I do think they should take the family out of the house if they still want to keep light in the series otherwise just end it now.
Agree with this. The montage scene seemed like they felt under pressure not to have them just sit there talking about Joe's failed love life for half the episode.
I'd much rather see the Royle Family in an unfamiliar environment (they could go to London to see Anthony, or spend some time in the Feathers) rather than an unfamiliar family in the Royle's environment. The Golden Egg Cup was good.