Love Thy Neighbour Page 12

Started watching this yesterday , done a bit of research online. The babies were introduced because both actresses became pregnant. Does anyone know if this is true? Interesting to find out as well that Bill's wife was married to a white vicar in real life. Both male actors have both come out and defended the series and my personal opinion of this series is that it's great comedy. Theres no constant racist attack throughout the episode and they are frequently seen drinking together and round each other's house. Any real racist conflict would not allow this .
There's no violence in this programme either

Quote: Stuart Gibbon @ 23rd May 2020, 9:49 AM

Started watching this yesterday , done a bit of research online. The babies were introduced because both actresses became pregnant. Does anyone know if this is true?

Not sure, but seems quite plausible. That's often the reason for babies being written in!

Quote: paulted @ 3rd March 2020, 8:15 PM

This was on TV when i was about 7 years old. I remember my grown up relatives laughing hysterically at it. I watched it myself recently out of curiosity. If you ignore the obvious racist elements of the show, it fails badly as a comedy. The "gags" are rather laboured a la On The Buses. The acting of some of the club/bar crew is awful. I'm not looking down my nose at the show with PC hindsight, its just naff compared to other sitcoms of its era like Porridge, Likely Lads, Rising Damp, The Good Life, and Dad's Army. It's no coincidence that all these shows all had superior acting talent to Love Thy Neighbour.

The thing is apart from Rising Damp all the sitcoms you praise are BBC which generally were vastly superior.

Yes you're not exactly comparing like with like Paul, you're comparing an average but popular at the time sitcom with some of the best British sitcoms ever made, still raking in viewers on TV over 40 years later - by definition, classics.

A very insightful Twiiter thread from Jack Smethurst's son about growing up in the bubble of the success of the show and his reaction to the events in America:

https://twitter.com/adamsmet66/status/1272239772090671105?s=19

Quote: Sitcomfan64 @ 15th June 2020, 12:38 AM

A very insightful Twiiter thread from Jack Smethurst's son about growing up in the bubble of the success of the show and his reaction to the events in America:

https://twitter.com/adamsmet66/status/1272239772090671105?s=19

Interesting,

I could argue that this show is racist. Or...
Loved The Day Today satire. Satire Is non-racist because they satirise.

When it comes to humour anything goes. Acceptable then is acceptable now. People are far too sensitive these days. And Bill almost always came out on top

Quote: mark taha @ 6th July 2020, 11:53 PM

When it comes to humour anything goes.

There speaks someone who hasn't been on BCG very long. Laughing out loud

Anyway, welcome to the forum Mark.

I already like you.

With regard to "Love thy Neighbour", its racial aspects have been debated ad nauseam.

No point in discussing them so I'll just say it wasn't one of the greatest British comedies ever but, at the same time, it was nowhere near the worst.

I can't work out if this series is racist because it portrays racist views or non-racist because it satirises the racist views depicted.

Quote: Michael Monkhouse @ 12th July 2020, 9:42 PM

non-racist because it satirises the racist views depicted.

I would go for this one.

It's an accurate depiction of working-class life and attitudes in the 1970s. The bigoted Eddie Booth always gets at least as much as he gives, and is shown up to be the fool at every juncture. He is never the hero.

Quote: mark taha @ 6th July 2020, 11:53 PM

When it comes to humour anything goes.

It sounds cool but it isn't true. I've been banned from ''''open'''' mics and even forums have moderators.
Lenny Henry blasted this particular show for being racist. Pretty cool after https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1vWOPu5onVM. Pot calling the kettle not white?

Watching this on this awesome new database called YouTube. I'm enjoying it and often laughing, albeit for the wrong reasons - but I can understand the offence, simply cos the anti-racist stance isn't as crystal clear as in Till Death Us Do Part. While Alf is patently a caricature, Eddie is relatively rounded and not such an obvious buffoon - he even votes labour, which takes him beyond the realm of stereotype. Plus, the racial prejudice is more evenly distributed: Bill is too aggressive, petty and prone to offensive language to be an obvious fall guy... Still fun, but I can see how some might consider it uncomfirtable viewing, and I couldn't watch it again and again, like Fawlty Towers, the Young Ones or Melanie C's shoulderblades.

Having revisited this classic on YouTube, I've generously decided to save you the trouble of reading all the comments with this handy summary:
Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh... Racist! They're never get away with this now... No, it's ANTI-racist... Ah, just lighten up and laugh...
Next week: Conflicting views on Alf Garnett.