Post by The Collector on Jan 3, 2007 10:19:38 GMT
Moriarty got me series 1 & 2 of this for Christmas...Never seen it before...It's a good one tho'
[glow=red,2,300]I Didn't Know You Cared
UK, BBC, Sitcom, colour, 1975
Starring: Robin Bailey, John Comer, Liz Smith[/glow]
Peter Tinniswood's wonderful comic creation, the Brandons - a truly awful, extended northern family - was brought triumphantly to TV in this artfully cast show. The characters first appeared in a trilogy of books written by Tinniswood in which, although they were succinctly sketched by their dialogue, the author avoided physical descriptions. But he was more than satisfied when the chosen BBC actors matched the vision of the Brandons that he held in his mind.
Pivotal to the show is Uncle Mort, an incredibly dour, awesomely pessimistic and newly widowed pensioner - the type of man who wears a flat-cap indoors - who positively wallows in his misery. His dullard nephew, Carter, has become reluctantly engaged to Pat and is attempting to stall any wedding talk, a ploy heartily endorsed by the other male members of the clan, all of whom see marriage as a gruesome crime against their gender. The constant arguing of his parents, Les and Annie (Mort's sister), is another factor in Carter's hesitancy - but whatever his reasons, his reservations are no match for Pat and her mother's determination that a wedding must take place, and at the end of the first series the knot is tied. The marriage doesn't really alter much in the scheme of things: even though his wife aspires to an improved lifestyle and tries to better her husband above his station, Carter and the other men still go out on the ale and 'enjoy' one deeply gloomy night after another - better yet than being with their women-folk - while the wives sit at home and wait for their beery husbands to return, stewing over yet another dried-out dinner and more broken promises. All the while, Carter tries too to resist the temptations of a brassy admirer, Linda Preston, persistently offering him sensual northern delights behind the slag heap.
This battle-of-the-sexes was endless, with even the powerful male characters Uncle Mort and Les Brandon unable to come out on top against the closed ranks of the formidable family females. Only old Uncle Stavely managed to stay unbeaten, due entirely to his near-deafness and inability to mutter anything beyond the incongruous 'I heard that! Pardon?' or simply 'Pardon?'
Peter Tinniswood's acute observations of the tough and stoic side of northern life, allied to his wonderful ear for the humour inherent in everyday dialogue, meant that I Didn't Know You Cared was an excellent and highly literate sitcom and a quiet triumph for all concerned.
Notes. The three books depicting the Brandons were A Touch Of Daniel (published 1969), I Didn't Know You Cared (1973) and Except You're A Bird (1974). On 1 August 1989 BBC1 presented Tinniswood Country, which looked back at the places of the writer's youth. He was aided in his quest by the Brandon family, with Robin Bailey and Liz Smith back in their roles of the previous decade, joined by Peter Skellern as Carter and Liz Goulding as Pat.
Tinniswood's Uncle Mort character has become a firm favourite with BBC Radio 4 listeners in recent years, appearing in such series as Uncle Mort's North Country and Uncle Mort's South Country (both have also been published in book form) and Uncle Mort's Celtic Fringe.
Researched and written by Mark Lewisohn.
Cast
Robin Bailey - Uncle Mort
John Comer - Les Brandon
Liz Smith - Annie Brandon
Stephen Rea - Carter Brandon (series 1 & 2); Keith Drinkel (series 3)
Anita Carey - Pat Partington (series 1 & 2); Liz Goulding (series 3)
Bert Palmer - Uncle Stavely (series 1-3); Leslie Sarony (series 4)
Deirdre Costello - Linda Preston
Gretchen Franklin - Auntie Lil (series 1 & 2)
Vanda Godsell - Mrs Partington
Crew
Peter Tinniswood - Writer
Bernard Thompson - Producer
Transmission Details
Number of episodes: 27 Length: 30 mins
Series One (7) 27 Aug-15 Oct 1975, BBC1 Wed 9.25pm
Series Two (6) 20 Apr-25 May 1976, BBC1 Tue 9.25pm
Series Three (7) 11 Jan-22 Feb 1978, BBC1 Wed 9.25pm
Series Four (7) 8 May-26 June 1979, BBC1 Tue 9.25pm
[glow=red,2,300]I Didn't Know You Cared
UK, BBC, Sitcom, colour, 1975
Starring: Robin Bailey, John Comer, Liz Smith[/glow]
Peter Tinniswood's wonderful comic creation, the Brandons - a truly awful, extended northern family - was brought triumphantly to TV in this artfully cast show. The characters first appeared in a trilogy of books written by Tinniswood in which, although they were succinctly sketched by their dialogue, the author avoided physical descriptions. But he was more than satisfied when the chosen BBC actors matched the vision of the Brandons that he held in his mind.
Pivotal to the show is Uncle Mort, an incredibly dour, awesomely pessimistic and newly widowed pensioner - the type of man who wears a flat-cap indoors - who positively wallows in his misery. His dullard nephew, Carter, has become reluctantly engaged to Pat and is attempting to stall any wedding talk, a ploy heartily endorsed by the other male members of the clan, all of whom see marriage as a gruesome crime against their gender. The constant arguing of his parents, Les and Annie (Mort's sister), is another factor in Carter's hesitancy - but whatever his reasons, his reservations are no match for Pat and her mother's determination that a wedding must take place, and at the end of the first series the knot is tied. The marriage doesn't really alter much in the scheme of things: even though his wife aspires to an improved lifestyle and tries to better her husband above his station, Carter and the other men still go out on the ale and 'enjoy' one deeply gloomy night after another - better yet than being with their women-folk - while the wives sit at home and wait for their beery husbands to return, stewing over yet another dried-out dinner and more broken promises. All the while, Carter tries too to resist the temptations of a brassy admirer, Linda Preston, persistently offering him sensual northern delights behind the slag heap.
This battle-of-the-sexes was endless, with even the powerful male characters Uncle Mort and Les Brandon unable to come out on top against the closed ranks of the formidable family females. Only old Uncle Stavely managed to stay unbeaten, due entirely to his near-deafness and inability to mutter anything beyond the incongruous 'I heard that! Pardon?' or simply 'Pardon?'
Peter Tinniswood's acute observations of the tough and stoic side of northern life, allied to his wonderful ear for the humour inherent in everyday dialogue, meant that I Didn't Know You Cared was an excellent and highly literate sitcom and a quiet triumph for all concerned.
Notes. The three books depicting the Brandons were A Touch Of Daniel (published 1969), I Didn't Know You Cared (1973) and Except You're A Bird (1974). On 1 August 1989 BBC1 presented Tinniswood Country, which looked back at the places of the writer's youth. He was aided in his quest by the Brandon family, with Robin Bailey and Liz Smith back in their roles of the previous decade, joined by Peter Skellern as Carter and Liz Goulding as Pat.
Tinniswood's Uncle Mort character has become a firm favourite with BBC Radio 4 listeners in recent years, appearing in such series as Uncle Mort's North Country and Uncle Mort's South Country (both have also been published in book form) and Uncle Mort's Celtic Fringe.
Researched and written by Mark Lewisohn.
Cast
Robin Bailey - Uncle Mort
John Comer - Les Brandon
Liz Smith - Annie Brandon
Stephen Rea - Carter Brandon (series 1 & 2); Keith Drinkel (series 3)
Anita Carey - Pat Partington (series 1 & 2); Liz Goulding (series 3)
Bert Palmer - Uncle Stavely (series 1-3); Leslie Sarony (series 4)
Deirdre Costello - Linda Preston
Gretchen Franklin - Auntie Lil (series 1 & 2)
Vanda Godsell - Mrs Partington
Crew
Peter Tinniswood - Writer
Bernard Thompson - Producer
Transmission Details
Number of episodes: 27 Length: 30 mins
Series One (7) 27 Aug-15 Oct 1975, BBC1 Wed 9.25pm
Series Two (6) 20 Apr-25 May 1976, BBC1 Tue 9.25pm
Series Three (7) 11 Jan-22 Feb 1978, BBC1 Wed 9.25pm
Series Four (7) 8 May-26 June 1979, BBC1 Tue 9.25pm
