The Fosters
– The first sitcom written both for and starring black actors, The Fosters showcased the early work of..
The first sitcom written both for and starring black actors, The Fosters showcased the early work of Lenny Henry (riding high on a recent win in talent series New Faces) as the budding artist son of easy going family man Samuel Foster (Norman Beaton, who would go on to gain fame in ‘90s comedy Desmond’s). The series follows the day-to-day trials of Samuel and his lively wife Pearl (both immigrants from Guyana) and their three children on a South London housing estate.
It was created and developed by Jon Watkins, who adapted the American sitcom, Good Times, developed by Norman Lear, and created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans. It was the first British sitcom to have an entirely black cast. It was the predecessor to many future British television programmes that featured a predominantly black cast:.
09 Apr 1976
English
Norman Beaton, Isabelle Lucas, Carmen Munroe, Lenny Henry
Samuel Foster, a hard-working man trying to support his family in a South London multi-storey council flat. The Samuel character was based on the fictional character James Evans Sr. in Good Times. Alongside Beaton, was Canadian actress Isabelle Lucas, portraying Samuel's wife, Pearl Foster (Florida Evans in the original), who gossips with her best friend, Vilma, played by Carmen Munroe. Vilma was originally the character Willona Woods, who in the American version, gossips with Florida on every one inside (and outside) the housing projects, much to James' dismay. Munroe and Beaton would later star in Desmond's as married couple Shirley and Desmond Ambrose.