Birds of a Feather (TV series)

Did You Know?

• An American adaptation called Stand by Your Man aired on Fox for eight episodes in 1992, starring Rosie O'Donnell and Melissa Gilbert-Brinkman.
• The series was sold to more than 30 countries, with format adaptations in Australia, New Zealand, Spain, and South Africa.
• A stage tour of Birds of a Feather was planned for spring 2012 after Pauline Quirke left Emmerdale in December 2011.

Synopsis

The title derives from the idiom 'birds of a feather flock together', referring to people with similar backgrounds or interests. The series follows Cockney sisters Sharon Theodopolopodous and Tracey Stubbs, whose lives change when their husbands are convicted of armed robbery and sent to prison. Sharon, a loud-mouthed, fun-loving woman from a council flat in Edmonton, moves into Tracey's luxury home in Chigwell to support her after the imprisonment. Sharon felt inferior to her elder sister and believed she had a tougher childhood; her marriage to Chris, a waster of Greek Cypriot descent, was miserable and childless, supposedly due to Sharon's infertility, though she later learns Chris is infertile. She cheats on him and gives him grief during visits, yet becomes envious when he has other women. Tracey loves her husband Darryl, who built conservatories legitimately but made most of his money robbing banks. Tracey deludes herself about his innocence, even when Darryl defrauds her of her business assets after his release. They have a son, Garth, who becomes a chef, marries Kimberley, and later moves to Australia. Tracey is law-abiding, while Sharon engages in unscrupulous activities such as illegally subletting her council flat, taking drugs, and selling stolen merchandise.

Production

Interior scenes for the original series were mostly shot at Teddington Studios, with the exterior of 'Dalentrace' filmed on Camp Road in the Gerrards Cross area of Buckinghamshire. Streets in Pinner, North West London, often doubled for Chigwell. Prison exteriors were filmed at HM Prison Maidstone. For the 2014 revival, interior scenes were recorded in Studio 2 at The London Studios before a live audience from 28 September to 24 November 2013. The show later moved to Pinewood Studios for the second revived series, with filming there from 8 October to 26 November 2014. The third revived series was recorded at Pinewood Studios from 2 September to 21 October 2015, again with a live audience. In March 2009, the Daily Mirror reported a possible return, but Pauline Quirke expressed hesitation due to her acting school. After a stage tour, Lesley Joseph hinted in July 2012 at a possible return. In March 2013, Quirke confirmed a script was with the BBC, but the producers refused a one-off special in favour of ITV's offer of a full series.

Episodes

Birds of a Feather aired from 1989 and comprised 129 episodes across 12 series and numerous specials, with over one hundred episodes lasting thirty minutes. Most episodes were written by creators Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran, with additional writers including Gary Lawson, John Phelps, Geoff Rowley, Sue Teddem, Peter Tilbury, Geoff Deane, Tony Millan, Mike Walling, Damon Rochefort, Sam Lawrence, Keith Lindsay, Martin Tomms, Pat Coombs, Steve Coombes, Dave Robinson, George Costigan, Julia North, John Ross, Frankie Bailey, Miles Tredinnick, Jenny Lecoat, Alun Lewis, Richard Preddy, Gary Howe, Ian Davidson, Peter Vincent, and Tony Jordan. The theme tune was Irving Berlin's 'What'll I Do?', initially using a version by William Atherton from the 1974 film The Great Gatsby; from the third series, it was sung by Quirke and Robson. The opening theme for series 1 showed Quirke and Robson dressed in white shirts and black skirts walking toward the screen through spotlights, then fading to them seated back to back. The closing theme featured an extended version sung by the pair, with them walking to and from the screen while credits rolled. Series 2 introduced a new opening with pictures of Sharon and Tracey at various life stages, from babies to adults, with the final picture remaining until the episode began. The closing theme showed child actors portraying young Sharon and Tracey playing in a park.

Home media

In July 2000, two audio books came out, each containing eight classic episodes drawn from the show's first two series. Those episodes were "Nicked," "Just Visiting," "Shift," "Women's Trouble," "Getting a Grip," "Sweet Smell of Success," "Young Guns," and "Muesli." During the 1990s, while the series aired on BBC1, VHS tapes of episodes were also sold. The first series hit Region 2 DVD in 2003 courtesy of Prism Leisure Corporation, with a reissue from FremantleMedia following in 2009. Network later took over distribution rights and started putting out releases from series one in 2010; a complete box set of all BBC series arrived in 2011. For the ITV years, FremantleMedia released series 10 and 11 on Region 2 DVD in 2014 and 2015, both as separate discs and in a combined set. Network then handled series 12, a box set of all three ITV series, and a full collection of all 12 series plus Christmas specials up to the 2016 one. In 2017, Network also issued a set of BBC and ITV Christmas specials, again only covering those up to 2016. On Region 4 DVD, series one came out in 2007, followed by three collected sets for series 1–3, 4–6, and 7–9 between 2011 and 2012. A complete BBC series set was released in the UK in 2011 and in Australia in 2012. The three ITV series are also available on Region 4 DVD, both individually and as a full box set. The 2017 Christmas special became available through Amazon Prime. As of 2025, the 2020 Christmas special can only be found on the 2022 Australian DVD set.