Shelley (TV Series) Owner Occupiers (1980) User Reviews

Owner Occupiers

[Prismark10 · 7/10 · 4 September 2019]

Well this was the proper start of the second series. It harks back to the opening episode of the first series. This time Shelley and Fran are looking at a house to buy rather than a flat to rent.

Shelley is working and Fran is going to get her book published. The prices for the houses might look high and some of the houses look like a hovel. If only Shelley knew how much house prices in London will rise over the next few years. The house could quickly become a goldmine.

Shelley might earn enough for a mortgage but he needs a loan to renovate the house they have an eye on. It is a trip to the friendly bank manager, once he looks at Shelley's employment history it is a case of five rounds, rapid.

Luckily Fran's father offers to give Fran some money. Shelley needs to persuade his mother to help out.

After being introduced to Fran's father, we get to see Shelley's rather hippyish mother who grows pot around the house. Shelley puts the frighteners on her by pretending to be a policeman on a drugs raid.

A strong opening episode and Shelley has good fun with his mother. Two points to note. Fran's father told Shelley previously he was potless but suddenly he has money to giveaway. Whereas Shelley's mother is supposedly a gadabout who has a nice house in London.

Also Shelley keeps going on about tax demands when he would be an employee on Pay As You Earn.

"What does 'thermatological' mean?'

[ShadeGrenade · 9/10 · 24 January 2009]

The first episode of the second series of 'Shelley', though not broadcast as such due to the I.T.V. strike of 1979. The last three episodes of Season 1 were appended to the beginning of Season 2, making this in fact the fourth episode transmitted in 1980. Confused? Yes, well so am I.

Shelley, now in work, looks for somewhere to live with wife-to-be Fran and their impending child. They come across a ramshackle house which they want to buy but cannot as they do not have enough money. A visit to the local Bank leads them nowhere - to get a mortgage you first need an account.

Then two astonishing coincidences happen at once. Firstly, Fran finds a publisher for her novel, and secondly, Shelley receives a generous tax rebate from the Inland Revenue. If only real life were so easy, eh? But they are still short of the necessary readies, until Fran's rich Dad agrees to pay £15,000 and Shelley's mum Isobel coughs up a similar sum.

Isobel is played by Sylvia Kay, who was Christopher Blake's dimwitted mother in 'Mixed Blessings', and Jan Francis' snooty mater in 'Just Good Friends'. You can see where Shelley gets his rebellious streak from; she openly grows marijuana plants in the kitchen.

Nicholas Courtney, a.k.a. 'Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart' from Jon Pertwee's and Tom Baker's 'Dr.Who' stories, appears as an officious bank manager who reacts as you would expect when Shelley attempts to simultaneously open a bank account and apply for a mortgage.

Funniest moment - hearing a knock on the kitchen door, Isobel sees the shape of a policeman through the frosted glass. Panicking, she throws out her marijuana plants. It turns out to be her son. Furious, she calls him 'an evil little b-----d!".