Steptoe and Son

**Steptoe and Son** is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about a father-and-son rag-and-bone business. They live at Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were broadcast by the BBC from 1962 to 1965, followed by a second run from 1970 to 1974. The theme tune, "Old Ned", was composed by Ron Grainer. The series was voted 15th in a 2004 poll by the BBC to find *Britain's Best Sitcom*. It was remade in the United States as *Sanford and Son*, in Sweden as *Albert & Herbert*, in the Netherlands as *Stiefbeen en zoon*, in Portugal as *Camilo & Filho*, and in South Africa as *Snetherswaite and Son*. Two film adaptations of the series were released in cinemas, *Steptoe and Son* (1972) and *Steptoe and Son Ride Again* (1973).

The series focused on the inter-generational conflict of father and son. Albert Steptoe, a "dirty old man", is an elderly rag-and-bone man, set in his grimy and grasping ways. By contrast, his son Harold is filled with social aspirations and pretensions. The show contained elements of drama and tragedy, as Harold was continually prevented from achieving his ambitions.

In 2000, the show was ranked number 44 on the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes compiled by the British Film Institute. In a 2001 Channel 4 poll Albert was ranked 39th on their list of the 100 Greatest TV Characters.

## Plot

Many episodes revolve around sometimes violent disagreements between the two men, Harold's attempts to bed women and momentary interest over things found on his round. Much of the humour derives from the pathos of the protagonists' situation, especially Harold's continually thwarted (usually by the elder Steptoe) attempts to better himself, and the unresolveable love/hate relationship that exists between the pair.

Albert almost always comes out on top, and routinely proves himself superior to his son whenever they compete, such as when they played snooker into the night and pouring rain in 1970, and Scrabble and badminton in the 1972 series. Harold takes these games extremely seriously and sees them as symbols of his desire to improve himself, but his efforts come to nothing each time. His father's success is partly down to greater skills but is aided by cynical gamesmanship and undermining of his son's confidence. In addition, Albert habitually has better judgement than his son, who blunders into multiple con tricks and blind alleys as a result of his unrealistic, desperate straw-clutching approach. Occasionally the tables are turned, but overall the old man is the winner.

Harold is infuriated by these persistent frustrations and defeats, even going to the extent in "Divided We Stand" (1972) of attempting to partition the house so that he does not have to share with his selfish, uncultured and negative father. His plan ends in failure and ultimately he can see no way out. However, for all the bitterness there is an essential bond between the pair. In bad situations, Harold sticks by his father. This protective bond is shown in "The Seven Steptoerai" (1974) when they are menaced by a local gangster running a protection racket.

The 1974 Christmas special ended the run and it first appears Harold is once again at the bad end of poor planning, when he books a Christmas holiday abroad, but then finds his passport is out of date. His father must go alone, and Harold, tearfully it seems, waves him off to enjoy a potential good time without him. Harold trudges away, only to jump in a car with a woman to drive off on his own holiday, revealing that he had engineered the whole situation from the beginning.

## Characters

*Main article: List of Steptoe and Son characters*
The two main characters in the show are Albert Steptoe (Wilfrid Brambell) and Harold Steptoe (Harry H. Corbett). They have a large extended family who appear occasionally including many of Albert's brothers and sisters, among them Auntie May (Rose Hill), Uncle Arthur (George A. Cooper) and Auntie Minnie (Mollie Sugden).

## External links

* *Steptoe and Son*  at the Internet Movie Database
* *Steptoe and Son* Appreciation Society
* *Steptoe and Son* Collectors Archive
* *Steptoe and Son* at Laughterlog
* *Steptoe and Son* at BFI Screenonline