List of Till Death Us Do Part episodes

Last updated

This is an episode list for the BBC television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part by Johnny Speight, broadcast between 22 July 1965 and 3 April 1992, including Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health .

Contents

Till Death Us Do Part

Earlier episodes were produced in black-and-white; all episodes after Series 3 are in colour. The original videotapes of nearly all episodes prior to Series 4 were wiped, although complete or partial recordings of some episodes have been found. Recordings exist of all episodes from Series 4 and later.

Pilot episode

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
Till Death Us Do Part22 July 1965The only way that Mike can take out a deposit on a new home is to take out a life insurance policy on Alf.Aired as an episode of Comedy Playhouse . Only an excerpt is known to exist. Gretchen Franklin plays Else.

Series 1

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
Arguments, Arguments6 June 1966A weekend in the Garnett household is punctuated with rows, and the protagonist is generally Alf. Whether it is politics, family, drink, or football, he has an opinion that is shared by very few—least of all his long-suffering wife Else and his son-in-law Mike.A recording was found in 2002. This episode is included as an extra on The Complete 1974 Series DVD.
Hair Raising13 June 1966Alf does not realize that Mike has drawn a face on his bald head while he was asleep and wanders off to the pub.only an off-air audio recording exists
A House With Love in It20 June 1966It is Else and Alf's twenty-fifth wedding anniversary though Alf has forgotten and it is left to Mike to give him a present to pass on to his wife, not that Alf is grateful. Mike and Rita take Alf and Else to dinner at a fancy place in the West End. But Alf gets drunk and Mike discovers he doesn't have enough money for the bill.A complete episode exists
Intolerance27 June 1966Alf's racist outbursts lead to his receiving a black eye at a Liverpool cup final match in Scotland.complete episode found in 2016.
Two Toilets?...That's Posh!4 July 1966Mike tries to convince Alf to sell the house and buy a new larger modern house. However, Alf later learns his plans involve Mike having the title deeds.only an off-air audio recording exists.
From Liverpool With Love18 July 1966Mike's Irish parents are staying with the Garnetts, much to Alf's annoyance.only an off-air audio recording exists.
Claustrophobia1 August 1966The Garnetts drive to Cornwall for a holiday in an isolated old cottage.only an off-air audio recording exists

Series 2

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
Peace and Goodwill26 December 1966Christmas lunch in the Garnett household is anything but peaceful as it turns into a debate of politics, the Monarchy, the Monarchy's politics, religion, whether there is a heaven or hell, the fuel to burn the Christmas pudding and a trip to the hospital for Alf to remove a coin he has swallowed accidentally eventually follows in the episode "In Sickness and in Health".Only an incomplete recording was known to exist, until the missing footage was found in 2009.
Sex Before Marriage2 January 1967Redecorating the living room leads on to discussions of sexual mores, including suspicions that Mike and Rita had premarital sex. They convince Rita's parents that they didn't, but as soon as they leave the room, Mike and Rita begin laughing, leaving this debate open-ended. Else then reminds Alf that he attempted sex with her before they were married. A discussion with Wally the Milkman leads on to a discussion about the existence of God, to which Mike denies His existence. After Alf is left alone to complete the wallpapering, he realises that he has accidentally left the wallpaper strips too short. Later, he pays a local decorator to complete the job while the rest of the family are out. When Else comes back, she then decides she doesn't like the floral pattern she herself chose, and Alf storms out, insisting "I'm going down the pub!" before returning moments later realising he has no more money, having paid the local decorator £8 10s.Thought missing until found in October 2017. [1]
I Can Give It Up Any Time I Like9 January 1967The two men of the household make pledges to give up smoking after Mike catches a cold and is left coughing because of his smoking a cigarette and that of his father-in-law smoking a pipe. It's every man for himself as whoever loses must pledge the savings they make from not smoking to their respective spouses and Mike begins enjoying his new found healthiness from giving up smoking. Alf, however, struggles and is left tempted by both Harold Wilson seen smoking a pipe on TV (a popular image that Wilson cultivated) and Rita and Else both still smoking. Then Alf has a brainwave and makes sure the rest of the household see him smoking his pipe, claiming he is being patriotic by smoking, his logic being that by smoking, he is paying extra tax to support British public services. He takes Else out to dinner on his savings from temporarily giving up smoking. For once, the tables are turned on Mike and Rita, who are both left speechless.only an off-air audio recording exists
The Bulldog Breed16 January 1967A visit by people collecting for a Vietnam War victims charity leads to a debate about war – the Vietnam, Second and First World Wars – only then resulting in Alf opening up a world map and showing his complete lack of knowledge of where Russia and even Asia is. This, naturally, is down to the Labour Government for giving away the British Empire. When questioned whether he supports the causes for all three of those wars, he claims to support the causes of the First and Second World Wars, citing his time out in the deserts of North Africa for the Second. Then a lorry parks outside, blocking the sunlight entering the Garnett living room window. An argument erupts between Alf and the lorry driver, with the lorry driver refusing to move. When he thinks no-one is looking, he lets the tyres on the lorry down, only to be overlooked by a lorry driver and a policeman. The policeman hands him a tyre pump, to which Alf reluctantly obeys. So much for the bulldog breed!only an off-air audio recording exists
Caviar on the Dole23 January 1967Mike is certainly crowing when he loses his job – not that that is anything to be pleased about – but the Government have just announced an increase in Unemployment Benefit payments. Combined with having to pay Alf £1 a week rent yet claiming £5 a week national assistance for rent, Mike is pleased with the profit he is making, until he is told by a friend that these things are checked up on. When he gets home, Mike is behaving unusually friendly towards Alf, but Rita sees right through him. He then reveals why his attitude has changed – he is wanting to curry favour with his father-in-law and landlord so that Alf will not report Mike to the authorities. Alf reluctantly agrees, but only if Mike pays him the full £5 national rent assistance plus £2 extra per week. Just then a national rent assistance inspector knocks at the door and states he is shocked to learn that Alf is charging Mike so much for such a poor room and lambasts Alf for apparently having a Rachman-style attitude towards his tenants. He then leaves, warning Alf against any further intimidation of the couple.Only an off-air audio recording exists.
A Woman's Place Is in the Home30 January 1967Alf returns home late, after doing overtime to find no fire, no family and no food. The family, it turns out, have been out to the cinema, Rita and Else arrive back without Mike in tow, who it is revealed is at a local fish and chip shop for the three of them, leaving out Alf. Rita surmises that if Alf were to call the chip shop from the local phone box (many households, including the Garnett household, in the late 1960s, were not connected up to the national telephone network, relying on calls made from and received in local call boxes), he might get through in time before Mike places the three orders – Mike is queuing to place the orders. Unfortunately Alf has several problems with making the phone call – firstly getting desperate because of a seemingly endless call between a teenage girl and her lover then having terrible problems with a crossed connection. Alf gives up and goes home, only for Mike to unwittingly turn up at home with three orders of fish and chips. Rita agrees to go out to the fish and chip shop again. Mike then tells Alf that Rita has called the phone box from the chip shop to ask what type of fish he wants. More crossed lines ensue and after a lottery of telephone lines, Rita finally gets through to the call box, in which her father is waiting. Alf places an order for skate. When Rita returns home and declares that the chip shop had completely run out of fish, she also tells him that there is a message waiting at the phone box for him. Alf picks up the receiver and finds it is a man with whom he had earlier argued during a crossed line, who retorts that, instead of himself, Alf is a stupid git.Only an off-air audio recording still exists. Was reshot in 2016 for BBC Four's lost sitcoms season.
A Wapping Mythology (a.k.a. The Workers' King)6 February 1967A picture of the Duke of Windsor, the former King Edward VIII, leads to Alf praising the former King for being "the greatest monarch the country ever had". He then goes on to claim that his father and the former King used to drink regularly at The Royal Crown pub, where he claims they were the only two who could down a yard of ale in exactly 8 and a half seconds. Else discredits the first half of the story but believes the part about Alf's father's drinking abilities. When asked how he knew this person was the real Duke of Windsor, Alf claims he can always see Royalty in breeding. A letter than arrives, with tickets to the West Ham vs. Liverpool football match, one ticket for each team's seating. Mike assumes that the Liverpool ticket is for him but is dismayed when Alf intends to sell the ticket on the ticket tout market. A visit to the local pub and a loosening of acrimony towards each other through the power of alcohol results in Mike persuading Alf to let him have the ticket instead. At the match, at Liverpool FC's ground, Mike and Alf get even more drunk, and when they come in that night, after Else and Rita have watched the match highlights on TV, Mike collapses on the sofa. Alf attempts to cuddle Else, blames Harold Wilson for Liverpool's win (Harold Wilson's constituency was in Huyton, a district of Liverpool), gives a toast to Bobby Moore, Alf Ramsey and the Duke of Windsor before finally collapsing to the floor.Only an off-air audio recording and a one-minute-fifteen-second video excerpt exists.
In Sickness and in Health13 February 1967Alf is ill in bed with the rest of the family downstairs ignoring him, watching TV. Eventually an NHS doctor with a cough, with questionable competence, arrives and declares that there is nothing wrong with Alf. Alf retorts that on a previous occasion that this doctor diagnosed nothing wrong with a patient, the patient died shortly after. Alf demands to see a specialist and is admitted to hospital, but is frustrated that he has to go on a bus and an ambulance will not be called. In hospital, he frightens a fellow patient, shows surprise at how much compassion the coloured nurses show and overhears a discussion by two surgeons about the operation they are due to perform on Alf tomorrow, including how they must not drink too much brandy that night and how they will have to hurry the operation tomorrow so they can play a round of golf. The rest of the family visit, at first chatting about anything other than Alf, even ignoring him. Eventually Mike begins to taunt Alf on his fears of competence with medical professionals in the NHS, claiming that all the top private doctors visit this hospital – apparently nicknamed "the butcher's shop" – to practice medical procedures on the poor. Alf becomes distraught at the thought of him dying on the operating table but reluctantly goes for surgery. The next day a nurse places into his hand a foreign object that was found to be the cause of Alf's ailment – the coin he had accidentally swallowed when eating the Christmas pudding in the first episode of this series, "Peace and Goodwill".found in 2009 when BBC film editor Graham Walker was found to have a 16mm copy.
State Visit20 February 1967Alf is furious that the Russian premier, Kosygin, has been invited to Downing Street by Harold Wilson. Believing that Britain is selling out to the Commies, Alf decides to take Else on a trip to Downing Street to protest—and then on to see Her Majesty at the Palace!found in 2009 when BBC film editor Graham Walker was found to have a 16mm copy.
Alf's Dilemma (a.k.a. Cleaning Up TV)27 February 1967A quiet afternoon in the Garnett household is the result of Mike and Alf both reading their own new books, and Else and Rita boredly sitting by, wondering what their respective husbands are reading. It transpires that Alf is reading "Cleaning up TV", the book written by the TV morality, anti-swearing, anti-blasphemy, anti-violence campaigner Mary Whitehouse. After ridicule levelled at him from both Mike and Rita ("She's concerned, for the bleedin' moral fibre of the nation!"), whose moral standards are at almost polar opposites from those of Mrs Whitehouse and Mr Garnett, Alf suffers a bout of diarrhoea, which he has been suffering from all day. He rushes to the toilet (an outdoor toilet, as many inner-city dwellings of this type had in the 1960s) only to discover that the toilet is blocked up as a result of Else pouring tea leaves down there. She mentions to him that Mrs Carey next door has offered them the use of her toilet, of which she also has only one. Alf has fallen out with his other next-door neighbour, in fact most of the neighbours on his street, so using their toilets is out of the question. Unfortunately, Mrs Carey's elderly father has fallen asleep on their toilet and Alf learns he is difficult to wake. Alf is forced, while desperately needing the toilet, to listen to Mr and Mrs Carey's frustratingly boring smalltalk conversation, after enough of which Mrs Carey's father finally wakes up and gives Alf the opportunity to rush in. After this, he insists to his family that the spread of diseases, particularly foreign diseases, is as a result of seemingly lax Government immigration policy, resulting in "German measles, Asian flu and 'Paki-pox'" making their ways into Britain and infecting our native population. Then he suffers another attack of diarrhoea and rushes next door to use their toilet again, only to find an almost repeat performance of his earlier visit, including snoozing old man on the toilet! So instead of waiting, he rushes down to the local pub to use their conveniences, only to find that the pub has called its last orders and won't allow him in. In desperation, he hails a taxi to take him to the nearest public toilet. The next day, Alf is ready to visit hospital for treatment, he has been diagnosed as carrying streptococci. Mike reminds him of his earlier statements about immigrants being carriers, and how paper and letters from "wogs" can spread diseases. this is a perfect excuse to burn Alf's Mary Whitehouse book as it may carry similar germs. Else muses that they might need to have the room fumigated whilst Mike and Rita avoid Alf as he pleads with them that it's just a small illness, shouting "Unclean! Unclean!"20 minutes of footage were returned to the archive in 1997 but the other 10 minutes remains lost.

Easter special

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
Till Closing Time Us Do Part27 March 1967As the evening draws in and Alf gets drunker, three celebrity faces arrive at the local. Whilst Alf struggles to remember their names, Kenny Lynch, Jimmy Tarbuck, Ray Barrett entertain the regulars with a few song and jokes – at Alf's expense, naturally!

Series 3

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
The Phone5 January 1968When Mike is unable to get into the phone box to place Alf's bet on a horse which ultimately wins, Alf decides it is time for the Garnetts to have their own phone. Despite Mike trying to wind him up by pretending to be the operator, Alf is proud of his new possession but gets fed up when Else allows Min from next door to come in and use the phone, turning down the volume on the television show he is trying to watchFull, as broadcast, continuity recording, found in 2023
The Blood Donor12 January 1968Believing that Alf is scared to be a blood donor Mike goads him by betting him that even if he did give blood it would be rejected. This does the trick but Alf is sure that his blood will be given to somebody of importance and then has a dream that he is at Buckingham Palace where he has helped out the queen by his donation.
Monopoly19 January 1968It's New Year's Eve and Alf, not wanting to join the others at the party over the road, gets out his old Monopoly set. When the rest of the family returns they have a game, leading to the inevitable falling out over property between Alf and Mike, and Alf taking drastic action.Full episode recovered in 2023
The Funeral26 January 1968Out of grudging respect for a dead female neighbor he despised, Alf orders the telly off for the whole day. Mike then tells Alf that his beloved West Ham will play Fulham, on telly that evening, but will Alf watch the Hammers 7–2 triumphOnly an audio recording is known to exist.
Football2 February 1968Despite the fact that he confiscated local kids' football, Alf is still invited by the vicar to act as coach for the youth soccer team, attracting scorn from Mike. Needless to say Alf is not a good trainer, concentrating on the skills of only one player, though he does attract the attention of some well-known soccer players.Only an audio recording is known to exist.
The Puppy (a.k.a. The Dog)9 February 1968Alf returns home from the pub having bought a mongrel puppy. The rest of the family find it adorable but it is not exactly house-trained and the more the others find it charming through its anti-social antics the more Alf comes to resent it and wants to get rid of it.An audio recording is known to exist. A 6-minute domestically recorded video excerpt exists.
Aunt Maud16 February 1968When Else is laid up with bronchitis her sister Maud comes to look after the family. She and Alf hate each other and, after he insults her once too often, she refuses to cook for him. She also sees the opportunity to make him jealous when Else's old flame George Pringle comes to visit and Maud hints at something that might have happened between him and Else on Brighton beach before the war.complete episode recovered in 2023


Episodes from 1965–1968 known to still exist

SeriesEpisodeTitleBroadcastNotes
PilotTill Death Us Do Part22 July 1965clip, sequence, and extract exist
11Arguments, Arguments6 June 1966found in 2002
13A House With No Love in It20 June 1966
14Intolerance11 July 1966found on 8 August 2016.
21Peace and Goodwill26 December 1966
22Sex Before Marriage2 January 1967found in October 2017
28In Sickness and in Health13 February 1967found in 2009
29State Visit20 February 1967found in 2009
210Alf's Dilemma (Cleaning Up TV)27 February 1967found in 1997
Easter specialTill Closing Time Do Us Part27 March 1967
31The Phone5 January 1968a low-quality, domestic recording exists
32The Blood Donor12 January 1968
33Monopoly19 January 1968found in 2023
36The Puppy (The Dog)9 February 1968clip, sequence, extract, and final 90 seconds exist
37Aunt Maud16 February 1968found in 2023

Election special

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
The Campaign's Over (a.k.a. Up the Polls)18 June 1970It's General Election night, and Alf is discussing the state of the nation, immigration, the Common Market, and the World Cup.First episode produced in colour. A low-quality domestic black-and-white videotape recording, missing the first 5 minutes, of approx. 25-minutes duration is known to exist, as well as a complete audio recording, four seconds of colour footage, and 23 seconds of the ending credits in colour.

Series 4

This series was released on DVD in the UK as The Complete 1972 Series by Network.

TitleAirdateDescription
To Garnett A Grandson13 September 1972Despite Rita giving birth to his new grandson, Alf is a reluctant hospital visitor, as he would much rather be down the pub. A brief moment of bonding with the baby is quickly interrupted by indignation when he hears Mike's proposed name for the infant.

Guest: Joan Sims

Pigeon Fancier (a.k.a. The Bird Fancier)20 September 1972Alf's in the money; celebrating at the pub he meets a friend, and thinks he has a sure fire way to make some more.

Guests: Joan Sims and Bill Maynard

Holiday in Bournemouth (a.k.a. Women's Lib and Bournemouth)27 September 1972As the Garnett family set out for Bournemouth after a raging argument about Women's Lib, Alf isn't really in the holiday mood.

Guests: Spike Milligan, Norman Bird and Rita Webb

Dock Pilfering (a.k.a. If We Want a Proper Democracy We've Got to Start Shooting a Few People)11 October 1972Alf speaks for the silent majority: "If we want a proper democracy here, we've got to start shooting a few people."

Guest: Roy Kinnear

Up The Hammers18 October 1972"It's all very well letting women have children, but they shouldn't be allowed to bring them up."

Guests: Joan Sims, Bobby Moore, Alan Ball and Martin Peters

Alf's Broken Leg25 October 1972Alf, in a wheelchair with a broken leg, on overpopulation: "Let's have a war and get rid of some of your bloody youth!"

Guest: Joan Sims

1972 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
Jesus Christ Superstar26 December 1972Guest: Paul Nicholas

Series 5

This series was released on DVD in the UK as The Complete 1974 Series by Network.

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
TV Licence2 January 1974Alf feels he doesn't need a TV licence if he only gets commercial television. Guest: Gorden Kaye.
The Royal Wedding9 January 1974Alf wants to throw a street party for the royal wedding of Princess Anne and Mark Phillips Guest: Joan SimsBBC lost the master tape of this episode but two copies survive. One complete episode survives on a domestic videotape made by an early VTR machine and the other copy is a 24-minute cut that aired in Australia. The episode has never been repeated since it aired although it is included on the DVD releases.
Strikes and Blackouts23 January 1974There's a power cut – isn't there?
Three Day Week (a.k.a. Else's Three Day Week)30 January 1974Else begins her own three-day week so there's no dinner for Alf.
Gran's Watch5 February 1974Gran appears to be dying, so she won't need her late husband's gold watch now, will she?

Guest: Joan Sims

Party Night (a.k.a. The Demon Drink)12 February 1974Alf likes a drink, but isn't amused when the women have a skinful.

Guests: Joan Sims, Roy Kinnear, Rita Webb and Adrienne Posta

Paki-Paddy28 February 1974Alf shows his prejudice against immigrants, one of whom moves in next door.

Guest: Spike Milligan as "Paki-Paddy".

1974 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
Outback Bound31 December 1974Else's sister Maud has fallen ill and Else leaves for Australia to care for her. Alf tries to stop her from going but Else leaves anyway

Series 6

TitleAirdateDescription
Phone Call to Else8 January 1975Alf is missing Else who is still away in Australia and Rita and Mike convince him to make a long-distance phone call to her. But Else answers and lays the phone down to answer the doorbell, the time clicks away and the bill grows. Dandy Nichols last appearance as Else Garnett on the series.
Marital Bliss15 January 1975Min and Bert Reed from next door have a fight and split up.
Wedgie Ben22 January 1975Alf, the Reads and the Rawlins get involved in the inevitable political argument. Alf regards long term Labour minister Anthony Wedgewood Benn a fraud because he has a title – which he will later renounce – and lives in a wealthy Conservative neighbourhood. Mike, however, turns the tables on his father-in-law by pointing out that Alf is a Conservative voter living in a far from wealthy Labour stronghold.
The Wake29 January 1975Min's mother has died and everybody has returned from the funeral though Min is adamant that her mother will be reincarnated as a blackbird. Having made sure that he has not already learnt of its outcome Alf settles down to watch the Ali-Foreman fight on TV but there are, of course, complications.
Christmas Club Books5 February 1975Alf has been charged to look after the Christmas club subscriptions at the local pub. However maths is not his strong point and he has trouble balancing the books. This in turn leads to the regulars suspecting that, instead of intending to pay them out, he is keeping the cash to join his wife in Oz and an argument breaks out, though he is almost importuned by a gay man.
The Letter12 February 1975Alf is heartbroken to learn Else isn't returning to England and has written a letter confirming it to Rita.

Series 7

TitleAirdateDescription
Moving in With Min5 November 1975With it clear Else isn't returning, Alf considers sale of the house and moving in with Min and Bert next door.
Min the Housekeeper12 November 1975Min goes on strike as housekeeper.
Drunk in Charge of a Bicycle19 November 1975Alf and Bert go out for the day and Alf gets drunk and arrested for riding a bicycle intoxicated.
The Window26 November 1975While cleaning the windows, Alf gets stuck on the ledge. Guest starring Pat Coombs.
A Hole in One3 December 1975Alf and Bert head off to go golfing
Unemployment17 December 1975Alf returns home after being laid off work to find a surprise birthday party with friends and family. Arguments about politics, Catholics and the Irish fill the night. A near fight between Alf and neighbour Wally Carry is interrupted when a telegram arrives from Else in Australia asking for a divorce. Guests: Joan Sims, Pat Coombs and Hugh Lloyd.

1980 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
The Thoughts of Chairman Alf at Christmas (On Yer Actual Boxing Day)26 December 1980ATV stand-up show, which still exists in the archives.

Till Death...

Series 1 (Series 8)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 122 May 1981Alf, Else and Min explore Eastbourne – including the Pier, the Pier Arcade and the Queen's Hotel.
Episode 229 May 1981Rita and her son, Michael, visit Alf, Else and Min. Whilst on a walk, Alf claims that he was mugged by one of "Michael's sort", when in fact the group of boys were only helping him across the road.
Episode 35 June 1981Alf comes home drunk after watching a West Ham football game and ends up sleeping on the floor in the hall. In the morning, he finds that Else hasn't cooked him any breakfast – and he's livid.
Episode 419 June 1981Alf answers their transport problems by acquiring a very old motorbike and sidecar – however, he hasn't got a licence for it.
Episode 526 June 1981The television is broken.
Episode 63 July 1981Alf is taken ill with liver complaints, after spending the night before drinking.

In Sickness and in Health

Series 1 (Series 9)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 11 September 1985The Garnetts are back in London. Else is severely arthritic and can barely walk and Alf extols the joys of the wheelchair has got her – until he has to push her around in it. With so many cars parked on the pavement he uses the middle of the road, incurring a motorist's wrath. The chair does come in handy for getting him on the front row at football matches though his response to a home win reveals that he is using it fraudulently
Episode 28 September 1985Having complained about his failing eye sight – and just about everything else – Alf takes his wife out in her wheelchair and buys her an ice cream cornet whilst avoiding giving money to the vicar. However his poor sight proves his undoing when he accidentally goes into a ladies' toilet and is arrested as a sex pest.
Episode 315 September 1985Having scrubbed the hall floor and disapproved of Else's using the milkman to place her bets, Alf feels that they are entitled to a home help but manages to antagonise three women in succession. Returning from the pub he finds that the latest is Winston, an extremely flamboyant gay black man who will clearly take no nonsense from him.
Episode 429 September 1985Alf tries the patience of good-natured Fred Johnson and his wife from next door by using their phone to make a very long-winded long-distance call to Rita. After expounding upon funerals in the pub, Alf repays Fred by buying him so many drinks he falls over, but Alf's homeward progress pushing Else in her wheelchair also ends in drunken calamity.
Episode 56 October 1985Rita comes to visit and no sooner is she through the door than Alf argues with her about Else. After Alf has criticised Margaret Thatcher, claiming that no woman should be prime minister, Else and Rita gang up against him with Winston, who brings an equally camp friend home to throw a party for Rita. Alf is given extremely strong drink so that, whilst the others continue carousing, he passes out.
Episode 613 October 1985Tired of pushing Else around in her chair Alf feels she should have an electric scooter but they cost two and a half grand and the woman at Social Security tells Alf that, as long as he is around to push, Else is ineligible. Taking an idea from some kids with a go-kart Alf adds jet propulsion to the chair, which goes out of control, foiling a bank robbery and landing him in hospital. He is declared a hero but, following Winston's view that the robbers' accomplices may be out to get him, decides to remain anonymous.

1985 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
Untitled26 December 1985Rita has come to stay but announces her intention to go back home on Christmas Eve. In order to persuade her to stay and help him look after Else, Alf falls off a ladder and claims to have injured his leg. However, whilst Rita does stay, the knees up at the Christmas Day party goes so well that Alf's enthusiastic participation soon exposes his supposedly bad leg as nothing more than a ruse.

Series 2 (Series 10)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 14 September 1986Else has died and Alf and Rita with friends and neighbours including landlady Mrs Hollingbery return from the funeral for the wake. With Else gone his pension will be halved yet the bills remain the same and Mrs Hollingbury surprises everybody by revealing that Alf has finally lost faith in the Conservatives and persuaded her to vote Labour with him at the last election. She also shows her racist side, provoking Rita's displeasure but being calmed down with an ironic kiss from Winston. However, when the mourners leave and he's alone, he breaks down at the sight of her now empty wheelchair.
Episode 211 September 1986When Rita and Winston come in at night making a noise, Mrs. Hollingbery decides to start locking the front door of the flats at 10:30. But can Alf make it back from the pub in time?
Episode 318 September 1986Mrs. Hollingbery's obsession with locking doors takes on new dimensions when she even locks Alf into his own flat but then he needs to go to toilet. Meanwhile, the shopkeeper wants to call in Elsa's debts, and the milkman has some news about her gambling.
Episode 425 September 1986Alf gets fed up with everybody having a Sunday roast except him, so he makes his first trip to a supermarket. However, he's forgotten he can't cook.
Episode 52 October 1986Rita buys Alf a second-hand jacket, and when he notices it is covered in medals he uses it to try to gain all sorts of favours under false pretences. He also gets a visit from canvassing politicians.
Episode 69 October 1986Min Reed and her sister visit Alf and end up staying for a few days. This provokes the jealousy of Mrs. Hollingbery who has grown found of Alf without admitting it.

1986 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
Untitled23 December 1986Its Alf's first Christmas since Else died, and he is furious when Rita jets off to Spain for a second honeymoon leaving him alone. This is Una Stubbs last ever episode playing Rita

Series 3 (Series 11)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 122 October 1987Having got himself a free teas-maid by causing a scene in an electrical shop Alf goes home to open a private letter to Rita, telling her her divorce from Mike has come through. He is overjoyed as he thinks she will move into the spare room and look after him. However she is planning to marry local doctor Thompson so Alf reluctantly is forced to let Winston have the room instead. To compound Alf's joy Fred Johnson has made sure the teas-maid goes off in the night and wakens all the street.
Episode 229 October 1987After holding forth in the pub on how foreigners have brought AIDS to England Alf and his friend Arthur visit a sex shop, where Arthur steals a pornographic magazine but gives it to Alf to mind for him. When Mrs Hollingbery finds it Alf blames it on Winston and tries to have him evicted but Arthur puts his foot in it by turning up at the house asking for his book just as it is being torn up.
Episode 35 November 1987Alf decides to invest in his own phone but quickly finds himself at war with Mrs Hollingbery over its use as she claims ownership as she is the householder. With the phone being cordless they are frequently hiding it from each other and Winston's calls to Jamaica are no help whilst Alf's delight in trying out his new acquisition by ringing everybody he knows leads to friction with Arthur's wife and injury for Fred Johnson.
Episode 412 November 1987Min and Gwenneth pay Alf another visit, Gwenneth as confused as ever as she mistakes Alf for a doctor and takes her skirt off and, in the pub, mistakes Arthur for an old boyfriend. Back at the house the sisters hold a seance which Winston and his boyfriend use to make Alf believe he is possessed by an evil spirit before faking a conversation with God, who persuades Alf to give the women his bed for the night.
Episode 519 November 1987At the local old time dance afternoon Alf is challenged to fight ageing Lothario Fancy Fred by two merry widows who end up fighting each other but Alf has his chance to threaten Fred when Fred parks his van on the pavement outside the house. However, when Alf gets his legs wedged on the window ledge as he tries to clean the window Arthur and Winston see Fred's van as a means of escape. Fred has other ideas though and Alf has a landing of a different sort.
Episode 626 November 1987On a boiling hot summer day Alf goes to the DHSS to complain that he should have had more money in last winter's heating allowance for living in an end terrace but it cuts no ice. Back home he joins his friends watching cricket on television and falls asleep, loudly dreaming that he has been knighted for his services to the game. He wakes up to general derision and the knowledge that he has been exposed for stealing the eggs from next door's hens.

1987 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
Untitled25 December 1987Alf is spending Christmas in hospital for a hip replacement but his visitors' scare stories of what could go wrong propel him into fleeing from the ward dressed as a woman – which incurs a drunk's unwanted attention. Back at the house he is outraged when Mrs Hollingbery's sister turns up after his room, being told that he is not expected to live, but all is forgiven when Mrs Hollingbery invites everybody upstairs for a Christmas party. Unfortunately he has forgotten the loose stair rod and ends up back in the hospital.

Series 4 (Series 12)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 17 September 1989Alf has had his hip operation and Winston has moved out, replaced by his straight cousin Pele. However some things never change, such as Alf's continuing feud with Mrs Hollingbery, particularly as she hogs his television. Things could be about to change, though, as Arthur points out to Alf that he could be a very rich man by marrying the widow and he sets about wooing her.
Episode 214 September 1989Encouraged by Arthur Alf continues to pursue Mrs Hollingbery, even going down on one knee to propose though she wants time to think. After a night in the pub a surprise engagement party is thrown for the still – undecided – couple but when Mrs Hollingbery learns that, as a husband and wife, they could buy the house for twenty thousand pounds when its market value is five times that she is quick to accept.
Episode 321 September 1989Alf prepares a lavish meal for Arthur who has just come up with eight score draws on the football pools. Unfortunately he has won nothing as his stupid wife failed to post the coupon. There is further despondency as Alf realises he may be too old to acquire a mortgage to buy the house and the idea of his adopting Pele, who'll get it for him, does not appeal. Fortunately salvation arrives when Mrs Hollingbery gets a letter from her brother in Australia, who is happy to buy the house for her – providing that he meets and approves of the groom-to-be.
Episode 428 September 1989It's the eve of Alf and Mrs Hollingbery's trip down under – taking Arthur for company. In the pub the Johnsons have one of their increasingly public rows and Alf is not cheered when everybody places a book on whether the plane will crash. Back home he gets into an argument about noise with just about everybody before admitting to himself that he would really rather not go to Australia.
Episode 55 October 1989On the flight to Australia Arthur, Alf and Mrs Hollingbery are nervous passengers though Alf's argument with a steward who forbids him to smoke breaks the monotony. On arrival Alf argues with a man who turns out to be Mrs H's brother Ricky but, back at his house, he bonds with Alf over their shared racism. Neither Alf nor Mrs Hollingbery are happy when they are given a double room and Ricky gets the wrong idea when Alf says he wants to room with Arthur. This episode and the next two were videotaped in Australia by the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) in a joint production with the BBC.
Episode 612 October 1989The three visitors have a day sight-seeing, starting in a cafe where Alf defends Hitler. After Alf has rowed with a lazy lifeguard over a non-existent drowning victim, the trio take a boat trip and Alf soon discovers that he and his bride-to-be hold differing views on many things. As far as Alf is concerned, one thing is for sure though. Australians are descended from convicts and they are still not to be trusted.
Episode 719 October 1989The sight-seeing continues with Alf having a confrontation with a crocodile and some Aboriginals, who nonetheless get the better of him after he tries to patronise them. Back at Ricky's Alf gets a business proposition from Ricky and his partner Mooney but it is apparent that they have misunderstood Alf's financial position and soon the three Brits are on the plane back home.

1989 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
Untitled25 December 1989Facing another Christmas with a frugal dinner Alf cons the vicar into giving him a Christmas hamper but Mrs Hollingbery refuses to accept it because it has been dishonestly obtained. So Alf takes it to the pub to raffle, making sure that most of the slips of paper have his name on them. However he is outwitted at the last minute by the equally devious Bert Luscombe.

Series 5 (Series 13)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 11 September 1990As a result of a power cut Alf and Mrs Hollingbery repair to the candle-lit pub where Alf sounds off about Margaret Thatcher, despite her being a Conservative, and a general argument breaks out with Arthur and Fred Johnson about a number of things – including death, the undertaker at the next table unsettling Alf. When he and Mrs Hollingbery return home after the lights have gone back on Alf rails at her for wasting electricity before fusing all the electrics in the house.
Episode 28 September 1990They may be halfway up the aisle but Alf and his bride-to-be are still arguing, especially when she wants to throw out his furniture as being tat. A fake overdose attempt cuts no ice so Alf is off to the pub to talk about suicide, death and heaven – though Fred Johnson, as an atheist, is having none of it. Back home Alf tries another pretend suicide but is diverted when Mrs Hollingbery brings him in a roast dinner and a can of beer – plus more Aspirin in case he runs out.
Episode 315 September 1990Complaining that Alf is a shabby dresser, Mrs Hollingbery also wants him to take out life insurance in case he goes first. In the pub a discussion on health does anything but allay Mr Carey's fears about getting a hip replacement in view of Alf's horror stories about hospital. Another row between the Johnsons prompts Alf to surmise that Fred is a poisoner, leading to Mrs Hollingbery getting her own back by pretending to poison Alf.
Episode 422 September 1990Alf decides to earn some money by working for Mrs Carey as a window cleaner. He fails to get any wages but gets lots of free groceries after catching the milkman in a compromising position. Later Arthur wins the jackpot on the fruit machine at the British Legion but he and Alf decide to split it and keep quiet about it. Baffled by the presence of the groceries and informed by Alf that he has no money for her Mrs Hollingbery is not pleased when Fred tells everybody what really happened.
Episode 529 September 1990Alf and Arthur are in the pub recalling old times and Alf is not impressed when Arthur tells him that he was once the local Romeo and the celebrity captain of the juniors football team. He is even less impressed when everybody else who comes in, especially Mrs Hollingbery, are fawning over Arthur and seeking autographs. Alf then gets a job as a dog walker but the two large dogs get him into trouble with an irate housewife and end up injuring him.
Episode 66 October 1990Alf is initially nervous when he receives a brown envelope but swells with pride when he sees that it is calling him up for jury service, a fact which causes him to lord it in the pub. However, when Fred tells him of a juror who was hospitalised for sending a man down and he believes he is being followed by a sinister stalker, Alf finds himself besieged in a strange house.
Episode 713 October 1990As Alf's day as a juror approaches he sounds off in the pub about his views on justice, inevitably inviting opposing comments from Mr Carey, who believes that the system is corrupt and imprisons the innocent and Fred, who, once more frightens him with tales of retribution from aggrieved villains. By the time he takes his place in the jury box – his trousers wrongly ironed by Mrs Hollingbery – Alf has a plan to preserve his anonymity, a false beard.
Episode 820 October 1990Alf organizes a pensioners' outing, immediately falling foul of the bus driver as all the passengers have bus passes which delays the start. In the course of the trip Alf almost has a fight with an Irishman, directs all the ladies to use the gents' toilets to prevent queueing and is rewarded with a glimpse of the queen. Come evening all the pensioners are drunk and noisy, which leaves the driver dreading the trip back home
Episode 927 October 1990The happy couple discuss their forthcoming wedding, a marriage of convenience in every sense as they intend to each remain in their own flat and the bride has no desire for sex, despite Alf's boasts about his youthful prowess. That night a terrible storm dislodges a box of money Alf has been hiding in the chimney. To Alf's annoyance Mrs Hollingbery claims half of it.
Episode 103 November 1990After baffling the Catholic priest who will be marrying him to Mrs Hollingbery with thoughts on separate heavens Alf goes on his stag night where his friends have had a whip round for a cheap cutlery set and the bride comes in to take him home whilst he is enjoying himself with the stripper. Next day everybody assembles for the wedding but, on learning that he wants her to 'obey' him Mrs H jilts Alf at the altar, complaining about his cheap skate ways. Fred thinks he has had a lucky escape but Alf disagrees, claiming that he could have been watching West Ham instead.

1990 Christmas special

TitleAirdateDescription
Untitled30 December 1990Following the non-wedding the happy couple hold separate receptions with their same sex friends but just before Christmas Mrs Hollingbery goes to confession, the priest telling her that she has wronged Alf and should do penance. To Alf this means cooking and cleaning for him and, to make her feel guilty, pretends he had booked a luxury honeymoon for them. Mrs H however rebels and, when the priest visits to make her do further penance, makes sure she gets her money's worth.

Series 6 (Series 14)

TitleAirdateDescription
Episode 121 February 1992A year later and Alf is still living under the same roof as – and bickering with – Mrs Hollingbery, particularly over her scrounging friend Michael. Alf really loses it when the alarm on a car parked outside his house goes off and decides to teach the driver a lesson, though of course it rebounds on him and his efforts to get revenge on the workmen digging a hole outside the house are equally as ineffectual.
Episode 228 February 1992Alf gets a job pushing the wheelchair to deliver papers but, after he has played a prank on an irate householder, a storm blows his papers away so he decides to gain efficiency by hooking his wheelchair to the milk float. Unfortunately he goes careering downhill – into the swimming pool of a black footballer he recently abused. There is reconciliation but a further misadventure with the chair lands him in a removals van on its way to Newcastle.
Episode 36 March 1992After holding forth on moral issues Alf goes to the pub where the big news is that Fred Johnson's wife has left him for her lesbian lover. To make matters worse she intends to move her into the marital home. Alf, of course, blames the French for introducing permissiveness into the country and ends up getting threatened by Mrs Johnson for his pains.
Episode 413 March 1992Mrs Hollingbery is laid up with a bad leg and Alf is not happy having to fend for himself so he makes an angry trip to the doctor. When the doctor comes to visit he finds himself beset by the Careys and Michael wanting advice for their ailments, leading to the doctor himself needing an ambulance. Later Alf takes Mrs Hollingbery out in her wheelchair and witnesses a blessed miracle as she gets up and runs – to the toilet.
Episode 520 March 1992When Alf gets stuck inside the wardrobe he is moving for Mrs Hollingbery he overhears her telling Mrs Carey she only wanted to marry him for his money so he takes all the cash he has been hoarding to the bank. The notes are so old they are no longer legal tender and having accumulated so much undeclared cash might cause problems with the tax office. Fortunately Alf sees a way round such matters.
Episode 627 March 1992Having deposited his wealth in several banks under assumed names Alf makes a hefty withdrawal but comes home to find his furniture has been stolen so he buys more and chains it down. Anxious to know how long he has left he visits a Harley Street doctor who books him into a private clinic, which soon becomes the scene of a good old knees up for Alf and his friends.
Episode 73 April 1992As Alf celebrates his wealth with a new snooker table he takes Fred as a lodger and gets a visit from Min, still amorously pursuing him. He also gets a visit from the bank manager, who has brought the tax man to investigate why Alf is so wealthy. Alf persuades Michael and Fred to impersonate him and explain everything was won in competitions. He nearly gets away with it too.

Films

Christmas Night with the Stars

Christmas Night with the Stars was a special screened annually on Christmas night, in which the top stars of the BBC appeared in short—typically five- to ten-minute—versions of their programmes. Till Death Us Do Part was among the programmes featured in the 1967 and 1971 specials. No recordings of either of these two segments are known to exist.

TitleAirdateDescriptionNotes
1967 sketch25 December 1967black-and-white; missing
1971 sketch25 December 1971colour; missing

Other

The Thoughts of Chairman Alf (1994 BMG – not shown on TV), An Audience with Alf Garnett (5 Apr 1997 LWT), A Word with Alf (1997 – a series of short episodes for UK Gold made by Carlton starring Mitchell, McSharry and Brian Murphy), The Thoughts of Chairman Alf (23 Sep-4 Nov 1998 LWT).

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Goodies</span> Trio of British comedians known for the TV series of the same name

The Goodies were a trio of British comedians: Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie. The trio created, wrote for and performed in their eponymous television comedy show from 1970 until 1982, combining sketches and situation comedy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren Mitchell</span> British actor (1926–2015)

Warren Mitchell was a British actor. He was a BAFTA TV Award winner and twice a Laurence Olivier Award winner.

<i>Till Death Us Do Part</i> British television sitcom (1965–1975)

Till Death Us Do Part is a British television sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1965 to 1975. The show was first broadcast in 1965 as a Comedy Playhouse pilot, then as seven series between 1966 and 1975. In 1981, ITV continued the sitcom for six episodes, calling it Till Death.... The BBC produced a sequel from 1985 until 1992, In Sickness and in Health.

In Sickness and in Health is a BBC television sitcom that ran between 1 September 1985 and 3 April 1992. It is a sequel to the successful Till Death Us Do Part, which ran between 1966 and 1975, and Till Death..., which ran for one series of six episodes in 1981. The series includes 47 episodes, and, unlike its predecessor, all the episodes have survived and are available on DVD.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dandy Nichols</span> British actress (1907-1986)

Dandy Nichols was an English actress best known for her role as Else Garnett, the long-suffering wife of the character Alf Garnett who was a parody of a working class Tory, in the BBC sitcom Till Death Us Do Part.

<i>Steptoe and Son</i> British TV sitcom

Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about a father-and-son rag-and-bone business in 26a Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were broadcast by the BBC in black and white from 1962 to 1965, followed by a second run from 1970 to 1974 in colour. The lead roles were played by Wilfrid Brambell and Harry H. Corbett. The theme tune, "Old Ned", was composed by Ron Grainer. The series was voted 15th in a 2004 poll by the BBC to find Britain's Best Sitcom. It was remade in the United States as Sanford and Son, in Sweden as Albert & Herbert, in the Netherlands as Stiefbeen en zoon, in Portugal as Camilo & Filho, and in South Africa as Snetherswaite and Son. Two film adaptations of the series were released in cinemas, Steptoe and Son (1972) and Steptoe and Son Ride Again (1973).

<i>All Gas and Gaiters</i> British television ecclesiastical sitcom

All Gas and Gaiters is a British television ecclesiastical sitcom which aired on BBC1 from 1966 to 1971. It was written by Pauline Devaney and Edwin Apps, a husband-and-wife team who used the pseudonym of John Wraith when writing the pilot. All Gas and Gaiters was also broadcast on BBC Radio from 1971 to 1972.

<i>The Two Ronnies</i> British television comedy sketch show

The Two Ronnies is a British television comedy sketch show starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was created by Bill Cotton and aired on BBC1 from 10 April 1971 to 25 December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo sections, serial stories and musical finales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Speight</span> English television writer (1920–1998)

Johnny Speight was an English television scriptwriter of many classic British sitcoms.

<i>Comedy Playhouse</i> 1961–1975 British television series

Comedy Playhouse is a long-running British anthology series of one-off unrelated sitcoms that aired for 128 episodes from 1961 to 1975. Many episodes later graduated to their own series, including Steptoe and Son, Meet the Wife, Till Death Us Do Part, All Gas and Gaiters, Up Pompeii!, Not in Front of the Children, Me Mammy, That's Your Funeral, The Liver Birds, Are You Being Served? and particularly Last of the Summer Wine, which is the world's longest running sitcom, having run from January 1973 to August 2010. In all, 27 sitcoms started from a pilot in the Comedy Playhouse strand.

Stanley Livingstone Baxter is a Scottish actor, comedian, impressionist and author. Baxter began his career as a child actor on BBC Scotland and later became known for his British television comedy shows The Stanley Baxter Show, The Stanley Baxter Picture Show, The Stanley Baxter Series and Mr Majeika.

Alfred Edward "Alf" Garnett is a fictional character from the British sitcom Till Death Us Do Part and its follow-on and spin-off series Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health. He also appeared in the chat show The Thoughts of Chairman Alf. The character was created by Johnny Speight and played by Warren Mitchell.

<i>The Rag Trade</i> British television sitcom

The Rag Trade is a British television sitcom broadcast by the BBC between 1961 and 1963 and by LWT between 1977 and 1978. Although a comedy, it shed light on gender, politics and the "class war" on the factory floor.

<i>Till Death...</i> 1981 ITV sitcom

Till Death... is a British sitcom of six episodes that was produced by ATV and aired on ITV from 22 May to 3 July 1981. It is a continuation of the BBC sitcom Till Death Us Do Part that aired from 1965 to 1975. The title was changed to Till Death... because the title Till Death Us Do Part was controlled by the BBC.

<i>Till Death Us Do Part</i> (film) 1968 British film

Till Death Us Do Part is a 1968 British comedy film directed by Norman Cohen, written by Johnny Speight, and starring Warren Mitchell and Dandy Nichols. It was based on the BBC television series of the same name. Speight was the creator of the television version. The film was considered successful enough at the box office that a sequel, The Alf Garnett Saga, followed in 1972.

<i>Curry and Chips</i> British television sitcom

Curry and Chips is a British television sitcom broadcast in 1969 which was produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV network.

<i>Oh, Brother!</i> British TV series or programme

Oh, Brother! is a British television sitcom starring Derek Nimmo, which aired on BBC1 from September 13, 1968 to February 27, 1970.

<i>The Alf Garnett Saga</i> 1972 film

The Alf Garnett Saga is a 1972 British comedy film directed by Bob Kellett and starring Warren Mitchell, Dandy Nichols, Paul Angelis and Adrienne Posta. The film was the second spin-off from the BBC TV series Till Death Us Do Part. It starts where the first film finished, but with Angelis and Posta now playing Mike and Rita, the roles previously played by Anthony Booth and Una Stubbs. Unlike the first movie, it has never been released on DVD.

References

  1. "DISCOVERY 262: Till Death Us Do Part – Sex Before Marriage".