After Henry

After Henry is a situation comedy devised and written by Simon Brett. It was originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 for four series of eight episodes plus two specials (1985-1989), and eventually moved to Thames Television (1988-1992).

The radio series

Sarah France (Prunella Scales) is the 42 year old widow of a GP, Henry. She lives in an often volatile family situation with her mother, Eleanor Prescott (Joan Sanderson), and her daughter, eighteen year old Clare France (Gerry Cowper), with both of whom she shares a house. After Henry's death, all three members of the family have to find a way to cope with each other as best they can.

This sitcom is really about generations. Sarah often finds herself in the middle of things, usually figuratively, but always literally, given that she has her mother living upstairs and her daughter in the basement flat.

Eleanor, the grandmother, is ruthlessly cunning and takes every opportunity to get one over on Sarah. Anything told to Eleanor will spread by word of mouth throughout an extensive network of the elderly of the area, or the "geriatric mafia". Clare, the daughter, is trying to be independent of her mother, though often has to come running back in times of crisis.

The relationships between the three women change constantly through each episode. Sometimes mother and daughter ally against grandmother, sometimes mother and grandmother go against daughter, but usually grandmother and granddaughter gang up on the long-suffering Sarah.

Sarah's one haven is Bygone Books, the remarkably unsuccessful second-hand bookshop where she works for Russell (Benjamin Whitrow) who dispenses in turn sympathy and wisdom. Most of the time, Russell sees the women's relationships second-hand through Sarah, although he isn't opposed to taking the occasional more active rôle when necessary. In turn, Sarah can see some of Russell's difficulties of living with a gay partner in 1980s London suburbia.

The script of each episode of this genial laid-back comedy is a masterpiece in its own right, with everything coming together with elegant smoothness at the end. Prunella Scales, who plays Sarah, said of the first series, "these are scripts of rare economy and distinction." The dialogue is intelligent, and the plot is detailed and sensitive without being dramatic.

All four series were produced by Pete Aitkin.

An equally well-crafted novel, also by Simon Brett, followed the radio series. (ISBN 0670817325 hardback, ISBN 0140101616 paperback)

Transfer to television

The BBC's reluctance to produce After Henry for television gave Thames Television the opportunity to try an initial run of six episodes, also written by Simon Brett, which was broadcast in 1988 after the end of the third radio series. This kept Prunella Scales and Joan Sanderson in their rôles, but introduced Janine Wood as Clare and Jonathan Newth as Russell. The show was surprisingly popular, attracting over 14 million viewers. A second, longer television series was shown the following year, during the same months as the fourth radio series, with, in many cases, both radio and television episodes being broadcast on the same nights. Eventually this led to four television series and two specials, ending with Joan Sanderson's death in 1992.

The adaptation for television allowed more to be seen of some of the more minor characters in the radio series, with appearances by some who had appeared only by reputation on the radio. These included Vera Poling (simultaneously Eleanor's best friend and rival, played by Peggy Ann Wood), Mary (Anne Priestley), and Sam Greenland, Russell's partner (Edward de Souza).

The first three series and the special episodes were produced and directed by Peter Frazer-Jones, while the fourth series was directed by Liddy Oldroyd, and produced by Bill Shepherd. The executive producer of the fourth series was John Howard Davies.

Radio Episode List

Series 1

• S01 E01 - The Older Man (17th April 1985)
• S01 E02 - Moving (24th April 1985)
• S01 E03 - The Cowboy (1st May 1985)
• S01 E04 - The Dinner Party (8th May 1985)
• S01 E05 - Gossip (15th May 1985)
• S01 E06 - Mr. Right (22nd May 1985)
• S01 E07 - The Spectre at the Feast (29th May 1985)
• S01 E08 - Going Away (5th June 1985)
• S01 Special - A Week of Sundays (22nd December 1985)

Series 2

• S02 E01 - Memory Games (16th August 1986)
• S02 E02 - The Romantic Approach (23rd August 1986)
• S02 E03 - The Cold (30th August 1986)
• S02 E04 - Bedside Manners (6th September 1986)
• S02 E05 - The Kitten (13th September 1986)
• S02 E06 - The Married Man (20th September 1986)
• S02 E07 - The Other Married Man (27th September 1986)
• S02 E08 - The Teapot (4th October 1986)

Series 3

• S03 E01 - Wedding Bells (22nd September 1987)
• S03 E02 - Poor Relations (29th September 1987)
• S03 E03 - Guilty Secrets (6th October 1987)
• S03 E04 - Lines of Communications (13th October 1987)
• S03 E05 - Intellectual Inspirations (20th October 1987)
• S03 E06 - A Box of Chocolates (27th October 1987)
• S03 E07 - Different Viewpoints (3rd November 1987)
• S03 E08 - The End of a Chapter (10th November 1987)
• S03 Special - The Season of Relative Goodwill (25th December 1987)

Series 4

• S04 E01 - Dependant Relatives (17th January 1989)
• S04 E02 - Relative Movement (24th January 1989)
• S04 E03 - A Fully Extended Family (31st January 1989)
• S04 E04 - Sunday Lunch (7th February 1989)
• S04 E05 - Little Women (14th February 1989)
• S04 E06 - Family Album (21st February 1989)
• S04 E07 - Keeping Faith (28th February 1989)
• S04 E08 - Positive Thinking (6th March 1989)