Perfect State, A (BBC-1 1997 with Gwen Taylor and Rudolph Walker)

With sitcom A Perfect State think Ealing comedy Passport to Pimlico as this tackle the exact same plot but with considerably less aplomb. The coastal town of Flatby declare themselves independent from the Government after local historian Malcolm Batley discovers the town was never officially part of the United Kingdom.

Spotting a chance to help the ailing town get some publicity and hopefully money into the towns coffers deputy Mayor Laura Fitzgerald persuades the town to declare independence. Of course like Passport To Pimlico things don’t go too smoothly.

The cast was full of dependable comedy players and other regular characters include Mayor Winston Wainwright ( Rudolph Walker), Simon Watson (Richard Hope), Julie Fitzgerald (Jacqueline Defferary), Bert Figgis (Trevor Cooper), Johnny Pearce (Danny Webb), Deidre Pearce (Emma Amos) and Gareth Jones (Alan David).

The show started in a primetime slot but was quickly moved to Sunday afternoons. Writer Michael Aitkens was better known to Australian audiences as an actor popping up in many a 1970’s tv show but by the 1990’s he was living in the UK working as a writer.

production details
UK / BBC One – CV / 7×30 minute episodes / Broadcast 27 February – 13 April 1997

Writer: Michael Aitkens / Producer: Sharon Bloom / Director: Dewi Humphreys

cast
Gwen Taylor as Laura Fitzgerald
Richard Hope as Simon Watson
Rudolph Walker as Winston Wainwright
Jacqueline Defferary as Julie Fitzgerald
Matthew Cottle as Malcolm Batley
Trevor Cooper as Bert Figgis
Danny Webb as Johnny Pearce
Emma Amos as Deidre Pearce
Alan David as Gareth Jones