Richard Waring wrote a string of domestic-themed sitcoms in the '60's and '70's, including 'Not In Front Of The Children' ( starring Wendy Craig ), 'Batchelor Father' ( with Ian Carmichael ), and 'Rings On Their Fingers' ( Martin Jarvis and Diane Keen ). As I've noted elsewhere, these managed to amuse without ever hitting the laugh button. 'Partners', one of his last shows, starred his brother Derek, then still fresh in the viewers' memory from the hit I.T.V. comedy drama 'Moody & Pegg'. He played 'Rupert Bannister', owner of a company that makes bathroom fittings. A potential investor gives him the golden opportunity to expand, but to obtain the money, he needs the shares he gave his wife Diana ( Mel Martin ) as a wedding present. Alas they are presently going through a divorce - he has left her for sex-bomb Pamela Heslop ( Elisabeth Counsell ). Diana decides to hold onto the shares, effectively becoming a partner in the company. She proves useful to have about, managing to stop a strike before it begins and impressing clients.
The show owed a great debt to one of Waring's earlier hits - 'My Wife Next Door' which had starred John Alderton and Hannah Gordon as divorcées who find they have purchased homes next to each other. Here Rupert and former wife Diana were kept together by business, making the show a sort of 'My Wife In The Office Next Door'. As it progressed, the marriage began to flicker back into life until finally, there was a reconciliation.
Despite a good cast that included Jacqueline Clarke ( from 'A Sharp Intake Of Breath' and 'Dave Allen At Large' ), Derek Francis and Derek Farr, 'Partners' - produced by Harold Snoad - never clicked with viewers. Perhaps it was too old fashioned, a different time slot ( say Sunday at 7.15 P.M. ) might have helped. I could not work out why anyone in their right mind would want to leave the gorgeous Mel Martin. But, to be fair, Elisabeth Counsell was stunning too. Her 'Marilyn Monroe' impersonation ( singing 'I Want To Be Loved By You' from 'Some Like It Hot' ) in one episode was awesome.
The show owed a great debt to one of Waring's earlier hits - 'My Wife Next Door' which had starred John Alderton and Hannah Gordon as divorcées who find they have purchased homes next to each other. Here Rupert and former wife Diana were kept together by business, making the show a sort of 'My Wife In The Office Next Door'. As it progressed, the marriage began to flicker back into life until finally, there was a reconciliation.
Despite a good cast that included Jacqueline Clarke ( from 'A Sharp Intake Of Breath' and 'Dave Allen At Large' ), Derek Francis and Derek Farr, 'Partners' - produced by Harold Snoad - never clicked with viewers. Perhaps it was too old fashioned, a different time slot ( say Sunday at 7.15 P.M. ) might have helped. I could not work out why anyone in their right mind would want to leave the gorgeous Mel Martin. But, to be fair, Elisabeth Counsell was stunning too. Her 'Marilyn Monroe' impersonation ( singing 'I Want To Be Loved By You' from 'Some Like It Hot' ) in one episode was awesome.
