Earlier this year, when we were searching Netflix for sit-coms
that my boyfriend, my mom and I could enjoy together, we settled on Keeping Up Appearances,
which we’d caught on occasion on PBS. It didn’t take us long to
discover that if you’ve seen one episode of this 90s Brit-com, you’ve
pretty much seen them all. Nonetheless, there is enough humor packed
into each episode that we didn’t mind seeing the same jokes over and
over again. In fact, it was fun anticipating the repeated gags; the
consistency just adds to the cozy feel of the series. We watched all
the episodes and enjoyed each one, while appreciating the fact that we
didn’t have to watch too intently. It made for perfect comfort viewing.
Keeping Up Appearances bears some resemblance to Frasier in that it revolves around a character who is obsessed with being perceived as sophisticated and well-to-do, little realizing how ridiculous her efforts appear to nearly everyone around her. Patricia Routledge plays Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced “Boo-KAY” on her insistence), a middle-class homemaker who delights in buying fancy furniture, showing off her Royal Doulton tea set with the hand-painted periwinkles, holding elegant candlelight suppers and lending her dubious expertise to as many church and community functions as possible. She is shamelessly self-aggrandizing, yet there is a sweetness to her demeanor that makes her difficult to truly despise, especially when the biggest victim of her schemes is so often herself.
One of Hyacinth’s greatest sources of mortification is the ramshackle household of her frumpy sister Daisy (Judy Cornwell) and frumpier brother-in-law Onslow (Geoffrey Hughes), to which her flirtatious sister Rose (Shirley Stelfox in the first season, Mary Millar in the rest) and demented father (George Webb) also belong. While Rose is constantly in a melodramatic uproar over her latest romantic fling and Daddy keeps wandering off on some absurd adventure, Daisy and Onslow are generally content, though the former is constantly angling for more amorous attention from the latter, who is always absorbed in staticky TV shows or books on quantum mechanics.
However, their low-class mannerisms and rickety possessions deeply embarrass Hyacinth, so she spends much of her time trying to hide the fact that they are related to her. By contrast, she often brags about her wealthy sister Violet (Anna Dawson), but the antics of her cross-dressing husband are further cause for humiliation. Despite all this, she remains devoted to her family, and whenever a crisis arises, she is on hand to assist – or at least, she makes sure that her husband Richard (Clive Swift) is, no matter how inconvenient that may be to him.
Swift gives a masterfully understated performance as the perpetually put-upon Richard. Whether he is enduring a constant stream of confusing instructions from Hyacinth on his driving or gritting his teeth while she agrees over the phone to send yet another chunk of cash to their never-seen son Sheridan, he constantly appears quietly bedraggled and exasperated. His mild-mannered decency makes him an object of profound sympathy for many in Hyacinth’s inner circle, particularly free-spirited Onslow and the Buckets’ next-door neighbor Elizabeth (Josephine Tewson), who understands all too well the stress of keeping Hyacinth placated. A gentle people pleaser who sees little choice but to indulge Hyacinth’s every whim, Elizabeth is at her funniest and most pitiable when attempting to get through one of her neighbor’s coffee get-togethers without dropping anything. Elizabeth’s brother Emmet (David Griffin), who joins the cast in the second season, has less patience for Hyacinth but finds himself equally unable to escape her attentions, particularly since he directs local musicals and she fancies herself a talented performer.
After watching the show for a season or two, it would be fun to make a list of all the running jokes and repeated elements and put them on Bingo cards to add an extra element of entertainment to a group viewing of this show. For instance: Hyacinth mentions her tea set. Hyacinth demands that a guest remove his or her shoes. Rose starts a new relationship. Daisy reads a romance novel. Richard warns Hyacinth not to give Sheridan any more money. Hyacinth tells Richard to “mind the pedestrian” who is nowhere near their vehicle. Onslow’s dog knocks Hyacinth over when she walks past his car. The mailman tries to hide from Hyacinth. These are just a few examples of the dozens of gags that are recycled throughout the series, yet they’re mixed up in just the right way so that watching a new episode feels familiar but not onerous.
This is most definitely an episodic show, and rarely are there any ongoing storylines. It’s a pretty fair bet that you can watch any episode in isolation and understand the show’s dynamics by the end of it. While it’s certainly not necessary to watch the show from beginning to end to appreciate it, each of the 44 episodes makes for very pleasant viewing.
Keeping Up Appearances bears some resemblance to Frasier in that it revolves around a character who is obsessed with being perceived as sophisticated and well-to-do, little realizing how ridiculous her efforts appear to nearly everyone around her. Patricia Routledge plays Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced “Boo-KAY” on her insistence), a middle-class homemaker who delights in buying fancy furniture, showing off her Royal Doulton tea set with the hand-painted periwinkles, holding elegant candlelight suppers and lending her dubious expertise to as many church and community functions as possible. She is shamelessly self-aggrandizing, yet there is a sweetness to her demeanor that makes her difficult to truly despise, especially when the biggest victim of her schemes is so often herself.
One of Hyacinth’s greatest sources of mortification is the ramshackle household of her frumpy sister Daisy (Judy Cornwell) and frumpier brother-in-law Onslow (Geoffrey Hughes), to which her flirtatious sister Rose (Shirley Stelfox in the first season, Mary Millar in the rest) and demented father (George Webb) also belong. While Rose is constantly in a melodramatic uproar over her latest romantic fling and Daddy keeps wandering off on some absurd adventure, Daisy and Onslow are generally content, though the former is constantly angling for more amorous attention from the latter, who is always absorbed in staticky TV shows or books on quantum mechanics.
However, their low-class mannerisms and rickety possessions deeply embarrass Hyacinth, so she spends much of her time trying to hide the fact that they are related to her. By contrast, she often brags about her wealthy sister Violet (Anna Dawson), but the antics of her cross-dressing husband are further cause for humiliation. Despite all this, she remains devoted to her family, and whenever a crisis arises, she is on hand to assist – or at least, she makes sure that her husband Richard (Clive Swift) is, no matter how inconvenient that may be to him.
Swift gives a masterfully understated performance as the perpetually put-upon Richard. Whether he is enduring a constant stream of confusing instructions from Hyacinth on his driving or gritting his teeth while she agrees over the phone to send yet another chunk of cash to their never-seen son Sheridan, he constantly appears quietly bedraggled and exasperated. His mild-mannered decency makes him an object of profound sympathy for many in Hyacinth’s inner circle, particularly free-spirited Onslow and the Buckets’ next-door neighbor Elizabeth (Josephine Tewson), who understands all too well the stress of keeping Hyacinth placated. A gentle people pleaser who sees little choice but to indulge Hyacinth’s every whim, Elizabeth is at her funniest and most pitiable when attempting to get through one of her neighbor’s coffee get-togethers without dropping anything. Elizabeth’s brother Emmet (David Griffin), who joins the cast in the second season, has less patience for Hyacinth but finds himself equally unable to escape her attentions, particularly since he directs local musicals and she fancies herself a talented performer.
After watching the show for a season or two, it would be fun to make a list of all the running jokes and repeated elements and put them on Bingo cards to add an extra element of entertainment to a group viewing of this show. For instance: Hyacinth mentions her tea set. Hyacinth demands that a guest remove his or her shoes. Rose starts a new relationship. Daisy reads a romance novel. Richard warns Hyacinth not to give Sheridan any more money. Hyacinth tells Richard to “mind the pedestrian” who is nowhere near their vehicle. Onslow’s dog knocks Hyacinth over when she walks past his car. The mailman tries to hide from Hyacinth. These are just a few examples of the dozens of gags that are recycled throughout the series, yet they’re mixed up in just the right way so that watching a new episode feels familiar but not onerous.
This is most definitely an episodic show, and rarely are there any ongoing storylines. It’s a pretty fair bet that you can watch any episode in isolation and understand the show’s dynamics by the end of it. While it’s certainly not necessary to watch the show from beginning to end to appreciate it, each of the 44 episodes makes for very pleasant viewing.
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