Is It Legal?
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| Is It Legal? | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Simon Nye |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 21 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Production company | Hartswood Films for Carlton |
| Original release | |
| Network | |
| Release | 12 September 1995 – 9 December 1998 |
Is It Legal? is a British television sitcom set in a solicitors office in Hounslow, west London, which ran from 12 September 1995 to 9 December 1998. It was produced by Hartswood Films and was shown on ITV for Series 1–2 and Channel 4 for Series 3. It was written by Simon Nye, who also wrote other ITV sitcoms such as Men Behaving Badly and Hardware.
Cast
[edit]- Richard Lumsden – Colin Lotus
- Jeremy Clyde – Dick Spackman (Series 1–2)
- Imelda Staunton – Stella Phelps
- Patrick Barlow – Bob Birch
- Kate Isitt – Alison
- Matthew Ashforde – Darren
- Nicole Arumugam – Sarah Chivers
Guest stars
[edit]- John Thomson – Paramedic in "Death In Hounslow"
- Jono Coleman – Radio DJ in "Hounslow FM"
- Ben Miles – Tom in "Alison Gets Laid"
- Chris Langham – Mr Etherington in "Darren's Revenge"
- Alexander Armstrong – Nick in "New Bloke"
- Kate Lonergan – Mrs Beath in "Office Party"
Characters
[edit]Colin Lotus
[edit]Lotus is the junior partner of the firm and succeeded his father once he had retired. Colin is very proud to be a solicitor and is enthusiastic about his work, but unfortunately he is naive and often makes stupid mistakes. Usually Bob resolves Colin's messes.
Colin is very helpful to the rest of the firm despite the fact that they all think he is annoying and that he is very strange. He is a bachelor but has a dog, Tucker. He remained a bachelor despite having a one-night stand in "Office Party" with the wife of an imprisoned client. In "Glad To Be Colin" and "New Bloke" he started a relationship with Sarah who had appeared in the previous two series as the delivery girl from Mr. Bappy, the sandwich shop that was below the office. As a result, there was tension between Colin and Bob, as Bob previously had a crush on Sarah and contemplated pursuing a romantic relationship with her.
Dick Spackman
[edit]Spackman is one of the senior partners of the firm, but his knowledge of law is limited. Dick is very arrogant and often disregards others to make his life more convenient. Most of his time is spent in his office drinking glasses of sherry, watching golf on the television and not doing any work. He sees his position in the firm as bringing the work in which is completed by Stella, Bob or Colin. Dick's last appearance in the series was in "Indecision." In "A Question of Pants" it was revealed that Dick had taken early retirement, resulting in Stella being the form's sole senior partner.
Stella Phelps
[edit]Stella Phelps is a senior partner of the firm. She had an ambition of being a solicitor since childhood, and she always tried to succeed in being the most professional solicitor. However, the rest of the firm, especially partners Colin and Dick, hold her back because of their inept attitude towards law and the legal profession.
Bob Birch
[edit]Bob is the office manager of Lotus, Spackman & Phelps, and is, aside from Stella, probably the most competent employee of the firm. A very dedicated worker, Bob tends toward bossiness and is a bit of a prude, which tends to grate on many of his co-workers.
He fell in love with Sarah, a worker at the sandwich shop Mr. Bappy which is located in the same building as the firm. Bob pursued her—despite her apparent lack of interest and his allergy to bread products. This eventually led to the dissolution of his marriage and a drawer full of odd-flavoured baps. During the third series, he and Stella became a couple.
Alison
[edit]Alison is the sexy secretary who has a job at the firm only because her estate agent boyfriend sends them many clients who need conveyancing services. She is constantly bored and likes to annoy the other members of the firm, particularly Bob, because of his crush on Sarah.
Darren
[edit]Darren is the firm's office assistant and general jack-of-all-trades. Generally seen as incompetent at his job, but he remains on good terms with Bob and Colin despite Stella's obvious dislike of him. His object of affection is Alison.
Episodes
[edit]Series 1 (1995)
[edit]| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Death in Hounslow" | 12 September 1995 | |
|
Colin starts his first day at Lotus, Spackman & Phelps and accidentally kills a client, Stella has to settle a dispute over who gets to keep their dog and Bob tries desperately to piece together files that were shredded. Guest stars: Charles Simon (Mr Dobson), John Thomson (Paramedic), Rupert Bates (Man with Dog), Cate Fowler (Woman with Dog) | ||||
| 2 | 2 | "Whodunnit?" | 19 September 1995 | |
|
Stella gets arrested for drink-driving and Bob tries to discover who has photocopied their bottom. Guest stars: Darren Tunstall (Policeman), Billie Reynolds (Jacinta) | ||||
| 3 | 3 | "Dick’s House of Horror" | 26 September 1995 | |
|
Dick buys a new house which hasn't been surveyed properly, Darren tries to celebrate his birthday and Alison tries to stay awake. Guest stars: Michael Troughton, (Mr Arnold), Alan Talbot (Homeowner) | ||||
| 4 | 4 | "Colin Heals the World" | 3 October 1995 | |
|
Colin goes to court to promote the firm and meets a prostitute while Stella tries to win £40,000 in compensation for her client. Guest stars: Mark Lewis (Detective Inspector), Charlotte Weston (Jane), Iain Mitchell (Giles Brindley-Sherman) | ||||
| 5 | 5 | "Infatuation" | 10 October 1995 | |
|
Lotus, Spackman and Phelps has a person on work experience and is popular with everyone except Bob while Darren tries to sue Mr. Bappy for food poisoning. Guest stars: Raymond Coulthard (Peter) | ||||
| 6 | 6 | "Bob Breaks In" | 17 October 1995 | |
|
Bob has to break into his own house to retrieve some documents while Dick has stolen £30,000 from a client to buy a boat. Guest stars: Patricia Garwood (Belinda Foulkes) | ||||
| 7 | 7 | "Resignation" | 24 October 1995 | |
|
Stella is considering her resignation from the firm which Colin and Dick find out about while Bob still tries to win Sarah's heart. | ||||
Series 2 (1996)
[edit]| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 1 | "Solicitors in Love" | 24 October 1996 | |
|
Bob's marriage continues to fall apart while Stella has a new man in her life. Guest stars: David Hounslow (Policeman) | ||||
| 9 | 2 | "Hounslow FM" | 31 October 1996 | |
|
Dick has been invited to solve legal problems on the local radio station while Colin plans his annual holiday. Guest stars: Jono Coleman (DJ) | ||||
| 10 | 3 | "Alison Gets Laid" | 7 November 1996 | |
|
Stella questions whether anyone in the firm actually likes her while Alison sleeps with Sarah's boyfriend. Guest stars: Ben Miles (Tom) | ||||
| 11 | 4 | "Darren’s Revenge" | 14 November 1996 | |
|
Lotus, Spackman, and Phelps are moving with the times as they try and use computers, Stella and Colin are forced to play golf with a wealthy client and Darren discovers he might be sacked. Guest stars: Chris Langham (David Etherington) | ||||
| 12 | 5 | "Dick in Court" | 21 November 1996 | |
|
Dick is forced to represent one of Stella's clients in court, Colin brings his dog to work and Bob finally gets a date with Sarah. | ||||
| 14 | 6 | "Office Party" | 28 November 1996 | |
|
Lotus, Spackman,and Phelps are holding their annual office party which they soon regret while a prisoner has requested Colin to be his solicitor. Guest stars: Ian Bartholomew (Terry Beath), Kate Lonergan (Mrs Beath) | ||||
| 15 | 7 | "Indecision" | 5 December 1996 | |
|
A rival firm has offered to buy Lotus, Spackman and Phelps where it falls on Colin to make a decision while Bob tries to decide whether to give his marriage a chance or to go on a date with Sarah. | ||||
Series 3 (1998)
[edit]| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 1 | "A Question of Pants" | 28 October 1998 | |
|
Dick has retired so Colin has been given his old office while Darren wonders whether Alison, whose bra is peeping out for much of the episode, wears any knickers. | ||||
| 17 | 2 | "Polishing the Mouse" | 4 November 1998 | |
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Darren is caught masturbating in Stella's office while Stella celebrates being at the firm for twenty years. | ||||
| 18 | 3 | "Big Desk Bob" | 11 November 1998 | |
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Bob has his uncle's desk delivered to the office while he and Stella try to keep their relationship a secret from everybody else. | ||||
| 19 | 4 | "Glad To Be Colin" | 18 November 1998 | |
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Colin questions his sexuality while Sarah returns to the office which makes Bob pleased and Stella jealous. | ||||
| 20 | 5 | "New Bloke" | 25 November 1998 | |
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A new solicitor has joined the firm who annoys Stella but charms everyone else while Darren decides to change his name. Guest stars: Alexander Armstrong (Nick Bairstow) | ||||
| 21 | 6 | "Someone Is Lying" | 2 December 1998 | |
|
Colin decides to hold a house party but at the end of the night one hundred pounds has gone missing and tries to find out who has stolen it. Guest stars: Andrew Clover (Steve), Louise Rolfe (Yvonne) | ||||
| 22 | 7 | "1979" | 9 December 1998 | |
|
Darren is asked to retrieve a box of files dating from 1979 and in it there's a discovery of a nineteen-year-old secret. | ||||
Filming locations
[edit]Interior shots were filmed at Teddington Studios in south-west London
Exterior shots were filmed in and around Staines and Walton-on-Thames.[1]
Awards
[edit]It won the British Comedy Award for "Best ITV Sitcom" in 1995.[2]
DVD releases
[edit]All three series of Is It Legal? were released on DVD by Network between September 2010 and March 2011.
| DVD | Release date |
|---|---|
| The Complete Series 1 | 13 September 2010 |
| The Complete Series 2 | 17 January 2011 |
| The Complete Series 3 | 21 March 2011 |
| The Complete Series 1 to 3 Box Set | 9 July 2018 |
References
[edit]- ^ "Is It Legal?". British Comedy Guide.
- ^ "The British Comedy Awards - The British Comedy Awards - Winners 1995". www.britishcomedyawards.com. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
External links
[edit]- 1995 British television series debuts
- 1998 British television series endings
- 1990s British legal television series
- 1990s British sitcoms
- 1990s British workplace comedy television series
- Carlton Television
- Channel 4 sitcoms
- British English-language television shows
- ITV sitcoms
- London Borough of Hounslow
- Television series by Hartswood Films
- Television series by ITV Studios
- Television shows set in London
- Television shows shot at Teddington Studios