Auf Wiedersehen, Pet: the show that painted men as they really are
Pet was a TV show about a group of British workers who are escaping the dole queues in England to take up cash-in-hand jobs in West Germany. It was packed with regional stereotypes. The millions watching recognised and loved them all instantly. The show painted men as they really are. They included Dennis, Barry, Oz and Wayne.
Pet was a TV show about a group of working-class Englishmen. It was voted the best independent TV programme of all time by Radio Times. The people have spoken and the writers have followed. The latter series pandered to what people wanted to believe were street-wise wide boys trying to buck the system. This time next year they were going to be millionaires. One's BBC, one's ITV. There's a difference. Thunderbirds finished second, above Coronation Street, and Blind Date made the top ten. On the 60th anniversary of ITV, it has been declared the most successful TV series.
