Not Going Out

Not Going Out is a light-hearted, fast-paced mainstream sitcom based around the life of a man un-burdened by ambition or drive. Lee deflects criticism and bad news with his trademark wit and one-liners but deep down he is looking for love, a steady job and a flat he can call his own.

In the first series Lee stayed in the flat with an American health fanatic called Kate. Their easy-going, comfortable friendship steadily moved onto potentially romantic ground - a situation complicated by the fact that Lee's best mate Tim was Kate's previous boyfriend.

Kate moved back to America before Series 2 started. Unable to buy the flat himself due to his enduring inability to earn a steady income, Lee was forced to rent the spare room from the flat's new owner - Tim's ambitious younger sister Lucy. Series 3 continued with this premise.

Series 4 saw Lee still desperate to win the affections of his flatmate, Lucy. But it still wasn't plain sailing... and it wasn't just Lee's complete lack of drive getting in the way! Not only are friends Tim and Daisy on hand to cause problems, but Lee also had to cope with stolen drugs, missing OAPs, long-lost daughters and a coma.

In the fifth series Lee turned rocker when he joined Tim's band, cheered on by Tim's ditzy girlfriend Daisy. He also took on the role of carer for his scrounging father; injured himself training for a fun run; and proved his manliness by camping in a dark spooky forest.

Series 6 opened with Tim away, working in Germany. That didn't mean Lee's life got any easier, however, with incidents involving rabbits and childrens' parties, therapy, amateur dramatics, and a particularly eventful skiing holiday with both Lucy and Daisy. However, a boating adventure may offer the chance Lee's long been wishing for...

Series 7 saw the will-they-won't-they tension between Lee and Lucy reach new highs, with Lee eventually proposing to Lucy.

Series 8 picks up the couple's story seven years later. The pair now live in a comfortable semi-detached home in Walton-on-Thames with their three kids: Charlie, and twins Benji and Molly. How has layabout Lee survived these dramatic life-changes? How do the not-so-new parents find the joy/relentless onslaught of bringing up kids?

As if children weren't enough to keep the couple crashing from one near-disaster to the next, factor in Lee's lovably feckless father, Frank, close friends in the form of the world-weary (or more specifically, wife-weary) Toby and uptight ice-queen Anna. At least Lucy's more dependable parents are on hand, but we know what Geoffrey and Wendy make of their daughter's life choices, and more specifically her wisecracking husband.

The family adventures continue across Series 9 to Series 13.

More about Not Going Out