Cast
- Gary Strang (Martin Clunes) – Gary operates a security sales office with two old-fashioned middle-aged subordinates. He also owns the flat that he and flatmate Tony occupy. Gary is a man in his thirties, and enjoys talk of girls and indulges in lager and a perpetual childhood with best friend Tony. Gary on occasions makes a fool of himself; foolishness that is quickly exploited by girlfriend Dorothy. Despite his stereotypical masculinity, at heart, Gary is a gentle soul and loves Dorothy.
- Tony Smart (Neil Morrissey, series two onwards) – Tony is Gary's good looking semi-stud flatmate, who is forever in love and always obsessed with the 'blonde babe' upstairs, Deborah. Tony is softer than Gary and at times even more childish than he. Tony drifts from job to job and fails to pay his rent to Gary. Like his flat mate, Tony enjoys girls, lager, and an eternal childhood. Despite Gary's initial reservations, Tony soon replaces Dermot in the role of Gary's best friend.
- Dorothy Martin/Bishop (Caroline Quentin) – Dorothy is Gary's sharp-tongued girlfriend who is a nurse. She lives with her parents, due to the fact her mother threatens to "kill herself if she moves out". Dorothy loves Gary. However, his immaturity and other aspects of his character cause the pair to occasionally drift apart. Dorothy is not always treated satisfactorily by Gary; being lied to and occasionally cheated on, she doesn't hesitate to get her revenge by humiliating Gary and cheating on him herself. Though Dorothy's surname is not mentioned in dialogue, in early episodes of the series Dorothy's namebadge shows it to be 'Martin'. This is changed to 'Bishop' in later series.
- Deborah Burton (Leslie Ash) – Deborah is an attractive blonde woman who lives in the flat above Gary and Tony. Deborah works in a restaurant, and although partially attracted to Tony, his selfishness, immaturity and other aspects of his character push her away just as they begin to get close. Deborah is frequently changing her mind about Tony, a character she both loves and loathes simultaneously.
- Dermot Povey (Harry Enfield, series one only) – Dermot is Gary's original flat mate featured only in series one. Like Tony, Dermot is forever failing to pay his way at Gary's flat and is desperately in love with Deborah. Dermot both lies and cheats in an attempt to garner success with Deborah. However, like Tony, he fails miserably.
Tony and Dermot are similar in character, although Dermot is slightly more stressed and neurotic. He is only mentioned twice after his departure, the first to explain that he simply is not coming home, and the second in the first episode of series five, when Dorothy recalls him to which Gary replies, "Did I tell you he got a job at Euro-Disney testing the rides?"
Read more about this topic: Men Behaving Badly
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