Comedy about the workers in a factory canteen.Comedy about the workers in a factory canteen.Comedy about the workers in a factory canteen.
- Nominated for 4 BAFTA Awards
- 3 wins & 7 nominations total
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Did you know
- TriviaMaxine Peake (whose first significant role this was, after leaving drama school) sought Victoria Wood's advice about her acting career during the series. Wood advised her that, in the long term, she should lose weight ,or she would be playing comedy characters like "Twinkle" for the rest of her career. Taking Wood's advice, in-between the first and second seasons, Peake went on a major diet and returned for the second season much thinner, to the great surprise of Wood, the producers, and cast, none of whom knew of her intentions. However, Wood and Producer Geoff Posner were angry with Peake for not discussing her plans with them first, as they felt she had changed the character of Twinkle with her weight loss and new appearance, and as a result, Peake had to wear a "fat suit" under her costume for the second season.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Best of British: Victoria Wood (1998)
Featured review
Charming and delightful
'dinnerladies' (sic) was a short lived but concise series which was a delight to watch. The scripts were quite simply charming. Victoria Wood's attention to character detail is so well refined, there is little like it elsewhere in the land of situation comedy. Even series which clock up over a hundred episodes do not have the brilliance or depth of character as can be seen here.
A lot of the credit also goes to the performers. Particularly Anne Reid and Thelma Barlow as the bickering friends Jean and Dolly respectively. We had seen aspects of Thelma Barlow's comic timing when she was in Coronation Street but it is brought to great fruition here.
It may not be as 'in your face' or as loud and bumptious as a lot of nineties comedies and I feel it is sad that 'dinnerladies' is often compared to these others. This is a series of pure classic comedy writing - showing off a great knowledge of idiolect and pathos.
Victoria Wood kept the series short to leave on a high note, and she certainly did. The second series proved just how brilliant a writer she is. I certainly hope she pens another sitcom of an equal standard sometime in the future.
A lot of the credit also goes to the performers. Particularly Anne Reid and Thelma Barlow as the bickering friends Jean and Dolly respectively. We had seen aspects of Thelma Barlow's comic timing when she was in Coronation Street but it is brought to great fruition here.
It may not be as 'in your face' or as loud and bumptious as a lot of nineties comedies and I feel it is sad that 'dinnerladies' is often compared to these others. This is a series of pure classic comedy writing - showing off a great knowledge of idiolect and pathos.
Victoria Wood kept the series short to leave on a high note, and she certainly did. The second series proved just how brilliant a writer she is. I certainly hope she pens another sitcom of an equal standard sometime in the future.
helpful•182
- Benguin
- Jun 30, 2003
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