Penelope Keith Peter Bowles Angela Thorne John Rudling Daphne Heard Michael Bilton Gerald Sim
Theme music composer
Ronnie Hazlehurst
Country of origin
United Kingdom
Original language
English
No. of series
3
No. of episodes
20 + 2 specials (list of episodes)
Production
Producers
Gareth Gwenlan Justin Davies (2007)
Running time
30 minutes (1979–1981) 60 minutes (2007)
Original release
Network
BBC1
Release
30 September 1979 (1979-09-30) – 25 December 2007 (2007-12-25)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)
To the Manor Born is a BBC television sitcom that first aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981. A special one-off episode was produced in 2007. Starring Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles, the first 20 episodes and the 2007 special were written by Peter Spence, the creator, while the final episode in 1981 was written by script associate Christopher Bond. The title is a play on the phrase "to the manner born," from Shakespeare's Hamlet ("Though I am a native here and to the manner born, it is a custom more honoured in the breach than the observance".)
In To the Manor Born, Penelope Keith (who was previously best known for her role as social-climber Margo Leadbetter in the suburban sitcom The Good Life), plays upper-class Audrey fforbes-Hamilton. Upon the death of her husband, Audrey is forced to sell her vast country estate, Grantleigh Manor. However, she then moves into the estate's small, modest lodge house (where she can keep an eye on the estate's new owner) and manages to keep her butler and her much loved Rolls-Royce 20/25 car. The manor is bought by Richard DeVere (played by Peter Bowles), a nouveau riche millionaire supermarket owner originally from Czechoslovakia. DeVere and fforbes-Hamilton have a love-hate relationship.
The programme proved popular and it received high audience figures for many of its episodes, especially the series 1 final episode, the most watched British television programme (excluding live events) of the 1970s.
TotheManorBorn is a BBC television sitcom that first aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981. A special one-off episode was produced in 2007. Starring Penelope...
playing Marjory Frobisher in TotheManorBorn (1979–2007), and for playing Margaret Thatcher in Anyone for Denis? (initially at the Whitehall Theatre in 1981...
television comedy dramas, including: Rumpole of the Bailey, Only When I Laugh, TotheManorBorn, The Bounder, The Irish R.M., Lytton's Diary, Executive Stress...
William Shakespeare's "tothe manner born" with "tothemanorborn". Eggcorns arise when people attempt to use analogy and logic to make sense of an expression...
known for having played the rector in TotheManorBorn. Sim was born in Liverpool, Lancashire. He was the younger brother of the actress Sheila Sim and...
and screen who was known for playing the butler Brabinger in the BBC sitcom TotheManorBorn. John Rudling was born in South Norwood, near Croydon, in...
and TotheManorBorn, and was also very active on stage. He was often cast as an eccentric, upper-class or upper-middle class man. Aris was born in London...
Look up manor in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Manor may refer to: Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts...
Giraffe Manor is a small hotel in the Lang'ata suburb of Nairobi, Kenya which, together with its associated Giraffe Centre, serves as a home to a number...
an English actor best known for his roles in the British television sitcoms TotheManorBorn (playing the gardener and sometime butler Ned) and Waiting...
Polouvicka in TotheManorBorn. Her film credits include roles in Goodbye Gemini (1970), the film version of Please Sir! (1971) as an old gypsy, Jude the Obscure...
Fresh Fields as main character Hester's father Guy, was Hartley in TotheManorBorn and played Colonel Culpepper in Terry and June. He had small roles...
(1981) as Aquitania Officer TotheManorBorn (series finale, 1981) as Heatherington-Poole Nancy Astor (1982; based on the life of Nancy Astor) as Billy...
A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of themanor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal...
Peter Spence (born 24 April 1944) is an English journalist and writer. He created and wrote the British sitcom TotheManorBorn. Born in 1944, Peter Spence...
Bowles (of To the ManorBorn) at the Haymarket Theatre in London. Both productions were directed by Sir Peter Hall. Scholey played the lead role of Michelle...
within the South Somerset administrative district. The A30 road passes nearby. The parish has a population of 50. It is noted for the historic manor house...
Manor Solomon (Hebrew: מנור סולומון; born (1999-07-24)24 July 1999) is an Israeli professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder...
in the centre of the village next to St James's Church and close tothe Avebury neolithic henge monument. Themanor house was built on or near the site...
as The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, Butterflies, TotheManorBorn, Only Fools and Horses and High Hopes. Gwenlan was appointed Officer of the Order...
Chalfield Manor is an English country house at Great Chalfield, about 2.5 miles (4 km) northeast of the town of Bradford on Avon in the west of the county...
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