Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the Golden Years not the Molden Years, March 3, 2008
Steohanie Cole is a national treasure. She is adept at drama (watch Tenko) as with comedy. She and Grahame Crowden have created the perfect odd couple of the geratrics generation.
While most seniors go gently into the night, not Tom and Diana. They are not going to let the establishment (The Idiot Baines) push them around because they are old.
Tom and Diana have been battling the establishment and Harvey Baines for two series and now for the third round. Series 3 contains the following 10 episodes and a Christmas special:
The Funeral - The Vicar is suffering from burn-out and cannot even get through a funeral. So he goes to Bayview to get some rest but Tom has an idea to help. Tom points his alcoholic/oversexed daughter-in-law Marion his way. But Marion and Vicar run together.
Two Nasty Kids - Geoffrey decides to run after Marion and presses Tom and Diana into babysitting his two kids (Tom's grandchildren).
Looking for Work - Diana decides to look for a job. But at her age, it is easier said than done.
Harvey's Fiancee - Harvey finds Ms. Right (Lucy) and wants to intoduce her to Mother. But Tom and Diana decide it would be fun to pretend to be Harvey's parents. After they run off Lucy, Harvey has Jane pretend to be his fiancee when Mother arrives.
The Estate Agent - Harvey gets entangled with a beautiful estate agent, who turns out to be even more unscrupulous than Harvey. It takes the dynamic geriatric duo to uncover her evil plot.
Scandal - Following a wild wake, Diana wakes up in Tom's bed.
Sabotage - When Harvey "borrows" the money from the vacation fund for his new pet project, it is up to Tom and Diana to correct this.
Politics - Diana is bored, so she puts herself up for counsel. Harvey also decides to run for the same office. And Tom decides it would be fun to make it three.
Sleeping Pills - Diana collapses and is rushed to the hospital. She thinks she is dying and wants to do it on her terms.
Great Aunt Diana - Tom and Diana hijack a bus (the driver would not let them in early even though it is raining.) Diana's niece Sarah is pregnant.
Christmas at Bayview - This is the show's first Christmas special.
This show is extremely popular on PBS. Thank-you BBC for this wonderful show. No US network would have the guts to make this show.
Three series down one to go!!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Aging - with MORE Attitude - at Bayview!, June 4, 2008
Ah, Tom & Diana of Bayview are BACK! The third series (season) holds some interesting twists - the pair continue to flummox Harvey Baines, while Jane continues to covet Harvey. Diana takes on politics, an estate agent scam, helps deliver her great-niece Diana ('not another one,' moans Harvey), sees that Jane gets 'engaged' to Harvey, and still finds time to land in Tom's bed. The Christmas special is a worthy addition to the collection, and I'm pleased to see it included. Another review lists the episodes, so I won't duplicate that here. The series does address - in its own inimitable way - some of the serious issues of aging. The estate agent scam is only one of them.
I wanted to make note of the infamous "bedroom" episode: no US writing team could have done this as well. From the hilarious wake (a resident left 200 quid so those remaining could get 'legless' in his memory) through the very last scene, all is IMPLIED. It is so tastefully done, with witty dialogue but actually showing nothing, that the show makes its points without resorting to the vulgarity so prevalent in US sitcoms today.
Stephanie Cole (awarded an O.B.E. in 2005, and who was aged when she took the part) and Graham Crowden (who is still actively performing at age 86) are, as always, stellar as the geriatric dynamic duo. Daniel Hill as Harvey along with Janine Duvitski as Jane provide the support for the lead pair. The late Andrew Tourelle as Geoffrey and Sandra Payne as Marion add to the fun.
Since this series has a beginning (series/season one), follows a somewhat overall story arc, and has a definite end, please don't make this your first visit to Bayview. Although each episode - for the most part - stands alone, the best way to visit the 'retirement community for the almost dead' is to see the shows in order.
If you have already visited the place, then WELCOME BACK! Now we all sit and wait for series four and five - and hopefully we'll get the second Christmas special as well. (BBC please take note!)
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
English comedy, November 23, 2008
As a lover of comedy especially English comedy I thoroughly enjoyed WAITING FOR GOD. My appetite was whetted when I happened to catch a couple of episodes on TV and I knew I just had to see the whole thing, all three episodes. The setting is Bournemouth on the southern coast of England, an area with which I am familiar having once lived there.
The story centers around a retirement home for still active seniors. The home is comfortable but the day to day routine is boring. The main characters are Diana, sharp as a whip with an acid wit and a skeptical outlook on life who does not suffer fools gladly. She becomes friends with Tom, a romantic dreamer who mentally is on personal social terms with all of the characters in every low grade B movie ever made.
They seem to be an unlikely couple but the two of them do find romance together. As a foil to the main characters, Harvey the manager and Jane his assistant are persons unbelievably steeped in stupidity. Harvey is greedy as well as incredibly obtuse to the point of almost being a caricature. Poor deluded Jane, madly in love with her unlovable boss actually worships Harvey and the dust around him. Other characters that seem to be vying for the title of Most Stupid are Tom's ultra boring son Geoffrey and his hypochondriac daughter in law daughter Marion. Added to the mix is a seventy five year old Don Juan living at the home who aims to be a romantic menace to aged ladies everywhere.
My criteria for rating entertainment is the question: Could I stand to watch it again? WAITING FOR GOD is definitely something to be enjoyed more than once.
For lovers of English comedy I might recommend SOME MOTHERS DO `AVE `EM,
which is slapstick but barrels of fun. Also, on a somewhat more sophisticated note watch AS TIME GOES BY. Both of these are delightful entertainment! Betty Locke
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