A sitcom that earned several seasons, My Family is a British comedy that is really quite funny.
My Family (2000) BBC TV Series Review
Ben Harper (Robert Lindsay) is a hard-working dentist in a perpetual state of annoyance with his family. His eldest son Nick (Kris Marshall) annoys him with his consistent lack of common smarts (plus that he’s still at home) while youngest Michael (Gabriel Thomson) is quite smart, but also knows how to manipulate a situation. Then, there is daughter Janey (Daniela Denby-Ashe). Janey is boy crazy and doesn’t seem to take her college studies seriously. Finally, there is wife, Susan (Zoë Wanamaker) who is perhaps suffering a bit realizing that her children may no longer need her.
TV SERIES REIVEW | ‘THE CAFÉ,’ SERIES REVIEW: A SLOW BUT SWEET BRITISH SITCOM
‘MY FAMILY’ IS HILARIOUS BRITISH FAMILY SITCOM. Review of the #British sitcom with #KrisMarshall and #RobertLindsay, and Daniela Denby-Ashe from #NorthandSouth! #Comedy #BBC #Sitcom Click To TweetA British comedy I found, on a random browse, My Family is all kinds of fun. The setup isn’t dissimilar to U.S. sitcoms, but I think the humor and wit of a British comedy is very different. Which is, in part, what I love about a series like this. The dry wit is in the best taste and is probably the thing that keeps me returning. The series has some genuine laughs which is a rarity in a culture where only certain things have allowance to be funny or we’re all offended by something.
The cast too is really good. Lindsay’s Ben is impossible not to like in spite of his grumpiness; Wanamaker has been in period dramas likely all of us have seen; many will love seeing Marshall if you watch Death in Paradise; and I love that Denby-Ashe is in this prior to her role as the female lead in the marvelous period drama North & South. She’s also blonde in (most of) this and it takes a bit of adjustment. Some faces come and go, likely in part to film other things (like North & South), but many also return here and there or new faces, like a ditzy cousin or a fellow dentist, step in to fill voids.
Funny, joyful and charming, My Family is a delight. Plus, I think the final episode is a new level of hilarious, though I wish there were more. Each season doesn’t have many episodes, but regardless what is here is entertaining. Today, that’s what I need, so this series is perfect for that reason alone, but boasts other qualities, too.
You can stream My Family, at publication, with Prime
PINTEREST PIN – SAVE & SHARE
Content: there isn’t a great deal to mention. We see a married couple flirt along with enjoying foreplay. They make out and start to undress here and there. There’s other innuendo including finding a teenager in bed with a girl (and conversation afterwards) plus later it’s implied an older woman has an overnight guest. There is some comedy about people having affairs (no one ever does). Someone has a child out of wedlock. Much ado is made about this (with humor, and more so is a question of who the father is). A character, late in the series (season eight or nine) comes out as gay; we see them on a date here and there and an episode revolves around going to a gay bar. There may be some minor British slang. The series is TV-PG.
Photos: BBC