''The Family'' was a 1974

BBC television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

series made by producer

Paul Watson Paul Franklin Watson (born December 2, 1950) is a Canadian-American conservation and environmental movement, environmental activist, who founded the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, an anti-poaching and direct action group focused on marine c ...

, and directed by

Franc Roddam Francis George "Franc" Roddam (born 29 April 1946) is an English film director, businessman, screenwriter, television producer and publisher, best known as the creator of ''Auf Wiedersehen, Pet'' and the director of ''Quadrophenia'' (1979). He is ...

. It was a

fly-on-the-wall Fly on the wall is a style of documentary-making used in film and television production. The name derived from the idea that events are seen candidly, as a fly on a wall might see them. In the purest form of fly-on-the-wall documentary-making, t ...

documentary series, seen by many as the precursor to

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

. It was similar to an American documentary which had aired the previous year in 1973 (but which had been filmed in 1971), called ''

An American Family ''An American Family'' is an American television documentary series that followed the life of a California family in the early 1970s. Widely referred to as the first example of an American reality TV show, the series drew millions of weekly vie ...

''. It followed the

working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

Wilkins family of six (led by Margaret and Terry, who divorced in 1978) of

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

, through their daily lives, warts and all, and culminated in the

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

of one of the daughters, which was plagued by fans and

paparazzi Paparazzi (, ; ; singular: masculine paparazzo or feminine paparazza) are independent photographers who take pictures of high-profile people; such as actors, musicians, athletes, politicians, and other celebrities, typically while subjects ...

alike. The show was the basis for two parodies: ''

Monty Python's Flying Circus ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' (also known as simply ''Monty Python'') is a British surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, who became known ...

'', in their last episode which aired 5 December 1974, featured a sketch called "The Most Awful Family in Britain 1974"; and

Benny Hill Alfred Hawthorne "Benny" Hill (21 January 1924 – 20 April 1992) was an English comedian, actor, singer and writer. He is remembered for his television programme ''The Benny Hill Show'', an amalgam of slapstick, burlesque and double ente ...

, on one of his 1975 specials, did a takeoff called "That Family."

Aftermath

The day after the series ended, BBC Two's ''In Vision'' asked if viewers had learned anything from the programme about the problems of living in an urban society, and whether we actually really knew the Wilkins family. Later in the year on 12 October ''Both Sides of The Family'' asked similar questions, with input from sociologist Colin Bell and a psychologist. As with the main series this was produced by Paul Watson. The series was repeated on BBC Two from 17 September 1983 to 3 December 1983, as the start of a 'Fly on the Wall' season. Like the subsequent series in the season, ''

Sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

'', a follow up programme was transmitted. The 40-minute special, sub-titled "The After-Years" was shown on 10 December, with Franc Roddam and Paul Watson both returning. On 6 November (the day after the repeat of episode nine), Margaret Wilkins was one of the three guests on '' Did You See...?'' The whole series was then repeated again in a late night slot over three weeks from 11 to 29 July 1988, again on BBC Two. On 25 July (the day episode nine was to be repeated), the Wilkins family were guests on

Wogan ''Wogan'' is a British television talk show which was broadcast on BBC1 from 1982 until 1992, presented by Terry Wogan. It was usually broadcast live from the BBC Television Theatre in Shepherd's Bush, London, until 1991. It was then broadcast ...

. "The After-Years" was repeated at 9pm on 30 July, this time in an hour-long slot as it was followed by a new interview between Margaret Wilkins and Paul Watson. Margaret remarried (like her ex-husband) and became Margaret Sainsbury; she died of a reported heart attack in Berkshire on 10 August 2008, aged 73. Terry died on 31 October 2016, at age 82. The format was revived in 2008 (see '' The Family'').

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Family, The BBC television documentaries 1970s British documentary television series 1974 British television series debuts 1974 British television series endings Television series about families Television shows set in Berkshire