Only When I Laugh (1979) Web Series — Cast, Story & Where to Watch | MovieLinkBD

Only When I Laugh (1979) is a comedy web series in English. On MovieLinkBD: full story, cast, ratings, season & episode guide, official trailer and where to watch Only When I Laugh online in HD.

Only When I Laugh — Storyline

Only When I Laugh is an ITV1 sitcom broadcast from 29 October 1979 to 16 December 1982 for four series with seven episodes each, and a Christmas special in 1981. The title is the answer to the question, "Does it hurt?"

A naïve middle-class man is admitted to an NHS hospital ward, shared with a working-class layabout and an upper-class hypochondriac. The trio never fail to cause a nuisance for the poor, unsuspecting staff.

Cast & Crew

• Created by: Eric Chappell
• Starring: James Bolam, Peter Bowles, Christopher Strauli, Richard Wilson

Only When I Laugh — Series Details

Only When I Laugh — Episode Guide

Season 1

• E1: A Bed with a View (1979-10-29) — Young Norman Binns is admitted to Dr Thorpe's ward and is tricked by pessimistic Roy Figgis into swapping beds so that Figgis can have the bed with the window view. As a result, Th
• E2: Operation Norman (1979-11-05) — Norman has to have an appendectomy but Figgis' doom-laden description of operations and Thorpe's wariness do not give him confidence, so he hides in the toilet, having to be coaxed
• E3: The Rumour (1979-11-12) — Thorpe is telling Gupte that his dog Victor is unwell but Gupte misunderstands and thinks he's talking about his son. The patients also fall prey to the misunderstanding, for vario
• E4: The Man with the Face (1979-11-19) — Glover has been seeing a Greek girl and panics when her violent boyfriend comes looking for him so Figgis wraps his head in bandages, claiming that he is a burn victim, setting up
• E5: Let Them Eat Cake (1979-11-26) — Fed up with the quality of the hospital buffet, the patients go on strike but are soon defeated. However, server Clegg decides to go on strike himself, but has his foot run over wh
• E6: Tangled Web (1979-12-03) — Norman is reading a hospital romance, when he sees new nurse Sally, who is exactly like the fictional heroine. He wants to express his feelings but finds rivalry in Glover, Thorpe
• E7: Is There a Doctor in the House? (1979-12-10) — When Glover is discharged, an unhappy Figgis, without someone to quarrel with, goes to the pub, pretending to be a doctor and diagnosing people with terrible illnesses, filling the

Season 2

• E1: Whatever Happened to Gloria Robins? (1980-04-29) — Glover is thrilled when glamourous starlet Gloria Robins is admitted to a woman's ward and is before long romancing her with flowers. Characteristically, Figgis is cynical but even
• E2: Where There's a Will (1980-05-06) — Glover does not take kindly to eccentric new patient Joe Perkins – with his invisible dog – due to his lack of hygiene and use of Glover's drinking tumbler for his false teeth. How
• E3: It Can Damage Your Health (1980-05-13) — Norman has recently taken up smoking but long-term smokers Glover and Figgis are feeling the ill-effects of the habit and try, respectively, a pipe and yoga to help quit – but in v
• E4: The Cosmic Influence (1980-05-20) — When Figgis becomes obsessed with tabloid astrology, the others are sceptical — that is, until Norman's luck at cards takes an upturn. However, Figgis becomes so preoccupied with p
• E5: The Visitors (1980-05-27) — Norman's overbearing, hypochondriac mother comes to visit and he's initially scared to tell her he is romancing Nurse Jenny. Norman's cowardice gives Glover the opportunity to try
• E6: The Lost Sheep (1980-06-03) — When the vicar comes to discuss Norman and Jenny's impending nuptials, agnostic Figgis gets into a religious argument but ultimately fears for his soul as he has not been christene
• E7: Last Tango (1980-06-10) — Feeling wistful that they're unable to attend the staff dance with its majority of females, the patients decide to have a party of their own, inviting Nurse Eileen. Needless to say

Season 3

• E1: A Day in the Life Of (1981-09-02) — A TV crew arrive to shadow Thorpe for a day. He has primed Norman to give a glowing report but Norman keeps fluffing his lines, leaving Glover as only too keen to take over.
• E2: Adam's Rib (1981-09-09) — When new doctor Amy Glossop starts on the ward, Thorpe is initially hostile due to her gender, though both Glover and Norman have fallen in love with her.
• E3: The Right Honourable Gentleman (1981-09-16) — Extreme right-wing MP Sir Julian Briggs is admitted to the ward, angering socialist Figgis, though Thorpe is anxious to get him on side as the hospital faces closure.
• E4: Postman's Knock (1981-09-23) — Believing that Glover is lonely, Figgis writes an anonymous letter in character as Glover to agony aunt Clare Butterfield, who is annoyed by the writer's arrogance. However, Glover
• E5: Accident (1981-09-30) — Norman witnesses an accident outside the hospital gates involving Thorpe and young speed freak Ronnie, though it is the doctor who would appear to be in the wrong when his breath s
• E6: Dear Diary (1981-10-07) — Norman has been keeping a diary and Figgis and Glover are anxious to see what he's written about them. Upon stealing the diary, they find that most of the entries are fantasies in
• E7: These You Have Loved (1981-10-14) — Figgis takes exception to the hospital radio run by Nurse Victoria and, when she accidentally leaves her recording equipment, spices things up by taping and broadcasting one of Tho
• E8: Away for Christmas (1981-12-24) — On Christmas Eve, the ward gets a new patient, eight-year-old elected mute Danny, a known arsonist whose parents are abroad. Figgis dresses up as Father Christmas to steal presents

Season 4

• E1: Blood Brothers (1982-11-04) — Thorpe believes that Glover needs a blood transfusion and Figgis is the same blood group but Glover, being a snob, is not happy to be the recipient, especially when he hears that F
• E2: Conduct Unbecoming (1982-11-11) — Thorpe becomes an unlikely sex object when nymphomaniac patient Fiona demands they run off together and has written a complaint letter to the hospital board, whose chairman is her
• E3: All in the Mind (1982-11-18) — Having borrowed a book on psychiatry, Figgis takes it upon himself to analyse his fellow patients, alleging that Glover has a persecution complex and Norman is sexually repressed.
• E4: In Sickness & in Health (1982-11-25) — A most reluctant Norman is to marry the dull and plain Deirdre, rather than Jenny. Glover decides to flatter Deirdre in order that she might blossom but rather overdoes it so that
• E5: Escape (1982-12-02) — Glover is charmed by new admission Harry Bridgewater – until it transpires that he is a prisoner who has come in for an operation with a guard in attendance. Having tried to pass h
• E6: When Did You Last See Your Father? (1982-12-09) — An elderly drunk named Charlie arrives, claiming to be looking for his son, from whom he has long been estranged. The assumption is that his son is Norman, though it turns out to b
• E7: The Reunion (1982-12-16) — The patients are discharged on the same day – somewhat reluctantly given their lengths of stay – and decide to have a reunion the same evening in a restaurant. By chance, Thorpe is

Frequently Asked Questions

How many seasons does Only When I Laugh have? 4 season(s) with 29 episodes.

Who created Only When I Laugh? Eric Chappell.

Where can I watch Only When I Laugh? See the Where to Watch section above for current streaming options.