BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

RaspberryLucozade In the '70's, no sitcom was quite as daring as Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft's 'Are You Being Served?'. Bold, cheeky and lively, it featured a cast that were or would soon become some of Britain's most popular television stars.Set in the clothing department of Grace Brothers department store, the staff include cantankerous Mr. Grainger ( Arthur Borough ), gorgeous Miss. Brahms ( future 'Eastenders' star Wendy Richard ), camp Mr. Humphries ( John Inman ), hideous Mrs. Slocombe ( Mollie Sugden ), randy womaniser Mr. Lucas ( Trevor Bannister ) and toffee-nosed floorwalker Captain Peacock ( Frank Thornton ). In charge of these group of misfits is Mr. Rumbold ( Nicholas Smith ), whose rather large ears make him look not unlike Big Ears from 'Noddy'.The store is owned by Young Mr. Grace ( Harold Bennett ), a dirty old man who looks as though he has died but doesn't realise it. One of his nurses was played by buxom Vivienne Johnson, with whom I was madly in love with.The plots, such as they were, centred on the store embarking on some new sales campaign or other. The scripts were laden with smut and double entendre. Perhaps the most memorable recurring gag is Mrs. Slocombe's references to her 'pussy' ( no, not that kind ). Mr. Humphries' ''I'm free!'' catchphrase also caught the public's imagination. Like 'On The Buses', there was no new ground broken here but all in all it was an entertaining and well-written series brought to life by a wonderful cast.Appearing later in the series were James Hayter, Alfie Bass, Mike Berry and Candy Davis. The gorgeous Joanna Lumley, then married to Jeremy Lloyd, appeared in two episodes.A feature film was made in 1977 in which the staff of Grace Bros went to Spain but it met with an unremarkable box office performance. It also came under fire by the 'alternative comedy brigade' in the '80's ( Rik Mayall openly slated it in an episode of 'Filthy, Rich & Catflap' ). Overall though it still enjoys a loyal following from viewers today, thanks to repeats on UK Gold.In the early '90's, Lloyd and Croft followed up 'Are You Being Served?' with 'Grace & Favour' ( entitled 'Are You Being Served Again?' in America ), which reunited the cast save for Trevor Bannister. It saw the staff of Grace Bros inherit from Young Mr Grace's will a large country house. It was well received but did not gain the same affection as its parent programme did.In its day, 'Are You Being Served?' regularly topped the ratings and, as I said earlier, thanks to repeats and DVD releases, it continues to entertain today. It may be dated but it is still good raunchy fun at heart. For fans of saucy '70's comedies, it is a must-see.In 1986, the excellent BBC Scotland sketch show 'Naked Video' made a hilarious reference to the show with a sketch in which Gregor Fisher plays a scriptwriter who comes up with an idea for a sitcom set in a Japanese concentration camp - ''We could call it 'Are You Being Starved?''', he says.

George Ho (gh87) I laughed out loud when I first watched the show. When I watched the show again, I found jokes too immature, predictable, silly, and pretty unfunny. There are too many jokes on the seemingly flamboyant guy and "pussy" jokes from the woman who wears different colors of wigs. Even the feud between wig-wearing woman and the junior associate is getting old. And sex jokes, especially breast scenes covered in bikini or bra or a dress. Amazing back then it was influential and innovative when the show first aired. Why is this painfully trashy and repetitive series still beloved is beyond me! And seriously, I liked the grumpy, grouchy first janitor more than his pompous replacement janitor, but the former comes off as rude and socially boorish.

studioAT Are You Being Served is one of the best sitcoms of all time. From fabulous actors to the great lines each series of this show has at least one magic moment.It's pure pantomime humour that can be enjoyed by the whole family and it is because of this that the show is timeless.The catchphrases come thick and fast and the exploits of Mr Humphries and co continue to bring smiles to peoples faces across the world.It was about the sixth series when this show started to fade with the numerous cast changes not helping. The major loss was Trevor Bannister as Mr Lucas who was just fantastic in this show. After he left the show began to sink.Overall a great show that is well worth watching.

drednm ARE YOU BEING SERVED had a long run on British TV, from 1972 to 1985. This groundbreaking series paved the way for many other famous Brticoms. But this one was the first to feature a gay character and delighted audiences with its naughty and unending double entendres.Set in a dismal department store, Grace Brothers, the basic plot revolves around the sales people in the ladies' and gents' departments, forced to share floor space. Of course there are other store employees and many hapless customers. This basic structure saw something like 69 episodes filmed over 13 years as well as many cast changes.The series was first seen as a starring vehicle for the swinging bachelor, Mr. Lucas, played by Trevor Bannister. As the junior sales clerk in the men's department, Lucas was always short of money and anxious to get out of the store to chase "birds." But after a few episodes two other characters emerged from the pack as audience favorites.The blowzy Mrs. Slocombe, played by Mollie Sugden, was a middle-aged woman with an ever-changing hair color. She could switch between Cockney and Posh accents in a heartbeat and was often the butt of Lucas' crude jokes. Mrs. Slocombe had an alarming habit of referring to her "pussy" but was always blithely unaware of how these stories were taken by others.The character of Mr. Humphries, played by John Inman, embraced many gay stereotypes but at heart he was a sweet and non-threatening character. Like Mrs. Slocombe, he had his own set of double entendres, but he winkingly made it known he knew exactly what he was saying.Other main characters included the pompous floorwalker, Captain Peacock, played by Frank Thornton; the busty sales girl Miss Brahms, played by Wendy Richard, the crusty senior sales clerk, Mr. Grainger, played by Arthur Borough, the dim manager, Mr. Rumbold, played by Nicholas Smith, and the ancient store owner, Young Mr. Grace, played by Harold Bennett.There were also crude maintenance men, Mr. Mash, played by Larry Martyn, who was succeeded by Mr. Harman, played by Arthur English, and a series of busty-but-dumb secretaries.After Bannister left the series and Borough passed away, there was a series of replacements for these characters but none were terribly successful. Pop star Mike Berry had a decent run as Mr. Spooner, "the junior," and a series of actors had turns replacing Borough as "the senior." Alfie Bass, James Hayter, Benny Lee, and Milo Sperber all had short runs.Over all the years, however, the hearts of the series were Mollie Sugden and John Inman. Both were superb comic actors who were game for just about anything. Anything here meant outlandish costumes (Inman often in drag), musical numbers, dances, and knock-about slapstick comedy that was done live and apparently in front of an audience. Sugden was often asked to wear ridiculous costumes, ranging from rompers to lederhosen. Inman even appeared as his own mother.The bottom line is that this series was silly but sweet. Its crude language and situations were easily forgiven because the actors were so damned good. Like a handful of other TV classics, ARE YOU BEING SERVED has never stopped running. This was a famous import for PBS) along with other Britcoms) and became a staple of that network.The show was so popular, it spawned a 1977 movie in which the gang all go on holiday together. There was also a sequel series called GRAVE AND FAVOUR or ARE YOU BEING SERVED AGAIN? In which Sugden, Inman, Thornton, Richard, and Smith all retire to the country and run a hotel (owned by Grace Brothers) in exchange for free board.