---
title: "Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em"
year: 1973
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/some-mothers-do-ave-em"
fi1m_score: 78
critics_score: 74
critics_reviews: 4
published: "2026-09-16T16:46:45.382710+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-16T16:47:11.559455+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."
---

# Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (1973)

Created by Raymond Allen · 30m · MPA TV-PG · Comedy

**Fi1m score: 78** · Critics 74 (early) from 4 reviews

*In a sentence:* Michael Crawford risks his neck so we can laugh at a man who ought to sit down

> Michael Crawford makes Frank Spencer’s accidents worth watching, with physical precision that survives the repetition. *Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em* is good slapstick, though its dependence on one man’s incompetence makes small doses advisable.

## Synopsis

Frank Spencer (Michael Crawford) means to do the right thing, but he has a habit of causing accidents. Alongside him is Betty Spencer (Michele Dotrice). Good intentions offer little protection against Frank’s capacity for disaster, and ordinary life provides repeated opportunities for things to go wrong. The half-hour comedy follows his attempts to cope, with physical mishaps supplying the slapstick and stunts extending the accidents. Frank keeps trying to get things right, leaving those around him to contend with the consequences when his efforts go wrong.

## Review

*Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em* is good slapstick built around a character who becomes wearing if we spend too long with him. Frank Spencer means well, and Michael Crawford makes that decency essential to the joke: we need a reason to keep caring after another accident. Raymond Allen, the programme’s creator and writer, gives him a dependable source of trouble in his own incompetence. At thirty minutes an episode, the arrangement works more often than it irritates.

Michael Crawford does not play Frank as someone who deserves whatever happens to him. His light touch allows foolishness to coexist with an innocence that remains appealing, even when another mishap seems inevitable. That is harder than it sounds: too much calculation would make Frank a nuisance, while too much helplessness would make the laughter feel cruel. The performance keeps us interested in how he will cope, which is useful when the broad shape of the joke is already familiar.

We laughed at the stunts, then worried about the person doing them. It is the visible risk in Michael Crawford’s physical comedy that causes the change: the mishap may be Frank’s, but an actor still has to perform it. The comedy gives us permission to enjoy his discomfort without quite removing our concern. That is a substantial achievement in slapstick, where elaborate accidents can become impersonal, and it gives the programme an appeal beyond affection for its central character.

Sydney Lotterby’s direction is strongest in the physical comedy, where it matters that we can follow Frank’s predicament as it develops. We can understand the trouble instead of simply waiting for the next impact, and that makes the anticipation enjoyable in itself. Raymond Allen’s writing helps by giving the accidents a consistent cause in Frank’s attempts to cope. We know enough about the man to recognise why he is having difficulty, even when the physical ingenuity is what holds our attention.

Michele Dotrice, as Betty Spencer, has the less conspicuous task of giving us someone to attend to beside Frank. Her presence matters because a programme centred so firmly on one performer risks making everybody else seem like a delay before the next accident. There is less room here for a second character to develop comparable comic freedom. That imbalance is understandable, given the attraction of the stunts, but it also narrows the pleasure.

Repetition is the larger limitation. Once Frank’s good intentions and poor co-ordination are established, too much of the comedy can be anticipated before the physical details arrive. Raymond Allen can vary the trouble without always varying our response to it, and the smaller jokes have a harder job beside such demanding physical work. We found our attention drifting when the prospect of another mishap had to do the work of a fresh idea.

A sitcom can make room for several equally funny people, and we do miss that variety here. As slapstick, however, this has the considerable advantage of an actor who makes physical incompetence look painfully plausible. The thirty-minute length helps, giving the routine a natural stopping point before familiarity takes too much away. Give it an episode, and resist the temptation to treat the next one as compulsory.

*Fi1m score 78, published 16 September 2026.*

### Reviews we read (4)

- **Radio Times**, Robert Ross (85/100, inferred): The critic celebrates the sitcom as an enduring classic and one of the most beloved British comedy characters of all time, noting its massive popularity and lasting cultural impact. They single out Michael Crawford's inspired casting as the hapless yet well-intentioned Frank Spencer for particular praise. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/comedy/some-mothers-do-ave-em-50/)
- **The Guardian** (80/100, inferred): The critic praises the original 1970s series as a standout sitcom built around Michael Crawford's indelible comic performance as the hapless Frank Spencer, whose light touch and physical stunts made it a classic. The piece notes the show's enduring appeal through nostalgia and Crawford's skillful portrayal of a well-meaning but accident-prone character. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/apr/12/some-mothers-do-ave-em-joe-pasquale-frank-spencer-michael-crawford)
- **The Times** (★★★☆☆): The review highlights the enduring appeal of the show's witty writing and physical comedy as a family-friendly classic. It notes the peculiar but lovable character of Frank Spencer and the impressive, dangerous stunts performed by Michael Crawford. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/some-mothers-do-ave-em-review-spencer-and-slapstick-revisiting-a-timeless-classic-zj2hp9mx9)
- **The Telegraph**, Anita Singh (3/5): The critic praises the 1970s sitcom's timeless slapstick and Michael Crawford's daring stunts as a highlight of classic comedy. The retrospective documentary is faulted for being unofficial and overly reliant on talking heads rather than the show itself. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2023/06/10/frank-spencer-50-years-some-mothers-do-ave-em/)

## Details

- **Created by:** Raymond Allen
- **Creator:** Raymond Allen
- **Director:** Sydney Lotterby
- **Writer:** Raymond Allen
- **Producer:** Michael Mills
- **Cast:** Michael Crawford as Frank Spencer; Michele Dotrice as Betty Spencer; John D. Collins; Geoffrey Whitehead; Linda Hayden; Cyril Shaps; Desmond Llewelyn; Vernon Dobtcheff
- **Runtime:** 30m
- **Certificate (MPA):** TV-PG
- **Release (the US):** 15 February 1973
- **Genres:** Comedy

## Where to watch in the US

Not streaming, renting or buying in the US at the last check.

Also available in: GB, IE. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *The General* (1926): For physical comedy that lets us see exactly how much could go wrong.
- *Mon oncle* (1958): Another well-meaning nuisance, with more space for the people inconvenienced by him.
- *The Plank* (1967): Practical work becomes hazardous through careful timing and an awkward length of timber.
- *Mr. Bean* (1990): A less apologetic nuisance, with similarly exact physical work and little need for dialogue.
- *Police Story* (1985): If the dangerous stunts are the attraction, try this harder-edged action comedy.

---
© 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/some-mothers-do-ave-em