British Men Behaving Badly

- Season 6

(1997)

After Gary has proposed to Dorothy, with a condom as a ring, they embark on their stag and hen nights. Gary is shocked to find that next day he has woken up to a young woman - paid for by Tony - but Dorothy has also entertained a man friend and they argue. Tony gets a job helping a woman give birth at home in a birthing pool and does so well Deborah kisses him. He wants more but Deborah believes it more important to reconcile the rowing Gary and Dorothy, only to find the couple indulging in some passion on the sofa.

Gary and Dorothy's wedding day has arrived and the relatives turn up for the occasion but, as everybody arrives at the registry office two hours early, they head off for the pub. Later they discover that the ceremony cannot take place as the registrar has fallen ill and no replacement can be found. This is no great hardship for the happy couple who decide that they are content with the current arrangement and go on the honeymoon anyway. And Tony, after a six year wait, finally gets to have sex with Deborah.

The two couples go on a camping weekend but whilst Deborah and Tony are in love Dorothy and Gary are decidedly short with each other, a situation not helped because Dorothy has forced Gary to give up smoking. Tony becomes jealous when two fellow campers try to be friendly, while Gary is more than happy for Dorothy to spend time with the young men.

Deborah, Dorothy and Gary are trying to watch 'Star Trek' but are irritated by Tony's silly comments so they contrive to get him out of the room by getting him to dress as Braveheart and play Hide and Seek whilst they reminisce on old television shows and their theme tunes. Gary has ordered pizzas on the basis they are free if the delivery takes over forty five minutes so that when the delivery boy arrives he tries to hide to make up the time but is forced to pay. The quartet then eat their pizzas and carry on watching 'Star Trek'.

Jonathan, Dorothy's ten year old nephew, comes to stay and Gary and Tony find themselves taking advice from him. Tony, whilst envying Deborah the fact that she has made love in dangerous places, tries to impress her mother but tries too hard and annoys her, leading to him shouting at her. Dorothy takes a reluctant Gary to see a relationship counsellor but he is more interested in the pretty student sitting in on the interview. They do make a compromise however by taking the counsellor's advice and pretending to be on a first date.

Tony wakes up to find that he has bought a snake from a man in a pub but cannot get rid of it. Deborah and Dorothy meanwhile put pressure on Gary to get rid of his uncomfortable old sofa, causing him to reminisce on how he first came by it and the women he tried - and failed - to seduce on it, Dorothy being his first major success. Whilst Deborah and Dorothy sit down on the posh new sofa Gary and Tony take the old one, and the snake, and set it down on the Cerne Abbas Giant where they take great delight in acting childishly.

Interspersed with fantasy scenes of a glorious traditional Christmas in which the two couples are waited on by George and Anthea comes the reality in which Gary shuts the door and carol-singers, nobody gets the present they want and, although Gary offers to cook the turkey, he forgets to turn the oven on. When he finally gets it right he gets so drunk he passes out and the meat is burned to a crisp. Deborah meanwhile tells Tony she thinks they should split up because he is so childish. Feeling guilty she follows him to the pub where Ken has created a bizarre crib but ...