My Man Joe TV Series

My Man Joe

1967 - United Kingdom

Joe Baker starred in My Man Joe as a helpless and hapless character who tries mad money-making schemes to recapture past glory for the aristocratic Lord Peregrine Hansford (Francis Matthews), for whom Joe is a valet. The schemes always flop. 

The series starred Baker's real-life wife Anne Lloyd (who had previously played Sister Beattie in Emergency-Ward 10). Baker's father was a music-hall comic. At 11 weeks, he was carried on stage at the Empire by Gracie Fields and at 14 made his debut at Collins' music hall in Islington, North London. Joe Baker's television career began in shows like Josephine Douglas's Firecrackers (1964) with Alfred Marks. In 1965 he had his own Joe Baker Show with Gerald Harper, and two years later starred in Baker's Half Dozen (My Man Joe was sandwiched between the two). 

In 1972, Baker, who had been greatly influenced by American humour (his slick style went down particularly well with troops at American bases in Britain) starred in the ABC Comedy Hour on US television and in 1975 he emigrated to the USA, even though he was then earning a reputed £20,000 a year in Britain and starring in a lucrative television advertisement as a washing machine repairman, for Bold washing powder. He didn't become the huge success he was hoping for in the States, although he appeared regularly on programmes such as Hollywood Squares

Published on January 9th, 2019. Written by Laurence Marcus for Television Heaven.

Read Next...

Ask the Family

BBC quiz show which originally was hosted by Robert Robinson and proved surprisingly durable running from 1967 to 1984.

Also released in 1967

Gentle Ben

Man's best friend in this series wasn't a dog but a huge bear...

Also released in 1967

Crackerjack

"It's Friday, it's five o'clock, yes it's Crackerjack!" From 1955 and for almost 40 years the BBC bought us children's entertainment in front of a live theatre audience. For many, Crackerjack is remembered with great nostalgia and even greater affection and is very firmly placed in the annals of television history.

Also starring Joe Baker

Spate of Speight

60-minute one-off sketch show from one of Britain's most controversial comedy scriptwriters

Also starring Joe Baker

The Army Game

Hugely successful series from Granada TV that started in 1957 as a fortnightly live sitcom, which was moved to a weekly spot when it became so popular. The series followed the misfortunes of a mixed bag of army conscripts.

Also tagged Britcom

Sherlock Holmes 1951 tv series

The first British television series featuring Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's iconic master-detective was written by a celebrated film and television critic

Also starring Francis Matthews

The Bulldog Breed

A single series of seven comedies about Tom, the perennial optimist, as he wanders through life leaving chaos in his wake totally oblivious to the problems he causes for everyone.

Also tagged Britcom

The multi-talented Burnett could play everything from a cleaning woman to a femme fatale, thanks to her lithe body, incredible facial expressions and that wonderful booming voice.

Also released in 1967

Triton

It's 1801 and Britain rules the waves with their vast fleet. But what if something could threaten their ships? What if they could be destroyed in the open sea by an unseen force - by a new, secret and revolutionary weapon?

Also starring Francis Matthews