History
The idea of a spin-off was originally suggested by the cast of Are You Being Served? almost immediately after the original series ended in 1985. Lloyd and Croft liked the idea, but agreed that the department store format was exhausted and that any spin-off would require a change of location. Despite the enthusiasm of the original cast, it would be almost seven years before Lloyd and Croft brought them back to television.
The plot line that brought the cast from the store to the manor was considered remarkably topical, since it aired just a few months after the death of British publishing tycoon Robert Maxwell, who was revealed to have borrowed heavily against his own employees' pensions.
Grace and Favour was different from Are You Being Served? in that it involved a continuous story arc, with certain plot elements, such as the relationship between Mr. Humphries and Mavis Moulterd unfolding throughout each episode. This in turn allowed the series to involve more complex storylines and subplots, making it possible for returning guest stars and location shooting, which was never done on Are You Being Served?
The series name is a double play on words. A "grace and favour" is a home or other property, owned by a monarch but given to the use of a faithful retainer upon his retirement, such as the retired characters in this series. Grace is also the name of the owner of Grace Brothers, the fictional department store where the characters previously worked.
Read more about this topic: Grace & Favour
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“It would be naive to think that peace and justice can be achieved easily. No set of rules or study of history will automatically resolve the problems.... However, with faith and perseverance,... complex problems in the past have been resolved in our search for justice and peace. They can be resolved in the future, provided, of course, that we can think of five new ways to measure the height of a tall building by using a barometer.”
—Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.)
“[Men say:] “Don’t you know that we are your natural protectors?” But what is a woman afraid of on a lonely road after dark? The bears and wolves are all gone; there is nothing to be afraid of now but our natural protectors.”
—Frances A. Griffin, U.S. suffragist. As quoted in History of Woman Suffrage, vol. 4, ch. 19, by Susan B. Anthony and Ida Husted Harper (1902)
“Regarding History as the slaughter-bench at which the happiness of peoples, the wisdom of States, and the virtue of individuals have been victimized—the question involuntarily arises—to what principle, to what final aim these enormous sacrifices have been offered.”
—Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831)