That's My Boy

This Mollie Sugden vehicle is based on the less-than-hilarious premise of a woman coincidentally being sent to work as a domestic for the son she gave up for adoption 28 years before and lives up to its promise. Though Ms. Sugden continues her crusty broad persona that was used to riotous effect on "Are You Being Served," and Jennifer Lonsdale is an appealing presence as her newly discovered daughter-in-law, the show falls terribly flat. The character of her son, Robert, is quite badly realized, though Christopher Blake makes a game try with the little he's given. None of this character's reactions seem realistic in the least, regardless of which mother he's treating boorishly. I've seen the first three episodes and have no desire to see more. The 483rd viewing of any of the hijinks on the floor of Grace Brothers provides more laughs than this mirthless exercise.

Form your own ideas about Mollie Sugden portraying "Ida Willis". Of course she does NOT act like Mrs. Slocombe because she isn't. If you give her a chance, you'll have a good chance at enjoying her portrayal. A 'real' Mollie Sugden fan will enjoy Ida too; whereas a Mrs. Slocombe fan might not. It's just like Patricia Routledge portraying Hyacinth Bucket [Bouquet] and Hetty Wainthropp. They are both interesting characters but Hyacinth is a funny snob whereas Hetty is a lady detective. They're different, as are Mrs. Slocombe & Ida. I really believe that you'll enjoy BOTH characters. Give them a chance; you'll be glad you did!

Very funny but minor comedy series from the 80s that stars the terrific Mollie Sugden as a pushy, possessive, and very funny mother.

Odd plot has Sugden as Ida Willis, a middle-aged woman who works as a domestic. When she shows up for a new job, she discovers that the doctor she's working for (Christopher Blake) is the baby she gave up for adoption 28 years before. While this seems like an odd starting point for a comedy, it injects some tension in the relationships between mother and son and adopted mother (Clare Richards).

The snooty adoptive mother has raised the boy, named Robert, to be a proper prig. Down-to-earth Ida constantly needles the doctor, whom she named Shane after a soap opera character, to break through his pomposity, much to the delight of his sweet wife (Jennifer Lonsdale).

Lurking in the corners is Ida's shiftless brother Wilfred (Harold Goodwin) who's a thorn in her side and an embarrassment to Robert.

In the fourth season, Robert gets the chance at his own medical practice in the country, so the shows packs up and moves to a new locale. This season also brings in the marvelous Deddie Davies as the medical secretary Edith Parfitt.

The series provided another great character for the wonderful Mollie Sugden, joining Mrs. Slocombe from "Are You Being Served?" in the pantheon of unforgettable British comedy characters.

Watching this show brought back fond memories of both Mollie Sugden and of British comedies of those years. There really are not any plots to speak of with their only purpose being to encourage a few moments of simplistic escapism. The humor mostly relies on the characterizations of Mollie and her co stars. They are two dimensional and laden with mugging to the camera, but for me, charming. I did laugh when someone commented how terrific the theme song is. It consists of "la la la, that's my boy" repeated over and over again ad nauseum until I decided to fast forward through it after viewing the first few episodes.

I did find the series to improve as it went along. I would guess that you would really have to like Mollie in order to like the show, which I do. Of the two other lead characters, Jennifer Lonsdale, I can't find any other work she did after this series and Christopher Blake died fairly young. They do what they are supposed to do which is mainly to serve as backdrop for Mollie to bounce off of and are likable while doing it. Jennifer is very attractive and her wardrobe representing her character of a high fashion model is sometimes remarkable and sexy.

I found it to be very pleasant spending some evenings with this show.

A strange premise for a sitcom but it sort of works chiefly because of Mollie Sugden's immensely likable performance. This show also has a terrific theme tune which suits the show really well. It is surprising that they made 5 series and maybe it did go on too long but some of the episodes are enjoyable, and in places, quite funny. I really like Jennifer Lonsdale as Angie, and Christopher Blake as Robert is also perfectly OK. I liked this show when first shown on TV without it being one of my favourites and the same applies now. Worth watching if you like something fairly gentle but with a few laughs and well worth seeing if you like Mollie Sugden.