2point4children
Title sequence
Genre	Sitcom
Creator(s)	Unknown
Starring	Gary Olsen - Belinda Lang - Julia Hills - Georgina Cates - Clare Buckfield - John Pickard - Liz Smith - Barbara Lott
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of episodes	56
Production
Running time	30 min per average episode
Broadcast
Original channel	BBC One
Original run	1991 – 1999
Links
IMDb profile

2point4 Children was a British sitcom that ran on BBC1 from 1991 to 1999. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... Gary Olsen (November 3, 1957 - September 12, 2000) was a well-known British comedy actor. ... Belinda Lang (born December 23, 1955 in London) is a British actress, best known for her role as Belinda Bill Porter on the 1990s sitcom 2point4 children. ... Julia Hills is a British actress best known on TV for being a member of the cast list of Channel 4s sometimes controversial comedy sketch series Who Dares Wins in the 1980s. ... Georgina Cates (born on 14th January 1975 as Clare Woodgate in Colchester, Essex, England) is a British actress. ... Clare Buckfield (born 10 April 1976), is an English actress, best known for playing the role of Jenny Porter in the BBC sitcom 2point4 children for much of the nineties. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Elizabeth Liz Smith (b. ... Barbara Lott (1920 to 2002) was a British actress probably best remembered as Ronnie Corbetts characters mother in the comedy series Sorry!. She also appeared in Coronation Street, Survivors, Z Cars, and 2 point 4 children amongst others. ... This page is a list of 2point4 Children episodes. ... A minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour and to 60 seconds. ... BBC One (styled BBC1 until 1997) is the most watched domestic channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... A British sitcom is a situation comedy (sitcom) produced in the United Kingdom. ... BBC One (styled BBC1 until 1997) is the most watched domestic channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ...

The title refers to the "average" size of a UK family, although Andrew Marshall, the writer, has indicated that Ben could be considered almost another child, hence "point four". Belinda Lang played long-suffering wife and mother, "Bill" Porter, and Gary Olsen played her husband, Ben, a plumber. Their children were Jenny (played by Georgina Cates - under the name 'Clare Woodgate' - in the first two seasons, subsequently by Clare Buckfield) and David (played by John Pickard). Andrew Marshall (1960- ) is a British comedy writer, most noted for the domestic sitcom 2point4 children. ... Belinda Lang (born December 23, 1955 in London) is a British actress, best known for her role as Belinda Bill Porter on the 1990s sitcom 2point4 children. ... Gary Olsen (November 3, 1957 - September 12, 2000) was a well-known British comedy actor. ... Georgina Cates (born on 14th January 1975 as Clare Woodgate in Colchester, Essex, England) is a British actress. ... Clare Buckfield (born 10 April 1976), is an English actress, best known for playing the role of Jenny Porter in the BBC sitcom 2point4 children for much of the nineties. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Other main characters were their nymphomaniac neighbour, Rona (Julia Hills), who worked alongside Bill in a variety of catering jobs, and Ben's bad-tempered female apprentice, Christine (Kim Benson), who was introduced in the second series (though she appeared in the 4th episode of the first series, as a worker at a meat counter in a supermarket, something she references on her next appearance). Sandra Dickinson occasionally appeared as Ben's snobbish sister, Tina, and Liz Smith as Bill's mother, Bette, and Aunt Belle. Barbara Lott also occasionally appeared as Rona's Auntie Pearl (and it is later revealed that she is Rona's mother). Hypersexuality describes human sexual behavior at levels high enough to be considered clinically significant. ... Julia Hills is a British actress best known on TV for being a member of the cast list of Channel 4s sometimes controversial comedy sketch series Who Dares Wins in the 1980s. ... Sandra Dickinson (born 20 October 1948) is a American actor, born in Washington DC. She has often played the dumb blonde. ... Elizabeth Liz Smith (b. ...

The show frequently featured surreal scenarios, usually played for humour, but sometimes extremely creepy. An example of the former is the episode "Seven Dials", in which Ben's archenemy, a science fiction fan plumber called Jake the Klingon (Roger Lloyd-Pack), trapped Ben in Portmeirion in a parody of The Prisoner. The latter is exemplified by an ongoing first series subplot involving a mysterious biker whom Bill kept encountering, and who seemed to be her guardian angel. Yves Tanguy Indefinite Divisibility 1942 Surrealism[1] is a movement stating that the liberation of our mind, and subsequently the liberation of the individual self and society, can be achieved by exercising the imaginative faculties of the unconscious mind to the attainment of a dream-like state different from, or... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Roger Lloyd Pack (born in London February 8, 1944) is a British actor. ... The central Piazza and Gloriette. ... The Prisoner was a 1967 UK science fiction television series, starring Patrick McGoohan. ... Guardian Angel (Schutzengel) (1840), by Matthäus Kern. ...

Even when not being surreal the show often went in unexpected directions. In the penultimate episode of Season 4 the Porters' house burnt down, and the season closer showed them dealing with the consequences. More controversially, in the series 5 episode "We'd Like To Know A Little More About You For Our Files", it was strongly implied David was having a relationship with his drama teacher, although this was never referenced again.

In series 7, Jenny left for university and the Porters fostered a homeless boy named Declan (Alex Kew). Jenny made a single guest appearance in the final, 8th series. Alex Kew Alex Kew (born October 21, 1986) is a British child actor who is most well known for playing Josh Barker in childrens sitcom My Parents are Aliens. ...

The series was still popular in repeats when one of the stars, Gary Olsen, died of cancer in 2000. Cancer is a class of diseases or disorders characterized by uncontrolled division of cells and the ability of these to spread, either by direct growth into adjacent tissue through invasion, or by implantation into distant sites by metastasis (where cancer cells are transported through the bloodstream or lymphatic system). ...

Critical reaction to the early episodes was generally lukewarm, with some critics comparing it unfavourably to Roseanne, although the later series generally received better notices. Few critics made the connection between Marshall and former writing partner David Renwick, whose sitcom One Foot in the Grave featured a similar variety of domestic surrealism. Roseanne was an American sitcom which aired on ABC from 1988 to 1997, starring stand-up comedian Roseanne Barr. ... David Renwick (born September 4, 1951 in Luton, Bedfordshire, UK) is a British television writer, best known for creation of the sitcom One Foot in the Grave and the mystery series Jonathan Creek Before beginning his full-time comedy writing career, he worked as a journalist on his home town... One Foot in the Grave was a popular BBC television situation comedy series written by David Renwick. ...

The series began to appear on Region 2 DVDs in 2004. DVD (commonly known as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc) is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with high video and sound quality. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Characters

• Ben Porter - Gary Olsen
• Bill Porter - Belinda Lang
• Jenny Porter I - Georgina Cates (1991-1992) (Credited as Clare Woodgate)
• Jenny Porter II - Clare Buckfield
• David Porter John Pickard
• Rona - Julia Hills
• Christine - Kim Benson (1992-1999)
• Aunt Tina - Sandra Dickinson
• Dora Grimes - Annette Kerr
• Declan - Alex Kew (1999)
• Auntie Pearl - Barbara Lott
• Gerry - Leonard O'Malley (1991)
• The Biker - Ray Polhill (1991)
• Tony - Tom Roberts (1993-1995)
• Bette/Aunt Belle - Liz Smith
• Adam - Paul Raffield (1993)

Gary Olsen (November 3, 1957 - September 12, 2000) was a well-known British comedy actor. ... Belinda Lang (born December 23, 1955 in London) is a British actress, best known for her role as Belinda Bill Porter on the 1990s sitcom 2point4 children. ... Georgina Cates (born on 14th January 1975 as Clare Woodgate in Colchester, Essex, England) is a British actress. ... Clare Buckfield (born 10 April 1976), is an English actress, best known for playing the role of Jenny Porter in the BBC sitcom 2point4 children for much of the nineties. ... John Pickard may refer to: John Pickard (1824–1883), Canadian businessman and politician John Pickard (1963–), British composer of classical music John Pickard (1977–), British actor John Pickard (1913–), American actor John Pickard (1910–1995), Australian writer Category: ... Julia Hills is a British actress best known on TV for being a member of the cast list of Channel 4s sometimes controversial comedy sketch series Who Dares Wins in the 1980s. ... Sandra Dickinson (born 20 October 1948) is a American actor, born in Washington DC. She has often played the dumb blonde. ... Alex Kew Alex Kew (born October 21, 1986) is a British child actor who is most well known for playing Josh Barker in childrens sitcom My Parents are Aliens. ... Barbara Lott (1920 to 2002) was a British actress probably best remembered as Ronnie Corbetts characters mother in the comedy series Sorry!. She also appeared in Coronation Street, Survivors, Z Cars, and 2 point 4 children amongst others. ... Elizabeth Liz Smith (b. ... Paul Raffield (born 19 June 1957, London) is a British actor, best known for his role as Robert in Joking Apart. ...

Episodes

See List of 2point4 children episodes. This page is a list of 2point4 Children episodes. ...

Theme music

The programme used a familiar instrumental theme tune which remained unchanged throughout its run, although it was significantly shortened in length for the final series. The closing theme was an extension of that used for the introduction. During many episodes portions of different versions of the theme could be heard to either close scenes or highlight a change in day/night, for example.

Opening titles

The first two series' used the same set of titles, utilising footage taken from the first three episodes. The opening screen showed the distinctive purple 2point4children logo overlaid on an exterior shot of the Porters' terraced house whilst writer and principal actor credits appeared over the succeeding footage. Series 3 used the same format but with new footage taken from the new batch of episodes, as did series 4 in 1994. Series 5 saw a slight change to the format with the footage now taken from all previous 4 seasons, as opposed to the unseen episodes of series 5.

A new look was unveiled for series 6 with a reworking of the logo (now in 3D colourful letters) which fell randomly from the top of the frame and landed in the correct order at the bottom. The cast were shown dancing against a white backdrop with Belinda Lang taking centre stage, literally. Cast and writer credits (featuring Clare Buckfield and John Pickard's names for the first time) were shown either side of 'Bill' dancing. These titles remained through series 7 with no alterations. The final 8th series in 1999 saw a modification to this style, with the same principle of the falling colourful letters of the logo landing against a white backdrop but now featuring a line drawing of the Porter house with its colourful front door. These titles were significantly shorter than previous seasons and featured no cast members. The principal actor credits were now superimposed over the opening scene of the episode and appeared in the Futura typeface, as opposed to the former Roman-style serif font that debuted in episode one. The move to filming in digital widescreen for series eight was one reason that necessitated the change in titles.

Closing credits

For series 1-5 the credits either flashed up on screen over a freeze frame of the final scene which gradually faded to black or scrolled along the bottom third of the frame from right to left (the latter usually reserved for Christmas specials). The exception to this rule was for the first episode when the credits scrolled up the screen over a black background and the regular theme tune was discarded.

Series 6-8 utilised a plain white background with the new colourful logo situated at the top of the frame and the credits list scrolling up the centre. The exception was for specials, as above.

DVD Releases

Eureka Video released Series' 1-3 in 2005, however due to poor sales it was decided not to continue releasing the series.^{[citation needed]}

External links

• British Sitcom Guide
• Phill.co.uk Comedy Guide
• BBC Comedy Guide
• 2point4 children at the Internet Movie Database