Bless This House is a British television sitcom, created by Vince Powell and Harry Driver, and produced by Thames Television for ITV. It stars Sid James, Diana Coupland, Robin Stewart, Sally Geeson, Anthony Jackson and Patsy Rowlands. The series was produced and directed by William G. Stewart for its entirety, while Powell and Driver occasionally served as writers, as did notable British screenwriters, Carla Lane and Dave Freeman.
The first 7 episodes of Bless This House were shown in black and white due to the ITV Colour Strike which took place from 13 November 1970 to 8 February 1971.
The remaining 58 episodes of Bless This House were shown in colour from 23 March 1971 until the show's cancellation on 22 April 1976.
During the course of the programme, 65 episodes of Bless This House aired over six series, between 2 February 1971 and 22 April 1976. [1]
Four days after Bless This House ended with the 13th and final-ever episode of the sixth series, Sid James died from a heart attack after collapsing while on stage at the Sunderland Empire Theatre, aged 62.
Series overview
| Series | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 12 | 2 February 1971 | 20 April 1971 | |
| 2 | 12 | 21 February 1972 | 15 May 1972 | |
| 3 | 12 | 22 January 1973 | 28 May 1973 | |
| 4 | 6 | 20 February 1974 | 10 April 1974 | |
| 5 | 10 | 14 October 1974 | 16 December 1974 | |
| 6 | 13 | 29 January 1976 | 22 April 1976 | |
Episodes
Series 1 (1971)
|
No. overall |
No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [2] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The Generation Gap" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 2 February 1971 | |
|
First ever episode. Sid tries desperately to understand his two teenage children, but the more he tries, the less he understands them. Note: This was the first episode to be shown in black and white due to the ITV Colour Strike. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Mum's the Word" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 9 February 1971 | |
| Sid overhears a conversation between the doctors and, as usual, gets crossed messages. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Father's Day" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 16 February 1971 | |
| Sally has a date with a mystery man, and Jean has a surprise for Sid for Father's day; but Sid's suspicious mind throws a spanner in the works. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Be It Ever So Humble" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 23 February 1971 | |
| Sid tells Mike to find a job, but much to Jean's dismay, Mike announces he is leaving home. Sally is so upset that she decides she is leaving too. How will Jean react to her children both leaving? And how will Sid cope with the fall out? | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Another Fine Mess" | William G. Stewart | Unknown | 2 March 1971 | |
| Sid's boss asks him to look after a special gift that he has bought for his wife for a special anniversary. What could possibly go wrong? | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "For Whom the Bells Toll" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 9 March 1971 | |
| Dinner time at the Abbotts turns into a debate about the generations, and the morals of meat eating, as Sally and Sid lock horns. Sid and Jean suspect Mike is planning to elope. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "A Woman's Place" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 16 March 1971 | |
|
After many years as a stay at home mother, Jean decides she wants to get a job. She knows the family will struggle without her though, so she hires a cleaner. Note: This was the last episode to be shown in black and white. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "The Day of Rest" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 23 March 1971 | |
|
It's Sunday, and Sid wants a day of rest, but with the sink blocking, and Mike creating his sculpture, a day of rest is the last thing he's going to get. Jean and Sid meet their new neighbours. Note: This was the first episode to be transmitted in colour. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "Make Love…Not War!" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 30 March 1971 | |
| Betty and Trev have a huge row, and Trev decides he wants to come stay at Sid and Jean's house. However, this doesn't make everyone happy, and trouble ensues. Mike meanwhile, decides he wants to be spiritual. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "Charity Begins at Home" | William G. Stewart | David Cumming, Derek Collyer | 6 April 1971 | |
| Mike and his friends decide to spend the weekend living on bread and water, and give what they would have spent on food to charity. He encourages his parents to join him. They do; but Sid finds it a lot harder than he expected it to be. | ||||||
| 11 | 11 | "If The Dog Collar Fits…Wear It!" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 13 April 1971 | |
| Sally has been looking after the elderly in the area, and brings a dog home to stay, as one of the men she has been caring for has had to get rid of him. Sally, Jean, and Mike love 'Fred' the mongrel, and want him to stay, but Sid has other ideas. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "The Morning After the Night Before" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 20 April 1971 | |
| Sid wakes up with a hangover after a night with the guys. He has no memory of what happened the night before, and is stunned to see an array of items that don't belong to him. Meanwhile, Mike advertises his sculptures to raise some money. | ||||||
Series 2 (1972)
|
No. overall |
No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [3] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 1 | "Two Heads Are Better Than One" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 21 February 1972 | |
| Mike has created a sculpture which he hopes will make an impression with his peers, and win him a competition. But an incident with his sculpture means first place may be out of Mike's reach. | ||||||
| 14 | 2 | "Love Me, Love My Tree" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 28 February 1972 | |
| Sid and the family come home from a blissful family holiday, but Sid is incensed to see what neighbour Trev has done to his cherry tree. The whole situation causes major conflict. | ||||||
| 15 | 3 | "It's All In the Mind" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 6 March 1972 | |
| After getting the wrong idea about the relationship Sally has with a teacher, Sid and Jean get one particular 'fact' wrong, and it results in unpleasant consequences. Meanwhile, Mike produces an interesting painting. | ||||||
| 16 | 4 | "Another Lost Weekend" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 13 March 1972 | |
| Jean's father is coming for the weekend, and Sid is desperate to not have to tolerate a weekend with him, so he plans a weekend of fishing. | ||||||
| 17 | 5 | "Parents Should Be Seen and Not Heard" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 20 March 1972 | |
| Sid and Jean try to come to terms with their teenage daughter Sally, getting engaged to be married, to her new boyfriend Geoffrey. | ||||||
| 18 | 6 | "Strangers in the Night" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 27 March 1972 | |
| When Sid and Jean, and Mike and Sally, go out for a family meal, Sid and Jean reminisce about when they first met. Back when Sid was a discharged soldier, and Jean was a WREN. | ||||||
| 19 | 7 | "Get Me to the Match On Time" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 10 April 1972 | |
| Jean wants Sid to go to a wedding with her and Sally and Mike, but Sid wants to go to the football match. He tries every trick in the book to get out of going to the wedding. | ||||||
| 20 | 8 | "Wives and Lovers" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 17 April 1972 | |
| Jean is worried Sid may take advantage of the fact he meets flirty women in his line of work. So she tries to trick him by pretending to be a woman who is interested in him. But he cottons on, and plays along, with hilarious consequences. | ||||||
| 21 | 9 | "Never Again on Sunday!" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 24 April 1972 | |
| Jean convinces Sid to do something constructive one Sunday, instead of just lying in bed. So they go for a picnic; but things go awry when they get lost, and the budgie goes missing. | ||||||
| 22 | 10 | "People in Glass Houses" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 1 May 1972 | |
| Sid and Jean want to buy Mike a nice gift for his 20th birthday, but Mike wants a party at their house. Unfortunately for Sid and Jean, they aren't invited. So they decide to spend the night in the greenhouse so they can spy on the party. | ||||||
| 23 | 11 | "A Rolls By Another Name" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 8 May 1972 | |
| Sid is enlisted by his boss to deliver the Chief Executive's Rolls Royce, but thanks to Mike and Sally's campaigning about how cars ruin the environment, things don't go to plan. | ||||||
| 24 | 12 | "A Touch of the Unknown" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 15 May 1972 | |
| Sid hurts his foot after tripping over Mike's friend's statue. Meanwhile Sally takes an interest in the unknown; so Jean, Sally, and Betty decide to do a séance. They all come to regret it though, when the house appears to be haunted. | ||||||
Series 3 (1973)
|
No. overall |
No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 1 | "It Comes to Us All in the End" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 22 January 1973 | |
| Sid brings another feathered friend along to keep their budgie company, but they very quickly regret their decision. Meanwhile, Mike tries to avoid getting a parking ticket, and Sally has a mishap when trying to move Sid's car. | ||||||
| 26 | 2 | "Tea for Two and Four for Tea" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 5 February 1973 | |
| The family are curious about the lady Mike is dating, and are keen to meet her, but when Sally blurts out the lady's age, they are astounded. However, they accept her into their home politely. Is this REALLY Mike's new girlfriend though? | ||||||
| 27 | 3 | "To Tell or Not to Tell" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 12 February 1973 | |
| Jean is having a bad week, and is rather disenchanted with her life as a housewife. She is stunned, and a little bit envious, when she sees what appears to be her neighbour Betty having a fling with another man. | ||||||
| 28 | 4 | "Blood is Thicker Than Water" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 19 February 1973 | |
| The whole family is stunned, when a long lost cousin of Sid's turns up unexpected, and uninvited, from America. What does he want, and how on earth can they get rid of him? | ||||||
| 29 | 5 | "One Good Turn Deserves a Bother" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 26 February 1973 | |
| Sid's boss asks him to look after his 250 year old Georgian tea set. Sid not only does his best to protect the valuable antique tea set, he ends up treating it like a new born baby. | ||||||
| 30 | 6 | "The Loneliness of the Ling Distance Walker" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 5 March 1973 | |
| Much to Sid's surprise, Mike has taken up running, and is planning a run to raise money for the hospital. Sid knows this is out of character; what is Mike up to? | ||||||
| 31 | 7 | "Watch the Birdie" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 12 March 1973 | |
| Mike wants to start a career as a photographer, but much to Sid's dismay, he wants to use the garage as his studio. However, things don't go quite as smoothly as Mike expects them to. | ||||||
| 32 | 8 | "Aitishoo! Aitishoo! We All Fall Down" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 30 April 1973 | |
| There is total mayhem in the Abbott household when Jean and Sally and Mike come down with flu, and Sid struggles to cope. A woman's work is never done. | ||||||
| 33 | 9 | "Entente Not So Cordiale" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 7 April 1973 | |
| Sid receives a letter from Henri and Odette who he met in France during the war. He reminisces about his time with them, and then decides to visit them, and take Jean along with him. | ||||||
| 34 | 10 | "Will the Real Sid Abbott Stand Up Please" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 14 May 1973 | |
| Much confusion ensues when a doppelganger of Sid's is on the prowl; especially as he is something of a womaniser. Thanks to him, Sid has a lot of explaining to do. | ||||||
| 35 | 11 | "I'm Not Jealous, I'll Kill Him" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane, Myra Taylor | 21 May 1973 | |
| Jean is surprised when an old flame from her youth comes back into her life, and asks her to go for dinner with him. Sid is absolutely fine with this. Or is he? | ||||||
| 36 | 12 | "A Girl's Worst Friend Is Her Father" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 28 May 1973 | |
| Sally is enraged when her father decides to intrude on her interview for a job. Although Sid meant well, he soon comes to regret his meddlesome actions. | ||||||
Series 4 (1974)
|
No. overall |
No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [5] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | 1 | "Money Is The Root Of..." | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 20 February 1974 | |
| Jean buys a new coat, but Sid says she must return it as they have a load of bills to pay. However, the family's financial situation may be about to change, but unfortunately, there is a catch. | ||||||
| 38 | 2 | "And They Will Come Home..." | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 27 February 1974 | |
| Jean is upset when Mike and Sally announce they are leaving home, but cheers up when she discovers they haven't gone far. Then Sid thinks 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em,' and decides to say he is leaving home too. Will he leave though? | ||||||
| 39 | 3 | "Who's Minding the Baby?" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 20 March 1974 | |
| Betty comes around to borrow something, yet again, and Jean and Sid somehow get roped into looking after Betty and Trev's baby for two days. They agree, but it's not long before they regret it. Was it this hard with their two children? | ||||||
| 40 | 4 | "A Beef in His Bonnet" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 27 March 1974 | |
| Sid is selling his old car and is hoping to get the best price he can. Meanwhile Mike and Sally come home with Sid's car with a big dent in it, after a huge crate of corned beef fell onto the car. Will he be able to sell the car now? | ||||||
| 41 | 5 | "The Bells Are Ringing" | William G. Stewart | Vince Powell, Harry Driver | 3 April 1974 | |
| At long last Mike seems to have found his true love, and he announces that he is getting married. To Sid and Jean's dismay, it's not long before Sally announces she has fallen for Mike's girlfriend's father. Can either relationship last? | ||||||
| 42 | 6 | "The First 25 Years Are the Worst" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman, Vince Powell (uncredited), Harry Driver (uncredited) | 10 April 1974 | |
| Sid and Jean plan a party for their 25th wedding anniversary, and Mike gets his friend to make up some invitation cards. Unfortunately, the invitation has the wrong date on it. Meanwhile Sally and Mike have an idea for a new career. | ||||||
Series 5 (1974)
|
No. overall |
No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [6] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | 1 | "They Don’t Write Songs Like That Anymore" | William G. Stewart | Bernie Sharp | 14 October 1974 | |
| Sid decides to write a song to try and win a cash prize in a competition. The problem is, despite what he thinks, he is not exactly in the same league as John Lennon and Paul McCartney; especially when he's inebriated. | ||||||
| 44 | 2 | "The Gypsy's Warning" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 21 October 1974 | |
| After getting a warning from a gypsy, that someone she loves will be involved in an accident involving water, Jean tries to prevent Sid from going fishing. But is this the accident that the gypsy was talking about? | ||||||
| 45 | 3 | "The Biggest Woodworm in the World" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 28 October 1974 | |
| Sid brings a new chair home, but Sally and Jean are worried it has woodworm. Meanwhile Mike offers his friend a place to stay at the Abbott household. However, she has a guest with her that Sid and Jean don't know about. | ||||||
| 46 | 4 | "Home Tweet Home" | William G. Stewart | Brian Platt | 4 November 1974 | |
| Sally and Mike are trying to raise money for a holiday, and come up with a plan to raise the money. However, they soon realise that they've bit off more than they can chew. Sid sails in to save the day though. | ||||||
| 47 | 5 | "You're Never Too Old to Be Young" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 11 November 1974 | |
| Jean feels like a frumpy boring housewife, and as much as she loves Sid, she feels that their marriage has gone stale. She has a plan to spruce it up; Sid is far from keen on the idea though. | ||||||
| 48 | 6 | "The Policeman, the Paint and the Pirates" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 18 November 1974 | |
| Sid's boss wants Jean to star in his production of Pirates of Penzance. Sid is OK with this, but then he discovers his boss wants him in the show too. Meanwhile Sally starts chatting to a policeman and Trev brings some paint home for Sid. | ||||||
| 49 | 7 | "Happy Birthday Sid" | William G. Stewart | Lawrie Wyman, George Evans | 25 November 1974 | |
| It's Sid's birthday, and his whole family are being very secretive about this great gift they're planning on getting him. Sid is very excited, but will he like his birthday gift? | ||||||
| 50 | 8 | "Freedom Is" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 2 December 1974 | |
| Mike and Sally have a new friend; a tramp called Wally. Not content with giving him the family's food and Sid's new clothes, they invite him to stay at the Abbott household. This does not go down well with Sid. | ||||||
| 51 | 9 | "Mr. Chairman......" | William G. Stewart | Adele Rose | 9 December 1974 | |
| Sid reluctantly attends the Residents Association Meeting. He complains about a lot of things, and inadvertently gets nominated as the New Chairman. He tries to take control of the issues everyone is concerned about, but fails dismally. | ||||||
| 52 | 10 | "....And Afterwards At...." | William G. Stewart | Mark Sharkand, B.C. Cummins | 16 December 1974 | |
| Sid is asked by Jean's cousin, to organise a wedding for her daughter, and her daughter's husband-to-be. He refuses, until he realises that there may be something in it for him. | ||||||
Series 6 (1976)
|
No. overall |
No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [7] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | 1 | "The Frozen Limit" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 29 January 1976 | |
| Sid and Jean acquire a new chest freezer, which sounds like a handy thing to have in the house. What could possibly go wrong? | ||||||
| 54 | 2 | "Beautiful Dreamer" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 5 February 1976 | |
| Sid has been having dreams about strange things. Could there be a way of using the information in the dreams to win some money? Or is it all nonsense? | ||||||
| 55 | 3 | "Fish with Everything" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 12 February 1976 | |
| Sid acquires some new tropical fish, and it's not long before he becomes obsessed with their welfare; much to the exasperation of his family. He becomes especially obsessed with caring for them, when he discovers one is 'with child'. | ||||||
| 56 | 4 | "The Naked Paperhanger" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 19 February 1976 | |
| There are fun and games, and much confusion in the Abbott household, due to the word 'stripper' having different meanings. In addition, Sid does his best to make Mike move back home, when he finds Auntie Alice is coming to stay. | ||||||
| 57 | 5 | "Remember Me?" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 26 February 1976 | |
| Sid loses his memory, when a shelf in the garage falls off the wall and hits him on the head. His family and friends do their best to try to help him regain his memory, but to no avail. | ||||||
| 58 | 6 | "Something of Value" | William G. Stewart | Bernie Sharp | 4 March 1976 | |
| Sid hears from a solicitor, that he has inherited something from his old uncle Percy. The problem is; he needs to find an old photo of his uncle first. Will he find it, and what on earth will the inheritance be? | ||||||
| 59 | 7 | "Men of Consequence" | William G. Stewart | Carla Lane | 11 March 1976 | |
| Much to the dismay of the Abbott family, they find a very unwanted guest in their kitchen. He is far from friendly, and does not take too kindly to being expected to leave. | ||||||
| 60 | 8 | "Skin Deep" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 18 March 1976 | |
| Sid gets a new secretary, and much to Jean's annoyance he keeps coming in late. Also, he is off with his secretary to Birmingham for something work-related. It's OK though, because she is frumpy, and the size of a Green Line bus. Or is she? | ||||||
| 61 | 9 | "Friends and Neighbours" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 25 March 1976 | |
| The Abbott family's neighbours, Trevor and Betty, ask Sid to keep an eye on their house while they're away. However, Sid doesn't do a very good job, and when they return, they are horrified when they discover what's in their house. | ||||||
| 62 | 10 | "Well, Well, Well..." | William G. Stewart | Bernie Sharp | 1 April 1976 | |
| After 3 days of constant rain, the Abbott family's home springs a leak. They assume it's from a split water main or something of a similar nature, but the source of the leak comes from something none of them could ever have imagined. | ||||||
| 63 | 11 | "The Phantom Pools Winner" | William G. Stewart | Dave Freeman | 8 April 1976 | |
| Sid lands a large export order at work. Mike plans to have it put in the local paper, so takes Sid's photo filling in his pools coupon but the newspaper gets the headline wrong and chaos comes knocking on the door. | ||||||
| 64 | 12 | "A Matter of Principle" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 15 April 1976 | |
| Sid discovers where the money for his birthday party has come from, and he doesn't like it! | ||||||
| 65 | 13 | "Some Enchanted Evening" | William G. Stewart | Jon Watkins | 22 April 1976 | |
|
Last ever episode. When Sid discovers why Jean is sulking and Sally and Mike won't talk to him, he goes to the pub. Note: The last-ever episode of Bless This House was broadcast 4 days shortly before Sid James collapsed on stage at the Sunderland Empire Theatre and died from a heart attack on the way to the hospital. | ||||||
References
- ^ "Bless This House (1971-76)". screenonline.co.uk. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- ^ "Bless This House Series One Transmitted 2nd Feb - 20th Apr 1971 12 Episodes". blessthishouse.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- ^ "Bless This House Series Two Transmitted 21st Feb - 15th May 1972 12 Episodes". blessthishouse.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- ^ "Bless This House Series Three Transmitted 22nd Jan - 12th Mar 1973 & 30th Apr - 28th May 1973 12 Episodes". blessthishouse.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- ^ "Bless This House Series Four Transmitted 20th Feb - 10th Apr 1974 6 Episodes". blessthishouse.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- ^ "Bless This House Series Five Transmitted 14th Oct - 16th Dec 1974 10 Episodes". blessthishouse.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
- ^ "Bless This House Series Six Transmitted 29th Jan - 22nd Apr 1976 13 Episodes". blessthishouse.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.