Also a
sitcom aired on
BBC from 1990 - 3 and 1995, and also shown in
Australia and on
PBS in the
United States.
This
show seems to poke fun at
English class structure. Not being
English I take an
outsider's view
of how
caste works over there, but I can assume that
Hyacinth Bucket (
Patricia Routledge) is trying to be
upwardly mobile in different and unpredictable ways. Living in what seems to be a "
standard"
middle class home in a fairly
anonymous neighborhood, Hyacinth (last name pronounced "
Bouquet") can't leave well enough alone. Pretending to be a long lost
Windsor family member, she parades everywhere in
Sunday best, big absurd
hats and long flowing
dresses. She tries desperately to hide her
working class relatives
Daisy (
Judy Cornwell) and
Onslow (
Geoffrey Hughes) from anyone who might suspect
plebian roots. Her husband
Richard (
Clive Swift) is frequently found with Onslow and Daisy, and meets with Onslow to only get out from Hyacinth's
thumb. Add nosy
neighbors
Elizabeth (
Josephine Tewson) and
Emmitt (
David Griffin), and you have a woman who can't seem to keep her
reputation straight.
Hyacinth, as the only person who doesn't understand her own
pathetic nature, can't understand why people avoid her company or merely
parrot what she wants to hear so that they can make a quick
getaway. Even her
religious practices are covered in
ass-kissing. The poor
Vicar (
Jeremy Gittins) can't seem to keep Hyacinth out of the
rectory, as she scrubs the walls of the
church in her usual
lace and
pearls.
Well worth it, even only if British comedies are aired once a week in your area.
Cast member's names and dates taken from http://britcoms.com/kua/