Clare in the Community
| Genre | Sitcom |
|---|---|
| Running time | 28 mins |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| Home station | BBC Radio 4 |
| Creator(s) | Harry Venning |
| Writer(s) | Harry Venning, David Ramsden |
| Air dates | since 26 November 2004 |
| No. of series | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 48 |
Clare in the Community is a British comic strip in The Guardian newspaper, written by Harry Venning. The title is a play on words relating to care in the community. The strip has been successfully adapted for radio on BBC Radio 4, starring Sally Phillips as Clare.[1]
Clare is a social worker with all the right jargon who likes to sort out other people's problems while ignoring her own. She is white, middle class and heterosexual - but doesn't like to be reminded of it. She is a control freak but both her personal and professional lives are out of control.
Contents |
TV pilot [edit]
In 2002 ITV commissioned a sitcom based on Harry Venning's comic strip. Two episodes were commissioned and a pilot episode, written by Harry Venning and David Ramsden and starring Julia Sawalha in the title role, was produced by Tiger Aspect. The pilot wasn't picked up for a full series and has never been broadcast.
Radio series [edit]
In 2004 a radio sitcom, co-written by David Ramsden and produced by Katie Tyrrell, was made for BBC Radio 4, starring Sally Phillips as Clare. Repeats have also been broadcast on BBC7 (now Radio 4 Extra). Series 1 to 5 have been released on CD by BBC Audio. Series 6 was broadcast in 2010. Series 7 was recorded in August & September 2011, with broadcast scheduled from 23 September to 28 October.
The first series won the Bronze Comedy Award at the 2005 Sony Radio Awards
The series occasionally 'breaks the fourth wall', with references to (for instance) a comic strip in the Guardian's social work supplement which (the somewhat humourless) Clare doesn't understand, or an old schoolmate of Brian's named Richard Lumsden, who wanted to be an actor but was never heard of again.
Simon Elmes called it "an instant hit, capturing the PC tone of our times".[2] The Stage reviewed series 8 positively, praising the first episode as "a brilliant opener", and after the series finale calling it "the best comedy on radio" and Phillips "the mistress of comic timing".[3] [4]
Cast [edit]
- Clare Barker...... Sally Phillips
- Megan Whardby...... Nina Conti
- Helen Golightly.....Liza Tarbuck (Gemma Craven Series 1 - 4)
- Brian Harris ...... Alex Lowe
- Ray Bishop ...... Richard Lumsden
- Irene ...... Ellen Thomas (Series 1 - 5)
- Simon Burrows...... Andrew Wincott (Series 1 - 5 and 7, Philip Pope Series 6)
- Nali Jakovlivicz "Ramsbottom" ...... Nina Conti (from Series 5)
- Libby McKenzie...... Sarah Kendall (from Series 6)
Series one [edit]
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Babysitter" | November 26, 2004 |
| Clare is tricked into babysitting Helen's difficult teenage son, but after an awkward start they become friends. | |||
| 2 | 2 | "Adoption" | December 3, 2004 |
| A couple moves into the flat above, and Clare and Brian are kept awake by noisy sex. | |||
| 3 | 3 | "Glad to be Ray" | December 10, 2004 |
| Clare feels that Ray is too insular, and wonders why she has never been invited to his flat. She drops round uninvited when an opportunity arises. | |||
| 4 | 4 | "Last Words" | December 17, 2004 |
| When one of Clare's clients, a cantankerous old woman, dies, Clare uses the funeral as a reason to take the afternoon off. Simon asks Megan out, but Brian's intervention ensures their first date is also their last. | |||
| 5 | 5 | "Combat Zone" | December 24, 2004 |
| Clare and Brian get stranded in a rough part of town when their car runs out of petrol. | |||
| 6 | 6 | "Stage Fright" | December 31, 2004 |
| Brian writes a play for his school drama club, about a misunderstood man in a relationship with a cold, unreasonable woman. | |||
Series two [edit]
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | "Past Caring" | November 4, 2005 |
| Clare meets an old acquaintance, and Clare's workmates go out for Brian's birthday meal. | |||
| 8 | 2 | "Relax" | November 11, 2005 |
| Clare and Brian try to go on holiday. | |||
| 9 | 3 | "Meet the Press" | November 18, 2005 |
| Clare is delighted to be asked to do an interview for Woman's Hour, and Brian is having trouble with an unscrupulous pupil. | |||
| 10 | 4 | "Brian Come Home" | November 25, 2005 |
| Brian storms out after an argument, and moves in with Simon for a while. | |||
| 11 | 5 | "Mean Streets" | December 2, 2005 |
| Clare and her workmates help count homeless people, but it becomes competitive. Megan is preparing for the birth of her baby. | |||
| 12 | 6 | "Doolah's Choice" | December 9, 2005 |
| Simon and Helen get married, and Megan has her baby. | |||
Series three [edit]
At the start of the series, Clare and Brian have 'removed themselves from the property chain' and are staying at Simon's flat. Megan's daughter, Brenda, is now almost 1 year old.
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 1 | "Letter from America" | December 18, 2006 |
| Clare has a pen friendship with a death row prisoner in the US. He learns all about her relationship and work life. Guest appearance by Roy Hudd. | |||
| 14 | 2 | "Merry Christmas Mrs Lawrence" | December 25, 2006 |
| Clare and Brian visit her parents on Christmas day, and Clare goes to fetch her granny from an old people's home. Guest appearance by Phil Davis and Brigit Forsyth. | |||
| 15 | 3 | "Brenda's Birthday" | January 1, 2007 |
| It is Brenda's first birthday, and Megan's old friend Gordon comes to celebrate the occasion. | |||
| 16 | 4 | "We Need to Talk About Brian" | January 8, 2007 |
| While 'de-cluttering', Brian's diary from his student days turns up. Although he had already met Clare, there are numerous references to his "Dark Lady". Is he hiding something? | |||
| 17 | 5 | "The Redcap" | January 15, 2007 |
| Will a former military police officer be tough enough for social work? | |||
| 18 | 6 | "Clare's Last Stand" | January 22, 2007 |
| Clare and the day centre team are due for a relaxing day at a conference - until Clare's arch-enemy Peggy reappears, with a challenge that Clare can't pass up. | |||
Series four [edit]
Irene has been promoted to team leader which causes resentment between her and Clare. Brian and Clare have making frequent trips to the couple counsellor and have also been trying for a baby.
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | 1 | "Mother of All Mothers" | January 16, 2008 |
| Clare and Brian are trying for a baby, but the arrival of Clare's mother doesn't help | |||
| 20 | 2 | "A Game of Two Slavs" | January 23, 2008 |
| A relationship counsellor suggests that Clare and Brian take each other out to some event to share their interests. | |||
| 21 | 3 | "And The Winner Is" | January 30, 2008 |
| Clare wins the 'Social Worker of the Year' award... in her dreams. | |||
| 22 | 4 | "Carry On up the Amazon" | February 6, 2008 |
| Helen's son is supposed to be travelling during his gap year. So how come Clare finds him living in a squat? | |||
| 23 | 5 | "My Funny Valentine" | February 13, 2008 |
| Brian is amazed that Clare has not only remembered it's Valentine's Day, but even booked a restaurant... but she hasn't. | |||
| 24 | 6 | "The Long Goodbye" | February 20, 2008 |
| Brian has a life-changing experience when a bullet grazes his head. | |||
Series five [edit]
Clare and Brian now have a son, Thomas, whose care is left wholly in the hands of their east European nanny, Nali (also played by Nina Conti).
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 1 | "Name Calling" | February 18, 2009 |
| Clare and her colleagues give a leaving present to their longest-serving workmate. | |||
| 26 | 2 | "Too Cool For School" | February 25, 2009 |
| Clare meets a group of new friends in the pub, and bores Brian and her co-workers with how cool they are. Clare and Megan visit a young girl who has been off school. | |||
| 27 | 3 | "Girls on Film" | March 4, 2009 |
| Clare has a new student social worker to take under her wing, while the Sparrowhawk Family Centre has the documentary-makers in. | |||
| 28 | 4 | "It's Good to Talk" | March 11, 2009 |
| An old university friend of Clare's gets in touch, with something important he wants to say. | |||
| 29 | 5 | "Garden Party" | March 18, 2009 |
| Clare arranges a petition to save the Sparrowhawk Family Centre, and throws a garden party to get to know her new neighbours. | |||
| 30 | 6 | "The 1864 Mining Disaster" | March 25, 2009 |
| A firebrand MP comes to the Sparrowhawk Family Centre's fundraiser and Ray brings his guitar hoping to entertain. | |||
Series six [edit]
Clare's position at the Family Centre is now challenged by Irene's replacement, Libby, "an Aussie and a lesbo - and proud of both" (Sarah Kendall), and Brian harbours erotic fantasies about Nali.
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | 1 | "Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire" | May 31, 2010 |
| Clare deceives Libby about the closing date for the team manager post. Brian obsesses about Nali. | |||
| 32 | 2 | "Luck of the Irish" | June 7, 2010 |
| Clare is told that she has Irish ancestry, and becomes enthusiastic for all aspects of her new-found cultural background. | |||
| 33 | 3 | "Some Others Do 'Ave 'Em" | June 14, 2010 |
| Clare is back on the social work frontline as a vomiting bug hits her colleagues, while Brian and Nali take baby Thomas out for the day and Helen attends a police liaison meeting. Guest appearances by Doreen Mantle and Rosemary Leach. | |||
| 34 | 4 | "Clare v God" | June 21, 2010 |
| Clare takes an instant dislike to the Reverend Dish - a meddling do-gooder if ever there was one. But Megan quite likes him. | |||
| 35 | 5 | "In The Dog House" | June 28, 2010 |
| A stray dog who comes home with Brian catches a burglar (a guest appearance by Paterson Joseph), but the burglar is a match for even Clare in manipulativeness. | |||
| 36 | 6 | "The Crush" | July 5, 2010 |
| Clare meets an attractive single father at an infants music group. Surely she will be loyal to Brian? | |||
Series seven [edit]
Brian is eventually forgiven for his infidelity with Nali's sister and Clare accepts his proposal of marriage, while Nali enters Conservative politics.
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | 1 | "The Prisoner" | September 23, 2011 |
| In today's Big Society there are plenty of challenges out there for an involved, caring social worker. Or even Clare. The shock of Brian's infidelity still hasn't worn off, and Nali could be an even more serious inside threat than Clare realised... | |||
| 38 | 2 | "To Kill a Mocking Bird" | September 30, 2011 |
| Clare ends her relationship with Brian and is surprised by her colleagues' reaction to the news. | |||
| 39 | 3 | "Rude Girl" | October 7, 2011 |
| Clare feels that she may be out of touch with today's young people's language, while Brian's attempts at a romantic gestures fail to impress. | |||
| 40 | 4 | "Debt of Honour" | October 14, 2011 |
| Clare is being plagued by Brian's marriage proposals, her driving lessons lead to an unexpected encounter and there is an unveiling of a piece of public art at the Sparrowhawk Family Centre. | |||
| 41 | 5 | "Heroes" | October 21, 2011 |
| Clare meets Bradley Bigg, a pop star who made an impression on her as a teenager, Brian breaks some bad news to Nali, and Helen enthusiastically adopts the role of health and safety officer. | |||
| 42 | 6 | "Basic Attraction" | October 28, 2011 |
| It's wedding day at last... once the stags and hens have had their fun, that is. | |||
Series eight [edit]
| No. | Episode No. | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | 1 | "Hot Desk" | January 2, 2013 |
| Clare and her colleagues have to move offices. | |||
| 44 | 2 | "On Expenses" | January 9, 2013 |
| With society collapsing all around her, Clare is appalled to be stuck in doors bean counting. But the Sparrowhawk Family centre's expenses do not add up. | |||
| 45 | 3 | "Fifty Shades of Ray" | January 16, 2013 |
| Clare and her colleagues are worried if Ray has a serious illness. | |||
| 46 | 4 | "Nanny State" | January 23, 2013 |
| Clare meets her ex-nanny Nali in a cafe. | |||
| 47 | 5 | "The Scapegoat" | January 30, 2013 |
| Clare plays along with the team's method of privately insulting clients though she is unaware a client was listening. | |||
| 48 | 6 | "The Parent Trap" | February 6, 2013 |
| Ray believes he is a father to someone who is now an adult. Brian's mother (played by Hannah Gordon) comes to stay. | |||
References [edit]
- ^ Stoker, Gill (2004). "Clare in the Community". British Theatre Guide. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
- ^ Elmes, Simon (2009). And Now on Radio 4: A Celebration of the World's Best Radio Station. Random House. p. 132.
- ^ Petty, Moira (January 4, 2013). "Radio review: The Eustace Diamonds; The Reluctant Spy; Second Body; Clare in the Community". The Stage.
- ^ Petty, Moira (February 18, 2013). "Radio review". The Stage.
