''Beryl's Lot'' is a British comedy drama about a woman approaching middle-age and embarking on a programme of personal development. It was written by

Kevin Laffan Kevin Barry Laffan (24 May 1922 – 11 March 2003) was a British playwright, screenwriter, author, actor and stage director. Laffan is best known for creating the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale Farm'', now titled ''Emmerdale''. Raised in a family ...

(who also created

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, '' ...

), produced by

David Cunliffe David Richard Cunliffe (born 30 April 1963) is a New Zealand management consultant and former politician who was Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition from September 2013 to September 2014. He was Member of Parli ...

and Peter Willes, and directed by Derek Bennett and David Reynolds for

Yorkshire Television ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...

and broadcast 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 ...

between 1973 and 1977. ''Beryl's Lot'' ran for 3 series and 52 episodes in total before its cancellation. The first two series each consisted of 13 one-hour-long episodes, the third series of 26 episodes of 30 minutes.

Plot

The series focused on Beryl Humphries, a

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batter ...

milkman's wife and mother of three, who decided as her 40th birthday approached that she needed to broaden her horizons, which she accomplished by enrolling on a philosophy course at

night school A night school is an adult learning school that holds classes in the evening or at night to accommodate people who work during the day. A community college or university may hold night school classes that admit undergraduates. Italy The Scuola ...

. The series dealt with how Beryl's new ideas, attitudes and outlook affected her family, friends and neighbours.imdb.com
/ref> ''Beryl's Lot'' was inspired by the story of

Margaret Powell Margaret Powell (1907 – April 1984) was an English writer. Her book about her experiences in domestic service, ''Below Stairs'', became a best-seller and she went on to write other books and became a television personality. ''Below Stair ...

(1907-1984), a former

domestic servant A domestic worker or domestic servant is a person who works within the scope of a residence. The term "domestic service" applies to the equivalent occupational category. In traditional English contexts, such a person was said to be "in service ...

who had undergone a similar journey of self-discovery and had written a series of bestselling books about her life experiences.

Cast

Carmel McSharry Carmel Evelyn McSharry (18 August 1926 – 4 March 2018) was an Irish character actress, best known for her roles as Beryl Humphries in '' Beryl's Lot'' (1973–77), a daytime ITV serial, and as Mrs. Hollingbery in ''In Sickness and in Health''. ...

- Beryl Humphries *

Mark Kingston Mark Kingston (18 April 1934 – 9 October 2011) was an English actor who made many television and stage appearances over his 50-year career. Biography Kingston's father was a blacksmith and he attended Greenwich Central School and traine ...

- Tom Humphries (series 1-2)

George Selway George Selway (21 February 1924 – May 1994) was an English actor who had a lengthy career in film and television. He was married to and later separated from English actress Patricia Greene, of ''The Archers'' radio serial fame. Coincidental ...

- Tom Humphries (series 3) *

Barbara Mitchell Barbara Mitchell (4 October 1929 – 9 December 1977, Kingston Upon Thames) was an English actress who became a familiar face on British television in the 1960s and 1970s, best known for her work in many classic sitcoms of the period. Care ...

- Vi Tonks *

Tony Caunter Anthony Patrick Caunter (born 22 September 1937) is a Retired British actor best known for his role as Jack Shepherd in the Yorkshire TV sitcom '' Queenie's Castle'' and also his portrayal of Roy Evans in ''EastEnders'' from 1994 to 2003. The ...

- Trevor Tonks * Annie Leake - Wully Harris *

Johnny Shannon Johnny Shannon (born 29 July 1932) is an English actor who appeared in numerous television and film productions over a 40-year period, often playing policemen or crooks in crime dramas. Shannon's most memorable roles include the crime lord Harry ...

- Wacky Waters *

Robert Keegan Robert Charles Keegan (August 4, 1920 – June 20, 2001) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox from 1953 to 1958. A native of Rochester, New York, he attended Bucknell University and performed Wo ...

- Horace Harris *

Robin Askwith Robin Mark Askwith (born 12 October 1950) is an English actor and singer who has appeared in a number of film, television and stage productions. Making his film debut as Keating in the film '' if....'' (1968), a role he would reprise in ''Brita ...

- Fred Pickering (series 1-2) *

Queenie Watts Queenie Watts (born Mary Spenton; 21 July 1923 – 25 January 1980) was an English actress of film and television, as well as an occasional singer.

- Freda Mills (series 1-2) *

Brian Capron Brian Capron (born 11 February 1947) is an English actor who trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He is best known for his role as serial killer, Richard Hillman, in the long-running ITV soap opera, ''Coronation Street'', f ...

- Jack Humphries *

Anita Carey Anita Carey (born 16 April 1948) is an English actress, best known for playing Joyce Smedley in '' Coronation Street'' and later for playing Vivien March in '' Doctors''. Carey has appeared in British television programmes since the 1970s. Car ...

- Babs Humphries * Verna Harvey - Rosie Humphries *

Norman Mitchell Norman Mitchell Driver (27 August 1918 – 19 March 2001), known professionally as Norman Mitchell, was an English television, stage and film actor. Born in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, his father was a mining engineer and his mother a ...

- Charlie Mills

Episodes

Series 1 (1973 - 74)

*Getting Up (1 Nov 73) *Quite a Reception (8 Nov 73) *Box and Cox (15 Nov 73) *Dancing Lessons (22 Nov 73) *Definitely Very Chilly (29 Nov 73) *Diamond Cut Diamond (6 Dec 73) *Entente Cordiale (13 Dec 73) *Sixes and Sevens (20 Dec 73) *It's a Rum World (3 Jan 74) *A Bit of Culture (10 Jan 74) *Backs to the Wall (17 Jan 74) *Naughty Boy, Naughty Girl (24 Jan 74) *Rosie All the Way (31 Jan 74)

Series 2 (1975)

*After the Wedding Was Over (26 Sep 75) *It's a Wise Child (3 Oct 75) *Finders Keepers (10 Oct 75) *Treble Chance (17 Oct 75) *Charlie Is My Darling (24 Oct 75) *Ignorance Is Bliss (31 Oct 75) *The Last Straw (7 Nov 75) *Easy Pickings (14 Nov 75) *Stool Pigeon (21 Nov 75) *Devil to Pay (28 Nov 75) *Safety First (5 Dec 75) *Home Again (12 Dec 75) *A Day at the Races (19 Dec 75)

Series 3 (1976 - 77)

*Episode 1 (31 Dec 76) *Episode 2 (7 Jan 77) *Episode 3 (14 Jan 77) *Episode 4 (21 Jan 77) *Episode 5 (28 Jan 77) *Episode 6 (4 Feb 77) *Episode 7 (11 Feb 77) *Episode 8 (18 Feb 77) *Episode 9 (25 Feb 77) *Episode 10 (4 Mar 77) *Episode 11 (11 Mar 77) *Episode 12 (18 Mar 77) *Episode 13 (25 Mar 77) *Episode 14 (1 Apr 77) *Episode 15 (8 Apr 77) *Episode 16 (15 Apr 77) *Episode 17 (22 Apr 77) *Episode 18 (29 Apr 77) *Episode 19 (6 May 77) *Episode 20 (13 May 77) *Episode 21 (20 May 77) *Episode 22 (27 May 77) *Episode 23 (3 Jun 77) *Episode 24 (10 Jun 77) *Episode 25 (17 Jun 77) *Episode 26 (24 Jun 77)

References

External links

Memorable TV - ''Beryl's Lot'' show overview
*{{British Comedy Guide, tv, beryls_lot

1973 British television series debuts 1977 British television series endings 1970s British comedy television series Television series by Yorkshire Television ITV sitcoms English-language television shows