To the Manor Born

TV Series
1979–2007
Not Rated
30m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Peter Bowles and Penelope Keith in To the Manor Born (1979)

Following her husband's passing, Audrey fforbes-Hamilton is forced to sell her stately home. While she comes to terms with her downward mobility, she decides to show the new owner a thing or... Read allFollowing her husband's passing, Audrey fforbes-Hamilton is forced to sell her stately home. While she comes to terms with her downward mobility, she decides to show the new owner a thing or two about "nobility".Following her husband's passing, Audrey fforbes-Hamilton is forced to sell her stately home. While she comes to terms with her downward mobility, she decides to show the new owner a thing or two about "nobility".

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

2.8K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 4 BAFTA Awards
- 4 nominations total

Episodes22

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TopTop-rated3 seasons4 years

Trivia
The final episode held the record until 1996 for the biggest-ever audience for a single programme on British TV, with an audience of over 27 million viewers. The record was broken 15 years later by the series Only Fools and Horses (1981) with 27.6 million viewers.

Goofs
Mrs. Polouvicka's catchphrase is "There is a saying in old Czechoslovakia..." followed by a proverb or some slice of homespun wisdom. However, Czechoslovakia was only established in 1918 - just 21 years before the character emigrated to Britain - there is effectively no such thing as "old Czechoslovakia", and a character of her age is unlikely to have identified as that nationality.

Quotes
Richard DeVere: We're about to have another lecture, are we?
Audrey fforbes-Hamilton: If that's what you want to call it...
Richard DeVere: In that case, I'll be brief. I'm fed up to the back teeth with the way you keep rushing over here with some little quibble about the way I'm running this estate. I know for a fact that you have no real quarrel with the way I'm doing it, so why do you keep finding fault? I'll tell you why: firstly, because you want to prove to everybody that you're still Dame High-and-Mighty around here, and secondly, because you rather enjoy coming over here... to see me.

Connections
Featured in Funny Turns: Penelope Keith: Lady of the Manor (2000)

Soundtracks
Theme
Composed by Ronnie Hazlehurst

User reviews18

Review

Featured review

A Splendid British Comedy!

I remembered watching a few episodes of this show in the 1980s on PBS Channel 13. It was the first time I was exposed to a British comedy and I thought it was rather quaint and sweet. I always regretted that I never watched the whole series. Well, to my joy, I found this show at my local library! My husband and I watched the whole show and we were both extremely amused by Audrey fforbes-Hamilton and Richard DeVere. The comedy is very sophisticated. This kind of show appeals to intelligent people. There is nothing risque or low brow about this show. The actors all had wonderful comic timing and the episodes and dialogue extremely well-written. There was a nice sexual tension between the main characters but nothing overt or vulgar. This show leads up to a delicious ending that had me cheering and wishing the show will continue! I am very satisfied how this show ended. It was just too wonderful!

One thing I want to add, Peter Bowles, as well as a very funny actor in an understated way, is extremely good looking and debonair on this show. I still remembered the fashions from the 1970s and I thought they were awful, too many polyester suits! Well, on this show, the clothing represents the best of 1970s fashion. Peter Bowles cuts quite a wonderful, handsome figure in his 1970s suits and I was surprised at how well velvet looks on him!