One Foot in the Grave Complete Series 1 - 6 Plus Christmas Specials Box Set [DVD] [1990]

Back in 2004, One Foot in the Grave came just 10th in a series that set out to find ‘Britain’s Best Sitcom’. I remember being surprised by this, as what we have here is without doubt one of the cleverest, funniest and downright surreal pieces of programming ever. The only possible explanation for One Foot not being ranked at no. 1 is a style of humour perhaps of a more challenging kind when compared to something like Only Fools. Victor Meldrew is a man in his 60s, ousted from his job and thrown onto the ‘scrapheap of life’, the shadow of mortality now looming ever more presciently over him. The strange and hilarious situations he finds himself in, struggling to find meaning in his new life of retirement, are a reflection of the absurdity of our own small lives. Anyone of any age can relate to the trials and tribulations of Victor and his wife Margaret, as writer David Renwick explores to the fullest the maxim ‘hell is other people’. Tedious characters like Nick Swainey along with the ‘gibbering old bat’ Mrs Warboys are not dissimilar to the sort of people we all have to put up with every day. Meldrew’s moaning about them is a very human catharsis, and a delight for the audience, as he says the things we all want to say. One of the most distinctive features of One Foot in the Grave is it’s much talked about ‘dark’ humour. When a dead cat shows up in the freezer as early as episode 3, it is hard to disagree that this may be an edgier affair than your average sitcom. The utterly maddening bit-part characters Ronnie & Mildred are later used to stark shock effect during a particularly morbid scene. This black comedy is made all the more effective by the sharp scripts, but the other masterstroke is the amount of visual humour deployed. From grumpy snowmen to ‘grinning’ television aerials, Renwick makes the most of the televised format, creating a unique and bizarre world – and all this right in the middle of quaint English suburbia. It is a sublime mix of the mundane alongside the absurd, and it gives the programme a depth that is rare in this genre. I received this set as a gift a couple of years ago, and was laughing for about the next two weeks as I made my way through each series chronologically. One Foot in the Grave is excellent from the very beginning, right through to the final episode with its inevitable conclusion. Other sitcoms are sullied by inconsistent quality or naff specials – but not so here. Every step of Victor Meldrew’s journey to the grave has been mapped to be savoured again and again.

I had never watched One Foot In The Grave before buying this box set. A trusted friend recommended the show to me so I just took a chance on it......and loved it. I agree with some of the other reviews that say it does have a little dark side. But apart from that it's a really awesome show. The only mistake I made was to watch the full box set within a few days so each time the phone rings I have a urge to pick it up & say "4291" lol. My least fave episode is the Christmas special when they go on holiday to Portugal. Don't get me wrong, I loved Mrs. Warboys along with the Meldrews, it just didn't feel the same. As for my fave episodes, they have to be the ones set in "real time", like The Trial, The Beast in the Cage, & Timeless Time. All in all a very nice & very funny show. I have posted below everything you get in this set. Series 1: Series 1 – Episode 1 – Alive and Buried, 4 January 1990 Series 1 – Episode 2 – The Big Sleep, 11 January 1990 Series 1 – Episode 3 – The Valley of Fear, 18 January 1990 Series 1 – Episode 4 – I'll Retire to Bedlam, 25 January 1990 Series 1 – Episode 5 – The Eternal Quadrangle, 1 February 1990 Series 1 – Episode 6 – The Return of the Speckled Band, 8 February 1990 Series 2: Disk 1: Series 2 – Episode 1 – In Luton Airport, No One Can Hear You Scream, 4 October 1990 Series 2 – Episode 2 – We Have Put Her Living in the Tomb, 11 October 1990 Series 2 – Episode 3 – Dramatic Fever, 18 October 1990 Series 2 – Episode 4 – Who Will Buy?, 25 October 1990 Series 2 – Episode 5 – Love and Death, 8 November 1990 Series 2 – Episode 6 – Timeless Time, 15 November 1990 Disk 2: 1990 Christmas Special - Who's Listening?, 27 December 1990 Series 3: Disk 1: Series 3 – Episode 1 – Monday Morning Will Be Fine, 2 February 1992 Series 3 – Episode 2 – Dreamland, 9 February 1992 Series 3 – Episode 3 – The Broken Reflection, 16 February 1992 Series 3 – Episode 4 – The Beast in the Cage, 23 February 1992 Series 3 – Episode 5 – Beware the Trickster on the Roof, 1 March 1992 Series 3 – Episode 6 – The Worst Horror of All, 8 March 1992 Disk 2: 1991 Christmas Special – The Man in the Long Black Coat, 30 December 1991 Series 4: Disk 1: Series 4 – Episode 1 – The Pit and the Pendulum, 31 January 1993 Series 4 – Episode 2 – Descent into the Maelstrom, 7 February 1993 Series 4 – Episode 3 – Hearts of Darkness, 14 February 1993 Series 4 – Episode 4 – Warm Champagne, 21 February 1993 Series 4 – Episode 5 – The Trial, 28 February 1993 Series 4 – Episode 6 – Secret of the Seven Sorcerers, 7 March 1993 Disk 2: 1993 Christmas Special – One Foot in the Algarve, 26 December 1993 Series 5: Disk 1: Series 5 – Episode 1 – The Man Who Blew Away, 25 December 1994 Series 5 – Episode 2 – Only a Story, 1 January 1995 Series 5 – Episode 3 – The Affair of the Hollow Lady, 8 January 1995 Series 5 – Episode 4 – Rearranging the Dust, 15 January 1995 Series 5 – Episode 5 – Hole in the Sky, 22 January 1995 Series 5 – Episode 6 – The Exterminating Angel, 29 January 1995 Disk 2: 1995 Christmas Special –The Wisdom of the Witch, 25 December 1995 Series 6: Disk 1: Series 6 – Episode 1 – The Executioner's Song, 16 October 2000 Series 6 – Episode 2 – Tales of Terror, 23 October 2000 Series 6 – Episode 3 – The Futility of the Fly, 30 October 2000 Series 6 – Episode 4 – Threatening Weather, 6 November 2000 Series 6 – Episode 5 – The Dawn of Man, 13 November 2000 Series 6 – Episode 6 – Things Aren't Simple Any More, 20 November 2000 Disk 2: I Don't Believe It!: The One Foot in the Grave Story, 20 November 2000 Christmas Specials Disk: 1996 Christmas Special – Starbound, 26 December 1996 1997 Christmas Special – Endgame, 25 December 1997

Victor Meldrew, a fantastic comic creation of the brilliance that is David Renwick, will live on forever. An epitome of a moaning old fella, he is hugely understood. Of course he has the right to complain when people dump their rubbish on his neighbour's lawn, or when someone dumps an old Citroen 2CV in a skip he hires, but most of the situations in this series are ENTIRELY believeable! Poor old Victor, an irony in the name itself, always believes he is right to complain about life's bitter pills, and I believe he is! Since buying this DVD set, I've watched it 3 or 4 times now. I don't tire at the jokes about the frozen cat, or Mrs Warboys being rolled down a hill and mounted by a dog or Victor's Honda being stolen and returned with the plants still growing on the back seat. Patrick (Angus Deayton - Have I got news for you) and Pippa (Janine Duvitski - Abigails Party) are a perfect comic foil to Victor and Margaret along with mummy's boy Mr Swainey (Owen Brenman). The Meldrew's friend Mrs Warboys (Doreen Mantle - Jam and Jerusalem) is possibly the most thick-skinned person around, but is entirely loveable by her naivety! The series begins by Victor being dismissed by Suzie Blake, who later played Bev Unwin in Corrie, and follows him through his adjustments into pensionable age. The odd cameo by actors such as Stephen Lewis (Inspector Blake - On The Buses) makes it all worthwhile. The hour-long specials are worth mentioning too. One foot in the Algarve is probably the darkest of them all, and a true insight in to the mind of the writer. Beautiful scenery, Peter Cook and a brilliant storyline make this unmissable. The unmentioned heroine is, of course, Margaret (Annette Crosbie). As his everloving wife, she plays the role amazingly, lovingly and humourously. In the face of life's daily events, she always comes out on top. Enough of my ramblings. Victor excels Hyancinth Bucket and his contemporaries of the early 90's due to the on-the-ball scripting and acting. There'll be times you'll know what's coming and times you won't have a clue but you'll laugh all the way through. I don't believe it!

A bought this as a gift for my wife, we had Ben watching it on one of the cable channels and she really loves the series, so to get the box set, on Prime, next day delivery, at a great price was really a no-brainer. It’s great fun and I won’t review the content as you’ll know just how wonderfully funny the series is, with every episode a gem. It’s a lovely box set with series 1 to 6 included as well as the Christmas specials, so there’s plenty to keep you going. With a running time of 20 hours and 29 minutes over 12 nice,y presented discs it’s a whopping set, guaranteed laughs for a long time. It cost me £16.99 but it’s often available on deals a little cheaper (currently £14.44) so you can pick it up very reasonably. Great stuff.

One Foot in the Grave was quite subversive for it's time. It dared to be deeper and darker than most mainstream sitcoms and didn't shy away from sadder, more morbid subjects. Tragedy, child death, mental health, suicide and even the murder were just some of the darker elements that the series bravely explored. But it was also hilarious as well. The series was the perfect combination of great writing and perfect casting, and no matter how far-fetched a story seemed it was always played very believably. Many would consider Victor Meldrew to be a comic monster with Margaret there as his long suffering wife, but the opposite is actually the truth here as Victor is not a bad man at all, but actually a very decent and honest man that can no longer suffer the frustrations and stupidity of other people after a lifetime of taking it on the chin. He's very much an anti-hero in his own right. *SPOILER ALERT* But one thing that I am still angry at all these years later was the way Victor was cruelly killed off in a hit and run road accident which I still don't quite know how to take. Was this intended as a 'one final bit of bad luck to our hero'? Or just a cynical ending by a writer in a bad mood that day? I really like this series and have re-watched this box-set twice in the 12 months that I have owned it, and that's not including the twenty years worth of repeats I sat through before purchasing the DVDs.

It's amazing really, how much Victor Medldrew has suffered over the years - from being buried in the garden with only his head showing, to the time when he got lost and ended up at an old people's home where people are being badly treated, Victor's seen it all. In his sixties, Victor seems to be getting more and more frustrated with life and his only way to vent it is by yelling. His wife, Margaret (Annette Crosbie) has to suffer the daily goings-on of Victor, usually with her moaning "oh for god's sake Victor!" as she slowly but surely thinks that her life is going bad too. Their neighbours are no strangers to Victor's antics, especially Pipa and Patrick (played amusingly by Angus Deyton) - everything from cockroaches to funny paintings, Victor's life really does get on their nerves. This is all 6 series of OFITG - and all the Christmas specials, including the final Christmas special which really wrapped up the saga. There are loads of laugh out loud moments in the entire box set, specially when Victor gets to uncover bizarre things, like a yucca tree in his toilet, and the one where he picks up the phone "4291" and grabs Patrick's dog. This is a pretty good box too, about the size of 4 standard DVD boxes, and comes in ultra slim cases. Each DVD has it's own space, so it's not going to scratch against other disks. Each series has 2 disks each, usually the first one is the series, and the second is given up to the Christmas special. In total there are 6 DVD9s and 8 DVD5 disks in the package. Each series and special is subtitled in English only, for the hard of hearing. Sadly, this has not been subbed in other languages. There is no audio description. The output quality is pretty good, with a decent enough picture and the sound is well mixed. All in all, this is a good set, and really does make watching the series again very easy, as it's all there. The only one I really couldn't stand much of was the One Foot In The Algave episode - otherwise it is all good fun, and will keep you laughing for decades to come.

This is a complete set of One Foot in the Grave, including Christmas specials, as it says in the title. At the current price of £18.50 for 42 episodes, this works out at 44p per episode. There is also a documentary about One Foot in the Grave and several commentaries. So, anyway, anyone familiar with One Foot in the Grave knows that it is about grumpy, sarcastic, middle-aged Victor Meldrew, who is forced into early retirement from his job as a security guard in the first episode. This sets the scene for the rest of the series. With Victor bored at home, his exasperated wife Margaret has to bear the brunt of his moaning. However, she loves him dearly, as we see in several episodes. One of my favourite elements of this programme is the once per series 'bottle episode', which takes place in one setting. These range from Victor and Margaret having a sleepless night in bed, to Victor bored home alone on call for jury service, to Victor and Margaret in the waiting room of the solicitor's. Anyway, I'd advise any one interested in this series to pick this up, as at £18.50 (at the time of writing) this is tremendous value. Oh, and one more thing: I DON'T BELIEVE IT!

Got this for the cheap price so happy

bella serie tv inglese, molto divertente e veritiero.

Funny

Endearing, intelligent British comedy. I remember watching it on PBS years ago and enjoying it. Just watched the first three episodes and again, I was laughing out loud. With all the great comedies the British have given us, this is the one hidden gem that's well worth getting.

plaisir de revoir ce que je croyais définitivement introuvable

Loved the program, very humourous. Absolute bargain