Spatz S1E11 (1990) - FULL EPISODE

Sing for Your Supper. Sweet, mild-mannered Debby is not in a good mood: last night's romantic meal has left her convinced that she has absolutely nothing in common with her fiance. Will she and Derek make up and get back together again, or will a new love rival split them up forever? Meanwhile, Karen's latest bright idea is to instruct all the staff to sing to the customers while taking their orders. This episode was originally broadcast on Wednesday, 2nd May, 1990. For the second episode in a row, the idea of malicious compliance is used as the solution to the problem at hand, resulting in a very memorable musical ending. I like how Jo - who sticks her oar in very strongly in all aspects of this one - treats it all as a sort of showbiz opportunity while everyone else around her is struggling. Mind you, I don't know how we should take the implication that the concept of singing the orders is a great idea everywhere in the world, except for Britain! On a technical note, I wish the sound mix had been a bit bolder and the song itself a little quicker, and there are some dodgy edits around 16:35, but I think I'm beginning to get overly critical of these shows so I'll leave that there. As for the romantic strand, at times it makes the episode feel quite soap-like. I like that everyone has a different perspective on how the relationship issue should be resolved, and throwing in a third party gives it an added dimension. Said lover boy is played by Emile Charles, little brother of Craig Charles, who actually played a younger version of Lister in a time-travelling episode of Red Dwarf. It's notable that his character name here is Terry, and the writer is a certain Terry Saltsman. Is there any chance that there's some sort of autobiographical element to this story? Whatever the case, I'm sure I can't be the only one who thinks that there's an elephant-sized moral question mark hanging over Vince's actions with the flowers, but there you go. Look out at the beginning and end for some Children's ITV continuity featuring Jeanne Downs and Scally, the latter of whom raps the opening link to the amusement of the crew present. Many thanks to Joe for lending me this tape. (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.)