No Commitments

No Commitments is a radio drama written by Simon Brett, broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It ran for 13 series, starting in 1992. The sitcom portrays the day-to-day lives of three very different sisters.

No Commitments
GenreComedy-drama
Running time30 minutes
Country of origin United Kingdom
Language(s)English
Home stationBBC Radio 4
StarringRosemary Leach
Nicola Pagett
Angela Thorne
Celia Imrie
Josie Lawrence
Felicity Montagu
Lisa Coleman
Jonathan Coy
Bill Nighy
Created bySimon Brett
Written bySimon Brett
Produced byPaul Schlesinger
Anne Jobson
Maria Esposito
Simon Brett
Original release9 January 1992 – 16 May 2007
No. of series13
No. of episodes78
Audio formatStereophonic sound
WebsiteBBC website

Main characters

  • Anna is the eldest and most level-headed of the three sisters. Having cared for her father for some years, on his death she inherited the family home. Generally happy and contented with life, she suddenly finds herself free to put herself first for once, now she genuinely has No Commitments, despite her sisters' belief that she requires their assistance in managing her personal life. She works as receptionist to Eddie, a misogynistic dentist.
  • Victoria lives out her rôle as the middle class housewife in Beckenham, a London suburb. With her long-suffering financial director husband Roger, and their three children, Emily, Harriet and Benjy, she tries to maintain the family's social reputation, at all costs. Emily (who over time grows from a child to a young mother) finds her aunt Anna a more sympathetic confidante than her mother.
  • Charlotte is the youngest sister, and longs to be a famous actress. Lacking somewhat in both talent and self-awareness, she stumbles from one small acting rôle to the next, finally finding a small amount of success in a hardly-known television soap opera. She seems to progress through serial lovers at about the same rate, often with the expectation that the casting couch will lead to the bed, or vice versa. She has one daughter, Gisele, the result of a brief marriage to an Australian actor, who has more success in her parents' profession.

Cast and crew

Regular cast

Nicola Pagett (series 1–5)
Angela Thorne (series 6–13)
  • Charlotte
Celia Imrie (series 1, 3–8, 10, 12)
Josie Lawrence (series 2)
Felicity Montagu (series 11, 13)
  • Roger
Stephen Moore (series 1)
Roger Lloyd-Pack (series 2)
Jonathan Coy (series 3, 4, 12, 13)
Bill Nighy (series 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11)
Lisa Coleman (series 2–4, 6, 10–13)
Natalie Walter (series 5)
  • Nick – Kieran Hill (series 10–13)

Production

Paul Schlesinger (series 1, 2)
Anne Jobson (series 3, 4)
Maria Esposito (series 5, 6)
Simon Brett (series 10–13)

Episode list

SeriesEpisodeTitleFirst broadcastAdditional cast
11Sisters Of Mercy9 January 1992
2Empty Vessels16 January 1992Patrick – Andrew Wincott
3A Nice Civilized Evening23 January 1992Dr Fenton – Benjamin Whitrow, Melvyn – Ronald Herdman, The Two Hilarys – Mark Straker, Theresa Streatfeild
4Cracks In The Varnish30 January 1992Malcolm – Robert Bathurst, Dr Radford – Peter Penry-Jones, Georgio – Nicholas Murchie
5Old Embers6 February 1992Guy – David Swift, Wilson – Neil Roberts
6A Complete Break13 February 1992Patrick – Nicholas Murchie, Mrs Motson – Alison Reid
21Frail Memorials29 July 1993Judy – Theresa Gallagher, John Lassiter – Dominic Letts, Jeremy – Ronald Herdman
2Bright Lights5 August 1993Jeremy – Ronald Herdman, Georgio – Dominic Letts
3The Big Break12 August 1993Dan – Andrew Wincott, Terry – Theresa Gallagher
4Bed And Breakfast19 August 1993Lady Dunn – Jilly Mears, Gareth – William Osborne, Sir James – Philip Anthony
5Affair Exchange26 August 1993Tim – Simon Treves, Georgio – David Thorpe
6Twice Bitten2 September 1993Gordon – John Baddeley
31Time Shift24 November 1994Will – David Antrobus, Georgio – Michael Tudor-Barnes
2Material Values1 December 1994
3Talking Shop8 December 1994Lallie – Rachel Atkins
4An Ill Wind15 December 1994
5Seasonal Adjustment22 December 1994Tibor – Jonathan Keeble
6A Man Who Cares29 December 1994Pete – Derek Waring, Derek – Ian Masters
41A Nip In The Air24 July 1996Burton – Kim Wall
2Educated Guesswork31 July 1996
3Faith, Hope And Very Little Charity7 August 1996
4One Gets Better14 August 1996Harriet – Kelda Holmes
5Not A Leg To Stand On21 August 1996
6Two At A Time28 August 1996Martin – Geoffrey Whitehead, Jason – Joshua Towb
51Family Business9 July 1998
2Who You Know16 July 1998
3Charity Begins At Home23 July 1998Imelda – Buffy Davis, Des Kitchin – Dave Lamb
4Surprise Surprise30 July 1998
5Running In The Family6 August 1998Nigel – Jon Glover
6Rallying Round13 August 1998Stuart – Edward de Souza
61Make My Day14 July 1999Stuart – Edward de Souza, Rupert – Christian Rodska
2Excess Baggage21 July 1999Stuart – Edward de Souza, Claudia – Joanna Monro
3Making It Better28 July 1999Mark – Will Ing
4Retiring Types4 August 1999
5Spreading Wings11 August 1999the secretary – Jane Gibson, the waiter – Alan Cowan
6Growing Away18 August 1999
71Supporting Parts31 January 2001
2A Family Lunch7 February 2001
3Soft Soap14 February 2001
4Reflected Glory21 February 2001
5The Wedding Party28 February 2001
6Soap Bubbles7 March 2001
81Fresh Starts2 January 2002
2New Age Differences9 January 2002
3My Turn Now16 January 2002
4Wanderlust23 January 2002
5Impossibly High Standards30 January 2002
6All Roads Lead To Rome6 February 2002
91Ill Of The Dead1 January 2003
2Changing Lives8 January 2003
3Imaginary Friends15 January 2003
4Meeting The Family22 January 2003
5Houseroom29 January 2003
6Coming Clean5 February 2003
101The Real World28 January 2004
2Rules Of Engagement4 February 2004Mrs Pinchbeck – Sheila Mitchell, the vicar – Richard Syms
3Time With The Family11 February 2004Brian – James Vaughan, Kathryn – Bridget McConnel
4A Bride Too Far18 February 2004
5A Marriage Of Inconvenience25 February 2004
6The Ring Cycle3 March 2004
111Accentuate The Positive19 January 2005
2Foreign Affairs26 January 2005
3A Life More Ordinary2 February 2005Derek – Roland Davies
4Hard Times9 February 2005Lydia Grucock – Richenda Carey, George – Bruce Alexander
5Taking Chances16 February 2005Melissa – Judy Flynn
6Ill Winds23 February 2005Melissa – Judy Flynn
121Settling Down26 April 2006French voice – Marianne Borgo
2Darling Daughters3 May 2006Jeff – Stephen Thorne
3Misalliances10 May 2006Paddy – Bill Wallace
4Upstaging17 May 2006Brian – James Vaughan, Kathryn – Bridget McConnel
5Soft Soap24 May 2006Jeff – Stephen Thorne, Mr Darnley – Colin Starkey, George – Bruce Alexander, Felicity Titterill – Susan Jameson
6Game, Set And Match31 May 2006French voice – Marianne Borgo
131Age Differences11 April 2007Max – Jon Glover
2Old School18 April 2007George – Bruce Alexander, Stranks, PW – Chris Emmett
3Model Behaviour25 April 2007George – Bruce Alexander, Felicity – Susan Jameson, Moira – Joanna Monro
4A Voice from the Past2 May 2007Brian – James Vaughan, Kathryn – Bridget McConnell, Patrick – Michael Simkins
5Blue Rabbits9 May 2007Patrick – Michael Simkins
6New Beginnings16 May 2007George – Bruce Alexander
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.