Background
The Good Life was written by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey for Richard Briers, the only cast member with a previously established high profile. Larbey and Esmonde were inspired by Larbey's 40th birthday, which they thought a milestone in most people's lives. They made the characters friends rather than enemies, creating comedy as their friendship was tried to its limit.
Peter Bowles was originally to play the role of Jerry but was unavailable. He later starred opposite Penelope Keith in To the Manor Born. Hannah Gordon was thought of to play Barbara, but she'd recently played a similar role in the BBC sitcom My Wife Next Door. Esmonde and Larbey chose Felicity Kendal and Penelope Keith after seeing them on stage together in The Norman Conquests. The location filming was in the North London suburb of Northwood, although the series was set in Surbiton, southwest London. The producers searched extensively for a suitable pair of houses, eventually chancing on Kewferry Road, Northwood (Google street view, the Leadbetters' house to the left). The grounds of the Goods' house were returned to their prior state after filming of each series' inserts, and livestock removed overnight.
Read more about this topic: The Good Life (1975 TV series)
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