The Show:
Network DVD have now released the entire third series of the popular 1970's comedy television show Man About The House. The show follows a couple of London girls, Chrissy (Paula Wilcox) and Jo (Sally Thomsett) who need a third girl to share their flat with them as their previous housemate has moved on. Instead of finding a third girl though, they find Robin Tripp (Richard O'Sullivan) lying in a bathtub at a farewell party. Robin is a student chef, and whilst the move isn't particularly viewed as great with landlord George Roper (Brian Murphy), his wife Mildred (Yootha Joyce) is intrigued. Series three follows on from the first two. Much hilarity ensues over the 7 episodes included in the third series which I will now delve a little deeper into...
Cuckoo In The Nest - Larry was only supposed to live at the flat but a couple of days but has been there for two weeks. The girls and Robin are all getting sick of him, so convince their landlords to allow him to move into the attic, providing he cleans and decorates it himself.
Come Into My Parlour - Chrissy becomes a bit upset at the fact that Robin is dating an old school friend of hers and does everything in her power to try and not leave them by themselves. Eventually she is forced to look at George's holiday photos.
I Won't Dance, Don't Ask Me - Chrissy and Jo are going to a works party and decide to invite Robin to go along with them. Robin isn't quite so thrilled at the prospect of having to dance or go to the party, causing laughs for everyone.
Of Mice And Woman - The title misrepresents this episode and it has extremely little in common with the famous novel, however it is a good play on words for the episode which sees the girl's room taken over by a mouse, which Robin takes to his advantage.
Somebody Out There Likes Me - Both Chrissy and Mildred find out they have secret admirers. Whilst Mildred couldn't care less, her husband George is keen to find out who her admirer is, as is Chrissy to find out who her secret admirer is.
We Shall Not Be Moved - With his wife Mildred going away for a long weekend, George decides it is an ideal opportunity to try and trick Chrissy, Jo and Robin into leaving the flat, leaving him with some peace and quiet. Will they go quietly though?
Three Of A Kind - Robin falls ill before a poker game, and must go to the hospital to get his tonsils taken out. Chrissy takes his place for the poker game, but she hasn't got a clue how to play the skillful card game. Will she win, or will she lose?
All in all, the episodes are disappointing, and haven't got the same charm as previous series. The episodes are also not as funny. If you have the first two series though, and thoroughly enjoyed them, chances are, you'll enjoy this.
The DVD:
Video:
Network have provided a reasonable transfer for the show, in the OAR of 4:3. However, it isn't without it's problems. The opening credit sequence suffers from too much grain and the colours are very light and washed out (particularly the outdoors scenes in the credits. The show itself however, is a slight improvement over the credits and is certainly watchable. There is noticeable grain, yet not as much. No subtitles have been included.
Audio:
The original English track in 2.0 Dual Mono is provided here, and it's pretty good. The dialogue is clear and the music levels consistent. No complaints.
Extras:
None.
