• Air date: 01 Sep '91 10 episodes
      Keeping Up Appearances is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke for the BBC. Centred on the life of eccentric, social-climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket, the sitcom follows her obsessive and determined attempts to impress in middle class society and portray herself as more affluent than she truly is. The show stars Patricia Routledge, who received two BAFTA nominations for her performance as Hyacinth. Broadcast between 1990 and 1995 on BBC One, the sitcom spawned five series and 44 episodes—4 of which are Christmas specials. Keeping Up Appearances was a great success in the UK and also captivated a large audience in the US, Canada, and Australia, but production ceased in 1995 when Routledge wanted to move on to other projects. Since its original release, all five series—including Christmas specials—are available on DVD. In 2004, the sitcom was ranked 12th in the countdown of Britain's Best Sitcom. It is regularly repeated worldwide.
  • List of Episodes (10)
    • 1. A Strange Man

      01 Sep '91
      Hyacinth is shocked to see a strange man wearing only a towel emerge from Elizabeth's house, thus she tells Richard they will have to move house. However her opinions change when discovering who the man really is. Meanwhile Daddy has gone missing.
    • 2. Driving Mrs. Fortescue

      08 Sep '91
      Hyacinth and Richard drive a wealthy Mrs Fortescue into town, however Hyacinth's plans to impress are crushed by her family when Daisy and Rose flag down the Buckets for a lift. Eventually to Hyacinth's dismay, this leads to Mrs Fortescue playing darts with Onslow in a public house.
    • 3. Candlelight Supper

      15 Sep '91
      Hyacinth wants to impress Emmet with her musical talents at an elaborate musical supper. However her plans backfire when a short-skirted Rose turns up, followed by two aggressive men who begin fighting on Hyacinth's doorstep.
    • 4. Golfing with the Major

      22 Sep '91
      The Major invites the Buckets for a golfing weekend at a luxury hotel. All is well until Onslow and Daisy turn up unexpectedly to collect Rose after she has spent a raunchy weekend away with a Mr Smith. Inevitably, when Hyacinth realises her family are there, she fears for her social standing. Adding to her dilemma is the amorous intentions of the Major.
    • 5. The Googley-Eyed Registrar

      29 Sep '91
      Hyacinth's brother-in-law Bruce is stuck up a tree, Daddy goes to the register office to be married and Emmett meets Daisy, Onslow and Rose, throwing Hyacinth into dismay. Liz offers to drive Daddy back to Daisy's, but to avoid herself and Emmett seeing how Daisy and Onslow live, Hyacinth insists they stop off at Violet's.
    • 6. Cocktails with a Greek Shipping Millionaire

      06 Oct '91
      Hyacinth is dreading an invite to Onslow's birthday party, but changes her mind when finding out she and Richard will be picked up by Rose's wealthy Greek boyfriend. Thus Hyacinth holds a gathering at her house to impress the neighbours as she departs in the luxury vehicle. However her hopes die when a hearse arrives instead.
    • 7. The Unfortunate Prospect of Early Retirement

      13 Oct '91
      Richard is offered early retirement and so ponders over the possibility of having to spend all day everyday with Hyacinth. Emmett is enraged when Hyacinth ends up rehearsing a performance for the old people at the Church Hall with him, and a tranquilised Rose arrives at the scene wanting to become a nun.
    • 8. Playthings for Daddy

      20 Oct '91
      Daddy has ended up at the toy store and is "improving" a few toys with the help of a screw driver. This results in Hyacinth and Richard having to go into town to solve the problem, where Hyacinth fears for her status when meeting Mrs. Counsellor Nugent.
    • 9. Three Piece Suite

      27 Oct '91
      Hyacinth is very excited at the prospect of having her new three piece suite, an exact replica of the one at Sandringham House, delivered. She will also give Daisy and Onslow her old suite, provided they pick it up themselves. But of course these two events are likely to collide at some point, creating an insurmountable disaster.
    • 10. Picnic For Daddy

      03 Nov '91
      Hyacinth arranges a picnic for Daddy, but things go awry when the senile old man decides to test-drive the Buckets' car. Thus Hyacinth has to ride in Onslow's, as a car chase gets underway.