Customer Reviews

No, Honestly - Set 1 [VHS]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Since Mr. Liebenson's in-house review says much of what Iplanned to say, I thought I might expand on some of the details. Thereference to Burns and Allen is very apt but with a difference. Burns' timing to Gracie's inanities is slow, letting the audience have their laugh at her line before laughing at his reaction. With this Alderton and Collins, the delivery is rapid-fire; and indeed there are times when I had to ask my wife, "Did you catch that last remark?" because some of the zingers went by too quickly. And of course, those based on British idioms need footnotes for us Colonials.

As with Hyacinth Bucket's family relations, Clara's loopiness is obviously inherited from her parents, who will insist on misinterpreting everything they are told. Into this menage, Royal the super-Jeeves butler fits in perfectly.

The concept of chronological plots in these seven episodes is a good one from their first chance meeting to their (well, it was only 1974!) off-camera wedding night. And, by the way, their reason for not wanting to be known as newlyweds is explained--and fairly logically too, for Clara!--at the start of the episode.

The funniest two of the seven are those based on mistaken identity, that hoary device that goes back to Terence. The 3rd episode has C.D. arrive at his future in-laws just in time to be mistaken for the plumber with predictable results. The 5th episode is more elaborate, when an orphaned C.D. asks two fellow actors to appear as his parents at a dinner given at Clara's, just when her family has to hire temporary help to serve it. Once we accept the silliness of his not wanting to be known as parentless and the premise that no one in these scripts ever really tries to explain a thing in a normal manner, the results are not predictable at all; and this single episode alone is, I think, worth the price of the set.

Now if Acorn Media will only reissue these two wonderful comedians in the "Wodehouse Playhouse" series of "Mulliner" stories, life would be that much more perfect.

No, Honestly is a wonderfully funny British comedy showcasing the comedic talents of Pauline Collins and John Alderton as two young people who meet, fall in love, and eventually marry. The viewer is presented with a tour-de-force of wit and hilarity, as we see Charles (John Alderton), a struggling young actor and Clara (Pauline Collins) a kind of British Gracie Allen, look back fondly on their early days together through comical flashbacks that include football teams, parties, parents, friends, and the sometimes bewildering process of falling truly, madly, unexpectedly in love. No, Honestly will prove a delightful and very popular addition to any community library video entertainment collection.

She was Sarah, the difficult maid, on "Upstairs, Downstairs"; he was the chauffeur. Married in real life, they portray a courting couple from disparate backgrounds who have charmingly wacky conversations and misunderstandings in the manner of George Burns and Gracie Allen. The comedy is low-key and witty, with plays on words often leading the way. Shown on some US PBS stations many years ago, this will appeal to lovers of British comedy and Brit humor.

I remember watching No, Honestly in the 70s and I have been looking for these videos for years! It is great that they have finally been released. Pauline Collins is terrific! These videos are highly recommended!

This show is very seventies and in my opinion, very good! The characters, CD and Clara recount the events leading up to their marriage. Clara is as cute as a whip and a bit scatterbrained and CD is most understanding and usually the recipient of all the disasters that befall them. A most entertaing show that really is funny in a nice clean sort of way. I give this show two wrench's up!

I saw these shows on public TV several years ago, and I fell in love with this couple. The girlfriend is extremely daffy, and her beau is a laid back kind of guy. I am pleased to find that they are on video.

This video collection was charming and drawed you right in. Clara plays an adorable and innocent lady who falls for the crazy humor of C.D.. The two make a delightful match and will have you laughing out loud.

In the late '70s, our local PBS station would run "No Honestly" on Sunday evenings, before "Monty Python." And while Python remains the funniest show ever created, in some ways, I enjoyed NH more. Because the series was so short (only 13 eps), they would rotate it with The Goodies (acceptable), Dave Allen (dismal), and The Two Ronnies (excrable).

In early '81, they came around to NH again. I was in college, working a crappy job in telephone sales, trying to save up money to move out of my parents' house. But VHS had just come out, and was the hot, new thing. My friend Aaron already had a machine, and we felt so cutting-edge, watching shows the day after they aired! Anyway, I couldn't afford my own machine, so I bought a tape and asked him to record NH for me.

This he did -- for a couple weeks. Then he forgot and missed an episode. He was very apologetic. But being the anal-retentive type I am, I decided to take matters into my own hands. The hell with moving out -- I raided my bank account, bought my own VCR, took my tape back, and recorded the rest of the series. Yes, it was missing episode 3, but I figured I'd catch it when the series came 'round again.

It never did. That was the last time it aired, at least in Chicago. I've gone 30 years without seeing Charles mistake Clara's father for the butler, and the butler for her father. Now, my life is complete once more. Thank you, Amazon.com and whoever sold me this slightly used copy. Thank you.

Received this set in godd shape, one time, ans still can't believe I found it. Thanks.

'No-Honestly' was definitely one of the best comedy series of the 1970s starring one of the most popular married couples in TV at the time - Pauline Collins and John Alderton - fresh from the award-winning success of 'Upstairs, Downstairs'

'No Honestly' was done in a most entertaining format - both would introduce the show each week with reminiscing about when they first met and eventually married - ten years earlier. The stories were witty, entertaining and extremely funny - Pauline particularly being very adept at comedy. These shows were written by another famous and well-loved married couple who were great Writers; Terence Brady and Charlotte Bingham.

Unfortunately, despite its tremendous success and popularity, this would be the only series of 'No-Honestly' ever to be made. It is unsure as to whether any more were ever intended, since the couple were notorious for always moving on to something new rather than sticking at what was successful for them at the time and this was probably due more to the fact that back then, whatever they did worked. Having said all that, if one takes particular notice of the final episode, there are some hints that the series perhaps would not be coming back for a second season, when Pauline Collins attempts to avoid saying 'goodnight' for the very last time, but ends up saying 'goodbye' in several different languages instead, and then goes on to sing along to the popular theme song - which at the time had also become one of the most popular TV themes, and was currently riding high in the top ten as a big hit for the popular Singer; Lindsey de Paul who had written and composed the theme.

Surprisingly, this series has never been released in the United Kingdom - on either Video or DVD in its entirety, but only three episodes ever appeared on Video from the thirteen shows that were done back in the early 90s for a very limited period. The whole series was however released in the USA where surprisingly the couple had also become household names - but these were only available on Video, and to date, have never been re-issued on DVD.

This series was strangely issued in two 'halves' - seven episodes in the first box set, and the remaining six on the second. For some reason, the company 'Acorn Media' removed the Ad. Bumpers on the first set, but oddly these were retained in the second set.

This show also includes one or two familiar faces - including a surprise guest appearance of the great film star Vladek Sheybal.

Classic vintage TV comedy encapsulating the 1970s in all its glory and at its best.

Fabulous stuff!