Is it possible for a sitcom to be terrible and very funny at the same time? That’s the feat that this one-off revival of Goodnight Sweetheart as part of the Landmark Sitcom Season seems to have pulled off. This time travel comedy always was an odd idea and the internal logic problems of the original run, which ended 17 years ago, still haven’t been resolved. On the other hand there are plenty of laughs.
This time round Gary Sparrow is 52 and stuck in 1962. The swinging Sixties are just around the corner but things are still pretty bleak in London’s East End. This is a world where rissoles is a regular meal - and a sitcom can get a laugh just by saying the word “rissoles”. Gary’s wife Phoebe (Elizabeth Carling) is running the pub, their dim friend Reg (Christopher Ettridge) is still around and they now have a grown-up CND-supporting son too.
Gary, however, fancies getting back to the present day and some lamb pasanda and lo and behold he accidentally stumbles on a way back. And double lo and behold, E1 is now hipster central. There are lots of laughs, some glaringly obvious, some less so, as Gary discovers a new world of smartphones, selfies, man-buns and phone boxes that have been turned into coffee shops. Original writers Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran have certainly done their research.
In 2016 Gary’s ex Yvonne (Emma Amos) seems to be doing pretty well for herself and is a major entrepreneur and a minor celebrity. His old friend Ron (Victor McGuire) is doing less well. And there are lots more surprises in store for 2016-era Gary. A lot can change in 17 years - though I’m surprised he was that shocked to see two men kissing in the street - was it that unheard of in 1999?
As I wrote at the start, there is something about this Marty McFly-meets-EastEnders series that is just plain weird. Would it have ever have been made, never mind been a hit, without Only Fools superstar Lyndhurst in the title role? Incidentally there seemed to be not one but two Del-Boy-falling-through-the-bar references here.
But despite all the quibbles there are some very funny gags here, including a right up to the minute Brexit nod and good use of modern pop songs. Apart from the fact that he looks a lot older than the 52 that he needs to be for the plot to work the tombstone-faced Lyndhurst pulls it off. This logic-defying Schrodinger’s sitcom was a hit first time round, it wouldn’t surprise me if it was recommissioned and two-timer Gary Sparrow was a hit all over again.
