| Love Thy Neighbour | |
|---|---|
 Rudolph Walker as Bill Reynolds and Jack Smethurst as Eddie Booth |
|
| Format | Sitcom |
| Created by | Vince Powell & Harry Driver |
| Starring | Rudolph Walker Jack Smethurst Nina Baden-Semper Kate Williams |
| Country of origin |  United
Kingdom |
| No. of series | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 56 (including unbroadcast pilot and film adaptation) (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Thames Television |
| Original run | 13 April 1972 – 22 January 1976 |
Love Thy Neighbour is a British sitcom which ran from 13 April 1972 to 22 January 1976, made by Thames Television for ITV. It starred Jack Smethurst, Rudolph Walker, Nina Baden-Semper and Kate Williams. There was later a movie spin-off, also entitled Love Thy Neighbour, and a brief sequel set in Australia.
The series (and movie) was created and largely written by Vince Powell and Harry Driver, and was based around a suburban white working class couple who unwittingly found themselves living next door to a black couple, and the white couple's attempts to come to terms with this.
Love Thy Neighbour was hugely popular in the 1970s. During that era, Britain struggled to come to terms with its recently arrived population of black immigrants, and Love Thy Neighbour exemplified this struggle. It aroused great controversy for many of the same reasons as the earlier Till Death Us Do Part. The views of the white male character (Eddie Booth, played by Smethurst) were presented in such a way as to make him appear stupid and bigoted, and were contrasted with the more tolerant attitude of his wife. His use of terms such as nig-nog to refer to his black neighbour, despite being intended as ironic by the script-writers, attracted considerable criticism from viewers. The male black character was, in contrast educated and sophisticated, although stubborn and also capable of racism using the terms Honky, Snowflake, Paleface or Big White Chief to describe his white neighbour.
The first series was released on Region 2 DVD in October 2003. Series 2 followed in May 2004. The film version was released on DVD in 2004. In the original version of the pilot episode, which has never been screened, the role of Joan was played by Gwendolyn Watts. It is featured on the series one DVD.
The series has since been shown in the UK on satellite television with warnings about content at the start of each show.
Contents |
Love Thy Neighbour has been criticised for its politically incorrect handling of issues of race, although its writers have claimed that each episode included both anti-white and anti-black sentiment.[1] It is often used as shorthand for television before the era of political correctness. The fact that the writers did not have racist intentions has not been considered sufficient by critics who point out the popularity of the show among racists.
Although both characters were bigoted and intolerant, Bill (the black neighbour) usually had the last laugh and rarely got his comeuppance, while the two female characters got on very well.
Eddie Booth (Jack Smethurst) is a white socialist. His world is turned on its head when Bill and Barbie Reynolds move in next door. He is even more annoyed when Bill gets a job at the same factory as him, and refers to him as a "nig-nog", "Sambo", "choc-ice" or "King Kong". He also has a tendency to call Chinese, Pakistanis or Indians names like "Fu Manchu", "Gunga Din" and "Ali Baba". He is a very devoted supporter of Manchester United Football Club. His catchphrases include "Bloody Nora!", "Knickers!", "The subject is closed", "you bloody nig-nog!" and "Get knotted!"
Joan Booth (Kate Williams) is Eddie's wife. She does not share her bigoted husband's opinion of their black neighbours, and is good friends with Barbie. Her catchphrases include "Don't be ridiculous!" and "Don't talk rubbish!".
Bill Reynolds (Rudolph Walker) is a West Indian and a Conservative. Whenever Eddie tries to outdo him, Bill usually ends up having the last laugh. He occasionally refers to Eddie as a "white honky" and "snowflake", and doesn't like catching Eddie staring at his wife. He also has a very high-pitched laugh. His catchphrases include "Hey, honky!", "Cobblers!" and "You talking to me, snowflake?".
Barbie Reynolds (Nina Baden-Semper) is Bill's wife and gets along very well with her next door neighbour, Joan Booth. Eddie is sometimes fascinated by her, especially in the pilot episode when she bent over while wearing hot pants.
Jacko (Keith Marsh) is an elderly white man and socialist who works with Bill and Eddie. His catchphrase is "I'll have half", in reference to a half pint of beer.
Arthur (Tommy Godfrey) is another of Eddie and Bill's co-workers at the factory, and is often seen in the local pub playing cards and talking about trade union issues.
All 8 series' of Love Thy Neighbour are now available on DVD. Series' 1 - 4 were released by Pegasus Entertainment, and series' 5 to 8 by FremantleMedia. Fans should note that although Pegasus only released three sets, they do contain the first FOUR series (complete), with episodes having been mixed up and spread around. Of Pegasus's releases, only the first series' DVD is entirely correct. Subtitles feature only on the Fremantle releases.
Pegasus Releases -
All episodes, despite being organised incorrectly, are in chronological order.
Fremantle Releases -
   | ''Race and Sitcom'' - screenonline: Race and the Sitcom |
| | Bite The Mango Film Festival 2003 - Oops - National Media Museum |
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