Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em!

Before he was acclaimed as The Man In the Half a Mask in Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, Michael Crawford starred as Frank Spencer (a kind of precursor of Mr. Bean, according to the promotional literature--but, hey, British comedy is strewn with daft idiots, so who can tell) in this popular 1970s BBC series. The preview volume we were sent contained two episodes. In the opener, Frank causes a librarian to toss a library card tray (har-dee-har-har), destroys and haphazardly rebuilds a chicken house, and eventually finds himself and his wife Betty in a bit of a pickle with a borrowed car hanging over a cliffside. I confess I chortled once or twice, but the canned laughter track drove me nuts, and here's the tell-tale clue: I did not watch the second episode. Still--again, according to the promo lit--this is "the most requested unreleased BBC comedy series." (But then, they all say that.) Well, Anglophiles, here it is. Optional. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)