Whenever a hit sitcom appears, there will always be a spin-off. Sometimes more than one. Few manage to replicate the popularity of the original. Everyone has heard of 'M*A*S*H', but who remembers 'Trapper John'? Those who fondly remember 'Friends' do not feel as affectionate about 'Joey'. 'Going Straight' was funny, but no 'Porridge'. With 'The Green, Green Grass', John Sullivan tried to construct a semi-sequel to the much-loved, long running 'Only Fools & Horses'. A colossal task, whichever way you look at it.
The premise is this; vicious gangsters Danny and Tony Driscoll ( Roy Marsden and Christopher Ryan ) are out of jail, and want revenge on the man whose evidence put them away - Boycie ( John Challis ). The terrified car dealer sells his business, and with wife Marlene ( sexy Sue Holderness ) and teenage son Tyler ( Jack Doolan ), abandons London, fleeing to the countryside to begin a new life. Of course being city folk they find it tough going. 'Green' is a 'fish out of water' show, a premise used before in countless shows, such as 'Two In Clover', and the U.S. shows 'The Beverly Hillbillies' and 'Green Acres'.
Many 'O.F.A.H.' fans were unimpressed. The first season was patchy ( though the episode where Tyler tries to chat up a school girl only to discover she is his teacher was hilarious! ), but later ones showed signs of improvement. New writers were brought in, yet it still felt like Sullivan's baby.
The supporting characters are stereotypes - the yokel farmhands, the idle housekeeper, the tight-fisted Welsh farmer - but it doesn't really matter. Sitcoms are traditionally full of stereotypes. Even new ones. Take a look at Miranda Hart's much-praised show and you'll see what I mean!
Challis and Holderness are as good as ever, and David Ross hilarious as sly farmhand 'Elgin'. There was a change in format mid-way through the run as the Driscoll Brothers found Boycie ( with some help from Marlene's big mouthed sister, played by Paula Wilcox ). They forgave him, providing he stored a box of their money on his land.
Whatever its faults, it did not warrant the juvenile hate-filled rants it attracted, and gave this reviewer at least one good laugh a week, which is more than most modern sitcoms can do now in a whole series. Four were made before the B.B.C. elected to close down Boycie's farm. I was sorry when this happened. The show had the potential to be special, but never quite made it.