User reviews

Steptoe & Son (SS), was a national institution back in the 60s & 70s. There were huge TV audiences all clamouring to watch the latest episode in the lives of two lonely but dependent rag & bone men in Sheperds Bush, London.

So big were the audience figures at around 7pm at night that even the-then Prime Minster, Harold Wilson, had to postpone a General Election campaign because it clashed with this hugely popular show.

Harold is the middle aged son, frustrated with his boring job as a "totter" and being constantly tied down by his irritating and manipulating father.

Harold is a dreamer, a person who sees himself as an intellectual, a poet, an classical actor, a gentleman, a ladies man and sucessful businessman....and yet this is just his little dream, the kind of dream we all wish for. But in Harold's mind only his father is really holding him back from making those dreams a reality.

Albert, on the other hand, has seen it all. He is a bitter old man who was brought up in a poor family and life was tough, especially having to suffer going through two world wars. He also realises that he never made a success of his life in a business sense. After decades of being a rag & bone man he is still no richer than his own father was.

But to add to this bitterness, he is also scared of being left totally alone in an uncaring modern world. He no longer has a wife, no daughters, hardly any family at all to fall back on. The only person he can really trust & depend on is his son, Harold. And Albert will do anything to ruin Harold's chances of either bettering his own life elsewhere or making sure he never leaves him to fend for himself.

And so for the next 12 years British audiences peeked into the daily lives & scrabbles of this odd couple with Harold trying to escape to a better world and Albert making sure he doesn't.

The scripts remained consistantly good throughout this era of new comedy. Boundaries of acceptable taste during this time were pushed ever further and the onset of moderately bad language from these two gents became common place.

Some purists saw it as vulgar, crude and the thin end of the cultural wedge, while the majority felt it was nothing more than how life in the real world is portrayed, and that is probably one reason why it was so successful, because we could all empathise with the two characters as they struggle for their own particular hopes & dreams.

It should be added that in real life both lead actors, Wilfred Brambell & Harry H Corbett slowly began to hate each other just as much as the characters they portrayed in the show. Brambell was very much a refined gentleman in real life and usually was very dismissive of the poor and working class (which is the great paradox of his own character).

At the same time Harry H Corbett felt he had become for-ever typecast with this Harold Steptoe millstone. He was desperate to do serious acting or to return to the theatre, but the roles he recieved were little more than Harold Steptoe by any other name. And as a consequence Harry would never get the chance to try new challenges and would always be associated and thought of as Harold.

So there was lots of real bitterness in the latter years of the show, in fact some of the episodes were too close to the bone for some. There was an episode, for example, where Harold was given the starring role in an amateur play and for once he had high hopes of breaking away from the shackles of his present employer, only for the ever sceptical Albert to tell him that he will never be a real actor because he has no talent, no class, no skill, nothing at all in fact. You could almost sense the real hostility behind those masks when Albert confronted Harold.

But for all that, SS on its own, is still a much loved show and often repeated and still remains as fresh & funny as ever. The less said about the two movie spinoffs the better.

****/*****

Something of a National treasure, a classic from a time where people knew the formula for successful comedy. It had the ability to make the viewer laugh and cry. Every show needs a catchphrase, and this one spawned a classic, you dirty old man, used many times by Harold to describe his often uncouth father.

The quality never dipped, if anything the show got better and better, despite their often being large gaps in production, the pair would always return, funnier then ever.

Credit to Galton and Simpson, for having the show relevant for the time, and not being afraid to change the formula, and develop both characters.

Favourite episodes include Upstairs downstairs, upstairs downstairs, divided we stand and the high point being The desperate hours, but the show is littered with gems.

Corbett and Bramble are superb throughout. What's so impressive is the feeling that the show somehow managed increase in quality as it went on, it never felt tired. They always managed to develop the complex relationship between the pair.

Wonderful comedy. 9/10

I love this type of simple comedy. No complicated stories or phrases or lines. I'm a young'un myself, growing up in such a degraded and unfunny society, so it's nice that a show that's pushing 70 years old is perfectly capable to make me genuinely laugh. As I said before, this level of simple comedy keeps me coming back, and I'm often quoting the show around people who have no idea what I'm talking about. For it's time, Steptoe was the most vulgar, offensive show on the box, yet is now considered the "elder statesman" by some today. I find it's not repeated on TV enough, with Divided we Stand being repeated on BBC Four only last October. Yet BBC Three is ok with repeating Bad Education's Christmas Special three times in one night. In conclusion, Steptoe was ahead of its time, portraying a very grim and off-beat picture of working class life.

Although Steptoe and Son ran on British TV for twelve years it is one of those rare (maybe unique) examples of an idea which continued to develop and evolve rather than slide into stale repetition.

In its early years the series emphasised broad comedy. One well-remembered episode features Albert eating a meal while sitting in his bath, earning a rebuke from his son which became a national catchphrase: "You dirty old man!"

As time went by the characters became established and the writing began to emphasise the mutual dependency of two basically lonely men (Harold the batchelor and Albert the widower). Harold dreams of a better quality of life away from his father and constantly makes attempts to achieve something in his own right. His attempts are thwarted by his own lack of social standing and his father's scheming: if Harold joins a local theatre group, Albert joins too and becomes the star of the show.

Albert, for his part, fears losing his son and being abandoned in his old age. He will use any means (especially moral blackmail) to keep Harold at his side. More importantly he is far more realistic than Harold and sees that his attempts at social ambition are doomed.

In one of the most moving episodes an old girlfriend of Harold's reappears after many years. They still feel the same way about each other and plan to marry. Finally Harold can break away from the old man. Naturally Albert has other ideas, but at the climax of the show it is the girl who ends the relationship, telling Harold he is already married.

The performances of Wilfrid Brambell and Harry H Corbett never faltered through the show's run. Galton and Simpson produced scripts of wit and insight and they performed with great skill and subtlety. This is a show where you laugh while recognising the truth and basic sadness of the situation in which the characters live.

Along with Rab Nesbitt this is equally my top of British comedy. The worst episode holds more laughs than the best of anything else. The idea is so simple in real terms but holds so much span of internal conflict and emotional war. Father and son material, as most men know is like a battlefield of top dogism..Here we have a 40 year old man living with a father who has been widower for the same time with equal demons to come to terms with. If any man out there who had a father who could play football or cards better than him then this is for you. Apart from all this social comment the script was so funny and witty it can be often funny without empathy. Whatever funny you're after , this has it!

One of the saddest sights I ever saw on television was Wilfrid Brambell, close to tears on 'Nationwide' in 1982 following the sudden death of his 'Steptoe & Son' co-star Harry H.Corbett. The pairing of these great actors, combined with some wonderful scripts by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, made 'Steptoe' a classic. I think viewers recognised the truthfulness of the situation; rag and bone man Harold desperately wanted to escape from his father's domination to begin a new life on his own, but couldn't because he loved the old man too much. When searching for comedy ideas, today's writers fall into the trap of thinking: "How can I shock the public?". 'Steptoe' did not set out to shock, yet did because it was so real. After a successful run in the '60's, it was revived in the '70's in colour, and these episodes are my favourites, particularly 'Divided We Stand' in which Harold and Albert tried to lead separate lives in the same house. The word 'timeless' is overused these days, but it definitely applies here.

Steptoe and son started as one of the BBC's comedy pilot's known as Comedy Playhouse in 1962 with the episode "The Offer" It was positively received by the viewers and given the green light for a full series and we are fortunate to have been gifted this landmark series. The Steptoe and son of the show's eponymous title are father and son, Albert and Harold - two expertly written characters from the pens of legendary comedy writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, proprietors of a rag and bone yard in a London suburb who battle against the odds and with one another on a daily basis. Much comedy and drama filter through the fine erudite scripts with social commentary woven into the clever storylines. Add to that great nuaced performances from the two leads who in many episodes are the only two people in the whole episode - What other show could do that and still deliver comedy that stands repeated viewings. It was so successful that 2 feature films were made and were a big hit in cinema's and it's format and scripts were adapted in several countries, notably in the U.S. where it became Sanford and son. Ground breaking in many ways, in language used, generational confrontation and topics covered (death, fraud, poverty, bigotry) there are very few series that come close to it's multi-dimensional character development in the comedy genre.

This is a BBC sitcom that's set in Shepherd's Bush, West London. It's about a father and son who are rag-and-bone men. It ran from 1962-1974. There were also films, plays, documentaries and versions of the TV series made by other countries.

It's well-written and well-acted. There are many good performances from actors who only appear in one or two episodes each.

"Steptoe and Son" set new standards for both comedy writing and acting. The quality of both has rarely been equalled and never surpassed. A lot has been written about the alleged animosity between the leading actors, Wilfred Brambell and Harry H. Corbett. To this day, those rumours remain just that. The recent biography on Corbett completely denies that there was ill feeling of any kind but admits that the two actors were never friends. For writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson (R.I.P to a fine talent), they had a golden opportunity to write what they wanted after they split with Tony Hancock. Originally, they planned to write a sitcom for Frankie Howerd but BBC producer Duncan Wood rejected this for reasons to do with Howerd not being very popular at the time. That was when Galton and Simpson created one of the defining British sitcoms. After holding talks over what their new sitcom would be about, the ideas became more developed. No one but Wilfred Brambell and Harry H. Corbett could have played the characters of Albert and Harold Steptoe. Both actors were legitimately trained theatre performers and who had a lot of experience behind them when "Steptoe and Son" came into their lives. The characters are given so much depth, they are brought vividly to life. Galton and Simpson also blended drama into the comedy and the actors effortlessly created both funny and touching performances. Although there was always a bit of tragedy included in "Steptoe and Son," it never interfered with the comedy. It isn't every writer or actor who can combine comedy with drama. The series never needed much in the way of location shooting or lavish production values on order to create comedy gold. A lot of the time, the episodes played along the lines of being theatre which I would say is one of the best things that could have happened. Rag and Bone men, Albert and Harold Steptoe, are father and son. They usually inhibit an environment of conflict and tension. Relations between the two are usually strained, on account of the fact that they are always arguing. Harold has ambitions of various kinds so that he can escape his rather domineering, overbearing and devious father. Inevitably, Harold's plans don't usually bear fruition and usually because Albert sabotages his son's efforts and goals. The reason Albert behaves the way he does, is because he can't bear to be alone now that he is getting older. His wife passed away many years before whilst Harold was still a child. The responsibility of raising his son fell on Albert's shoulders and he was a neglectful father in more ways than one. Harold grew to resent his lack of upbringing due to his father. For Albert, his son was all he had left in the world. Underneath the hostility, father and son do care for one another. Occasionally, they are more united against someone else and the volatility is temporarily placed on hold. The series ran from 1962 until 1974, lasting 57 episodes. There was a gap of five years before "Steptoe and Son" resurfaced in 1970 and this time in colour. Most of the colour episodes from 1970 are missing but fortunately the black and white versions exist. I enjoy nearly all episodes but I think the series grew in quality in the episodes from 1970 to 1972. I can't stop laughing during those particular episodes and it's down to the brilliant on-screen chemistry between the two leads and the writing being of a high calibre. I would hazard a guess that Brambell and Corbett grew a bit tired of their respective characters by the time the series finished in 1974. They had had a great 12 year run and the viewing figures were something in the region of 20 million on a few occasions. The series won prestigious television awards and rightly so. There will never be another sitcom like "Steptoe and Son." It is a unique sitcom and its legacy is assured.

Comedy and tragedy have never been so portrayed in the same way in a sitcom before this.

Some of these episodes are so close to home that I weep with both laughter and sadness every time that I watch them.

It helps if you have been part of the post war life in the UK to understand the bitter sweetness of life in the 1950s and early 60s

Shakespeare and Aristophanes would have been proud of these plays.

I recently looked back on these and was horrified to see what I once found funny. The characters are so bitter and twisted both in personality and attitude. I found myself not laughing but disgusted at what I was seeing, the writing's "comedy" seems to come from the hatred the characters spew at each other and I find that no longer funny but sad and too despicable to be called funny.

If you step back and look at something with a fresh perspective it's amazing how it looks in a new light, and this one just reeks of all things bad. Acting aside because I did think Harry H. Corbett could've done much better things, it's a shame he got stuck with that label and will be remembered for this cesspit of a show.

I am an American who has only discovered the marvelous 'Steptoe & Son' British television series many years after it originally aired. I have managed to watch just about every episode that is available on you tube. I highly recommend this television classic. There were numerous episodes that made me want to cry. The death of their horse Hercules was virtually unbearable, as well as the one where Harold had Albert placed in a old folks' home. The love-hate relationship of the father and son junk company team is more intense than anything ever seen on American television. Although I feel very sorry for Harry being trapped in a world he never made, I find Albert the more appealing of the two. I also can understand the old man's accent more than the son's.

This is the greatest British comedy ever written by two geniuses in Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, It's that great John Sullivan decided to copy every episode even using all the names for Only Fools and Horses. Only Fools and Horses is a complete rip-off from Steptoe and Son. I have watched Steptoe and Son over a hundred times each episode and the name Albert - Alby, Rodney, Del-Boy etc etc are mentioned in Steptoe and Son. Just look at Franky Barrow and his French phrases and then Del Boy from Only Fools and Horses. The shape of the horse and cart and a Robin Reliant. Mandela House mentioned in Steptoe and Son and Only Fools and Horses. If you sit and watch every episode of this classic masterpiece in Steptoe and Son then go and watch Only Fools and Horses you will see the plots, characters story lines are all copied. Even Man about the House and George and Mildred have episodes copied from Steptoe and Son.

This is truely the greatest comedy ever as it has inspired frauds/writers to copy it in every way.

A situation comedy on the highest level. It only required two outstanding realistic believable actors in Wilfrid Brambell and Harry H Corbett. Steptoe and Son unfortunately has been lost more on modern youth and very much dated. They bounce off each other cat and mouse style and although the stories are quite basic that's all they really need to be. These dialogue based scripts maybe wouldn't go down well in todays times as people want laughs left, right and centre and never seem to have the patience. The chemistry between two actors whom speculation has it, that they didn't get on is phenomenal. You really believe Harold is trapped but also generally concerned about his father at times. His devious father Albert manages to frustrate manipulate and undermine everything Harold does. But at times we still get a sense that he is trying to protect his son and is overprotective. Other times there is that selfishness in Albert of not wanting to be left alone. Neither it seems can get on without the other. For me Steptoe is a classic and should live on in British sitcom forever. I watched it as a kid and found it hilarious. I still find it hilarious now having been brought the dvd boxset for my birthday. There is some cruelty between father and son at times and entrapment for Harold. Ray Galton and Alan Simpson done an incredible job with the writing of each episode one of my favourites has to be "back in Fashion" where Harold and Albert have some photographers taking snaps of models in their yard. Another great one to watch is when Harold tries to build his own central heating system. I'm sure everyone who loves this series will have different moments they remember, one unforgettable for most I speak to about Steptoe is Divid we stand when they segregate the house. Harold most memorable attempt to keep himself away from his unbearable old man.

The best episodes are up there with the finest television ever created, they are well crafted pieces of art. The acting of Harry H. Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell is superb throughout the entire run. You really get the feeling of frustration and claustrophobia of Harold's situation. He is a winner, trapped inside a loser's life, with no way of escaping.

Albert loves his son, but his desperation to not lose his only companion in life causes him to destroy Harold's life and dreams. He's terrified of Harold achieving anything, so he constantly puts him down to keep him at his level.

Harold despises his father, but knows he will always be stuck with him out of blind loyalty. He knows all his dreams of escaping are just futile fantasy.

Why uneven writing? Some of the episodes are ridiculous and/or just plain boring. A few of these are in the final series, where the writers seem to have run out of ideas. Which seems really strange, as the previous series had stellar episodes such as "The Desperate Hours", "Divided We Stand" and "Men of Letters".

It's easy to dismiss Steptoe and Son as just another sitcom, but those three episodes could act as a masterclass of comedy on their own. Not many shows that you could say that about, only Seinfeld and Fawlty Towers spring to mind.

Very dated now, and the storylines got too ridiculous towards the end. Harry H. Corbett looked too old to be the son as he already looked 45 in the first episode. It was basically a one-joke comedy with the son being unable to ever leave the old man. The exact same situations were repeated over and over again. Towards the end it became more like a "Carry On" film.

Steptoe and Son is probably the best British comedy ever. Featuring late stars, Wilfred Brambell and Harry H Corbett, this was an excellent show which never failed to amuse me and was true to life.

The show featured pensioner Albert Steptoe and his son Harold Steptoe (a pair of rag and bone men). They bickered, the fought, they sulked and generally got on each other's nerves. But underneath, there was a mutual love.

This show kind of reminded me of my own life. Even though I love my own dad, I did spend quite a few years of my life arguing with him even when I left home at 18. We were two different people with different outlooks on life and this led to some battles at times. This show was the same. Albert and Harold could not have been more different. Harold was fed up with his dad's filthy habits and moaning; Albert was always playing on Harold's emotions with phrases such as, "I'm an old man Harold. Need looking after." Also funny was the fact that Albert always ruined any prospective relationship that Harold was going to engage in. But they loved each other deep down and that was the fun of it.

Truly the greatest British comedy ever.

I recall staying up late back in the days of 3 channel UK T.V. with my late dad and watching a movie on a Saturday night. I dont remember 95%+ but I recall both of these films . I even recall watching them later when I was a little older and then again when I was old enough to come home from the pub and my dad now ill and ignoring the 100s of channels still watching this on the BBC .

It reminds me of film night with my dad. It makes me feel happy when it's on.

It's not the greatest series imho but it will always have a place in my heart and it's British comedy 101

A hilarious British show before the BBC went pc mad. It manages not to be too dated even today but sadly isn't very well known to today's audiences.

Jan 2022

Recently got the chance to watch all these again, except for 2 episodes(not sure if they are lost now), and i did enjoy them.

Very funny at times, sometimes a little bit too much drama but still very good, my favourtie episode was Pot Black about a snooker table.

8 rag and bone men out of 10.