As Time Goes By

Wednesday Trivia Question

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What British comedy series starred Penelope Keith and Geoffrey Palmer?

Fans of Britcoms will no doubt be well familiar with actors Penelope Keith and Geoffrey Palmer. Each has appeared in or starred in multiple well known and beloved programs we’ve shown on our airwaves and many more we have not. Keith is best known for playing Margo Leadbetter in THE GOOD LIFE (US title: GOOD NEIGHBORS) and Audrey fforbes-Hamilton in TO THE MANOR BORN. Palmer is best known for playing Ben Parkinson in BUTTERFLIES and Lionel Hardcastle in AS TIME GOES BY. Of course, each have dozens of credits to their names and have appeared on screens big and small in careers spanning decades.

However Penelope Keith and Geoffrey Palmer have only appeared in one series together. And by “appeared” and “together” I mean starred so each having guest roles on a series such as THE AVENGERS doesn’t count because they were not in the same episodes. Also, I should note that the duo did appear in a 1983 television adaptation of the stage play WATERS OF THE MOON but that was not a series and I do not believe it was ever broadcast here in the States. Moreover, each have credits on a late 50s/early 60s sitcom called THE ARMY GAME but they were not in starring roles and I cannot verify they even appeared in the same episode let alone on screen together.

All that is to say this leaves only one television program in which Keith and Palmer starred together in regular, recurring roles. It was a situation comedy that was originally broadcast in the 1980s (we aired a few years after). The two stars played a husband and wife who had to pretend they were not married for business reasons.

Maybe that premise rings a few bells so what was the TV show? What was the only British comedy series that starred Penelope Keith and Geoffrey Palmer?

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Wednesday Trivia Question

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In what series did Geoffrey Palmer play a surgeon named Leo Bannister?

The late Geoffrey Palmer (he passed away in 2020) has been in quite a few memorable series during his career. Many public television viewers may know him from his role as Lionel Hardcastle in AS TIME GOES BY (opposite Dame Judi Dench) but he’s appeared in everything from DOCTOR WHO to FAWLTY TOWERS as well as having starring or recurring roles in several fan-favorite series over the decades.

One in particular was broadcast in the UK in the early 1980s (we aired it on the UNC Center for Public Television a few years later). The Internet Movie Database describes it thusly: “Charts the relationships between Leo Bannister, a middle-aged surgeon, and the women in his life: his two troubled daughters, Alice, his possessive ex-wife, and Liz, his 24-year-old fiancé.” I remember enjoying it when I watched it way back when but haven’t seen it in over 30 years so I don’t recall much about it. It was written by Carla Lane who also created the sitcom BUTTERFLIES (co-starring – small world – Geoffrey Palmer) and produced and directed by Sydney Lotterby (a name some many know from the likes of AS TIME GOES BY, EVER DECREASING CIRCLES, BUTTERFLIES, LAST OF THE SUMMER WINE and UP POMPEII!).

Some of the actors appearing regularly on the program included Caroline Blakiston (Aunt Agatha in POLDARK), Barbara Flynn (Aunt Hermione in THE DURRELLS IN CORFU) and Nina Thomas. The latter may not be extremely well known but Whovians might recognize her as Queen Thalira of Peladon in the classic DOCTOR WHO episode “The Monster Of Peladon” starring Jon Pertwee.

If it helps, I seem to recall the theme song was a piece of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons but I’m going on an admittedly strained memory for that (and the Internet is of little help).

So what was it? What was the title of the series in which Geoffrey Palmer played a surgeon named Leo Bannister?

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Flashback: April 2011

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Twelve years back, here’s what the cover to our monthly programming guide looked like…

British telly was the focus with a promotional snap from UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS as MASTERPIECE broadcast new episodes of the beloved classic almost three decades after its original 1970s run. Other UK shows mentioned were ANY HUMAN HEART and (cut off from the picture) MI-5, OUTNUMBERED, THE OLD GUYS and AS TIME GOES BY.

Wednesday Trivia Question

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What did Penny’s husband Stephen do for a living on AS TIME GOES BY?

The beloved fan-favorite Britcom AS TIME GOES BY recently ended its run on PBS NC. We’d been airing the show since at least the late 1990s (the series ended its original run in the UK in 2005) and we’d been broadcasting the same sixty-odd episodes for over a decade but it was still a difficult decision to let it go (trust me – we’ve already gotten plenty of requests to bring it back). Maybe it will return. I’m honestly not in charge of that end of things. I’ll certainly let you know.

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Sounds Familiar

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“Why is Penny’s gravy always grey?” “D’you know, I was wondering that.” “It tastes all right.” “Yes, oddly enough it does. It’s just not aesthetically pleasing, grey gravy.” – Lionel Hardcasle (Geoffrey Palmer) and Jean Pargetter (Judi Dench), discussing the culinary prowess of Jean’s sister-in-law, AS TIME GOES BY

Where Do I Know That Actor?

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MIDSOMER MURDERS supplied us with a sextet of special guest stars in this week’s outing (The Made-to-Measure Murders – in which a tailor’s widow makes a confession). Keen-eyed viewers may have spotted these familiar faces alongside DCI Barnaby and DS Jones. See how many you recognized.

Maureen Beattie played Sonia Woodley, the tailor’s widow. She also played Alice Costigan on the Masterpiece Theatre presentation Bramwell.

Philip Bretherton was the late tailor’s brother Matthew. Now, it’s entirely possible you recognized Bretherton from his guest role on Miss Marple, Inspector Morse or Rumpole of the Bailey. But I’m guessing if his face rings a bell it’s solely because you know him as the affable Alistair Deacon on the fan favorite As Time Goes By. Continue reading →