Synopsis
Only When I Laugh is an ITV1 sitcom broadcast from 29 October 1979 to 16 December 1982 for four series with seven episodes each, and a Christmas special in 1981. The title is the answer to the question, "Does it hurt?" A naïve middle-class man is admitted to an NHS hospital ward, shared with a working-class layabout and an upper-class hypochondriac. The trio never fail to cause a nuisance for the poor, unsuspecting staff.
Episodes
1E1A Bed with a ViewYoung Norman Binns is admitted to Dr Thorpe's ward and is tricked by pessimistic Roy Figgis into swapping beds so that Figgis can have the bed with the window view. As a result, Thorpe and staff nurse Gupte confuse the two men's symptoms.30m2E2Operation NormanNorman has to have an appendectomy but Figgis' doom-laden description of operations and Thorpe's wariness do not give him confidence, so he hides in the toilet, having to be coaxed out.30m3E3The RumourThorpe is telling Gupte that his dog Victor is unwell but Gupte misunderstands and thinks he's talking about his son. The patients also fall prey to the misunderstanding, for various reasons each believing that they are going to die.30m4E4The Man with the FaceGlover has been seeing a Greek girl and panics when her violent boyfriend comes looking for him so Figgis wraps his head in bandages, claiming that he is a burn victim, setting up a series of confusions.30m5E5Let Them Eat CakeFed up with the quality of the hospital buffet, the patients go on strike but are soon defeated. However, server Clegg decides to go on strike himself, but has his foot run over whilst on picket outside the hospital.30m6E6Tangled WebNorman is reading a hospital romance, when he sees new nurse Sally, who is exactly like the fictional heroine. He wants to express his feelings but finds rivalry in Glover, Thorpe and Gupte, all keen to pursue.30m7E7Is There a Doctor in the House?When Glover is discharged, an unhappy Figgis, without someone to quarrel with, goes to the pub, pretending to be a doctor and diagnosing people with terrible illnesses, filling the ward.30m
Cast
