My Family Series 9 DVD Review

Being honest, I've never watched My Family before in my life. I'd heard stories about it - how those involved had reportedly refused to film certain scenes until the writers came up with better jokes - and so my curiosity was aroused. I'm willing to give most things a chance, much to the detriment of my spare time and often my sanity. A quick trip to Wiki reveals that My Family has been on air since 2000 - that's quite a whopping fact, given how this show is almost devoid of any humour or wit whatsoever.
 
In fact, I feel I might have peaked too soon. My first laugh-out-loud moment came at the very start of episode one, where dentist Robert Lindsay informs his assistant it is safe to swallow the sink-cleaning fluid he has mistakenly ingested, only to pipe up "hang on ..." after it has been swallowed - and that was really down to spot-on timing more than anything else.

The various lame antics in this nine episode-long series include Zoe Wannamaker mistakenly accusing her daughter's multi-millionaire boyfriend of having an affair, and Lindsay pumping iron in order to exorcise the memory of his childhood bullying at the hands of a girl. In Alfie, the show has its custom stereotypical character, a Welshman constantly referring to sheep, which is about as funny as pig flu.
 
As puzzling as it may be, My Family clearly has a dedicated core audience - a Christmas special is to air at the end of this year, with a tenth and eleventh series following in the coming years. It's not offensively bad, it's just very much a brand of comedy that is as inoffensive and as bland as possible, aimed at grandparents, most likely. Unfortunately, this disc may even disappoint fans (whoever they might be) as there are no extras included here, just the nine episodes, and that's your lot.
 
I advise a visit to the My Family page on Wiki, however, as I was quite delighted to discover a Chinese version of the show exists which, from the description, I'm sure must be far more entertaining than its British counterpart. Two sons competing for the affections of an "aspiring cake maker" - come on! The poster alone is brilliant. Check it out.
 
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My Family series 9 is available now.