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Series 1 |
| 1 :01x01 - Plough Your Own Furrow (Apr/04/1975) | It is Tom Good's 40th birthday and he is finding life meaningless. He works with his neighbour Jerry for a Company in London which designs plastic toys for cereal packets and Tom finds it difficult to take such a job seriously.
Eventually Tom and his wife Barbara decide to drop out of the rat race and become self-sufficient in Surbiton by growing all of their own vegetables and keeping some livestock. | | | |
| 2 :01x02 - Say Little Hen ... (Apr/11/1975) | Tom and Barbara start demolishing their garden and turning it into a vegetable patch. They also build a hen house for the chickens which have just arrived.
That evening they dine with their next door neighbours, Margot and Jerry Leadbetter. They have a disagreement and nearly start their first day of self-sufficiency by killing off one of their own hens with a starting pistol. | | Guest Stars: Reginald Marsh as Andrew or 'Sir', Moyra Fraser as Phyllis | | | |
| 3 :01x03 - The Weaker Sex? (Apr/18/1975) | Tom sees a junk cart going by with an old Victorian iron wood-burning range on it, and leaps at the chance of acquiring it since it will save on electricity.
However, it needs a lot of cleaning and unfortunately Tom leaves most of this to Barbara while he works out various methods of keeping the birds from eating their seeds. In the end Barbara rebels, and goes in to Margo and Jerry's house for a drink and general pick me up.
The man from whom they acquired the range provides the answer to the bird problem - he calls by with a small kitten. | | Guest Stars: Tony Selby as Sam, Paul McDowell as Telephone Employee | | | |
| 4 :01x04 - Pig's Lib (Apr/25/1975) | Tom and Barbara acquire two piglets, promptly christened Pinky and Perky by Barbara. Settled into their own sty in the Goods' back garden, it is not long before Margo lodges a complaint, declaring that pigs are dirty, messy creatures.
To back up her assertions Margo calls in a local council member, but is astonished when he sides with the Goods. Pinky and Perky are allowed to stay, but only on condition that they do not stray into Margo's garden.
Disaster strikes when Pinky and Perky tunnel out of their sty and graze in Margo's arbor among the concrete toad stools. | | Guest Stars: Lionel Walker as -, John Lawrence (2) as -, Jonathan Lynn (1) as -, Robert Gillespie as Mr. Carter | | | |
| 5 :01x05 - The Thing in the Cellar (May/02/1975) | Tom designs a generator which is driven by the methane from animal dung, and installs it in the cellar.
He and Barbara discover that there are all sorts of foods which are no longer eaten but which are free, like rabbits from the nearby posh golf links, and fish from a stream nearby.
Tom catches quite a few fish, and he and Barbara freeze them. Problems arise when the generator breaks down and there is no more electricity. | | Guest Stars: Ray Mort as Fisherman | | | | | | |
| 7 :01x07 - Backs to the Wall (May/16/1975) | Tom finds himself suffering a bad back during harvest time leaving Barbara to do all the work on her own - a situation made worse by terrible weather conditions.
Appeals to their friends at the local pub for assistance fall on deaf ears - it seems that the only friends they have who are willing to 'Dig for Victory' are Jerry and Margo - and they are in Kenya - or are they? | | Guest Stars: Harry Goodier as 3rd Man in pub, Frank Lester as 2nd Man in pub, Pamela Manson as Woman in pub, Billy Milton as man in pub, June Jago as General Practitioner | | | |
Series 2 |
| 8 :02x01 - Just My Bill (Dec/05/1975) | Tom and Barbara have the rates to pay, but are having trouble selling their surplus vegetables.
Tom decides to sell the vegetables privately by hawking them from door to door, but things get ugly when a rival supplier of vegetables and his cohort, an enormous fellow called Eugene, turn up on the scene with their large truck.
Tom and Barbara are advised to grow different, more specialised crops for the following season. | | | |
| 9 :02x02 - The Guru of Surbiton (Dec/12/1975) | Tom and Barbara have rented several allotments for their new crops, one of which is in Jerry's name. Two students are staying with the Goods, Guy and Ruth. The students are very impressed with the Goods' life style, so much that they decide to buy the house next door, where they can set up a hippie commune.
Margo is not impressed, and Barbara and Tom aren't very happy either. | | Guest Stars: Bruce Bould as Guy, Irene Richard as Ruth | | | |
| 10 :02x03 - Mr. Fix-It (Dec/19/1975) | When a freelance journalist interviews Tom and Barbara for a proposed newspaper article, Jerry tells them that they should cash in on their new found fame with the local shopkeepers.
However, things do not turn out quite as expected. | | | |
| 11 :02x04 - The Day Peace Broke Out (Jan/02/1976) | When Tom catches a man stealing leeks from his front garden he exacts vengeance by shooting the man in the posterior with his starting pistol.
However, when both Tom and the man end up in court it ceases to be a light-hearted incident, and Tom is the one who ends up behind bars. | | | |
| 12 :02x05 - Mutiny (Jan/09/1976) | Margo is due to play the Julie Andrews role in 'The Sound of Music' at the local village hall and when Jerry tells her that Andrew, commonly known a 'Sir', would like them to entertain a visiting businessman for the company, Margo rebels and refuses. When Jerry loses his job she is too wrapped up in her performance to take the matter seriously.
It is left to Tom and Barbara to help Jerry to get his job back again. | | Guest Stars: Reginald Marsh as Andrew or 'Sir' | | | |
| 13 :02x06 - Home Sweet Home (Jan/16/1976) | It is time for Pinky the pig to be mated. Tom and Barbara meet Mr. May, a farmer who is bringing along his boar to serve Pinky. Mr. May advises them that their lifestyle isn't really practical. He tells them that a small farm has just come onto the market which would suit them down to the ground.
After viewing the smallholding, Tom and Barbara agree that it is the most efficient thing to do, so they decide to put their house in Surbiton up for sale and move out into the country.
However, trouble arises when it is discovered by Margo and Jerry that neither Barbara nor Tom really wishes to leave their home in Surbiton, but that each is too proud to tell the other. | | | |
| 14 :02x07 - Going to Pot? (Jan/23/1976) | Tom and Barbara decide to take night classes in home maintenance. In addition Barbara signs up for pottery making and Tom for weaving, and Margo joins Barbara at her pottery class.
However, Barbara is not much good at pottery making, and Tom is even worse at weaving, so they swap classes. Tom turns out to have a real talent for making pottery, and soon word gets around via Margo's friend Mrs. Weaver about Tom's new-found talent and orders start to flood in for different items of pottery.
Suddenly it all gets out of hand and the Goods realise that they have very nearly been lured back into the rat race. | | | |
Series 3 |
| 15 :03x01 - The Early Birds (Sep/10/1976) | It is early Spring and a very busy time in Tom and Barbara's lives, with planting and a lot of work to be done. They decide that they will try to work with Mother Nature instead of against her, by going to bed as soon as it gets dark and getting up with the sun.
However, all does not go according to plan, with the Goods annoying the Leadbetters in the early mornings when they are trying to sleep and the Leadbetters annoying the Goods in the evenings when they, in turn, are trying to sleep.
A happy compromise is soon reached. | | | |
| 16 :03x02 - The Happy Event (Sep/17/1976) | Pinky goes into labour and gives birth to eight piglets, but the last one is a runt.
Tom shocks Barbara, Margo and Jerry when he declares that it is not efficient to save the piglet's life, but soon changes his mind when he sees their reaction.
Jerry and Barbara rush to hospital to get an oxygen cylinder and are provided with an unexpected police escort from Constable Hillman, and Tom and Margo administer brandy to the piglet while they wait.
In the end the piglet rallies, and the police celebrate with cups of tea all round in the police canteen. | | | |
| 17 :03x03 - A Tug of the Forelock (Sep/24/1976) | Tom and Barbara are finding that a cart on four old pram-wheels isn't very efficient at lugging wood to fuel their range, so Tom comes up with the idea of modifying the rotary cultivator as a sort of moon buggy.
However, before it can be used as a means of transport road tax needs to be paid, plus money is needed for petrol.
In the meantime, Margo's two servants have gone on holiday to Canada and she is desperate for help. Tom and Barbara offer to be her domestic servants for a month, just until they get enough money to pay for their new vehicle's expenses. But working for Margo is an entirely different thing to being a friend of Margo's. Tom and Barbara are soon counting the days. | | | |
| 18 :03x04 - I Talk to the Trees (Oct/01/1976) | While working on their allotment one day, Barbara and Tom meet Mr. Wakeling, an elderly gentleman who believes that if you talk to plants they will thrive, and also that playing music to them encourages them to grow bigger and healthier.
Eager to put this theory into practice, the Goods set up a 'scientific' experiement involving a control, a plant which is 'loved' and one which is 'hated'. The results seem to bear out Mr. Wakeling's beliefs, so Tom drags out his old record player to put the music theory to the test.
In the meantime, Margo has organised a take-over of the Music Society from Miss Mountshaft who is away on holidays. The members have arranged to meet at Margo's home and Margo has just about got them around to her way of thinking when loud music comes from the Good's house next door. The inevitable row ensues, but eventually Margo is elected President of the Music Society and all is forgiven. | | Guest Stars: Joyce Windsor as Music Society Member, Raymond Mason as Music Society Member, Noel Howlett as Mr. Wakeling | | | |
| 19 :03x05 - The Wind-Break War (Oct/08/1976) | Margo erects an enormous windbreak on the boundary fence without realising that it is casting a gigantic shadow over all the fruit which Tom and Barbara have just planted.
The Goods strenuously object and Margo agrees to move it, but misunderstandings occur and a row between the Goods and the Leadbetters ensues.
Eventually matters are sorted out over a few bottles of peapod wine, and Margo finds out that she has a sense of humour after all. | | Guest Stars: Timothy Bateson as Arthur Bailey, Desmond Cullum-Jones as Workman, Roger Pope as 1st Workman | | | |
| 20 :03x06 - Whose Fleas are These? (Oct/15/1976) | The range explodes one evening, showering Tom and Barbara with soot from head to toe, so they go into the Leadbetter's house for a bath.
When they return they discover a flea crawling on Barbara's leg, to her utter dismay. In an effort to hide their 'problem' Tom dips all their animals in an insecticidal solution but in the end the truth comes out and they are visited by the local pest inspector. | | Guest Stars: Michael Robbins as P.V. Balstrode, Ray Dunbobbin as Postman | | | |
| 21 :03x07 - The Last Posh Frock (Oct/22/1976) | Tom is taking Barbara for granted, treating her like one of the lads and generally behaving insensitively. When she tears a big hole in her last posh frock, Tom doesn't seem to understand how upset she is, telling her that things like this don't matter and that he loves her anyway whatever she wears.
However, when Barbara's friend Eileen comes to dinner Tom is all over her, showering her with compliments and generally behaving like a hypocrite. Ultimately Tom and Barbara have a huge row, and Jerry makes Tom see that he is in the wrong over this matter.
Ultimately matters are resolved, and Tom realises that he has behaved very badly. | | Guest Stars: Ronald Nunnery as Man In Street, Liz Robertson as Eileen | | | |
Series 4 |
| 22 :04x01 - Away from It All (Apr/10/1977) | Tom and Barbara are both getting very tired, so when the opportunity arises for them to take a holiday in Mayfair they jump at the chance. Margo and Jerry offer to look after the animals for a couple of nights.
However, once established in Mayfair, Tom and Barbara start worrying about the welfare of their livestock. | | | |
| 23 :04x02 - The Green Door (Apr/17/1977) | Margo is looking very smart these days, and tells the Goods that she has been going riding twice a week.
However, when the Goods go up to the riding school to get some horse manure for their garden they find that Margo hasn't been near the place for several months.
When they see Margo vanishing furtively behind the plain green door of a house in the main street Tom and Barbara are convinced that she is having an affair, and when Jerry announces that he is thinking about joining the riding school to keep Margo company they fly into a panic.
What is the secret behind the green door? | | Guest Stars: Jane Hilary as Riding School Proprietor, Toria Fuller as Woman | | | |
| 24 :04x03 - Our Speaker Today (Apr/24/1977) | Barbara is invited to give a talk on self-sufficiency by one of the local Committees, hosted by Lady Truscott. The talk is an enormous success, and Barbara finds that she is in demand as a speaker.
Margot is very keen to make a good impression on Lady Truscott, and sends Jerry off to Fortnum and Masons for one of their pricey food hampers.
Meanwhile Tom is left on his own, trying to build the new hen house. When Lenin the rooster escapes he hops on a bus to Kingston with Tom in hot pursuit. | | Guest Stars: Colin McCormack as -, Robert Lindsay as Juvenile Delinquent, Angela Thorne as Lady Truscott, Con Chambers as - | | | |
| 25 :04x04 - The Weaver's Tale (May/01/1977) | The Goods look as though they are on top at last. They have sold their exotic fruits at an exorbitant price and after working out their commitments they find that they have 20 pounds left over.
Tom goes into town with Margot and blows their 20 pounds on a loom. He also encourages Margot to buy a spinning wheel which she has spotted in the window of an antique shop. Never a shrinking violet, Tom has hopes of borrowing it in the future for his own use.
However, when the spinning wheel is delivered it is discovered that it is for show only; in fact it is also a music box in disguise, much to Tom's disgust and Margot's and Jerry's amusement. | | Guest Stars: Milton Johns as Antique shop dealer | | | |
| 26 :04x05 - Suit Yourself (May/08/1977) | The Goods are well on their way with spinning and weaving their own cloth from lambswool. They have even discovered how to die the wool using nettles, walnuts and onion skins.
Andrew (Sir) suddenly announces that he is retiring from JJM's. He invites Margot and Jerry and his rivals for the Managing Directorship, Snetterton and Dalby, out for dinner where a good deal of rivalry, one-upmanship and backstabbing occurs. Jerry has even drafted a plan for the expansion of JJMs, but unfortunately drops his draft in the Goods' front garden on his way to the dinner.
It is up to Tom and Barbara to save the day. | | Guest Stars: Patricia Driscoll as Mrs. Dalby, Terence Conoley as Dalby, Philip Madoc as Snetterton, Reginald Marsh as Andrew or 'Sir'. | | | |
| 27 :04x06 - Sweet and Sour Charity (May/15/1977) | Against Margot's wishes, the Music Society wish to present 'Sweet Charity' at the Town Hall instead of 'The Merry Widow'. Margot considers 'Sweet Charity' to be vulgar and beneath contempt, especially after she has viewed the costumes for the production.
Tom has been eyeing off the vacant neighbouring house's oil tank, and is tempted to syphon it off so that he can exchange the oil for some straw for the pigs. When Barbara points out that this would be dishonest he reluctantly reconsiders.
Eventually he decides to telephone Mrs. Weaver, the former owner of the property, to ask for permission for the oil. Also acting according to her principles, Margot decides not to play the lead in 'Sweet Charity'. | | | |
| 28 :04x07 - Anniversary (May/22/1977) | Margot and Jerry are on tenterhooks as they wait for Andrew's decision regarding the managing directorship of JJM.
Tom and Barbara visit, and provide loyal backup despite the fact that nothing has been going right for them lately, with Geraldine the goat's milk supply drying up and a large part of the garden destroyed by oil.
But yet another challenge to their lifestyle is waiting for them, one which will challenge both of them in their belief that their life really is the 'good' life. | | Guest Stars: Reginald Marsh as Andrew or 'Sir' | | | |
| 29 :04x08 - Silly, But It's Fun (Dec/27/1977) | It is Christmas and the Goods plan a simple celebration in contrast to Margo and Jerry who have ordered a van full of Christmas goodies, including a Christmas tree which falls short by 6 inches of the size required by the exacting Margo Leadbetter.
She sends the entire van delivery back on Christmas Eve and is surprised to find that there will be no more deliveries on Christmas Day. She and Jerry have therefore no alternative but to spend Christmas with Tom and Barbara, and are pleasantly surprised to find that it is the best Christmas ever. | | Guest Stars: David Battley as Delivery Man | | | |
| When I'm 65 (1978) | Jerry wants to take out more insurance for when he retires, but a doctor's examination reveals that he is not as fit as he had thought he was. He and Margot go on a health kick, purchasing all sorts of gym equipment and jogging around Surbiton.
Tom starts to worry about his and Barbara's future, and visits his local Bank Manager with a very original idea for a Bank loan.
Tom and Jerry challenge one another to a race, with Tom representing Self Sufficiency, but neither Tom nor Jerry is really all that fit and they end up in the local pub. | | Guest Stars: George Cole (1) as Bank Manager | | | |
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