Malta Doctor Title : Desmond's (TV Show)Date of Review : 24th of April 2014Reviewer : Malta DoctorScore : 10 Out of 10Would I Recommend the Series to a Friend ? : YesWould I Personally Pay for a DVD Box Set of the Series ? : YesWould I (Really) Want There to be a Total Remake of the Series , complete with a Brand New Set of Characters and a Totally Fresh Cast ? : MOST DEFINITELY NOT !Additional Suggestions : None At PresentSource : www.MaltaDoctor.com

waiching liu Desmonds was one of channel 4's most successful U.K sitcoms during the late 80s and what made it so appealing to mainstream and black audiences was the funny- yet well depicted life of a Black family led by 2 Jamaican born parents, Desmond and Shirley and their British born kids, Sean and Gloria.Desmonds is the name of the barber shop, Desmond Ambrose runs alongside his wife Shirley. There are 4 other supporting characters: Tony, the token Caucasian who is a fellow barber, Porkpie and Matthew, the African who comes across as being very intellectual and offers a philosophical insight on life. Lastly is Desmond and Shirley's other son, the somewhat stuck-up and sophisticated Michael, who works in a bank. What makes Desmonds different to every other Black sitcom that has been around on television and are on TV today firstly is it is mainly centred on Black British Caribbean culture, as opposed to African American Black culture in the U.S. It was not the first ever Black sitcom to air on TV but it was the first set in a work environment.Many Black communities in the U.K and England, tend to be either of Jamaican or African descent in contrast to the U.S. Which explains a lot about the differences between Black British culture and Black American culture. Desmonds was a sitcom that showed the lives of a working man and his family and it gave us a glimpse of this infusion of Black British, Caribbean culture with some 'western' aspects and conventions of the sitcom genre. Secondly, the humour is very quint-essentially British-like-like with a Caribbean flavour to it; it works so amazingly well.Desmonds is well- written, very funny and the characters are very likable. I think it was a shame that as a result of Norman Beaton's death that the series had to end so prematurely. Had that not happened, then I could've seen it last for a few more series.Desmond's was a great little sitcom- if you haven't seen it yet, I'd recommend that you do!

netty1968 Have just finished watching what, to me, epitomised black British comedy in the '90s. This comedy is laugh out loud hilarious, without being patronising and has managed to stand the test of time, even by today's standards.Norman Beaton (may he rest in peace) was a comedic genius and it made me cry just recalling the fact that he is no longer with us. The remaining supporting cast were equally funny, making a series basically focusing on the day to day events in a barbers in Peckham, very realistic.A lot of the humour resonates with my own childhood, with the loud banter, constant ribbing and no one safe from the butt of a joke. I hope other people get hooked on this programme as you will not regret spending half an hour with the Ambroses...

hillari I was surprised to come across this predominately Black sitcom from the UK. BET used to show episodes of it in the early 1990s. It is a very funny show about a barber and his family, employees and friends. Much of the humor came from Desmond's inability to adapt to changing times and ideas. Desmond's oldest son, Michael, was sort of a mirror image of his father, a stuffed shirt banker who always had to do things by the book. Michael's younger sister and brother, were typical teens, prone to the ups and downs of growing up. One of the best characters was Porkpie, one of Desmond's old friends; a guy like him can be found in any barber shop anywhere in the world. Another good character was Auntie Suzu, Demond's wild sister-in-law. There are other British sitcoms out on video now; I hope this one comes out on video, as well.