The Green Green Grass

The Green Green Grass

The Green Green Grass is a British sitcom, created and initially written by John Sullivan, produced by Shazam Productions for the BBC. It is a spin-off of the long running sitcom Only Fools and Horses and stars John Challis, Sue Holderness and Jack Doolan...

's first series originally aired between 9 September 2005 and 14 October 2005, beginning with the episode "Keep on Running

Keep On Running (The Green Green Grass)

"Keep On Running" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 9 September 2005, as the first episode of series one.-Synopsis:...

". A Christmas special aired on 25 December 2005.

Outline

The series introduced the seven main characters that would appear in further series. These were:

Actor	Role
John Challis John Challis John Challis is an English actor.-Career:He is probably best known for his role as Terrance Aubrey "Boycie" Boyce in the long running comedy show Only Fools and Horses, and its 2005 spin-off, The Green Green Grass....	Boycie Boycie Terrance Aubrey Boyce best known as Boycie is a fictional character in the popular BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses played by John Challis. His story is continued in the spin off series The Green Green Grass, which began filming in June 2005, in which Boycie and family have fled from a gang of...
Sue Holderness Sue Holderness Sue Holderness is an English actress. Since 1985 she has played the role of Marlene Boyce in the British sitcom Only Fools and Horses and its spin-off The Green Green Grass .-Career:...	Marlene
Jack Doolan Jack Doolan (actor) Jack Doolan is an English actor. He is best known for portraying Tyler Boyce in the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass alongside John Challis and Sue Holderness...	Tyler
David Ross David Ross (actor) David Ross is an English actor who has worked in theatre, cinema, and television.His best-known roles include playing the first appearance of Kryten and the voice of the Talkie Toaster on the science fiction comedy series Red Dwarf, Elgin on the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass, and as Mr...	Elgin
Ivan Kaye Ivan Kaye Ivan Kaye is a British actor. He previously played Dr. Johnathon Leroy in a recurrent role in EastEnders, and he played Bryan in The Green Green Grass...	Bryan
Peter Heppelthwaite	Jed
Ella Kenion Ella Kenion Ella Kenion is an English comedy actress, known for her versatility in shows such as The Catherine Tate Show, Five's sketch show, Swinging and most recently in BBC4's Fear of Fanny. She's probably best known for her portrayal of Mrs Cakeworthy in The Green Green Grass. She played the role of Julie...	Imelda

Lisa Diveney

Lisa Diveney

Lisa Diveney is a British actress. She played the role of Beth in The Green Green Grass.-Career:Before graduating, Diveney was cast as Molly in Gompers directed by Roisin McBrinn at the Arcola Theatre...

's character, Beth, who was Tyler's girlfriend, became a regular from the episode Pillow Talk.

Episode Information

Episode Number	Broadcast Date	Duration	Title	Written by
1 – 1.1	9 September 2005	30 minutes	"Keep On Running Keep On Running (The Green Green Grass) "Keep On Running" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 9 September 2005, as the first episode of series one.-Synopsis:... "	John Sullivan
2 – 1.2	16 September 2005	30 minutes	"A Rocky Start A Rocky Start A Rocky Start is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 16 September 2005, as the second episode of series one. -Synopsis:... "	John Sullivan
3 – 1.3	23 September 2005	30 minutes	"The Country Wife The Country Wife (The Green Green Grass) The Country Wife is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 23 September 2005, as the third episode of series one. -Synopsis:Marlene tries her hand at country cooking, despite the warnings from her husband and her son... "	John Sullivan
4 – 1.4	30 September 2005	30 minutes	"Hay Fever Hay Fever (The Green Green Grass) Hay Fever is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 30 September 2005, as the fourth episode of series one. -Synopsis:... "	John Sullivan
5 – 1.5	7 October 2005	30 minutes	"Pillow Talk Pillow Talk (The Green Green Grass) "Pillow Talk" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 7 October 2005, as the fifth episode of the first season of the series.-Synopsis:... "	John Sullivan
6 – 1.6	14 October 2005	30 minutes	"Sex and the Country Sex and the Country Sex and the Country is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 14 October 2005, as the sixth episode of series one. -Synopsis:Tyler approaches his English teacher and asks for a date... "	John Sullivan
7 – 1.7	25 December 2005	50 minutes	"One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 25 December 2005, as the 2005 Christmas Special. -Synopsis:... "	John Sullivan

Production

The series was produced by Shazam Production, a company that produces comedies by John Sullivan

John Sullivan (writer)

John Richard Thomas Sullivan OBE was an English television scriptwriter responsible for several popular British sitcoms, including Only Fools and Horses, Citizen Smith and Just Good Friends....

. The series was filmed at Teddington Studios

Teddington Studios

Teddington Studios is a large British television studio complex located in Teddington, South-West London, providing studio facilities for programmes airing on BBC television, ITV, and Channel 4 along with others...

, with a live audience. All episodes in the first series were directed by Tony Dow, director of Only Fools and Horses

Only Fools and Horses

Only Fools and Horses is a British sitcom, created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom between 1981 and 1991, with sporadic Christmas specials until 2003...

.

Viewers

The series began airing on Friday evenings, at 8:30pm. The series was an immediate hit with viewers, with the first episode, Keep On Running

Keep On Running (The Green Green Grass)

"Keep On Running" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 9 September 2005, as the first episode of series one.-Synopsis:...

gaining 9.13 million viewers, which was in the top five of the highest rating for the week ending 11 September 2005. Ratings then fell for the next two episodes before steadily rising again. The second half of the series performed much better than most other sitcoms, with episode four going back up above 6 million viewers. The following two episodes remained at the six million mark. The ratings were high enough for a new series, of seven episodes, to be commissioned. A 2005 Christmas special was also commissioned.

Rank	Episode	Viewership	Audience Percentage
1	Keep On Running Keep On Running (The Green Green Grass) "Keep On Running" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 9 September 2005, as the first episode of series one.-Synopsis:...	9.13 million	41.7%
2	Pillow Talk Pillow Talk (The Green Green Grass) "Pillow Talk" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 7 October 2005, as the fifth episode of the first season of the series.-Synopsis:...	6.63 million
3	Sex and the Country Sex and the Country Sex and the Country is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 14 October 2005, as the sixth episode of series one. -Synopsis:Tyler approaches his English teacher and asks for a date...	6.40 million
4	A Rocky Start A Rocky Start A Rocky Start is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 16 September 2005, as the second episode of series one. -Synopsis:...	6.34 million	28.0%
5	Hay Fever Hay Fever (The Green Green Grass) Hay Fever is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 30 September 2005, as the fourth episode of series one. -Synopsis:...	6.33 million	30.1%
6	The Country Wife The Country Wife (The Green Green Grass) The Country Wife is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 23 September 2005, as the third episode of series one. -Synopsis:Marlene tries her hand at country cooking, despite the warnings from her husband and her son...	5.86 million	24.5%
7	One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock One Flew Over the Cuckoo Clock is an episode of the BBC sitcom, The Green Green Grass. It was first screened on 25 December 2005, as the 2005 Christmas Special. -Synopsis:...	4.59 million	19.7%

Note: Viewership value taken from Barb.
Note: Audience Percentage value taken from Digitalspy.

Critics

The comedy has been criticised due to its spin-off roots. As a spin-off of the nation’s favourite sitcom, The Green Green Grass was always going to have a difficult start. The series received has always received negative reviews from critics and some fans of Only Fools and Horses alike. The series has continued to run due to the bigger than usual audiences it attracts and the general thoughts towards it. Many have said that The Green Green Grass without Only Fools and Horses behind it is fantastic but the minute you put Only Fools and Horses back in the picture, The Green Green Grass loses its good points.