A Fine Romance (1981 TV series)
A Fine Romance is a British situation comedy starring husband-and-wife team Judi Dench and the late Michael Williams. The series was nominated for nine BAFTA British Academy Television Awards and was a winner of two for Dench's performances.
Cast
starred as the female lead, Laura, against the late Michael Williams as the male lead, Mike. Laura's matchmaking sister and brother-in-law were played by Susan Penhaligon and Richard Warwick, respectively.Creatives, production, and broadcast
A Fine Romance was written by Bob Larbey, and took its name from the song, "A Fine Romance", from the 1936 Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers film, Swing Time. Judi Dench recorded the song as the theme music of the production. It was produced for London Weekend Television by James Cellan Jones, Graham Evans, and Done Leaver. It was first broadcast on 8 November 1981, and lasted for 26 episodes over four series. The final episode was broadcast on 17 February 1984.Plot
The series involves Laura Dalton, a single, middle-aged translator who is somewhat socially inept. Her glamorous younger sister Helen, who is first seen in Janet Reger lingerie, and her husband Phil pair her up with Mike Selway, a shy landscape gardener.The story follows their awkward romance and insecurities. Bad luck seems to follow them everywhere, from the ferry to Calais to an attempted romantic evening watching television. Laura constantly dwells on her beautiful sister's fairy-tale marriage while still retaining an attitude of a child, locking herself in cupboards when things do not go her way. Although immature and tending to fly off the handle, she assists Mike in organizing his struggling business, volunteering her time to type his correspondence and do the bookkeeping. Phil and Helen often regret ever bringing the two together, because they are nearly always involved in the couple's squabbles. Overall, however, Mike and Laura find they cannot live without one another, though they are not able to put it into words.
Episodes
The following are the tiles of each of the episodes in the four seasons, with the date of original airing given in parentheses.Series One (1981)
- 1.1. First Meeting
- 1.2. Different Answers
- 1.3. The Restaurant
- 1.4. Unlucky In Love
- 1.5. How To Avoid Bankruptcy
- 1.6. Keep Them Apart
- 1.7. Playing Games
Series Two (1982)
- 2.1. A Helping Hand
- 2.2. A Trip To The Dentist
- 2.3. Was That A Proposal?
- 2.4. The New Secretary
- 2.5. Boulogne
- 2.6. Furniture
Series Three (1983)
- 3.1. Missing
- 3.2. The Hotel
- 3.3. The Dinner Party
- 3.4. Business Problems
- 3.5. Parenthood
- 3.6. Extreme Measures
Series Four (1984)
- 4.1. The Telephone Call
- 4.2. In Hiding
- 4.3. Mike's New Girlfriend
- 4.4. A Weekend Away
- 4.5. Problems
- 4.6. A Romantic Meal
- 4.7. Happy Ever After?
DVD releases
| DVD | Release date |
| The Complete Series 1 | 23 January 2006 |
| The Complete Series 2 | 17 April 2006 |
| The Complete Series 3 | 14 August 2006 |
| The Complete Series 4 | 16 October 2006 |
| The Complete Series 1 to 4 Box Set | 6 October 2008 |