Bloody awful!..

Yes it's not exactly in the same class as the old Ralph Richardson/Stanley Holloway series of yore. On the other hand if it does awaken an interest in Wodehouse then it will not be entirely in vain. Many of his books are out of print as the subjects are considered too old-fashioned to appeal to a modern audience. If this can somehow redress the balance it will have had some saving grace.

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Have to agree, I tried sitting this out and watching it, but its too painful to watch! I'm a massive PG Wodehouse fan, and have all of the books and Jeeves and Wooster DVDs. Maybe that was the standard I was hoping for, but unfortunately, this has not lived up to my expectations and is just awful!
I agree, I think that this has totally been miscast as you have said, and looks more like something to a panto.
Its a shame really as I really like all the actors individually and was looking forward to a new Wodehouse series.

Cheerful nonsense.

The problem is that Plum was such a great writer that no movie/stage/whatever adaptation can match him. But the TV version provided a pleasant half hour and you can't say fairer than that.

All credit to the BBC-once you've found a p***-poor format that's universally reviled, ignore the critical reviews, and instead, commission a new series- I cannot honestly believe that they're throwing even more licence payers' money down this drain...

I've seen things you people wouldn't believe...

I'm an American who's crazy about P.G. Wodehouse. I've read all of his Blandings books, the entire Jeeves series and other stuff too such as Mr. Mulliner, Ukridge, Psmith, Uncle Fred and most of the stand-alone novels. Twenty years ago I laughed uproariously at Jeeves & Wooster on the telly. I even own a DVD of that old Wodehouse film, A Damsel in Distress, starring Fred Astaire! So when it comes to Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, I pretty much know what I like....

And maybe there's something intrinsically wrong with me---was I dropped on the head as a baby?---but, um, well, I actually LIKE Blandings. A lot. Yes, the show takes a lot of liberties in re the writing. It's based only loosely on the Sacred Texts. It's set up as a sitcom, with four offbeat, dysfunctional main characters in a decrepit old castle. It's over-the-top humor. But hey, its cast couldn't be better, at least in my humble opinion.

Timothy Spall has captured the essential goofiness and dodderingness (is there such a word?) of Clarence, ninth Earl of Emsworth. The pig doesn't look right, she ought to be a black Berkshire, but she's one helluva wonderful bit of bacon all the same. Jennifer Saunders is a magnificent Lady Constance...a somewhat more human Lady Connie than Wodehouse's, I might add. Wodehouse focuses on Connie's snobbery and ego, whereas in the TV series she's depicted more as a harassed woman just trying to restore order to domestic chaos. And Jack Farthing as Freddie is absolutely wonderful, the best thing I've seen yet in any Wodehouse adaptation. Hope to see more of this gifted comedic actor in future. Both versions of Beach work well too, and the actor playing Galahad (in American parlance) hit the ball right outta the park!

Maybe I'm less critical than English viewers because of the dearth of good (scripted) comedy on American TV. What do we, your neighbors across the pond, have that's as funny as Blandings? Only The Big Bang Theory. Oh yeah, and old reruns of Seinfeld and Frasier. Apart from that, though, we really don't have much that's memorable. Selfishly I hope that Blandings stays on the air a long time because it'll leave a great big gap in my heart if and when it departs.

I have to agree. I recently re-read "Pig-hoo-o-o-o-ey" and was struck by its inexhaustible brilliance. The opening scene where Lord Emsworth and Lady Constance talk past each other is already so masterfully crafted, it's begging to be put on screen with the right actors. In the hands of people with great comedic timing, that scene could work so well, there's hardly a need to modify it in adaptation. And similar incidents follow throughout the story.
So I decided to give Blandings a try but I just can't get on board with it. Timothy Spall is a great actor but he just isn't right as Lord Emsworth. He definitely has good moments, as does Jack Farthing, but the dialogues have been exchanged for a puerile mess. I also agree with the other posters that the Jeeves & Wooster series with Fry & Laurie was brilliant, so it clearly isn't a case of Wodehouse's works being that hard to adapt...