Robert Lindsay

Robert Lindsay: 'I've kept many a secret!'

Robert Lindsay plays a secret service boss in Sky1's new comedy spy caper...

The end of an error as BBC1's cutting-edge sitcom My Family closed its net curtains for the last time after a ­turbulent decade.

Farewell then the cosy world of loveable eccentric Ben, his long-suffering wife Susan... and their charmingly cheeky children.

Frantic neighbours bursting through the door to howls of canned laughter, ­wisecracking cute kids, crying ­women, bozo blokes...and constant crises about everything apart from money.

No one's life was ever like this. But ­millions of fans tuned in year after year. And - presumably - found it funny. So this much-maligned telly success story doesn't deserve to be mocked.

Friday's final episode fizzled out with the sad saga of cousin Kirsty being dumped by text on her hen night. And Ben's lovelorn chum Roger trying to find his blind date in a crowded ­restaurant by shouting: "Is anyone looking for a Roger?" No ­laughing matter.

But throughout 11 highly professional series Robert Lindsay and Zoe Wanamaker delivered immaculate performances in one of TV's most enduring com­edies.

RIP My Family. Gone but already forgotten.

My Family, your family, our family

After 114 episodes, My Family takes its final bow tonight. The popular BBC One sitcom stars Robert Lindsay and Zoe Wanamaker as parents Ben and Susan Harper alongside a brood of children, cousins and uninvited house guests, played over the years by Kris Marshall, Daniela Denby-Ashe, Gabriel Thompson, Siobhan Hayes, Keiron Self, Rhodri Meilir and Tayler Marshall.

It's lasted 11 long years, 120 episodes and withstood widespread sneering. Now the Harper family bid farewell with the last ever episode of the sitcom that viewers loved but critics loathed. Susan (Zoë Wanamaker) and Janey (Daniela Denby-Ashe) attend an eventful hen party, while disgruntled dentist Ben (Robert Lindsay) is babysitting at home - as ever, with supposedly hilarious consequences. It's time for the curtain to fall: the show's always been impeccably performed, but the writing deteriorated in recent years and ratings have fallen from a peak of 11m to around 4m.

Robert Lindsay: 'We're very proud of My Family'

After 11 years playing grumpy Ben Harper, Robert Lindsay looks to the last ever episode of My Family...

My Family replacement is show about two gay men

Axed BBC1 sitcom My Family is set to be replaced with a show about two middle-aged gay men - with Robert Lindsay back in a lead role.

Love it or loathe it, you can't help feeling a little sad about the impending loss of this dated yet strangely comforting sitcom, which has lasted for 11 series. Tonight Michael and Janey treat their parents, Ben and Susan (Robert Lindsay and Zoe Wanamaker), to a Spanish holiday for their wedding anniversary. But, as you'd expect with the Harpers, nothing is as straightforward as it seems.

Robert Lindsay: the dashing dinosaur of TV sitcom

He's a masterful theatre actor and the winner of a string of awards, so why does Robert Lindsay feel so at home in middle-of-the road television comedies?

Susan is thrilled. Ben is away at a conference. All week.

But while that's good news for her and her sanity, it's bad news for us.

The comedy presence of Robert Lindsay is greatly missed. It's like expecting people to watch an episode of Outnumbered without any of the kids.

On paper, tonight's action sounds good - Susan gets accused of sexual harassment after she spurns a colleague's advances, while Michael confronts his former teacher who hated him and is now picking on Kenzo.

But the comedy is lacking; if this episode had been the pilot, the TV stalwart wouldn't have lasted five seconds, let alone 11 series.

There are some bright, hidden moments though.