Know Your Place: Selected episodes from the BBC Radio Comedy
"Eight episodes from the 1980s sitcom about a jobsworth caretaker pursued by an over-amorous cleaner
Know Your Place ran for two series and 15 episodes between January 1982 and August 1983. Included here are all eight of the surviving shows, starring Roy Dotrice as curmudgeonly caretaker Ramsay Potts and Patricia Hayes as cheery cleaning lady Elsie Spurgeon.
Janitor Ramsay works at Worthing Court, a once-prestigious block of Edwardian flats in Bloomsbury that has seen better days. He takes pride in keeping the place spick and span, but flirty, feisty Elsie is always distracting him from his duties – and getting him into trouble. While he’s a stickler for the rules, she delights in breaking them, and while he respects authority, she refuses to know her place.
In these eight episodes, the odd couple join forces to deal with an MP stuck in a lift, and Elsie takes advantage when she’s given a storeroom and borrows a flat. Meanwhile, ‘the remarkable’ Ramsay hears the peal of wedding bells, takes on a dangerous job, is forced to give up cigarettes, has a close call with a local gangster – and saves Elsie from being evicted...
Written by Andrew Palmer and Nell Brennan, and produced by Edward Taylor (The Men from the Ministry), this light-hearted sitcom also features a host of guest stars, including Frank Thornton, April Walker, Pat Coombs, Norma Ronald and Bernard Bresslaw.
NB: Some of the language and humour on this recording reflects the era in which it was first broadcast, and due to the age of the source material, the sound quality may vary.
Production credits
Written by Andrew Palmer and Nell Brennan
Produced by Edward Taylor
Cast
Ramsay Potts – Roy Dotrice
Elspeth Spurgeon – Patricia Hayes
With Frank Thornton, John Graham, April Walker, John Glover, Pat Coombs, Sue Holderness, Norma Ronald, Nell Brennan, Yvonne Manners, Benny Lee, Joe Dunlop, James Taylor, Frances Jeater, Avis Bunnage, John Blythe and Bernard Bresslaw
Episode guide
1 Lift Off
2 Not to Be Used for Babies
3 Room to Manoeuvre
4 Marriage of Convenience
5 Jumpers
6 Sisterly Feelings
7 Health Can Damage Your Smoking
8 Out of the Closet
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"
Andrew Palmer, Nell Brennan (Author), Bernard Bresslaw, Frances Jeater, Frank Thornton, Full Cast, John Graham, Norma Ronald, Pat Coombs, Patricia Hayes, Roy Dotrice (Narrator)
Audiobook
