''Agony'' is a British

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

that aired on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

from 1979 to 1981. Made by

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 unt ...

, it stars

Maureen Lipman Dame Maureen Diane Lipman (born 10 May 1946) is an English actress, writer and comedian. She trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and her stage work has included appearances with the National Theatre and the Royal Shakesp ...

as Jane Lucas who has a successful career as an

agony aunt An advice column is a column in a question and answer format. Typically, a (usually anonymous) reader writes to the media outlet with a problem in the form of a question, and the media outlet provides an answer or response. The responses are wr ...

but whose own personal life is a shambles. It was created by Len Richmond and real-life agony aunt

Anna Raeburn Anna Raeburn (born 3 April 1944) is a British broadcaster, author and journalist who is best known for her role as an "agony aunt", giving advice on relationships and more general life problems. As a broadcaster, she has worked for Capital Radi ...

, both of whom wrote all of the first series. The second and third series were written by Stan Hey and Andrew Nickolds. ''Agony'' was the first British sitcom to portray a gay couple as non-camp, witty, intelligent and happy people.

Cast

- Jane Lucas * Simon Williams - Laurence Lucas *

Maria Charles Maria Charles (born 22 September 1929) is an English film, television and stage actress, director and comedian. She is probably best known for her TV performance as the overbearing mother Bea Fisher in the ITV sitcom ''Agony''. Charles has also ...

- Bea Fisher * Peter Blake - Andy Evol *

Jeremy Bulloch Jeremy Andrew Bulloch (16 February 1945 – 17 December 2020) was an English actor. In a career that spanned six decades, he gained recognition for originating the physical portrayal of Boba Fett in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, appearing as th ...

- Rob *

Peter Denyer Peter John Denyer (20 August 1947 – 18 September 2009) was an English actor who played Dennis Dunstable in London Weekend Television's ''Please Sir!'', and its spin-off series ''The Fenn Street Gang'', taking on the role of a teenager when a ...

- Michael *

Diana Weston Diana Weston (born 13 November 1953 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian-British actress who has been on British television since 1975. She is a grandchild of Charles Basil Price. Biography Career Weston's first role was in a 1975 episod ...

- Val Dunn *

Jan Holden Valerie Jeanne Wilkinson (9 May 1931 – 11 October 2005) was an English actress known as Jan Holden, using her mother's maiden name as a stage name. In theatre she was known for her performances in light comedy and appeared in several telev ...

- Diana *

Robert Gillespie Robert James Gillespie (born 9 November 1933 in Lille, France) is a British actor, director and writer. Notable acting credits include '' Keep It in the Family'' (1980), '' At the Earth's Core'' (1976) and ''Force 10 from Navarone'' (1978). Lat ...

- Mr. Mince ''(Series 1)'' *Robert Austin - Junior Truscombe ''(series 2 and 3)'' *

Bill Nighy William Francis Nighy (; born 12 December 1949) is an English actor. Nighy started his career with the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool and made his London debut with the Royal National Theatre starting with ''The Illuminatus! Trilogy, The Illuminatu ...

- Vincent Fish ''(series 2)'' *Josephine Welcome - Indira Patel ''(Series 2)''

Premise

Jane Lucas is an agony aunt, who is highly successful in her career working at radio call-in show (for ''Happening Radio 242'') in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and writing the "Dear Jane" advice column for ''Person'' magazine, but whose own marriage and personal life is a complete disaster. Her Jewish mother, Bea, interferes in all aspects of her life, and her

gentile Gentile () is a word that usually means "someone who is not a Jew". Other groups that claim Israelite heritage, notably Mormons, sometimes use the term ''gentile'' to describe outsiders. More rarely, the term is generally used as a synonym for ...

psychiatrist husband Laurence is unreliable and emotionally inept during the course of their on/off relationship. Jane's friends and colleagues include her assistant Val, her boss Diana, and her gay neighbours Rob and Michael, all of whom come to her with problems of their own. Meanwhile, Jane has to contend with the constant advances of oversexed, smarmy radio disc jockey Andy Evol and the equally libidinous Vincent Fish. Although a sitcom, ''Agony'' often included subjects in its storylines that were considered

taboo A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...

at the time such as drug use, racism, and homosexuality, and often included darker, more dramatic storylines such as Jane being held hostage by a crazed maniac, the suicide of one of her friends, and the abduction of her newborn baby.

Reception

Writing in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', television critic

Nancy Banks-Smith Nancy Banks-Smith (born 1929) is a British television and radio critic, who spent most of her career writing for ''The Guardian''. Life and career Born in Manchester and raised in a pub, she was educated at Roedean School. Banks-Smith began her ...

praised the series, describing it as "a wide-awake, wise-cracking comedy with a cracking good comedienne in Maureen Lipman" and that "the one-liners are one a second, fast and fresh and funny."

Episodes

Series One (1979)

#"Help" (11 March 1979) #"An Unmarried Couple" (18 March 1979) #"Conjugal Wrongs" (25 March 1979) #"Wedlock, Deadlock" (8 April 1979) #"Forever and Never" (15 April 1979) #"Too Much Agony, Too Little Ecstasy" (29 April 1979)

Series Two (1980)

#"Back to Reality" (13 April 1980) #"Working Girls" (20 April 1980) #"Coming Out... and Going In Again?" (27 April 1980) #"Television Can Damage Your Health" (4 May 1980) #"Problem Parents" (11 May 1980) #"Second Time Around" (18 May 1980) #"A Woman Alone" (25 May 1980)

Series Three (1981)

#"From Here to Maternity" (18 January 1981) #"Arrivals and Departures" (25 January 1981) #"Hospital Romances" (1 February 1981) #"Communications Breakdown" (8 February 1981) #"Holy Wars" (15 February 1981) #"Lucas v Lucas" (22 February 1981) #"Rings Off Their Fingers" (1 March 1981)

''Agony Again''

''Agony'' was revived in 1995, this time on the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

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