Waiting for God

Here we have a programme centring around two elderly and cynical people in a retirement home located in Britain's version of Florida: Bournemouth. Did I say elderly? Well, only in age, not attitude. Take one Tom Ballard, a gentleman deposited by his son into the retirement home who is one half of the cynical pair. Although cynical, his character expresses this with good humour and resignation, philosophy, and plays upon the ageist attitude that old people are helpless and eccentric, leaving one to wonder whether he is actually mad, or just pretending to be.

The other half, Diana, a worldly woman who sees the effects of society's attitude toward the old now that she is of retirement age and, in contrast to Tom, vents spleen any chance she gets, usually towards Harvey, the young man who runs the Home whose character is a composite of the 20-40 yuppy age group's attitude towards those beyond 65.

The humour is quick-firing, very British, and also pulls no punches with regards to attitudes and observations of society during the latter half of the 80s and into the 90s. All told, an excellent series that will take a long time in the future before it seems dated.