Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em


Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em is a British sitcom created and written by Raymond Allen and starring Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice. It was first broadcast in 1973 and ran for three series, ending in 1978, and returning in 2016 for a one-off special. The series follows the accident-prone Frank Spencer and his tolerant wife, Betty, through Frank's various attempts to hold down a job, which frequently end in disaster. The sitcom was noted for its stuntwork, performed by Crawford himself, as well as featuring various well-remembered and much lampooned catchphrases, that have become part of popular culture. In a 2004 poll to find Britain's Best Sitcom, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em came 22nd.

Title

The expression "" is a common British saying - as a criticism of someone as foolish or inept.

The character of Frank Spencer

The ish, smiling Frank, sporting his trademark beret and trench coat, is married to the apparently normal Betty and in later series they have a baby daughter, Jessica. The character was popular with television impressionists such as Mike Yarwood in the 1970s, particularly his main catchphrase, "Ooh Betty", which is allegedly only ever said in one episode. Other sources, such as and claim that he never said it and attribute it to Mike Yarwood's impressions.
"Ooh Betty..." is not Frank's only catchphrase of the series. Others include a quavering "Oooh...", usually uttered with his forefinger to his mouth as he stands amidst the chaos of some disaster he has just caused. He also sometimes complains about being "ha-RASSed!", or occasionally, "I've had a lot of ha-RASSments lately". Other recurring catchphrases include references to "a bit of trouble", which usually implies some sort of undisclosed digestive disorder, and to the cat having "done a whoopsie". If Frank is pleased about something, he will often use the catchphrase "Mmmm — nice!" or "Ohhh — nice!"
Despite his unfailing ability to infuriate people, Frank is essentially a very sympathetic character, who inspires much affection from his ever-loving and patient wife, Betty. He also venerates the memory of his late mother, Jessica, and worships his daughter, also named Jessica; references to Frank's mother suggest that she was very like her son. Frank claimed he last saw his father at Paddington Station when he was only 18 months old. Crawford himself has talked of how he based many of Frank's reactions on those of a young child.
The final series was written by Allen, based on stories by Michael Crawford and was made after a break of five years, although there had been two Christmas specials in between. Frank's character changes noticeably in this series, becoming more self-aware and keen to make himself appear more educated and well-spoken. He develops an air of pomposity, best demonstrated when someone enquires for "Mr Spencer?" - to which he habitually replies "I am he". He also becomes more self-assured, and much more willing to argue back when criticised, sometimes winning arguments by leaving his opponents dumbfounded by the bizarre nature of his statements.
and Michele Dotrice, as Frank and Betty Spencer
Acknowledging the show's success in Australia, in the final series he mentions relations who live there, and contemplates emigrating himself.
Crawford also found it difficult to break out of the public association with the role, despite his later career as a hugely successful musical performer on the West End and Broadway stage, in popular shows such as Barnum and The Phantom of the Opera.

Starring

and Norman Wisdom were the BBC's first and second choices for the role of Frank. However the casting of Crawford proved effective, as many of Frank's mannerisms and turns of phrase were invented by the actor, and his stunt-performing and singing skills were used in the series.

Guest cameos

In addition to Frank and Betty, most episodes would introduce at least one other character who would be seen to gradually suffer the inevitably chaotic consequences of Frank's fleeting presence in their lives, played by character actors such as George Baker, James Cossins, Peter Jeffrey, Richard Wilson, Fulton Mackay, Bernard Hepton, Christopher Timothy, George Sewell, Bryan Pringle, Christopher Biggins, Milton Johns, Diane Holland, John Ringham, David Ryall, Gretchen Franklin, Geoffrey Chater, Royston Tickner, Michael Redfern, Babar Bhatti, Norman Chappell, Geoffrey Whitehead and Elisabeth Sladen.

Theme tune

The theme tune by Ronnie Hazlehurst features two piccolos spelling out the title in Morse code, excluding the apostrophes.
/ / / / /
/ / / / /

Episodes

Series One (Early 1973)

Series Two (Late 1973)

1974 and 1975 Christmas specials

Series Three (1978)

1978 Christmas special

2016 Sport Relief sketch

Repeats

The BBC has repeated Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em several times since the series was produced in the 1970s. British channels Gold, BBC Two and BBC Prime took over repeats of the programme in 2007.
The programme has been shown on Catalan public television, the Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation in the 1970s, Nigeria on the NTA in the 1980s and 1990s and in Australia on the Nine Network's GO! from 2009 to 2010, and later on the Seven Network's digital channel, 7TWO.

Special

On 18 March 2016, Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice reprised their roles for a one-off sketch for Sport Relief. Gemma Arterton guest stars as a grown up version of Baby Jessica, alongside Boris Johnson, Sir Paul McCartney, Roy Hodgson, Arsène Wenger, David Walliams, Jessica Ennis, Sir Bradley Wiggins, Clare Balding, Sir Chris Hoy, Sir Andy Murray, and Jamie Murray playing themselves, and featured Chris Wilson as the Newsagent.

Home video releases

In the United Kingdom six episodes from Series 1 and various selected episodes of Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em were originally released by BBC Video on VHS in the 1990s. Series 1 and Series 2 were released on VHS and DVD on 21 October 2002. Series 3 and the Christmas Specials were released on VHS and DVD on 19 May 2003. The Complete Series was released on VHS and DVD on 6 October 2003, by Second Sight available in Region 2. On 1 November 2010, 2 entertain reissued Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em – The Complete Christmas Specials. On 14 February 2011 Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em – The Complete Series and Christmas Specials was reissued by 2 entertain with new packaging.
The complete collection is now available from both BBC Store and iTunes as a digital download.
In Australia Series 1-3 and the Christmas Specials were released in 2003 and 2004. The complete boxset was released in 2004 on DVD in region 4.
In the United States 13 selected episodes were released on VHS in 1998, and reissued on DVD region 1 in 2001.

In popular culture

A stage adaptation, written and directed by Guy Unsworth based on the TV series began a UK tour at the Wyvern Theatre, Swindon in February 2018 starring Joe Pasquale as Frank Spencer, with Sarah Earnshaw as Betty and Susie Blake as Mrs Fisher.
Due to the success of the 2018 tour, the production began another tour in from February 2020, however due to the coronavirus pandemic many dates were cancelled.