Mike and Angelo S4E5 (1991) - FULL EPISODE

Mother's Comeback. Ellie's getting ready for her dance class, which stirs memories in Rita's mother of years gone by. Before you know it, Nancy's been bitten by the showbiz bug and is dreaming of landing a leading West End role - and Angelo is absolutely no help in taming her delusions. She couldn't actually pull it off, could she? This episode was originally broadcast on Thursday, 14th November, 1991. Five instalments into the series, and it's interesting to see what they were doing with no Mike on board. It was an odd situation for the writers to find themselves in, but they took the chance to explore other characters and their development, while still having Angelo do crazy other-worldly stuff to keep the general flavour of the show the same. In fact, on that note, this is the one in which Ellie finally finds out the "He came from another dimension..." wardrobe truth, and is invited onto the ceiling for the first time. I like the way it's handled, with the child clearly knowing something's up, but the adult desperately trying to ignore all the uncomfortable questions. In fact, there's a bit of a "Where do babies come from?" air about the conversation with Rita, whether that was intended or not. But anyway, Angelo's enthusiasm crossing over into blatantly going too far is very funny indeed, and there are loads of brilliant lines - the 'new pyjamas' one being my favourite. On a really microscopic point, I love how Rita asks, "What are all those men doing out in my garden drinking tea?", rather than the more obvious, "Why are all those men digging up my garden?" It details like that that add so much without anyone really noticing. Meanwhile, things like the reading of the adverts, the smashing glass, the general unbearableness of 'celeb' Nancy, and the final reveal make for an excellent episode, and that's without even mentioning the rendition of Cole Porter's It's De-Lovely. That ties in nicely with the Ethel Merman talk from earlier, in case you were wondering. Look out for a little bit of Children's ITV continuity at the beginning, presented by Tommy Boyd, and featuring a rare special effect. Many thanks to Grant for providing this recording. (To the best of my knowledge, the contents of this video have never been available commercially anywhere in the world. Please also note that I don't monetise any of my uploads. Nevertheless, if you are a copyright holder and have an objection, please don't hesitate to contact me.)