Shelley 

James Shelley, an educated, sardonic, permanently unemployed "professional freelance layabout," has many battles with authority, the tax-man, his landlady and his girlfriend Fran.

Creator:

Peter Tilbury

Stars:

Hywel Bennett, Belinda Sinclair, Josephine Tewson

2 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Hywel Bennett	...	James Shelley 39 episodes, 1979-1984
Belinda Sinclair	...	Fran 29 episodes, 1979-1984
Josephine Tewson	...	Mrs. Hawkins 23 episodes, 1979-1982

Storyline

James Shelley, an educated, sardonic, permanently unemployed "professional freelance layabout," has many battles with authority, the tax-man, his landlady and his girlfriend Fran.

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Plot Keywords:

sitcom | layabout | left wing | landlady | mother | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Did You Know?

Trivia

The first series, broadcast in Summer 1979, comprised of just four episodes although seven were made. The final three episodes were not shown due to an ITV technician's strike and instead where shown at the beginning of series two in 1980.

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Connections

Followed by The Return of Shelley (1988)

User Reviews

Disappointing rewatch

This was must watch enjoyable tv as a teenager,but rewatching this year was a big disappointment a lot of talking which every half hour feels like an hour,also everyone remembers this being about a job shy layabout actually from the 2nd series on he's desperately looking for a job, the biggest laugh I got was realising the main complaints about tories destroying the jobs schools and nhs are the same as comedians are making now 40 years later with nuclear war being replaced with brexit

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 July 1979 (UK)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Thames Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min (39 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1