Carla Lane has died.

[Sassy]

Liver birds, Bread and Butterflies were just three of the many comedy productions she wrote.
87 is a good innings. A good writer by all accounts even though some of it was out of touch with reality.
 

[Shaker]

I didn't think a great deal of her TV work (Butterflies was easily the best, followed by Solo) but she did an enormous amount for animals in her lifetime - that alone canonises her in my book.

I had no idea that she was 87 - I thought she was about 70 or so.

[Aruntraveller]

I didn't think a great deal of her TV work (Butterflies was easily the best, followed by Solo) but she did an enormous amount for animals in her lifetime - that alone canonises her in my book.

I had no idea that she was 87 - I thought she was about 70 or so.

Agree with you Shaker - I found Bread unwatchable because of it's patronising portrayal of Scousers as all loveable rogues. Butterflies was much better, if only for the more understated, and better acting it produced.

[Shaker]

Agree with you Shaker - I found Bread unwatchable because of it's patronising portrayal of Scousers as all loveable rogues.

A few years ago Boris Johnson got into hot water for saying of Liverpudlians, apropos both Hillsborough and the murder of Ken Bigley: "A combination of economic misfortune [...] and an excessive predilection for welfarism have created a peculiar, and deeply unattractive, psyche among many Liverpudlians. They see themselves whenever possible as victims, and resent their victim status; yet at the same time they wallow in it." Of course, there was a hell of a stink, and BoJo was summarily despatched to Merseyside to make a grovelling apology. Not very long afterwards Alan Bennett (still in connection with Hillsborough, IIRC) called Liverpool "that sentimental, self-dramatising place ...[Scousers] have a cockiness that comes from being told too often that they and their city are special" without any overt criticism as far as I'm aware. Both were correct.

Butterflies was much better, if only for the more understated, and better acting it produced.

Absolutely.

[Rhiannon]

I loved Butterflies. The acting was cracking but the story was the thing - very warm and human.

I also liked this.

https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/i_woke_up_one_morning/

[Maeght]

I never watched Bread or Solo but enjoyed Butterflies.

[jeremyp]

I didn't know she wrote Butterflies. Yes, it was her best, but Liver Birds had its moments too.

[Brownie]

Agree with you Shaker - I found Bread unwatchable because of it's patronising portrayal of Scousers as all loveable rogues. Butterflies was much better, if only for the more understated, and better acting it produced.

Quite agree, 'Butterflies' was marvellous and I easily recognised all the characters in people I knew, they were very sympathetic.  The two boys were a hoot.

'Solo' was very good too, Felicity Kendall and her rabbits, Jane Asher as the wronged wife......I now have a feeling that I am talking about a-nother sit-come/drama series.   'Mistress' ?  Oh never mind, bah.

'Bread' made me cringe, mainly because of that dreadful mother! Yet it was an extremely popular sit-com, everyone talked about it.  It was recommended to me by two people separately, which is why I watched it for a while.  At first I found some things to laugh at and later on I felt embarrassed about the mother.  So I stopped. 'Bread' had become stale.....

Carla Lane was a great patron of animal charities and was personally active in any cause to relieve animal suffering.  A vegetarian, maybe a vegan, like her friend Linda McCarthy.  Another icon gone, 2016 is the year, or so it seems.   Still she was 87!  A really good innings for a really good girl.

[Hope]

Like others, I enjoyed 'Bread' in small slices, but found it patronising.  Sadly, I never saw anything other than 2 or 3 episodes of 'Butterflies because it always coincided with other things I was doing at the time - from sports training to youth work - but I did enjoy 'The Liver Birds'.  She is another loss but, as I've said before, it comes to us all.

[Sassy]

Bread misrepresented the poorer in our society making it out anyone could get money for any excuse from the social security /dwp which was a lie.

Butterflies with Wendy Craig was a lovely sitcom as most of them were by Carla Lane.

As time goes by a good comedy becomes harder to find. At least the comedy she wrote all ages in the family could watch.
Her funeral saw many stars turn out on Thursday. Friday was the funeral of Ali.

We were graced with such good comedy writers in this country had the privilege to watch some talented actors and actresses.

How times are changing...