This BBC sitcom revolved around the Sweet family – Martin (Ray Winstone), Loretta (Carol Harrison) and their two teenage daughters, Eleanor and JoJo (Kate Winslet and Michelle Cattini) – who have to come to terms with financial ruin due to high bank interest rates, a real estate crash and finally bankruptcy.
Out went the detached house with stables in Hertfordshire, the Porsche, holidays abroad and the kids public school education.
They end up sharing the council flat Martin had grown up in with their obnoxious grandad, Bernie (John Bardon) in a depressed part of London with inner-city school education for the girls.
Meanwhile, Martin’s older brother, Albert (Larry Lamb) managed to sell at the top of the market and consequently, he and his wife Prudence (Jane Booker) came through the property recession unscathed.
Ray Winstone and a young Kate Winslett starred, but the joke soon wore thin and the series was eventually shelved. The series title, the character names and the episode titles were all inspired by Beatles songs.
Martin Sweet
Ray Winstone Loretta Sweet
Carol Harrison Eleanor Sweet
Kate Winslet Joanna (JoJo) Sweet
Michelle Cattini Bernie Sweet
John Bardon Lucy
Shirley Stelfox Albert Sweet
Larry Lamb Prudence Sweet
Jane Booker Bungalow Bill
G.B. Zoot Money
Episodes
Help! | We Can Work It Out | Not a Second Time | Don’t Let Me Down | I Don’t Want to See You Again | You Can’t Do That | You Never Give Me Your Money | She’s Leaving Home | Can’t Buy Me Love | Drive My Car | Tomorrow Never Knows | Money | Don’t Bother Me | Ticket to Ride | She’s a Woman
Out went the detached house with stables in Hertfordshire, the Porsche, holidays abroad and the kids public school education.
