Old sitcoms you get into

[Famous Mortimer]

I get home from work, and as I'm pottering about, I pop on one of the free-to-air channels. There are a couple of sitcoms that I've rather gotten into, even if they're as standard as they come.

One Day At A Time

Recently divorced mother and her two daughters move into an apartment, and get involved with their building supervisor / handyman Schneider. The two daughters are Valerie Bertinelli (married to Eddie Van Halen while she was still on the show) and Mackenzie Phillips (who was repeatedly raped by her own father - the bloke from the Mamas and Papas - and was fired due to drug addiction).

But the stars were Bonnie Franklin, as the mother, and Pat Harrington as Schneider. He's brilliant, one of the best sitcom supporting stars ever, and he won an Emmy and Golden Globe for his work on it. Bonnie Franklin is pretty great too, and she seems more modern a leading woman than the 1975 - 1984 era of the show would have you believe.

Gimme A Break

Rather implausibly, a police chief and his three teen daughters get themselves a housekeeper / maid / co-parent in Nell Carter, who was their mum's best friend (the mum died just before the show started, or in the first episode, I can't remember).

Lots of the humour comes from the culture clash - she, black lounge singer; them, white-bread suburbanites - and while it's nowhere near as good as "One Day At A Time", it's still decent.

So, are there any shows you've sort of fallen into being a fan of? That just happen to be on some channel while you're doing something else, or have been like a comfort-food sort of thing?

[ishantbekeepingit]

I'm watching dinnerladies on iplayer, if that counts.

[Jittlebags]

Some Mothers on Britbox at the moment. Mmmm..  Nice. Did Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads before that. 

[chip]

Been rinsing light American fashion sitcom Just Shoot Me!. I will persist that it's as good as your King of Queens and Raymonds.

[Better Midlands]

I used to watch The Nanny on Comedy Central in early 10's  when the episodes must have been 15-20 years old, it looked dated in that Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air way but had a brilliant performance from Fran Drescher.

I think it was followed by Two Guys & A Girl with Ryan Reynolds and that was 10-15 years old and not bad.

[mtpromises]

We just finished watching Perfect Strangers and it was much, much better than I was expecting.  Balki and Cousin Larry are amongst the best physical comedians in sitcom.  I'm also a sucker for a bit of music in my comedy. 

Hancock's Half Hour has been my sleepy time sitcom for the past year or so. It's also one of the best sitcoms ever made.

[Icehaven]

What counts as old? I only watched Arrested Development last year and was gobsmacked to find it started 19 years ago.

[lauraxsynthesis]

When I was stressed out at university 20 years ago I'd watch The Good Life which was on one of the channels every afternoon and I still find it a soothing watch.

[JamesTC]

The Munsters is an absolute banger of a sitcom. Way ahead of its time in providing a commentary on the sitcom genre, but also not embarrassed to be a sitcom in the way a more modern cynical sort of approach to a sitcom parody would be today.

[Elderly Sumo Prophecy]

On The Buses on ITV4 or whatever. I think I like it because it's a snapshot of a time that I never lived through (born in 1980), and one that's strangely alien now. I also like the outdoor shots taken from the buses, which seem to be recorded using film so you get that slightly dreamlike quality as you look at the 70's roads, cars and people go by.
I suppose it's got a tragic feel to it as well, knowing that Jack hosepiped himself in his garage, and Olive died in a house fire recently.

I wouldn't say it's particularly funny or anything, I'm just watching it with a detached air, like it's a historical document. There's also plenty of crumpet in it, and Blakey does a face sometimes.

[LordMorgan]

started watching on britbox,hadn't seen it in years,  whatever happened to the likely lads. Have to say I thought it was excellent. Rodney bewes and James Bollam totally believably as bickering pals. I found terrys sister to be good value too.
Some cracking episodes, my favourite being the race, when it turns out they are both a couple of cheating bastards.

[monkfromhavana]

Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads? Is a fantastic sitcom and one of my personal favs. It has that timeless air to it, mainly because it's about struggling to adapt to a slightly duller adulthood when you can't really do the things you used to.

[phantom_power]

I was working my way through Dear John a while ago before I got distracted, and really enjoyed it. Nothing amazing, just good old-fashioned character comedy

I saw a few episodes of How Do You Want Me recently and that still holds up really well

The same with Sledge Hammer, which is a completely different type of show but still holds up. More of a Police Squad style spoof

[mippy]

Been rinsing light American fashion sitcom Just Shoot Me!. I will persist that it's as good as your King of Queens and Raymonds.

Just Shoot Me was GREAT.

I started watching Taxi on YouTube a while ago, and the channel seems to have a lot of old stuff: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQqfeNmQ13QybyWuVsmKpWw/playlists

[Norton Canes]

I saw a few episodes of How Do You Want Me recently and that still holds up really well

How Do You Want Me is one of my favourite sitcoms ever. If only they re-edited the episodes to get rid of those awful harmonica blasts.

[Famous Mortimer]

I used to watch The Nanny on Comedy Central in early 10's  when the episodes must have been 15-20 years old, it looked dated in that Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air way but had a brilliant performance from Fran Drescher.

That's on one of the local channels now for me, and I love it. Large number of brilliant sitcom characters and performances, and packed with big guest stars. I had a week where I kept seeing references to it all over the place - other shows, podcasts and stuff, so I took it as a sign and bought a "Fran's Labyrinth" poster for my office. Here's a good article about it too.

https://collider.com/the-nanny-jewish-joys-why-its-good/

[Poirots BigGarlickyCorpse]

I still love Steptoe and Son.

[solidified gruel merchant]

I started watching 'Never The Twain' on Forces TV, as it was on around the time I had my tea, and I have to say it really was a load of old sneering Tory 80's shite, just as I thought. Still though I felt compelled to watch.

[Alberon]

After watching some Hill Street Blues over the last week or so I've been wiki-ing the cast to find out where they are (mostly in their late 70s and early 80s now). One died only a few years after the series finished and he was involved in a failed sitcom after HSB.

Kiel Martin in Second Chances plays a character who dies in 2011, but being too good for hell, but not good enough for heaven gets sent back in time to secretly mentor his earlier self in the then present day of 1988.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGeno7_OFW4

Based on the first ten minutes of the pilot it has zero budget and zero humour. It's apparently notable for three things.

1/ Kiel Martin's younger self is played by pre-Friends Matthew Perry.
2/ After crashing in the ratings the show was almost completely retooled and renamed as "Boys Will be Boys" ditching the supernatural element.
3/ It predicted Colonel Gadaffi's death to within a few months (and got the cause right).

[DrGreggles]

The same with Sledge Hammer, which is a completely different type of show but still holds up. More of a Police Squad style spoof

Great show

[Gulftastic]

I started watching 'Never The Twain' on Forces TV, as it was on around the time I had my tea, and I have to say it really was a load of old sneering Tory 80's shite, just as I thought. Still though I felt compelled to watch.

In my memory the first series, which leaned more into the Romeo and Juliette relationship of Smallbridge and Peel's kids, wasn't that bad, but it was rapidly downhill after that.

[Replies From View]

I had a crush on Barbara in The Good Life when I was about eight.  Can anyone please let me know whether I'd still have a crush on her if I revisited The Good Life now?

Cheers in advance

[Alberon]

Yes. Yes you would.

[checkoutgirl]

Sledge Hammer

Gave this the once over a few years ago and it's great. It's got a Simpsons vibe to it and I think the writers later worked on The Simpsons.

The first series of Perfect Strangers got a go for the dinner time viewing a few months ago. It suffers from the impossibly attractive women being implausibly interested in the decidedly average looking blokes problem but so did most 80s American sitcoms. But apart from that it's surprisingly good. The weakest part is the script which is average to goodish but it's elevated by some great performances, a good energy and a decent enough story. Mark Linn-Baker and Bronson Pinchot make a great pair.

[Gurke and Hare]

Was there another parody police show around the same time as Sledge Hammer? I'm sure there was but I can't remember what it was called.

[pigamus]

Yes. Yes you would.

Margo is way sexier

[phantom_power]

Was there another parody police show around the same time as Sledge Hammer? I'm sure there was but I can't remember what it was called.

There was Dick Spanner but that was more a detective spoof, and claymation

[BeardFaceMan]

Was there another parody police show around the same time as Sledge Hammer? I'm sure there was but I can't remember what it was called.

Lazarus & Dingwall was the British attempt at such a show, that was from around the same time.

[Famous Mortimer]

There was also "Butch Patterson: Private Dick", but it wasn't really a cop thing. It was really good, though, if you're in the mood.

[Gurke and Hare]

Hmm - it was none of those, and was American live action. It is entirely possible that I'm mistaken though, and there was no such show.