Only Fools is another.
I think it is a case of a comedy finding its feet, as it were.
Quote: Rob Maris @ 16th May 2011, 5:55 AMI am sure I am not the only one that bought all of the series but did not get the Christmas specials for 1996 & 1997 (Christmas specials for other years were included).
I only found out these existed when reading a OFITG book - luckily I can buy a DVD with the Christmas specials for 1996 & 1997 very cheaply from Amazon.
I bought them all individually when they were released and separately as a boxset for my grandparents who got me into the show - both versions had all the specials on them
Quote: Nick @ 17th May 2011, 1:26 PMI do think this is an excellent sitcom and deserves to be remembered as a classic but, for whatever reason, I think there is a lack of warmth to the show which stops me from really loving it. There are probably much less funny sitcoms that I actually prefer simply due to the affection that I have for the characters.
I don't know how anybody could not feel love and warmth to Victor.
But also, there weren't too many outside characters after Mrs. Warboys, Patrick & Pippa and Mr Swayney.
Quote: BardManners @ 2nd August 2011, 3:51 PMWhat I like is the darkness of some of the subject matter is given this kind of English middle class twee-ness. But it does twee in a way that makes you feel as there is something a bit unpleasant underneath. YET the characters of Victor, Margaret are still very human in the end. I think I like the dead hedgehog bit the best in the whole thing.
Anytime Margaret growls in horror always had me in stitches. Also, I can picture my late nan clenching her sides helplessly with laughter.
God rest her soul. :-(
Quote: Oldrocker @ 23rd January 2012, 9:01 PMSorry for such an age old bump but . . .
Don't know if this has been remarked upon before.
I was watching We Have Put Her Living In The Tomb tonight on Gold when I noticed something.
When Margaret suspects that the tortoise is in the incinerator as she starts poking about she calls 'Richard!'
I've just checked the DVD and it's on there as well.
Are you sure? I just watched it back and she quite clearly called out 'Victor' - and it's not as if it was over-dubbed. The difference between mouthing 'Ri' and 'Vi' would be obvious too.
Quote: Paul Wimsett @ 23rd August 2014, 7:08 AMI wonder what's wrong about this Yukka joke is we don't see the person who put the tree in the loo. Do they have special needs? Maybe they are evil and this is their revenge? We just don't know.
Least with the chandelier and the bar it's Del's/Grandad's fault.
Firstly, I don't think many are claiming there's anything wrong with the Yukka joke?
But surely, the whole point in the gag is that we're left as baffled as Victor Meldrew is at why it is put there in the first place? If we saw the person who installed it, sure, we'd giggle and wonder what is going on but then Victor's angry phone call to the company would be pointless and not significiant.
The sitcom is mainly about Victor's life experiences and we have the honour of witnessing them at the same time as him in most cases.
Just watching One Foot in the Algarve - Who do we suspect the journo had photographed? The PM? Some sportsman? Prince Charles??
Whoever it was, it would "send shockwaves through Britain" or something.
Quote: Dave @ 17th February 2017, 8:53 PMI think David Renwick is the cleverest writer to have written for British television.
A wonderfully creative talent.
Anyone think Margaret was more grumpy than Victor? Victor just wanted peace and quiet and a reasonable life and got upset at reasonable things who had bad misfortune and he got on the end of Margaret's moods. She was a jealous woman and quite mean, accusing Victor of things he didn't do and going away without telling anyone.
Quote: comedymania @ 20th November 2018, 10:15 PMA wonderfully creative talent.
His writing's really great, I also love Jonathan Creek and Love Soup.
Quote: jsg @ 20th November 2018, 11:09 PMHis writing's really great, I also love Jonathan Creek and Love Soup.
I agree. I have those on DVD.
Quote: Wheel @ 20th November 2018, 11:03 PMAnyone think Margaret was more grumpy than Victor? Victor just wanted peace and quiet and a reasonable life and got upset at reasonable things who had bad misfortune and he got on the end of Margaret's moods. She was a jealous woman and quite mean, accusing Victor of things he didn't do and going away without telling anyone.
A good point and something you don't always appreciate when you first watch this show. Margaret herself acknowledges Victor's caring side in the final episode and how he was basically the good guy in this world and everybody isn't.