Review for Our House - The Surviving Episodes

I wonder if Madness wrote their popular song 'Our House' with this series in mind. It wouldn't surprise me as it's quintessentially British. Thirty years ahead of 'Friends' this house-sharing sit-com looks, on paper at least, to be TV heaven for lovers of great British comedy, and the Carry-On's in particular.



With just three of the original 39 hour long episodes known to exist it will be an inexact science to assess whether 'TV Heaven' is an appropriate appraisal, but based on the three episodes here I have to say it falls a little short of those expectations. Sadly. Because I really wanted to enjoy this potential treat more than I did.


The conceit is that a diverse group of individuals in London pool together their funds and buy a house large enough to accommodate them all. Unlikely perhaps but rather convenient for this very stagey 'in front of a live audience' show. Hattie Jacques as librarian Georgina Ruddy, who was forced to keep quiet at work and so made up for it by being extremely noisy at home, was arguably the star of the series. Charles Hawtrey was council official Simon Willow and Joan Sims starred as the irrepressible but unemployable Daisy Burke. Young newly-weds the Hatton's were played by Trader Faulkner and Leigh Madison, he an artist and she his muse. Retired sea dog Captain Iliffe and his French violinist wife were played by Frank Pettingell and Ina de la Haye. Herbert Keene played a shy bank clerk, Frederick Peisley, and Norman Rossington played law student, Gordon Brent.


The cast itself promises much - regulars like Hattie Jacques, Charles Hawtrey, and Joan Sims, and appearances by Bernard Bresslaw all bringing the promise of the best of Carry On. It was even penned by Norman Huddis who coincidentally also penned the first five Carry On films (which started with 'Carry on Sergeant' just two years prior to this series airing.


The only surviving episodes are Simply Simon [ITV, 8 Sept. 1960], A Thin Time [ITV, 25 Sept. 1960] and Love to Georgina [ITV, 20 Nov. 1960] and all three of those are included here. Their condition varies wildly with occasional scrolling and picture break up. Audio is variable too as boom mikes desperately try to keep as close as possible to the theatrical antics of the cast, often failing in the attempt or veering wildly into shot - which suggests that each 45 minute show was recorded live. Many gaffs in line delivery would reinforce that supposition.
Each episode here runs for 45 minutes and it really does feel like it. Childishly stagey with exaggerated actions and reactions, it makes the Carry On movies seem positively sophisticated in comparison. For example, in the first episode you get all the evidence you need to show why Charles Hawtrey was better in small doses. Hammy and childish, his camp kookiness wears pretty thin over 45 minutes - and I never thought I would say that as I am a lifelong fan of his surrealistic interjections and bit parts in the Carry On's. Oh well.


But to be honest, the rest of the cast do little better. The scripts are turgid and lack editorial precision. If this was a weekly series probably what we see is what they came up with in the week leading up to it. Which is not to say that it is entirely terrible. It isn't. It does have occasional moments of farce and humour, and even occasional pathos that, in a more considered and edited format, may well have served well. Hattie Jacques, for example, whilst not a subtle actress by any stretch certainly lifts the latter two episodes, having been absent for the first.


The series apparently had an initial ran of 13 episodes of 55-minute duration and were screened at 3.25pm on a Sunday afternoon from September to December 1960. Which meant they were meant for the whole family, which probably explains a lot. As Britain had finished washing up the Sunday roast dishes with Jimmy Clitheroe or The Navy Lark on the radio, this may well have felt like a natural progression.


It was then off for a year before returning with a host of new stars replacing those missing from the first series (Faulkner, Sims, Rossington, Pettingell and de la Haye). Adding to the 'Carry On' connection was Bernard Bresslaw and Hylda Baker joined as Henrietta. ('She know you know') Euginie Cavanagh starred as Marina. Johnny Vyvyan and Harry Korris also appeared.


It's worth noting that although series two of 'Our House' was 26 episodes, after just seven fortnightly airings ITV decided to stop showing them in the London area, and the remaining 19 were seen on a weekly basis elsewhere in the country. Of the 39 episodes in total (produced by Ernest Maxin) only three survive today, but none at all have been aired since series two finished in 1962.
Thanks to our good friends at Network these are now available for the curious or for those who recall the series with fondness. Time has not been good to it but for some that will be its biggest appeal. For me the series was a little disappointing but it's great to have had the opportunity to have seen it.