''The Crouches'' is a

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

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

between 2003 and 2005. It starred Rudolph Walker,

Robbie Gee Robbie Gee (born 24 March 1970) is a British actor, best known for his ''Desmond's'' character "Lee Stanley", for appearing in Guy Ritchie's crime caper '' Snatch'', and for his comedy roles in TV series like ''The Real McCoy'' and ''The Crouc ...

, Jo Martin and Mona Hammond.

Plot

Childhood sweethearts Roly Crouch (

) and Natalie ( Jo Martin) have been married for 18 years. Roly works for the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

at Lambeth North as a Station Assistant. Roly has two best mates, Ed and Bailey. Bailey ( Don Warrington) is his boss and Ed ( Danny John-Jules) is also a station assistant. Ed is married to Lindy ( Llewella Gideon). Their relationship is rocky. Natalie used to be in a rap duo called Bun and Cheese with her best friend Lindy. They wanted to be Britain's answer to

Salt-n-Pepa Salt-N-Pepa (also stylized as Salt 'N' Pepa or Salt 'N Pepa) is an American hip-hop group formed in New York City in 1985, that comprised Salt (Cheryl James), Pepa (Sandra Denton), and DJ Spinderella (Deidra Roper). Their debut album, ''Hot, C ...

, but their musical career did not take off and Roly was the only person who did not boo at their performances. Natalie now manages Poundkickers, a discount store in Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre, and longs for some sophistication in her life. Roly and Natalie have two demanding teenage children: Aiden (played by Akemnji Ndifernyana in series one and by Aaron Shosanya in series two) and Adele (

Ony Uhiara Ony Uhiara (born 1978/79), is an actress, best known for playing Adele in the BBC sitcom, ''The Crouches'', which was broadcast from 2003 until 2004. She was born in the UK of Nigerian descent and grew up in east London. Ony is the sister of Ofo ...

). Aiden has Beyoncé posters on his wall and loves computer games. He hates tidying up and loves fighting with his sister. Adele loves clubbing and giving her parents grief. She does not "do" work and cannot see why her parents disapprove of her "businessman" boyfriend, Dennis Dutton ( Jimmy Akingbola). Roly and Natalie also have two of their parents living in the household: Langley ( Rudolph Walker) and Sylvie ( Mona Hammond). Langley, also known as Grandpa, is Roly's mischievous Trinidadian father. He was married to Roly's mother Primrose for many years, until she died eight years earlier. He still has a keen eye for the ladies. His favourite pastimes are dominoes and winding up Roly. He once invented a dance called Lick My Rifle. Sylvie, also known as Grandma, is Natalie's Jamaican mother, who was married for many years to Natalie's father Roy. She is now a widow. She dislikes Roly's miserly ways, cream teas and her cousin Janet's "tee hee" laugh. She knows that Grandpa Langley is after her, but she is more than a match for him.

Reception

The show was not well received by critics and only two series were made. Its ratings were moderate: it attracted an average of three million viewers.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Crouches, The BBC television sitcoms 2000s British sitcoms 2003 British television series debuts 2005 British television series endings Black British sitcoms Television shows set in London