{"id":51446,"date":"2024-05-15T10:00:57","date_gmt":"2024-05-15T08:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=2040259"},"modified":"2024-05-15T11:32:43","modified_gmt":"2024-05-15T09:32:43","slug":"judi-dench-and-susan-penhaligon-revisit-80s-sitcom-a-fine-romance","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/judi-dench-and-susan-penhaligon-revisit-80s-sitcom-a-fine-romance\/","title":{"rendered":"Judi Dench and Susan Penhaligon revisit \u201980s sitcom A Fine Romance"},"content":{"rendered":"

The fondly remembered sitcom will be available to revisit on Rewind TV. <\/p>

By Laura Rutkowski\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 15 May 2024 at 08:00 AM<\/p>

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Readers who enjoy reliving their favourite old shows on Talking Pictures TV have a new channel to bookmark \u2013 Rewind TV, which arrives on Sky on Thursday, with a blend of dramas and comedies alongside factual series such as Whicker\u2019s World.<\/p>\n

One of the evergreen sitcoms you\u2019ll find is A Fine Romance, which ran on ITV from 1981 to \u201984 and starred Judi Dench as translator Laura with her late husband Michael Williams as gardener Mike. The laughs come from the differences between this unlikely-seeming couple, who are introduced by Laura\u2019s sister Helen (Susan Penhaligon) and her husband Phil (Richard Warwick). It\u2019s anything but love at first sight.<\/p>\n

On a three-way phone call with Dame Judi, 89, and Penhaligon, 74, I reveal that I recently watched A Fine Romance for the first time, as I wasn\u2019t around when it was first broadcast. \u201cAre you saying you weren\u2019t born, Laura? That\u2019s put us right in our place,\u201d Dench replies with her distinctly gravelly voice and a mischievous laugh, but then wonders, sincerely, \u201cDo you think it\u2019s going to appear old-fashioned?\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s stood the test of time, the jokes hold up, the attitudes aren\u2019t particularly dated, and even the \u201980s fashion isn\u2019t distracting. The two main characters are happily single, without children, and approaching middle age, and that feels very modern.<\/p>

Dench and Penhaligon affectionately call each other Susie and Jude, often asking each other questions that start, \u201cDo you remember..?\u201d Their shared memories include Dench singing the theme song, A Fine Romance (\u201cI can\u2019t think how I got through it\u201d); working with Michael, to whom she was married for 30 years until his death in 2001 (\u201cIt was a treat \u2014 we laughed at exactly the same things\u201d); and director James Cellan Jones\u2019s unusual footwear. \u201cHe used to arrive in the middle of winter in sandals \u2013 we were transfixed by his toes,\u201d recalls Penhaligon.<\/p>\n

In the series, Dench\u2019s Laura is the brains and Penhaligon\u2019s Helen the beauty. \u201cI\u2019ve never felt beautiful,\u201d says Penhaligon, who was called the \u201cBritish Bardot\u201d in the 1970s. Dench chimes in, \u201cAnd I\u2019ve never felt brainy!\u201d Penhaligon adds, \u201cI look at myself now and think, \u2018My goodness, if I\u2019d only known how I looked then!\u2019\u201d Dench responds, \u201cOh God, I know, it\u2019s best to not look in a mirror, Susie. It\u2019s rather blessed I can\u2019t see any more [Dench was diagnosed with macular degeneration in 2012] \u2013 I can ignore the bits I don\u2019t want to look at.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Judi\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Judi Dench and Susan Penhaligon in A Fine Romance.<\/span><\/figcaption> Brendan Monks\/Mirrorpix\/Getty Images<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Both women come from theatre backgrounds, and A Fine Romance was their first TV sitcom. Though it was recorded in front of a studio audience, they had to learn to play to the cameras, not the crowd.<\/p>\n

Many things have changed in the industry since they started out \u2013 actors using mics on stage, which Dench says \u201cputs you at a distance\u2026 it takes you further away from the audience\u201d, and self-taping auditions. \u201cThe way we communicate seems to be getting more and more remote.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more:<\/strong><\/p>\n