Mel O'Drama
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Having completed Series Five, it's occurred to me that the format of As Time Goes By has changed quite distinctly since the earlier episodes. Surprisingly, the marriage of Lionel and Jean has been the least of the changes.
We haven't visited the office in quite some time, which would have been unthinkable early on in the run where the secretarial agency was as much a part of the series as Jean's home. To accommodate this, Sandy has moved in. When she landed on the doorstep in the first episode of Series Four (I think), it was ostensibly because she'd had another row with her boyfriend. But she's become a permanent fixture with very little comment from anyone (though a couple of lines from Jean and Lionel have suggested Sandy is now thought of as family). Naturally, this has changed the dynamic. Particularly, Judi now has someone to interact with while Jean and Lionel are doing their country thing. But each time they mention "Judi and Sandy" (which is with some frequency) I can't help thinking of these chaps.
Becoming part of the country set after being gifted Rocky's house has added more layers to the series. Mixed feelings here, one the one hand it's made the series a little less identifiable (and I speak as someone who doesn't have a country mansion in which to spend my weekends), but the new set of problems and social commentary it's brought with it has been greatly enjoyable.
Joan Sims is a treasure. It's a treat for me to see her so late in life in these episodes, still with that sparkle in her eyes. It's reminded me that I've never got round to watching her last filmed piece of work, The Last Of The Blonde Bombshells (also with Judi Dench). This must be rectified.
We haven't visited the office in quite some time, which would have been unthinkable early on in the run where the secretarial agency was as much a part of the series as Jean's home. To accommodate this, Sandy has moved in. When she landed on the doorstep in the first episode of Series Four (I think), it was ostensibly because she'd had another row with her boyfriend. But she's become a permanent fixture with very little comment from anyone (though a couple of lines from Jean and Lionel have suggested Sandy is now thought of as family). Naturally, this has changed the dynamic. Particularly, Judi now has someone to interact with while Jean and Lionel are doing their country thing. But each time they mention "Judi and Sandy" (which is with some frequency) I can't help thinking of these chaps.
Becoming part of the country set after being gifted Rocky's house has added more layers to the series. Mixed feelings here, one the one hand it's made the series a little less identifiable (and I speak as someone who doesn't have a country mansion in which to spend my weekends), but the new set of problems and social commentary it's brought with it has been greatly enjoyable.
Joan Sims is a treasure. It's a treat for me to see her so late in life in these episodes, still with that sparkle in her eyes. It's reminded me that I've never got round to watching her last filmed piece of work, The Last Of The Blonde Bombshells (also with Judi Dench). This must be rectified.