Starring: Stephanie Cole , Graham Crowden
Directed by: Gareth Gwenlan , Sue Bysh
Produced by: Gareth Gwenlan
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At the Bayview Retirement Village the elderly are expected to grow old gracefully, enjoying their final years in peace, quiet and comfort... but not if Tom and Diana have anything to do with it!
Item Number: 15261
English Subtitles for the Deaf and Hearing Impaired
Cast Biographies
A Funny Women Featurette
1992 Christmas Special
Trailers
1993 Christmas Special - Diana has been asked to direct the Nativity play forthe elderly of the parish, but there's more of a miracle a Bayview - Harvey receives a blow to the head and proposes to Jane!
At the Bayview Retirement Village the elderly are expected to grow old gracefully, enjoying their final years in peace, quiet and comfort... but not if Tom (Graham Crowden) and Diana (Stephanie Cole) have anything to do with it! Meet two elderly eccentrics who refuse to put up with the appalling food and condescending staff, in the hilariously cynical BAFTA®-nominated comedy that won Stephanie Cole a British Comedy Award in 1992.
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Season 1
Welcome to Bayview - Tom is a reluctant new member of the Bayview Retirement Village. He meets Diana, a sharp-tongued spinster who lives next door.They strike up an uneasy alliance hinting at hilarious events to come.
A Trip to Brighton - Diana commandeers her niece's Porsche for a trip to Brighton and brings Tom along for company. By the time their journey ends, the police have been alerted about two renegade senior citizens on the loose in a sports car.
Cheering Up Tom - Diana has discovered that Tom has taken to his bed where he protests that he is dying. Diana might not be the best to cheer up her friend. She admits to having last been happy herself in 1955.
The Christening - Diana has a secret illness that Tom is afraid it may put her residential status in jeopardy. He conjures up an outrageous plan to blackmail the management of Bayview.Tom and Diana also disrupt the christening of Tom's greatnephew.
Fraulein Mueller - The arrival of a new matron creates a great rift between Tom and Diana.The matron promptly gets rid of flower beds, removes the piano from the dining room and plots to have Diana voted out of the retirement home.
The Psychiatrist - The Bayview management attempt to remove Tom and Diana by having them certified.The psychiatrist passes them both as mentally sound even though Tom announces that he is Sir Edmund Hillary and has just conquered Everest.
The Helicopter - Diana relives her past as a photo journalist with a bit of aerial photography from a helicopter.Tom has accompanied her but is not too keen on the event. "Up here is far to close to God."
Season 2
Episode 1 - Tom and Diana continue to be rebel senior citizens determined to squeeze the most from life before meeting their Maker.This week the duo also take up counseling for the dying.
Episode 2 - Tom is in a decline. He admits to Diana that he is feeling lonely and suggests that they "shack up" together. Diana's immediate reaction is to erect a partition between their quarters.
Episode 3 - There is still a wall dividing Tom and Diana. But while Diana waits for an apology from Tom, she must witness Daisy Williams, the newcomer to the Bayview Retirement Home, taking charge.
Episode 4 - Mysterious thefts at Bayview set Diana and Tom off on a bit of sleuthing. However, the ingenuity leads Tom into hot water as he finds himself taking the rap for a shop lifting offense. Diana defends him as "the most harmless, boring person in the world."
Episode 5 - Tom decides that honesty is the best policy and vows to tell the truth at all times. Diana must deal with her ghastly niece, alias "The Clapham Strangler."
Episode 6 - To Tom's great concern, Diana breaks her hip and has to go into hospital. Diana's great concern is that she get out in time to ruin her niece's wedding.
Episode 7 - The Glamorous Granny Competition has come to Bayview Retirement Village. On a bet, Diana tries her hand at being nice and entering the competition. She loses the bet.
Episode 8 - Harvey, the despicable manager of Bayview, has determined to cut costs by employing a group of short foreigners. And there is the nasty business of knife fights on the croquet lawn.
Episode 9 - The unimaginable occurs. Young people come to Bayview. Diana is thrilled by their visit while Harvey works overtime trying to get her thrown out.
Episode 10 - Tom is proud of his son Geoffrey when he summons courage to leave his awful wife. But when he moves in with Tom and begins boring everyone stiff, Diana leaps into action.
Season 3
The Funeral - A local vicar has a nervous breakdown at one of the resident's funeral. Tom and Diana set him off on an interesting pat to sanity. Tom's son has a spot of bother with his dipsomaniac and nymphomaniac wife.
Two Nasty Children - It falls on Tom and Diana that they must look after two rather nasty children. Diana decides to teach them a thing or two.
Looking for Work - Life at Bayview Retirement Village is not exactly hectic. Tom and Diana decide they are so bored that they will have to get jobs.
Harvey's Fiancée - An unexpected guest and Harvey's fiancée are the sources for some malicious fun on the parts of Tom and Diana.
The Estate Agent - As they sort through what to do with their time, Tom and Diana turn their attentions to the local area outside of Bayview. In doing so they lock horns with an estate agent.
Scandal - When Diana is found in Tom's bed, the shock waves reverberate around Bayview. Tom is suddenly the center of attention of the ladies bowling team.
Sabotage - Tom and Diana decide they should to away on holiday. First they will have to outwit Harvey's building plans and raise some money.
Politics - Diana decides she needs to broaden her horizons to encompass her energies and talent. She launches herself into politics only to find Tom and Harvey running against her.
Sleeping Pills - Diana falls ill and believes herself to be in critical condition. She takes matters into her own hands and asks Tom for sleeping pills.
Great Aunt Diana - Diana's niece Sarah goes into labor. Despite the great aunt's protestations of being too squeamish for such stuff, Diana and Tom are pressed into service.
Season 4
Episode 1 - When Diana runs into severe financial difficulties, the management of Bayview delight in the
prospect of losing her as a resident.
Episode 2 - Can tidy Tom put up with the decidedly slovenly Diana? When a new resident turns up it
seems they are sickenly lovey-dovey!
Episode 3 - After only a few weeks spent together "living in miserable sin," Tom scrutinizes his lease
agreement for a get-out clause.
Episode 4 - While Diana is in self-exile and up to her neck in nappies, Tom is being driven mad by his
shelf-building son Geoffrey.
Episode 5 - Hell-bent on splitting up Diana and Tom, a spiritualist puts Tom in touch with his dear
departed wife...
Episode 6 - Harvey wants to produce a glossy video on Bayview to help him set up franchises around the
country, but Diana has sabotage on her mind...
Episode 7 - After the local council cancel Tom and Diana's favourite classes,
the fearless twosome take on City Hall. But is it a fight too far?
Episode 8 - As Harvey garners sympathy for his ‘breakdown', the residents
focus their displeasure on Diana.
Episode 9 - Tom has a night out at his regimental reunion and Diana
has reason to believe he has met up with a girlfriend.
Episode 10 - While Tom waits for tests on his prostate, Diana is
summoned to the Council of European Old People.
| Diana Trent | --- | Stephanie Cole |
| Tom Ballard | --- | Graham Crowden |
| Harvey Bains | --- | Daniel Hill |
| Jane Edwards | --- | Janine Duvitski |
| Geoffrey Ballard | --- | Andrew Tourell |
| Marion Ballard | --- | Sandra Payne |
| Basil Makepeace | --- | Michael Bilton |
| Jenny | --- | Dawn Hope |
Written by Michael Aitkens
Directed by Gareth Gwenlan, Sue Bysh
Produced by Gareth Gwenlan
British Comedy Awards®
1992 – Best TV Comedy Actress – Stephanie Cole
I sometimes wonder if Dame Stephanie has been rushing things a bit. She began her acting career at age 17, playing a 90-year-old woman. And she was only 48 when she starred as the seventy-something Diana Trent.