--- title: "Murphy Brown" year: 1988 kind: "series" canonical: "https://film.one/tv/murphy-brown" fi1m_score: 77 critics_reviews: 3 published: "2026-09-16T21:02:57.425179+00:00" updated: "2026-09-16T21:02:58.022386+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Murphy Brown (1988) Created by Diane English · 24m · MPA TV-PG · Comedy **Fi1m score: 77** · Critics: 3 of 6 reviews so far *In a sentence:* We would happily watch Murphy Brown work all evening, provided we never had to work with her > Candice Bergen makes *Murphy Brown* worth an evening for anyone who likes their sitcom leads difficult. The secretary gags and musical routines are less rewarding, but the central character remains funny, capable and unapologetic. ## Synopsis Murphy Brown (Candice Bergen) wants to conduct her professional life on her own terms, with little patience for compromise. Her ability to do the work does not make her easy company for the people around her. Corky Sherwood (Faith Ford), Frank Fontana (Joe Regalbuto), Jim Dial (Charles Kimbrough) and Miles Silverberg (Grant Shaud) form part of that circle. Murphy Brown expects her judgement to prevail, leaving those around her to contend with the ego that comes with it. The comedy follows a working woman whose confidence makes getting along with others a recurring problem. ## Review Diane English’s *Murphy Brown* is a good workplace comedy whose leading woman is sharper than some of the jokes written around her. It gives Candice Bergen a capable, self-centred professional who has little interest in making herself easier to deal with. The pleasure comes from watching someone so certain of her own judgement encounter other people. There are enough laboured routines to keep this from being an unqualified recommendation, but the central performance makes those stretches worth tolerating. Candice Bergen makes Murphy Brown’s competence convincing, which matters when her behaviour asks so much of everybody else. We warmed to her more than we expected, because the selfishness is funny without making the professional ability seem fraudulent. She can be right about the work and tiresome about herself in the same moment. The performance does not plead for affection, and that gives us room to enjoy her. A softer, more apologetic character would be less amusing company. The supporting cast helps to keep that forcefulness from exhausting the comedy. Faith Ford as Corky Sherwood, Joe Regalbuto as Frank Fontana and Charles Kimbrough as Jim Dial give the programme an ensemble substantial enough to stand alongside its lead. In the pilot, director Barnet Kellman handles the comic setups with an assurance that lets absurdity develop without every next step feeling announced. That matters in a programme built around such a commanding personality: the situations need some surprises of their own, rather than simply waiting for Murphy Brown to win the exchange. Editors Jerry Davis and Tucker Wiard help give the comedy room for its responses, though the rhythm cannot disguise a joke whose destination is obvious. The editing is generally less insistent than the broader material. Steve Dorff has the music credit, but the Motown lip-sync numbers are the musical business that most demands attention. Those routines have an eager determination to entertain that can make them feel longer than they are. The programme is better when it trusts an awkward personality to provide the amusement. The secretary gags are a more persistent weakness. Their breadth sits awkwardly beside a central character whose appeal depends on being more than a familiar comic type. We grew impatient with them because the exaggeration offers so little of the interest found in Murphy Brown herself. Period references also make some jokes depend on recognition rather than anything particularly well observed. None of this ruins the programme, but it does mean the supporting comic business is less reliable than the woman at its centre. What Diane English gets right is a useful starting point for a workplace sitcom: being difficult need not disqualify a woman from leading the comedy. Murphy Brown’s ego is allowed to be entertaining without constant assurances that she is nice underneath. That choice gives the series more staying power than its topical references, and it suits Candice Bergen’s unsentimental performance. At 24 minutes an episode, the company is manageable even when the jokes are broad. Try it if an abrasive colleague is your idea of good comic company, with some patience reserved for the musical routines. *Fi1m score 77, published 16 September 2026.* ### Reviews we read (3) - **The Hollywood Reporter** (70/100, inferred): The critic finds the pilot a welcome addition to CBS's Monday lineup, praising its absurd humor and unpredictable storyline while noting Candice Bergen's strong performance as the self-centered but likable lead. It highlights the ensemble cast and director Barnet Kellman's handling of the setups. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/819754) - **Vulture** (70/100, inferred): The show has dated elements like broad secretary gags, Motown lip-sync numbers, and period references that feel gimmicky today. Its strongest asset remains the title character, a capable, unapologetic professional woman who stands out among TV's single working leads. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/2012/05/how-does-murphy-brown-hold-up.html) - **The Ringer**, Alison Herman (80/100, inferred): The critic praises the original Murphy Brown for demonstrating that female sitcom leads could be as irascible and difficult as classic male ones like Archie Bunker, and for its strong cultural imprint that remains timely decades later. They single out the joy of watching the unapologetic, ego-driven protagonist navigate her professional world without compromise. [Read](https://www.theringer.com/2018/09/12/tv/murphy-brown-original-revisited) ## Details - **Created by:** Diane English - **Creator:** Diane English - **Director:** Peter Bonerz, Barnet Kellman, Lee Shallat Chemel, Joe Regalbuto, Steve Zuckerman, Alan Rafkin, Peter Baldwin, John Rich - **Writer:** Gary Dontzig, Steven Peterman, Tom Palmer, Rob Bragin, Denise Moss, Sy Dukane, Peter Tolan, Michael Patrick King, Jennifer Ventimilia, Joshua Sternin, Russ Woody, Diane English, Adam Belanoff, Jhoni Marchinko, Lee Aronsohn, Tom Seeley, Kathryn Baker, Korby Siamis, Norm Gunzenhauser, David Sacks, Elaine Pope, Scott Kaufer, John Bowman, Bill Masters, Bob Stevens, Anne Beatts, Lisa Albert, Sarah Dunn, Marilyn Suzanne Miller, Diane Burroughs, Joey Gutierrez - **Editor:** Jerry Davis, Tucker Wiard - **Music:** Steve Dorff - **Producer:** Russ Woody, Tom Seeley, Norm Gunzenhauser - **Cast:** Candice Bergen as Murphy Brown; Faith Ford as Corky Sherwood; Joe Regalbuto as Frank Fontana; Charles Kimbrough as Jim Dial; Lily Tomlin as Kay Carter-Shepley; Grant Shaud as Miles Silverberg; Robert Pastorelli as Eldin Bernecky; Pat Corley - **Runtime:** 24m - **Certificate (MPA):** TV-PG - **Release (the US):** 14 November 1988 - **Genres:** Comedy ## Where to watch in the US - Tubi: free, hd *Checked 2026-09-16.* Also available in: US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *The Mary Tyler Moore Show* (1970), Fi1m 88: Another working woman anchors an ensemble with more warmth and less combativeness. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/the-mary-tyler-moore-show.md) - *Broadcast News* (1987), Fi1m 84: Professional competence and personal confusion meet in a sharply observed newsroom comedy. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/broadcast-news.md) - *Drop the Dead Donkey* (1990), Fi1m 74: For sharper newsroom malice and colleagues whose professional judgement rarely survives management. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/drop-the-dead-donkey.md) - *Borgen* (2010): A capable woman negotiates power, work and the cost of refusing compromise. - *Hacks* (2021), Fi1m 77: Another difficult woman gets good jokes without being required to become agreeable. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/hacksaw-ridge.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/murphy-brown