Roger & Val Have Just Got In

Roger & Val Have Just Got In
Genre Sitcom
Written by Emma Kilcoyne, Beth Kilcoyne, Dawn French
Starring Dawn French
Alfred Molina
Opening theme "Come Softly to Me"
by The Fleetwoods
Country of origin United Kingdom
Original language(s) English
No. of series 2
No. of episodes 12 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Dawn French
Running time 30 minutes
Release
Original network BBC Two
Original release 6 August 2010 (2010-08-06) – 15 March 2012

Roger & Val Have Just Got In is a British sitcom that stars Dawn French and Alfred Molina playing married couple Roger and Val Stephenson. The show premiered on BBC Two on 6 August 2010 and six episodes were broadcast for the first series.[1] The show was created by Dawn French, directed by Jamie Rafn, and written by Beth Kilcoyne and Emma Kilcoyne.[1]

Each episode is set in the half-hour after Roger and Val arrive home from work. Episodes play out in real time with no laughter track. The deeper issues in the couple's lives are often underplayed by being glossed over in conversation. The longing for escape is a trait prevalent in both characters' personalities.

Episode by episode, the series gradually permits the viewer an insight into the reality of Roger and Val's life. Underneath the mundane middle aged couple's daily routine, the viewer becomes aware of a real heartache which both characters avoid talking about but which has altered their life fundamentally: the death of their infant son Christopher. The screenwriters include subtle hints in regard to Roger and Val's heartache - a photo of Val holding a baby, for example - rather than introduce the topic directly. Over the series the viewer slowly realises that both Roger and Val's lives have been devastated.

In May 2011 Dawn French was nominated for a BAFTA for her role as Val. As a result of the BAFTA nomination, the first series is currently reshowing on the UKTV channel Gold.

The first episode of the second series, 'The Shock', was broadcast on 8 February 2012 on BBC Two.[2]

The series was briefly available on the Netflix platform in the UK, but has since been removed.

Plot

Dawn French and Alfred Molina star in this comedy series focusing on the everyday, seemingly trivial trials and tribulations faced by a middle-aged married couple. The bittersweet comedy looks at how they get on in the first half an hour after walking through their front door.

Production

Six episodes were produced for the first series by the BBC.[1] The show was created by Dawn French, the director is Jamie Rafn and the writers are Beth Kilcoyne and Emma Kilcoyne.[1] A Further Six episodes were also produced for the BBC for 2012.

Episode list

Series 1 (2010)

# Title Directed by Original airdate Viewers
1"The Guarantee"[3]Jamie Rafn[3]6 August 2010 (2010-08-06)[3]1.71 Million[4]
The opening episode explores the Roger and Val looking for a Hoover guarantee so they can return it to the shop and get a refund. It takes the whole episode just to find it but when they eventually do find it, Val is so happy, she tears it up by mistake and in the last couple minutes of the episode, we see Val cooking the tea and Roger with sellotape sticking the pieces of the guarantee back together.
2"The Unglamorous Row"[5]Jamie Rafn[5]13 August 2010 (2010-08-13)[5]1.23 Million[5]

Val comes home to find Roger in an agitated state. She has left that evening's meal, a pack of fish fingers and some frozen peas, in his plant fridge in the conservatory. Thus begins a chain of rows, each one seemingly all about fish fingers.

Despite various attempts by both parties to smooth things over, there is a certain amount of tension in the air. It transpires that Roger is in a foul mood not because of the fish fingers, but because there are two new water voles at work who don't get on, and staff have named them after Roger and his boss Phil.
3"The Dining Room Curtains"[6]Jamie Rafn[6]20 August 2010 (2010-08-20)[6]1.09 Million[7]
Roger's father is critically ill in hospital. Meanwhile, there's the job of re-hanging the freshly laundered dining room curtains - courtesy of Year 9 - in the newly painted dining room. Top of the agenda, however, is putting on the kettle and unwinding with a cup of tea and a snack. In typical fashion, one scotch pancake leads to another and, with the pressing need to generally put the world to rights, will either of them have the energy for household chores?
4"Be Our Guests"[8]Jamie Rafn[8]27 August 2010 (2010-08-27)[8]1.16 Million[9]
Roger's dad is close to death. Roger's cousin Cathy is arriving with her husband so that she can say her farewells. Roger and Val find themselves under pressure to get the spare room ready for their stay. Things become too much for Roger.
5"Reply All"[10]Jamie Rafn[10]3 September 2010 (2010-09-03)[10]1.14 Million

Roger lies almost mute in bed in the spare room. Val tries hard to reach him, but there's more to this crisis than the recent news about his father. Roger reveals that, alone in the house, he has followed grief counselling advice and written out an idealised self-image; however he has mistakenly emailed it to his management team at work.

Hideously embarrassed, he and Val try to salvage the situation, but it leads to a terrible and definite schism between them. For the first time in the series, someone leaves the house.
6"The Valerie Step"[11]Jamie Rafn[11]10 September 2010 (2010-09-10)[11]n/a
Val is curious to find out how Roger's work tribunal has gone but, following recent events, relations between the two of them are less than easy.

Series 2 (2012)

Series two began airing the first of six episodes on Wednesday 8 February 2012 on BBC Two.

# Title Directed by Original airdate Viewers
1"The Shock"[3]Mandie Fletcher[3]8 February 2012 (2012-02-08)[3]1.1 million [4]
Val shows Roger her novel way of overcoming interview nerves with a little help from her friends. Meanwhile, among the weekend's post is a hand-delivered note for Roger that will change every aspect of their world and shatter the balance they have worked so hard to achieve.
2"The Woman in the Attic"[5]Mandie Fletcher[5]15 February 2012 (2012-02-15)[5][5]
It is World Book Day at Val's school, an excellent opportunity to further her deputy headship campaign while dressed as Mrs Danvers. A fellow teacher has given Val a plastic toy to give Roger good luck, but it seems to be strangely multiplying itself inside the house. Meanwhile, a message on Roger's Facebook support group threatens to bring his major misdemeanour to Val's attention.
3"Surprise!"[6]Mandie Fletcher[6]22 February 2012 (2012-02-22)[6][7]
A verdict leads to a meal, and an email leads to a confession.
4"Pam's Collage"[8]Mandie Fletcher[8]1 March 2012 (2012-03-01)[8]<fre name="RatingsEp4"/>
Roger is missing a tooth, which could put a very important meal in jeopardy.
5"A Poem for Uncle Jack"[10]Mandie Fletcher[10]8 February 2012 (2012-02-08)[10]
Who is the man outside? Why do Roger and Val need help from Julie Andrews?
6"The Gift"[11]Mandie Fletcher[11]15 March 2012 (2012-03-15)[11]n/a
Something arrives that will change Roger and Val's lives forever.

DVD Release

The First Series of Roger & Val was released on 13 September 2010. The second series was released on DVD in February 2013 and the show continues to be shown on the Netflix platform.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Roger & Val Have Just Got In - Production Details". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 13 August 2010.
  2. ↑ "Roger and Val Have Just Got In Programme Page". BBC Online. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Guarantee". BBC Online. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  4. 1 2 Paul Millar. "'Celebrity MasterChef' dents Corrie". Digital Spy. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "The Unglamorous Row". BBC Online. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Dining Room Curtains". BBC Online. Retrieved 13 August 2010.
  7. 1 2 Paul Millar. "'America's Got Talent' final boosts ITV2". Digital Spy. Retrieved 21 August 2010.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Be Our Guests". BBC Online. Retrieved 20 August 2010.
  9. ↑ Paul Millar. "'Ultimate Big Brother' drops below 3m". Digital Spy. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Reply All". BBC Online. Retrieved 27 August 2010.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Valerie Step". BBC Online. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
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