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''Men Behaving Badly'' is a British Comedy , which first broadcasted in 1992 on the ITV network, however moved to BBC One (and a later timeslot) from the third series onwards. It was written and created by Simon Nye . It was also a book written by Simon Nye in the mid-80s, which formed the basis for much of the first series. The first series features Martin Clunes as Gary Strang, and Harry Enfield as his flat mate, Dermot Povey. From series two onwards, Enfield is replaced by Neil Morrissey as Tony Smart, who resumes Dermot's role as the immature under-achiever, perpetually behind in his rent, and hopelessly in love with Deborah, who lives in the flat above. Despite Gary's initial reservations, he soon replaces Dermot in the role of Gary's best friend. Tony and Dermot are similar in character, although Dermot was slightly more introverted and repressed. It is reported that Enfield has claimed he felt uncomfortable in the programme, and left stating that a "proper actor" would do the job far better. Dermot is only mentioned twice after his departure, the first to explain that he simply isn't coming home, and the second in the first episode of series five, when Dorothy recalls him (to which Gary replies "Did I tell you he got a job at Euro-Disney , testing the rides?" The first series featuring Enfield has never been repeated on the BBC , although the second ITV series has been shown. Simon Nye has stated that ITV picked up the series partly because Enfield agreed to star in it. However the ITV network axed the show after two Series , due to poor audience figures. It has been claimed that this was due to ITV giving it a poor slot in the schedules, forcing the "bad behaviour" to be toned down. The BBC quickly picked up the show, airing it in a later timeslot, with the result that it soon turned into one of the biggest situation comedies of the 1990s . Out of a total of one hundred sitcoms, Men Behaving Badly was the sixteenth most popular in BBC's Britain's Best Sitcom , which aired on BBC Two a few years back. Series one & two (the ITV series) were made by Thames Television . The remainder were produced by Hartswood Films . Six series were made, plus a Christmas Special , "Jingle Balls", which was aired over the Christmas of 1997. A final short run of three 45 minute episodes was made in 1998 to conclude the series. These were aired over Christmas, as had the "final" three episodes on Only Fools And Horses two years earlier. It was particularly controversial for featuring jokes about Masturbation , which many thought unsuitable for Christmas viewing. CHARACTERS Main article: '' List Of Men Behaving Badly Characters '' PLOT Gary Strang and Tony Smart are two modern Stereotypes of 1990s men in their Thirties ; taking a keen interest in booze, birds and football. Gary runs a dead end burglary alarms sales office, with two old fashioned and muted assistants; subordinates George and Anthea. Tony on the other hand stumbles through various jobs including; Modeling , bar work and professional miming; due to his record stall collapsing (literally). The pair have an interminable childhood of behaving immaturely and asininely. As a result, the relationship with the two women in their lives, Dorothy and Deborah, persistantly suffers. Dorothy is a quick-witted and sensible young nurse; Gary’s girlfriend. The pair frequently split up, are occasionally unfaithful, yet somehow always end up back together. Gary desperately clings to his relationship with Dorothy; the only women he can formulate a relationship with. Tony on the other hand, has numerous girlfriends, especially in the first two-three series, however his true feelings are for the blonde “babe” upstairs Deborah (who originally worked in a restaurant). Tony loves Deborah, and spends much of his time chasing her around and going to extreme lengths to get her to sleep with him; however his feelings for her stretch far beyond lust. Deborah deep down feels a connection with Tony, but like Gary, his petty-childishness prevents any relationship from forming. EPISODES See Also: List of Men Behaving Badly episodes A total of forty two episodes were created, which includes one Christmas Special and a final feature length trilogy that aired in 1998. Series one was the only series to feature Dermot (played by Harry Enfield), and the only series not to feature Neil Morrissey as Tony, who arrived at series two. Series one and two were both aired on ITV; hence being a commercial network the episodes were only around twenty minutes long; the remainder of time was allocated for advertisements. However, when the show was axed by ITV and picked up by the BBC, the episodes were extended in length to twenty eight minutes approximately. Another vigorous change to show was its content; by giving the show a later time slot as from series three, the humour was more adult based, and it wasn't until series three that the show garnered any grounds of success. Ratings for both series one and two weren't impressive , however this was due to poor scheduling not due to a fault with the actual material. After arriving at the BBC, Men Behaving Badly became instant hit and for the rest of its lifespan enjoyed huge success and a chain of awards, as ITV regrettably looked on. Other appearances and references
DVD RELEASES All six series are available on DVD separately, and a complete collection featuring all six series is also available. AMERICAN VERSION The series was as ''British Men Behaving Badly'', while in Australia the American series aired (on the Seven Network ) as ''It's a Man's World''. IMPACT The series was not without controversy as it was claimed young males were copying their "bad behaviour", and in the public imagination it has become synonymous with the mid '90s Lad Culture phenomenon. In one notorious scene, the boys pretend to be a Gay Welsh couple in order to frighten away a potential buyer of Deborah's flat. In one of the final trilogy episodes, Dorothy wakes up to find a tissue stuck to her face, which Gary has used to masturbate. This was even more controversial, considering its airing on Christmas Day. Clunes once claimed that he and Morrissey were banned from advertising lager on commercial television because their roles had made them an influence on children, even though the show was broadcast after the Watershed . Location shots for the British series were filmed in and around Ealing in west London . The final scene of the last regular episode ''Sofa'' took place at the Cerne Abbas Giant . The programme was not a success on ITV. A racier theme, along with an acknowledgement that Political Correctness was ready to be Satirised made the programme more successful following its transfer to the BBC. The show has won numerous awards, as has the writer and its stars. Controversially, it was voted the best sitcom in the BBC's history at the corporation's 60th anniversary celebrations in 1996 . In the BBC's later quest to find Britain's Best Sitcom , it came 16th. MISCELLANEOUS
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