In which sitcom did Penelope Wilton play the wife of Richard Briers?
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British_sitcom.txt Penelope_Wilton.txt Richard_Briers.txt
British sitcom Penelope Wilton Richard Briers
A British sitcom is a situation comedy programme produced for British television. Although styles of sitcom have changed over the years they tend to be based on a family, workplace or other institution, where the same group of contrasting characters is brought together in each episode. British sitcoms are typically produced in one or more series of six episodes. Most such series are conceived and developed by one or two writers.

The majority of British sitcoms are 30 minutes long and are recorded on studio sets in a multiple-camera setup. A subset of British comedy consciously avoids traditional situation comedy themes and storylines to branch out into more unusual topics or narrative methods. Blackadder (1983–89) and Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister (1980–88, 2013) moved what is often a domestic or workplace genre into the corridors of power. A later development was the mockumentary in such series as The Office (2001–3).

History 

Early years 

The first British television sitcom was Pinwright's Progress, broadcast by the BBC from 1946 to 1947,  but the form did not take off until the transfer of Hancock's Half Hour from BBC radio in 1956.  Hancock biographer John Fisher dates the first use of the term 'situation comedy' in British broadcasting to a BBC memo dated 31 March 1953 written by producer Peter Eton, suggesting the format as the ideal vehicle for Hancock's comedic style.  "Hancock's persona of the pompous loser out of his depth in an uncomprehending society still informs many programmes today", according to Phil Wickham.  Some of the scripts written for Hancock by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson almost repudiated a narrative structure altogether and attempted to reproduce an everyday environment with the intention of also reproducing its comedy. ITV's most successful sitcom of this period was probably The Army Game (1957–61),  featuring some of the comedians who would soon appear in the Carry On film series.

In the 1960s the BBC produced the earliest of Richard Waring's domestic comedies, Marriage Lines (1961–66), with Richard Briers and Prunella Scales, and a then-rare workplace  comedy with The Rag Trade (1961–63, 1977–78). Two long-running series began around this time, Steptoe and Son (1962–65, 1970–74) and Till Death Us Do Part (1965–68, 1972–75), the latter criticised by Clean-Up TV campaigner Mary Whitehouse for its bad language.  With Steptoe (and The Likely Lads, 1964–66) producers began to cast straight actors, rather than comedians,  around whom earlier series like Whack-O! (1956–60, 1971–72), with Jimmy Edwards, or those featuring Hancock, had been built.

A gentle mockery of Britain's 'finest hour' occurred with the home guard comedy Dad's Army (1968–77) and the church with All Gas and Gaiters  (1966–71). Women generally had very secondary roles at this time, though various series with Wendy Craig in the leading role and those developed by scriptwriter Carla Lane, the first successful female writer in the form,  were challenges to this situation. Lane's career initially began in collaboration with other writers on The Liver Birds (1969–79, 1996).

The 1970s 

The 1970s is often regarded as the golden era of British sitcom. Well-remembered series include John Cleese and Connie Booth's farcical Fawlty Towers (1975, 1979), John Esmonde and Bob Larbey's self-sufficiency comedy The Good Life (1975–78). Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? (1973–74), a sequel to the earlier show, surpassed the original, while the same writers (Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais) provided Ronnie Barker with his most successful sitcom vehicle, Porridge (1974–77). Barker also starred (along with David Jason) in the very popular Open All Hours (1973, 1976–85), written by Roy Clarke. Clarke's long-running Last of the Summer Wine began in 1973 and ended in 2010, becoming the world's longest running sitcom.

The commercial station ITV had popular successes with Rising Damp (1974–78, sometimes called the best of all ITV sitcoms),  Man About the House (1973–76) and George and Mildred (1976–79). Rising Damps star, Leonard Rossiter, also played the lead role in the BBC's highly popular The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (1976–79). The decline in cinema attendance in this period meant that many of these series were turned into cinema films;  the first film version of On the Buses (1969–73) was the biggest hit at the British box office in 1971.  According to Jeff Evans, On the Buses is a "cheerfully vulgar comedy" in which "leering and innuendo dominate."  Some of the network's other ratings successes from this era are now 'politically incorrect' too. Series such as Love Thy Neighbour (1972–76)  and Mind Your Language (1977–79, 1986),  which attempted to find humour in racial or ethnic conflict and misunderstandings, were increasingly criticised over time. 

Increasing relaxation in regard to the discussion of sex meant farce became a familiar form in the 1970s used in series like Up Pompeii! (1969–70, 1975, 1991),  and Are You Being Served? (1972, 1973–85). 

The 1980s 

In the 1980s the emerging alternative comedians began to encroach on British sitcoms, partly as a response to such series as Terry and June (1979–87) being perceived as containing "complacent gentility, outmoded social attitudes and bourgeois sensibilities".  The alternatives incursion began with The Young Ones (1982–84), written by Rik Mayall, Ben Elton and others, and continued with Blackadder (1983–89). Mayall was also the star of The New Statesman (1987–92), a series created by Maurice Gran and Laurence Marks, whose biggest success, Birds of a Feather (1989–98, 2014–), also deviated from British practice in being scripted by a team of writers.

Only Fools and Horses, one of the most successful of all British sitcoms, began in 1981 and was the most durable of several series written and created by John Sullivan. Other hits included the political satire Yes Minister (1980–84) and its sequel Yes, Prime Minister (1986–88), Esmonde and Larbey's suburban sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–89) and the sci-fi-comedy Red Dwarf (1988–).  Other shows such as 'Allo 'Allo! (1984–92) were reminiscent of 1970s sitcoms such as Are You Being Served? and Dad's Army. 

Since 1990 

The new Channel 4 began to have successful long-running situation comedies. Desmond's (1989–94) was the first British sitcom with a black cast set in the workplace,  and Drop the Dead Donkey (1990–98) brought topicality to the form as it was recorded close to transmission.

Some of the biggest hits of the 1990s were Father Ted, Men Behaving Badly, Absolutely Fabulous, I'm Alan Partridge, Keeping Up Appearances, Goodnight Sweetheart, The Vicar of Dibley and One Foot in the Grave. (BBC Worldwide confirmed in February 2016 that Keeping Up Appearances is the corporation's most exported television programme, being sold nearly 1,000 times to overseas broadcasters. ) Later examples of the hyperreal approach pioneered by Galton and Simpson in some of their Hancock scripts include The Royle Family, Early Doors, Gavin & Stacey and The Office, as well as many British dramedies.

The BBC has also begun using their digital channels BBC Three and BBC Four to build a following for off-beat series like The Thick of It. Channel 4 has had recent successes with Spaced, Phoenix Nights, Black Books, Green Wing, Peep Show and The Inbetweeners.

The conventional sitcom has declined in importance in the schedules over time (in many cases superseded by the mixture of comedy and drama in dramedy series such as Doc Martin and Hamish Macbeth) although the form is not extinct. Some popular sitcoms in the UK during the last ten years include Outnumbered; Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, which ended its ninth series in 2011; and The IT Crowd (2006-2013). At the BBC, the late 2000s and early 2010s have seen a major resurgence in traditional-style sitcoms filmed in front of a studio audience and featuring a laughter track, such as Not Going Out, Miranda, Reggie Perrin (a remake of the 1970s series The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin), Big Top, Mrs Brown's Boys and In with the Flynns.

British sitcoms overseas 

United States 

British sitcoms are often seen on the Public Broadcasting Service, usually thanks to the effort of WGBH, and increasingly on cable television, including BBC America and Comedy Central. Are You Being Served?, Keeping up Appearances and As Time Goes By became sleeper hits when they aired on the Public Broadcasting Service, while Absolutely Fabulous enjoyed a significant following when it aired on Comedy Central, and The Office won a Golden Globe award in 2004 for "Best Television Series—Musical or Comedy", beating popular American favourites such as HBO's Sex and the City and NBC's Will & Grace. Most PBS stations affectionately refer to British sitcoms as "Britcoms".

Several British sitcoms have been successfully remade for the American market. Notable examples include Steptoe and Son which became Sanford and Son, Till Death Us Do Part, which became All in the Family on CBS and The Office which was remade into an American series of the same name. More recently, shows such as The Inbetweeners have been adapted as well as Misfits.  However, it should be noted that a large number of US adaptations end up being cancelled early or are not commissioned after their pilots are created.  Another notable difference, which has been both positive and negative depending upon the skill of the cast and writers, is the American media culture of 20+ episode seasons as opposed to the British which usually has less than 10 episodes per series.

Australia and New Zealand 

In Australia, many British comedy series are aired on the ABC, which is the Australian equivalent of the BBC. British shows are also sometimes shown on the three commercial television networks in Australia; in particular Network Seven screened many popular UK sitcoms during the 1970s. In New Zealand, state-run Television New Zealand also broadcast many popular British series. The majority of British comedies now air in both countries on the subscription channels The Comedy Channel and UKTV.

Australian commercial television channels made their own versions of popular British comedies during the 1970s often using members of the original casts. These included: Are You Being Served?, Father, Dear Father, Doctor Down Under, Love Thy Neighbour. In both countries, locally written and made sitcoms have historically often been heavily influenced by the structure of British sitcoms (such as in the New Zealand sitcom Gliding On).

India 

In the 1980s, India's national stations Doordarshan showed Fawlty Towers, Yes, Minister and Mind Your Language. Dame Penelope Alice Wilton,  (born 3 June 1946) is an English actress. She is known for starring opposite Richard Briers in the BBC sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–89); playing Homily in The Borrowers (1992) and The Return of the Borrowers (1993); and for her role as Isobel Crawley in the ITV drama Downton Abbey (2010–15). She also played the recurring role of Harriet Jones in Doctor Who (2005–08).

Wilton has had an extensive career on stage, receiving six Olivier Award nominations. She was nominated for Man and Superman (1981), The Secret Rapture (1988), The Deep Blue Sea (1994), John Gabriel Borkman (2008) and The Chalk Garden (2009), before winning the 2015 Olivier Award for Best Actress for Taken at Midnight. Her film appearances include Clockwise (1986), Cry Freedom (1987), Calendar Girls (2003), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Match Point (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), The Girl (2012) and The BFG (2016).

Life and career

Wilton was born in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, the daughter of Alice Travers, a tap dancer and former actress, and Clifford William Wilton, a businessman.    She is a niece of actors Bill Travers and Linden Travers  and a cousin of the actor Richard Morant.  Her maternal grandparents owned theatres.

She and her sisters, Rosemary and Linda, attended the convent school in Newcastle upon Tyne, at which their mother had previously taught. She attended the Drama Centre London from 1965 to 1968.[http://blogs.arts.ac.uk/csm/2009/03/22/drama-centre-watch-this-face Drama Centre: watch this face], blogs.arts.ac.uk, 22 March 2009; accessed 14 June 2016.

Wilton began her career on stage in 1969 at the Nottingham Playhouse. Her early roles included Cordelia in King Lear, both in Nottingham and at The Old Vic. 

She made her Broadway debut in March 1971 when she played Araminta in the original Broadway production of The Philanthropist, and made her West End debut in August 1971 opposite Sir Ralph Richardson, in the John Osborne play West of Suez at the Cambridge Theatre.  She had previously appeared in both plays at the Royal Court Theatre. She played Ruth in the original 1974 London stage production of Alan Ayckbourn's Norman Conquests trilogy. 

Her television acting career began in 1972, playing Vivie Warren in Mrs. Warren's Profession opposite Robert Powell. She then had several major TV roles, including two of the BBC Television Shakespeare productions (as Desdemona in Othello and Regan in King Lear ).

Wilton's film career includes roles in The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981), Cry Freedom (1987), Iris (2001), Calendar Girls (2003) and Shaun of the Dead (2004), Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (2005), Woody Allen's Match Point (2005), and in The History Boys (2006).

She did not become a household name until she appeared with Richard Briers in the 1984 BBC situation comedy, Ever Decreasing Circles, which ran for five years. She played Ann, long suffering wife of Martin (Briers), an obsessive and pedantic "do-gooder". In 2005, Wilton guest starred as Harriet Jones for two episodes in the BBC's revival of the popular TV science-fiction series Doctor Who. This guest role was written especially for her by the programme's chief writer and executive producer Russell T. Davies, with whom she had worked on Bob and Rose (ITV, 2001). The character of Jones returned as Prime Minister in the Doctor Who 2005 Christmas special "The Christmas Invasion". In the first part of the 2008 series finale, "The Stolen Earth", she made a final appearance, now as the former Prime Minister who sacrifices herself for extermination by the Daleks so that the Doctor's companions can contact him. She appeared in four episodes.

Wilton appeared on television as Barbara Poole, the mother of a missing woman, in the BBC television drama series Five Days in 2005; and in ITV's drama Half Broken Things (October 2007) and the BBC production of The Passion (Easter 2008). Since 2010, she has appeared as Isobel Crawley in the hit period drama Downton Abbey. She was the castaway on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in April 2008. In December 2012 and February 2013, she was the narrator in Lin Coghlan's dramatisation of Elizabeth Jane Howard's The Cazalets, broadcast on BBC Radio.

Awards and recognition

Wilton was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2004 New Year Honours and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2016 Birthday Honours, both for services to drama.

In 2012, she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Hull's Scarborough Campus.

Roles

Film

Television

Stage

Personal life

Between 1975 and 1984, Wilton was married to the actor Daniel Massey. They had a daughter, Alice, born in 1977.  Before this, the couple endured the trauma of a stillborn child. 

In 1991, Wilton married Ian Holm (in 1998, after he was knighted, she became Lady Holm) and they appeared together as Pod and Homily in the BBC's 1993 adaptation of The Borrowers. They were divorced in 2001. Richard David Briers,  (14 January 1934 – 17 February 2013) was an English actor. His fifty-year career encompassed television, stage, film and radio.

Briers first came to prominence as George Starling in Marriage Lines (1961–66), but it was a decade later, when he narrated Roobarb and Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk (1974–76) and when he played Tom Good in the BBC sitcom The Good Life (1975–78), that he became a household name. Later, he starred as Martin in Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–89), and he had a leading role as Hector in Monarch of the Glen (2000–02). From the late 1980s, with Kenneth Branagh as director, he performed Shakespearean roles.

Early life

Briers was born in Raynes Park, Surrey, the son of Joseph Benjamin Briers and Morna Phyllis (née Richardson).  He was the first cousin once removed of actor Terry-Thomas (Terry-Thomas was his father's cousin). He spent his childhood in Raynes Park in a flat Number 2 in Pepys Court behind the now demolished Rialto cinema, and after in Guildford.  His father drifted between jobs, while his mother wished for a showbusiness career; she went on to become a member of Equity. Morna was also a  pianist and a successful drama and music teacher.

Briers attended Rokeby School in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, and the Ridgeway School in Wimbledon,  which he left at the age of 16 without any formal qualifications.

Early career

Briers' first job was a clerical post with a London cable manufacturer, and for a short time he went to evening classes to qualify in electrical engineering, but soon left and became a filing clerk.

At the age of 18, he was called up for two years national service in the RAF, during which he was a filing clerk at RAF Northwood,   where he met future George and Mildred actor Brian Murphy. Murphy introduced Briers, who had been interested in acting since the age of 14, to the Dramatic Society at the Borough Polytechnic Institute, now London South Bank University, where he performed in several productions.

When he left the RAF he studied at RADA, which he attended from 1954 to 1956. Placed in a class with both Peter O'Toole and Albert Finney, Briers later credited academy director John Fernald with nurturing his talent. Graduating from RADA with a Silver Medal, he won a scholarship with the Liverpool Repertory Company, and after 15 months moved to the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry for 6 months. He made his West End debut in the Duke of York's Theatre 1959 production of Gilt And Gingerbread by Lionel Hale. 

Television career

In 1961, Briers was cast in the leading role in Marriage Lines (1961–66) with Prunella Scales playing his  wife. In between the pilot and the series itself, Briers appeared in Brothers in Law (from the book by Henry Cecil) as callow barrister Roger Thursby in 1962. He was cast in this role by adaptors Frank Muir and Denis Norden, who had seen him in the West End. His other early appearances included The Seven Faces of Jim (1961) with Jimmy Edwards, Dixon of Dock Green (1962), a production of Noël Coward's Hay Fever (1968) and the storyteller in several episodes of Jackanory (1969). In the 1980s he played several Shakespearean roles, including Twelfth Night.  Briers was featured twice on the Thames Television show This Is Your Life in May 1972   and March 1994.

In a role specifically written for him by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey, Briers was cast in the lead role in The Good Life (1975–78), playing Tom Good, a draughtsman who decides, on his 40th birthday, to give up his job and try his hand at self-sufficiency, with the support of his wife Barbara, played by Felicity Kendal. Briers persuaded the producers to cast his friend Paul Eddington, a fellow council member of Equity, in the role of Jerry. An enormously successful series, the last episode in 1978 was performed in front of Queen Elizabeth II. In 1977, he starred with his The Good Life co-star Penelope Keith in the televised version of Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy The Norman Conquests. He also starred as Ralph in 13 episodes of The Other One (1977–79) with Michael Gambon.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Briers had leading roles in several television shows. including Goodbye, Mr Kent (1982), a rare failure also featuring Hannah Gordon, the lead role of Martin Bryce in Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–89), and as Godfrey Spry in the BBC comedy drama If You See God, Tell Him (1993). He also starred in All in Good Faith (1985), Tales of the Unexpected (1988), and Mr. Bean (1990). In 1987, he appeared as the principal villain in the Doctor Who serial Paradise Towers, a performance which was described by Radio Times writer Patrick Mulkern as Briers' "career-low".  In 1995 he played the character Tony Fairfax in the BBC comedy Down to Earth. In the Inspector Morse episode 'Death is Now My Neighbour', he played the evil master of Lonsdale College, Sir Clixby Bream.

In the 2000s Briers was the curmudgeonly and extravagant father Hector MacDonald in the BBC Scotland television programme Monarch of the Glen (2000-05), appearing in series 1,2,3 & 7. He appeared in other programmes, see Later Career.

Stage work

Briers spent much of his career in the theatre, including appearances in plays by Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw. In 1967, one of his earliest successes was playing alongside Michael Hordern and Celia Johnson in the London production of Alan Ayckbourn's Relatively Speaking.

After a long career in television sitcom, and looking to expand his career, his daughter Lucy took him to Stratford-upon-Avon to watch Kenneth Branagh in Henry V. After meeting Branagh backstage after the performance, Branagh offered Briers the role of Malvolio in the Renaissance Theatre Company production of Twelfth Night. Briers joined the company, and went on to play title parts in King Lear and Uncle Vanya. Briers also appeared in many of Branagh's films, including  Henry V (1989, as Bardolph), Much Ado About Nothing (1993, as Signor Leonato) and Hamlet (1996, as Polonius). The theatre production of Twelfth Night (1988) was adapted for television, with Briers reprising his role as Malvolio. 

In 2010, Briers played in the Royal National Theatre revival of Dion Boucicault's London Assurance, alongside Simon Russell Beale and Fiona Shaw. A performance of this was broadcast live to cinemas round the world as part of the NT Live! programme. 

Film

Briers made his film debut in 1960 British feature film Bottoms Up. He then took parts in Murder She Said (1961), The Girl on the Boat (1962), A Matter of WHO (1962), The V.I.P.s (1963); and Raquel Welch's spy spoof Fathom (1967).

He latterly appeared in Michael Winner's A Chorus of Disapproval (1988) and the 2002 film Unconditional Love as well as the 1998 Kenneth Branagh adaptation of "Much ado about Nothing" where he played the role of "Leonato". His last film was Cockneys vs Zombies (2012).

Radio and voice work

He was a familiar voice actor. Briers narrated the animated children's TV programme Roobarb (1974). Originally shown on BBC1 just before the evening news, each five-minute cartoon was written by Grange Calveley and produced by Bob Godfrey. He was the original voice actor for Noddy (1975) TV series based on the Enid Blyton character, and then another series with Godfrey, Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk (1976). He also provided the voice of Fiver in the animated film adaptation of Watership Down (1978). In the 90s he voiced the part of Mouse, opposite Alan Bennett's Mole in the TV series Mouse & Mole, based on books by Joyce Dunbar and James Mayhew. He latterly starred alongside Neil Morrissey in Bob the Builder (2005) as Bob's Dad, Robert to his credit. Briers also featured in the television series adaptation of Watership Down (1999–2001), this time voicing a series exclusive character called Captain Broom, and was one of the very few actors who stayed for all 3 series.

His work in radio included playing Dr. Simon Sparrow in BBC Radio 4's adaptions of Richard Gordon's Doctor in the House and Doctor At Large (1968), and a retired thespian in a series of six plays with Stanley Baxter Two Pipe Problems (2008), and later the play Not Talking, commissioned for BBC Radio 3 by Mike Bartlett. In 1986 he narrated Radio 4's "Oh, yes it is!", a history of pantomime written by Gerald Frow. Between 1973 and 1981, Briers played Bertie Wooster in several adaptations of the P.G. Wodehouse novels with Michael Hordern as Jeeves. 

Briers narrated numerous commercials. including adverts for the Midland Bank in which he was the voice of the company's Griffin symbol. Between 1984 and 1986 he made a series of commercials for the Ford Sierra done in a sitcom style portraying the Sierra as "one of the family". Briers narrated the public information film Frances the Firefly, about the dangers of playing with matches, firstly in the mid 1990s when first made, and then in the early 2000s when re-made by the Government fire safety campaign Fire Kills. He also recorded the voice of a Sat nav specifically designed for senior citizens in the BBC 2’s hit TV Show Top Gear, Series 19, episode 5, which aired only a week after his death. Presenter Jeremy Clarkson paid a brief tribute to his memory at the end of the episode.  

Later career

After 1990, he appeared in Lovejoy, Inspector Morse, Midsomer Murders (the episode "Death's Shadow"), Doctors, New Tricks, Kingdom, and If You See God, Tell Him. Richard Briers starred as Hector in the first three series of Monarch of the Glen from 2000 to 2002 (and as a guest in series 7 in 2005), a role which saw him return to the limelight. He contributed "Sonnet 55" to the 2002 compilation album, When Love Speaks, which features famous actors and musicians interpreting Shakespeare's sonnets and play excerpts. In 2005, he appeared alongside Kevin Whately in Dad, a TV Film made by BBC Wales exploring issues of elder abuse. In 2006, he made an appearance in an episode of Extras, and portrayed the servant Adam in Kenneth Branagh's 2006 Shakespeare adaptation, As You Like It. He made a cameo appearance as a dying recluse in the 2008 Torchwood episode "A Day in the Death". 

On 17 December 2000, Briers was the guest on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs. Among  his musical choices were "Di quella pira" from Il Trovatore by Giuseppe Verdi, "I Feel A Song Coming On" by Al Jolson and "On The Sunny Side Of The Street" by Louis Armstrong. His favourite piece was the Organ Concerto in F major "The Cuckoo and the Nightingale" by George Frideric Handel.  In 2012 he featured in the comedy-horror film Cockneys vs Zombies. In 2013, he did voice work for an episode of the motoring programme Top Gear.

Personal life

Briers met Ann Davies while both were at Liverpool Rep. Davies was employed as a stage manager, and had acted on television and in films from the mid-1950s. Soon after meeting, he borrowed £5 from his mother, bought an engagement ring and they were married within six months. They had two daughters, one of whom, Lucy, is also an actress; Kate (or Katie) has worked in stage management,  and is a primary school teacher. 

Briers and his friend Paul Eddington shared a similar sense of humour, and knew each other before being cast in The Good Life. After Eddington was diagnosed with skin cancer, Briers accepted a role opposite him in David Storey's play Home in 1994, agreeing to take on all of the publicity interviews to allow Eddington time for his treatment. At Eddington's memorial service, Briers read both from Cymbeline and PG Wodehouse; he later read chapters from Eddington's autobiography on BBC Radio 4.

As a result of Terry-Thomas's Parkinson's, Briers became President of Parkinson's UK.  He also helped to launch a Sense-National Deafblind and Rubella Association campaign. Briers was also a non-medical patron of the TOFS (Tracheo-Oesophageal Fistula Support) charity, which supports children and the families of children born unable to swallow. 

Interviewed by The Daily Telegraph in 2008, Briers admitted that, while on holiday, he enjoyed being recognised, saying, "I’m gregarious by nature, so I love chatting to people. It really cheers me up." 

Briers was a keen visitor of Britain's historic churches and visited over one hundred for his book English Country Churches which was published in 1988. From his national service in the RAF, he was a supporter for a national memorial for RAF Bomber Command.

Briers was appointed OBE in 1989, and CBE in 2003. 

Death

In an interview with the Daily Mail on 31 January 2013, Briers stated that he had smoked about half a million cigarettes before he quit.  According to Lucy Briers, his daughter, he quit instantly in 2001 after a routine chest X-ray suggested he would otherwise soon be in a wheelchair.

He was diagnosed with emphysema in 2007. He died at his home in Bedford Park, London on 17 February 2013  from the effects of a cardiac arrest.

Tributes

The BBC referred to him as "one of Britain's best-loved actors". Sir Kenneth Branagh paid tribute to him, saying, "He was a national treasure, a great actor and a wonderful man. He was greatly loved and he will be deeply missed."   

Briers's agent, Christopher Farrar, said: "Richard was a wonderful man, a consummate professional and an absolute joy to work alongside. Following his recent discussion of his battle with emphysema, I know he was incredibly touched by the strength of support expressed by friends and the public."  

Fellow television star Penelope Keith said, "He was always courteous, always generous and always self-deprecating" adding, "He was also such a clever actor that he made you feel secure. You believed he was who he was portraying on the screen or on the stage... I just think of Richard and smile." 

Writing in The Guardian, critic Michael Coveney described  Briers as "always the most modest and self-deprecating of actors, and the sweetest of men," and noted: "Although he excelled in the plays of Alan Ayckbourn, and became a national figure in his television sitcoms of the 1970s and 80s, notably The Good Life, he could mine hidden depths on stage, giving notable performances in Ibsen, Chekhov and, for Kenneth Branagh's Renaissance company, Shakespeare."

On 30 March 2013, BBC Two broadcast an hour long review of Briers' life and career, with tributes from many friends and colleagues. 

Ever Increasing Wonder

On Christmas Day 2013,  BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast a day of tribute to Briers titled "Ever Increasing Wonder",  with a variety of his BBC Radio recordings, many of them introduced by those who knew him and worked with him.
Guest speakers included:
*Prunella Scales
*Stephen Fry
*Michael Chaplin
*Alan Bennett
*Michael Ball
*Kenneth Branagh
* dramatist Ed Harris
* Briers's widow Ann Davies and their daughters
Programmes included:
*Brothers in Law (radio adaptation of the TV series)
*Doctor in the House (radio adaptation of the TV series)
*Marriage Lines (radio adaptation of the TV series)
*Largo Desolato (by Vaclav Havel)
*What Ho! Jeeves: Joy in the Morning (radio adaptation of the novel by P.G. Wodehouse)
* The Wind in the Willows (by Kenneth Grahame, dramatized by Alan Bennett)
* Aled Jones's interview of Briers

Selected filmography

* Girls at Sea (1958)
* Bottoms Up (1960)
* The Girl on the Boat (1961)
* Murder, She Said (1961)
* A Matter of WHO (1961)
* Doctor in Distress (1963)
* The V.I.P.s (1963) as Meteorological Official
* Marriage Lines (1963–66, TV sitcom)
* The Bargee (1964)
* Fathom (1967)
* All the Way Up (1970)
* Rookery Nook (1970, TV drama)
* Rentadick (1972)
* Roobarb (1974)
* The Good Life (1975–78, TV sitcom)
* Watership Down (1978) - Fiver (voice only)
* The Other One (1977–79, TV sitcom)
* Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–89, TV sitcom)
* All in Good Faith (1985–88, TV sitcom)
* A Chorus of Disapproval (1988)
* Henry V (1989)
* Peter's Friends (1992)
* Much Ado About Nothing (1993)
* If You See God, Tell Him (1993, TV sitcom)
* Frankenstein (1994)
* A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
* Hamlet (1996)
* Spice World (1997)
* Love's Labour's Lost (2000)
* Monarch of the Glen (2000–2005)
* Unconditional Love (2002)
* Peter Pan (2003)
* As You Like It (2006)
* Run for Your Wife (2012)
* Cockneys vs Zombies (2012)
* Top Gear (Voice) (2013, TV series)
Ever Decreasing Circles
ever decreasing circles
ever decreasing circles
WikipediaEntity
Ever Decreasing Circles
 In which set of comb did Penny Wilton play the wife of Richard Braver's? 

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