Man About the House

Man About the House is a British sitcom starring Richard O'Sullivan, Paula Wilcox and Sally Thomsett, with Yootha Joyce and Brian Murphy, that was broadcast for six series on ITV from 15 August 1973 to 7 April 1976. It was created and written by Brian Cooke and Johnnie Mortimer. The series was considered daring at the time due to its subject matter of a man sharing a flat with two single women. It was made by Thames Television and recorded at their Teddington studio in Greater London.

Two spin-off series were later made: George and Mildred and Robin's Nest. In 2004, it came 69th in a poll to find Britain's Best Sitcom. The series was remade in the United States as Three's Company in 1977. A film version was released in 1974.

Cast

Stars

• Richard O'Sullivan as Robin Oswald Tripp
• Paula Wilcox as Chrissy Plummer
• Sally Thomsett as Jo

Co-stars

• Yootha Joyce as Mildred Roper
• Brian Murphy as George Roper
• Doug Fisher as Larry Simmonds

Recurring cast

• John Carlin as Percival Strapp/Mr. Gideon (series 2 to 6)
• Norman Eshley as Norman Tripp (the last 3 episodes of series 6)
• Roy Kinnear as Jerry (series 3 to 5)
• Daphne Oxenford as Mrs. Plummer (series 1, 4 and 6)

Plot

Young flatmates Chrissy and Jo find a stranger, student chef Robin Tripp, asleep in their bath the morning after the farewell party for their departed flatmate Eleanor. They are taken with Robin when he makes them a delicious breakfast; they themselves are terrible cooks. Learning that he is staying at the YMCA and is looking for a place, they easily convince him to move in, making it clear, however, that their relationship will be purely platonic. Robin frequently acts in a flirtatious manner toward Chrissy and Jo. The girls spurn his mildly lascivious advances and adapt to his presence in the flat. In an early episode, however, Chrissy finds herself attracted to him, but resists the urge.

When landlord George Roper objects to the mixed-sex living arrangement, Chrissy tells him that Robin is gay. George, in truth a sub-letting landlord placed by the Church Commisioners, is a bumbling, miserly and gullible man under the thumb of his domineering and sexually frustrated wife Mildred. In the second episode, Mildred learns about Robin's true sexual orientation. She flirts with him occasionally and frequently sides with the tenants against George.

Robin's conniving friend Larry appears in two first season episodes. In the third series, he moves into the loft apartment (in the last episode of the second series, he leaves his flat due to a misunderstanding and is forced to move in the trio's apartment temporarily) and is a frequent source of trouble. Another occasional cast member is George's friend, dim schemer Jerry.

Robin's brother Norman Tripp (Norman Eshley) appears through the sixth and final series, and starts a romance with Chrissy. Eshley had a previous guest role in the series two years earlier playing a different character, and was also a member of the main cast of the spin-off series George and Mildred, in which he played the Ropers' snobbish neighbour Jeffrey Fourmile.

Episodes

First airing on 15 August 1973, Man About the House ran until 7 April 1976, after 39 episodes in six series. In addition, on Christmas Day, 25 December 1973, a short special aired as part of All-star Comedy Carnival.

Theme music

Written by Johnny Hawksworth and entitled "Up to date", it was not specially commissioned for the show, rather provided via the Production music company De Wolfe Music and most recently, made available in 1996 by independent record company Studio2Stereo on their CD "The sound gallery – Volume two". (Matrix number 7243 8 52990 2 5).

Film

Man About the House
Uk theatrical poster
Directed by	John Robins
Produced by	Roy Skeggs
Written by	Johnnie Mortimer Brian Cooke
Starring	Richard O'Sullivan Paula Wilcox Sally Thomsett
Music by	Christopher Gunning
Cinematography	James Allen
Edited by	Archie Ludski
Production company	Hammer Films
Distributed by	EMI Films
Release dates	22 December 1974
Running time	90 mins
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	£90,000 (London area)[1]

In 1974, a film version was made, starring all of the main cast of the series. It was the last in a series of big screen adaptations of popular TV shows made by Hammer Films.^[1]

Plot

The Ropers learn that Mr Pluthero, a real estate developer, wants to buy their building. The roommates circulate a petition to stop the development which attracts the interest of MP Sir Edmund, who keeps a mistress in the building.

Production

The film started shooting in March 1974 at Elstree Studios in London, finishing on 12 April.^[2]

Reception

The film was a hit, taking £90,000 in London alone.^[1]

The critics were less impressed, with David Parkinson writing in the Radio Times, "great cast, shame about the script...The material is thinner than a bedsit wall."^[3]

Cast

• Robin Tripp - Richard O'Sullivan
• Chrissy - Paula Wilcox
• Jo - Sally Thomsett
• Mrs Roper - Yootha Joyce
• Mr Roper - Brian Murphy
• Morris Pluthero - Peter Cellier
• Larry Simmonds - Doug Fisher
• Himself - Jack Smethurst
• Himself - Rudolph Walker
• Spiros - Arthur Lowe
• Chef - Bill Maynard
• Himself - Spike Milligan
• Hazel Lovett - Aimi Macdonald
• Sir Edmund Weir - Patrick Newell
• Interviewer - Bill Grundy
• 2nd Doorman - Michael Robbins
• Doorman - Norman Mitchell
• Mr Gideon - Michael Ward
• Miss Bird - Andrea Lawrence
• Producer - Julian Orchard
• Lecturer - Aubrey Morris
• Postman - Bill Pertwee
• Milkman - Johnny Briggs
• Nigel - Melvyn Hayes
• P.A. - Berry Cornish
• Chauffeur - Bill Sawyer
• Boy Scout - Mark Rogers
• Secretary - Pauline Peart
• Elderly Man - Arthur Hewlett
• Tweedy Lady - Annie Leake
• Housewife - Corinne Skinner-carter

Spin-offs and remakes

After the series ended in 1976, two successful spin-off series followed:

• George and Mildred where the Ropers move to the suburbs.
• Robin's Nest where Robin gets married and opens a bistro.

The format of Man About the House was sold internationally, and it was remade in the United States as Three's Company in 1976; in the Netherlands as Sam Sam in 1994; in Sweden as En fyra för tre in 1996; in Norway as Tre på toppen in 1997; in Portugal as Não Há Duas Sem Três in 1997;^[4] in Poland as Lokatorzy in 2000; in Russia as Troe sverhy in 2006; in Ecuador as El hombre de la casa and in Chile as Tres son multitud, both in 2007.

The American Three's Company also spawned the same spin-offs as Man About the House had: Three's a Crowd and The Ropers, based upon Robin's Nest and George and Mildred, respectively.

DVD releases

All six series have been released on DVD in the UK by Network DVD, as have George and Mildred and Robin's nest.

Series 1 and 2 have had a US release as part of a 2-disc set by FremantleMedia.

Series 1 and 2 were released in Australia in 2004, but then suffered a delay in releasing further series due to contract re-negotiations (the same problem affected releases of George and Mildred and Bless This House). Series 3 was finally released on 16 July 2008, and Series 4 on 5 November 2008; however, it is no longer available. Series 5 and 6 are yet to be released. Series 1 was re-released on 2 April 2009, now with the same cover art as the UK edition. Fremantle Media re-released series 1 on 3 March 2011 with new cover art.^[5] Re-releases have continued with Series 2^[6] on 3 October 2012, Series 3^[7] on 1 May 2013, and Series 4^[8] on 1 May 2013. Series 5^[9] and Series 6^[10] finally receive a release on 7 August 2013.

See also

• List of films based on British sitcoms

References

External links

• Man about the house at the British Comedy Guide.
• Man about the house at the Internet Movie Database.
• Man about the house – George and Mildred book at Publisher's website.

Three's Company List of characters List of episodes Behind the Camera Man About the House George and Mildred Robin's Nest The Ropers Three's a Crowd En fyra för tre Book