Love Thy Neighbour: The Complete Series

I'm old enough to vaguely remember this series from my childhood. I'd only seen a few episodes, but when I saw it available on DVD and including all eight series along with the movie, I just had to get it.Nostalgia is an odd thing. It can be everything you remembered or it can fall short. I am happy to report that Love Thy Neighbour is every bit as good, if not better, than I remembered.To those born in the mid 60's like me, the first nostalgia trip is when you play an episode and the old Thames television logo appears.Viewing this series with modern sensibilities can make for a bit of a culture shock and I found myself wincing a little, shocked at the racist epithets casually spoken by the white protagonist, Eddie Booth. Mind you, I had the same, more pronounced, shock when getting used to the foul language used in the brilliant Orange is the New Black series. however, once you're over that shock, the series is very enjoyable.Contrary to what some people may think, Love Thy Neighbour actually sees Eddie Booth's character being bested by a far smarter, level headed and sensible black neighbour, Bill Reynolds, played by the superb Rudolph Walker. Eddie Booth is shown time and again to be the ignorant bigot he is, so this series portrays racism, but it's the black character that comes off best most of the time. In so doing. he shows Eddie to be the racist fool he is.Comedy has been slowly diluted today in order to avoid being offensive to everyone. Part of humour is making fun of the differences between us all, and in that way, we can learn about ourselves and explore issues too sensitive to be dealt with outside of comedy. If you can't do that, then life is far too serious. We have to all learn to laugh at ourselves before laughing at others. If you look at another TV show of that period, Rising Damp, it also portrays Leonard Rosseter's character, Mr Rigsby, as ignorant more than racist. Also, like Love Thy Neighbour, it has the black character of that show, Philip, played by Don Warrington, running circles around Rigsby, being far more educated, intelligent and sophisticated than Rigsby ever could.So, these comedies, in my view, aren't "racist", but rather portray ignorant white characters who are gotten the better of because of their racism and ignorance.DVD transfer quality is excellent despite the age of the content, so top marks for the team that did the remastering.This show is a product of its time and it's unfair to judge it by modern sensibilities. Relax, stop being offended and simply have a laugh.

Bought for my Partner.A great comedy.

It’s a gift for someone else

Brilliant show and a throw back to when people were not stupid and offended by just about everything. Amazon delivered on time and all good.

Bought as a Christmas present for my father.Old school laugh out loud classic that is so unpolitically correct it will never be aired again.Not for snowflakes, great laugh!Happy to help

Very good very funny. Well worth the watch.

When I saw this series when it was first transmitted back in the early 1970s I wasn't very impressed. Admittedly I didn't get to see all the episodes and I was only a young teenager. But the show really wasn't my favourite comedy of the day.Having been less than enthusiastic about modern TV programmes and becoming a fan of retro classic shows I decided it was worth re investigating this sitcom.This box set that claims to be a complete collection is actually not complete at all. There are episodes missing but the set is reasonably presented here.I found that the script writers and creators of the programme do have great talent. The episodes are very well written indeed. There are some excellent story ideas that display all of the good and classic comedy ingredients. There is farce, misunderstanding, quick witty lines and interesting situations. There are certainly good comedy ideas and timing and I cannot fault these issues.The basis for the plot is brave in the face of controversy. Since the series explores the genuine fear of change that was thrust upon the British public without consent through mass immigration. The show looks at the tensions between two sets of neighbours. We have white couple Eddie and Joan Booth who suddenly get new neighbours Bill and Barbie Reynolds who are black.Having looked at the DVD set I have to say that although the series does have excellent script ideas and good comedy moments I don't have the greatest fondness for the series. This is because I don't like the characters. I don't like any of them. I wouldn't want to know anyone like these people in real life. I didn't warm to any character, I am glad I saw the series again, and it is worth watching it. But I just cannot say it is a favourite programme because of my dislike of the characters.Another factor is that the comedy does rely heavily on the bickering between the two main characters Eddie and Bill who hurl insults at each other. They are both equally as bad as each other on that point but I did find the constant bickering tiresome after a few episodes.It is also clear that the writers and producers are manipulating the society of the early 1970s and the viewer in any time, by suggesting what we should think, what we should believe, what we should say and how we should behave. I did not need these over laboured and exaggerated pointers and I don't think anybody really does. I was able to make my own mind up. Sadly the series does carry social manipulation messages and although on the face of it issues seem evenly placed with the equal amount of insults, there is also clear bias in character structure which enables many subliminal indicators to all members of society. I just want an entertainment comedy not a coercion pill. Some people may argue that there are people in society that do need these lessons in how to behave. Well if that is true then it should be done else where and not through entertainment so that we are treated like idiots. Admittedly there is plenty of good points to make it worth while watching these episodes still but its just a personal reason why I have voted the star rating down.Generally this is a series that is entertaining. It is very well written and there are some creative stories and comedy. It is worth looking at and it is interesting. I only give it low star rating because it is not a favourite that I want to see again.Also note that the box is not correct when it suggests it is the complete collection. It is not. Also the box claims that the sound is in stereo. This is not accurate since the sound on the actual programmes is mono. However there are subtitles for the hard of hearing and there is a lot to see for the money.

All dvds working and good quality this was a Xmas gift