On the House is a Britcom that aired on ITV from 1970-71, starring Kenneth Connor and John Junkin.
Charlie Cattermole (Junkin) is the foreman at a construction site owned by a firm called Thomas Clackwood and Sons. Charlie's team should be trying to build an estate of bijoux residences, but the only thing in his way of doing a good job is Gussie Sissons (Connor), the chief labourer and shop steward who loves going on strike as much as possible.
Gussie and the rest of the workers - Old Fred Spooner (John Normington), Arnold Pugh (Tommy Godfrey), Walter (Gordon Rollings), and Stanley (Peter Attard) - love to give Charlie a hard time whenever they can.
In Series 2, Walter and Stanley disappeared, and in their place came Derek (Derek Griffiths) and Harvey Micklethwaite (Robin Askwith). Series 2 also introduced Dr. Stanley (Patrick Troughton), a psychotic, wheelchair-bound man who would stop at nothing to get Gussie and the others out of the way of his "floodtide of progress".
The series hasn't been aired since 1971 and although all episodes exist, the series has never been officially released in any form. The only available clip on the internet is from the episode "Take Me to Your Leader" and can be viewed here
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On the Tropes:
- Actor Allusion: In "Take Me to Your Leader", Harvey mentions the Daleks from Doctor Who. "Take Me to Your Leader" was also the second appearance of Patrick Troughton as Dr. Stanley, who was better known for playing the Second Doctor.
- Affectionate Nickname: Arnold calls Gussie "Gus".
- Alliterative Name:
- Charlie Cattermole.
- Beryl Bagley, a One-Shot Character from "Will the Real Harvey Micklethwaite Please Stand Up?"
- Alliterative Title: Series 2 has an episode titled "Treasure Trove".
- Big Storm Episode: "The Wettest Day of the Year" revolved around exactly that - the builders trying to cope with a massive rainfall.
- Breaking the Fourth Wall: In "Take Me to Your Leader", Dr. Stanley looks directly into the camera and gives a rant about how he will stop at nothing to let Charlie's men hold back his floodtide of progress.
- British Brevity: Only twelve episodes were produced in two years.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Both Walter and Stanley disappeared after Series 1.
- Evil Cripple: Dr. Stanley is wheelchair-bound, but a truly sinister character, going as far as to threaten the builders with nerve gas in "Take Me to Your Leader".
- Final Season Casting: The final series dropped Gordon Rollings and Peter Attard from the cast, and in their place brought in Derek Griffiths and Robin Askwith.
- The Ghost:
- The boss of the building firm, Thomas Clackwood, never appeared in the flesh.
- Old Fred mentions Elsie in "Take Me to Your Leader", an old friend who liked to sing at Christmas.
- Laughing Mad: Dr. Stanley ends his deranged direct-to-camera rant in "Take Me to Your Leader" by wildly cackling.
- Lazy Bum: Harvey was a long-haired layabout, a character similar to the one that Robin Askwith would later play in the Confessions of a... Series.
- Musicalis Interruptus: The builders singing "We Shall Not Be Moved" in "Take Me to Your Leader" gets cut short by the arrival of Dr. Stanley:Dr. Stanley: Oh, please, gentlemen, do not stop. That is almost my favourite song.
- No Full Name Given: We never get to find out Walter, Stanley, or Derek's last names.
- One-Steve Limit: There were two characters called "Stanley" - a builder from Series 1, and recurring antagonist Dr. Stanley from Series 2.
- Questioning Title?: Series 2 had episodes titled "Are You Giving Me the Business?" and "Will the Real Harvey Micklethwaite Please Stand Up?".
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: When Dr. Stanley threatens the builders with nerve gas in "Take Me to Your Leader", Arnold, Old Fred, Harvey, and Derek all scarper, leaving Gussie to face him all alone. Gussie yells at them to come back but takes one more look at the spray guns and bolts too.
- Short-Runners: The series only aired for twelve episodes over two years.
- Shout-Out:
- After the builders sing "We Shall Not Be Moved" in "Take Me to Your Leader", Old Fred gets sidetracked and starts going on about other songs he likes, namely "Till the Sands of the Desert Grow Cold" and "Baby Face".
- When Dr. Stanley's henchmen arrive on the building site with spray guns full of nerve gas in "Take Me to Your Leader", Harvey remarks "Blimey, it's the Daleks!".
- The episode "Will the Real Harvey Micklethwaite Please Stand Up?" gets its title from the phrase "Will the real ____ please stand up?" from the Game Show To Tell the Truth.
- Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: Gussie and Charlie were forever at odds due to their positions as shop steward and foreman; Charlie wants to get work done on the building site, whereas Gussie would rather be on strike 24/7.
- Take That!: In "Take Me to Your Leader", Arnold rudely calls Dr. Stanley "Malcolm Muggeridge on wheels".
