User Reviews

I read recently that since WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE LIKELY LADS finished, the two stars Rodney Bewes and James Bolam have seldom spoken to one another. This is a crying shame, because one of the series' chief assets was the way in which they interacted with one another. They were always two "likely lads" looking back into their past lives and wondering what had happened to them since their halcyon days as teenagers, when the prospects for success seemed unlimited both personally as well as professionally.

This elegiac note was one of the reasons why the sitcom worked so well. Although Bob (Rodney Bewes) was happily married to Thelma (Brigit Forsyth) and living in a recently-constructed housing development, he was always disappointed that life hadn't turned out as favorably as he had hoped. This explained his enduring friendship for Terry (James Bolam), who had spent a long time in the armed forces and returned to the north-east jobless and disillusioned. The two of them spent long hours in the Fat Ox or the Black Horse reminiscing about what might have been, as well as good-naturedly making fun of each other by recalling their days at high school.

What rendered WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE LIKELY LADS? so good was the quality of Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais's scripts. They did not structure them in the usual sitcom way, with a series of dialogues culminating in a laugh; they were more interested in character. Bolam and Bewes had long sequences together, mostly filmed in two- shot, where their conversations had a Pinteresque quality combining the significant with the banal. Although the tone of their speeches remained light-hearted, there was always that element of melancholy lurking underneath; the series could have been easily turned into a tragedy rather than a sitcom. Clement and La Frenais caught the tone of mid-Seventies north-east England, a place where heavy industry no longer prevailed, and the concept of a job for life - which had so dominated the earlier years of the twentieth century - was long gone. Hence Terry's difficulties in finding a job.

This Christmas special not only caught Bob's yearnings for an alternative to his humdrum suburban life, but also depicted Terry's rather shiftless existence as he moved from job to job without actually finding anything permanent. The ending was funny yet predictable but did not propose any resolution: the two Likely Lads were in as much of an emotional and professional predicament as ever.

It is a shame that this would turn out to be the final TV episode. Yes, the excellent writing and acting deserved a Christmas special but, the extra 15 minutes seemed to lack the belly laughs of the regular series (but Brigit Forsyth's legs do make up for it!).

Bob's car had turned into a vehicle with no back doors and a year older than the car used in many episodes; he had also grown a beard (I assume the episode was filmed much later and Rodney Bewes had some theatrical work on but the growth was worked into the script) and the front door of the house regains the number 8 from it when Terry and Thelma hear the cab drive off but it wasn't there when they went into the house).

It is still top quality as Christmas specials go but, I am sure that if it had been known that it would be the final ever episode then more regular characters would have been roles and perhaps ended with the raising of a glass by the stars.

James Bolam and Brigit Forsyth have appeared on TV often since but little has been seen of Rodney Bewes which for the shows adoring fans is a great shame.

The fallout between the two main actors has been well documented which is a shame because a series of them as grumpy old men looking even further back would really be a treat; especially in these days of many classic shows being recycled.

This turned out to the the final episode of the series although the stars did reunite two years later for a feature film spin off.

Bob and Thelma catch Terry taking his driving test. An embarrassed Terry just wants them to go away. It seems Terry wants a regular job and need a driving licence.

Bob and Thelma are preparing for Christmas with all the trimmings. He loves it including the scrum for the shopping. However Bob has never forgiven Terry for telling him at school that Santa Clause did not exist even though they were both 15 years old at the time.

The episode culminates at a fancy dress Christmas party that Bob and Thelma attend. Terry is the cab driver who takes them there. Bob is trying to have a bit on the side without being caught by Thelma as Terry has an eye on a big fat tip but then someone drives off with his cab. A lot has been written about the fallout between James Bolam and Rodney Bewes after the series finished. Bewes mentioned to the press that Bolam got upset when Bewes revealed in an interview that Bolam and his wife were expecting a baby after Bewes had fathered triplets.

After Bewes death in 2017, Bolam mentioned that they had just drifted apart once the show had ended because there was no reason for them to get together. Bolam was busy with other work.