Television series

Desmond's

Name: Desmond's
Genre: Comedy
Released: 1989
Cast: Dominic Keating, Carmen Munroe, Geff Francis, Gyearbuor Asante, Justin Pickett

Comedy
Light-hearted

Desmond's is a sitcom set in a Peckham barber shop where West Indian immigrant characters gather to talk, joke, and navigate life in 1980s London. It's warm, funny, and deeply rooted in community and friendship. The shop barely cuts hair—it's really about people. Essential viewing that influenced British comedy for decades.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like sitcoms built on talk, where the funniest thing is a group of friends circling each other over nothing much and the jokes come from character rather than plot.

Skip it if you need a tight plot or a fast laugh rate, since this is loose, chatty and leisurely, with the rhythm of a neighbourhood gossip rather than a punchline machine.

What it asks of you: Half-hour episodes, six series and seventy-one episodes in all, so it wants a few evenings of patience and a tolerance for scenes that wander before they land.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Only Fools and Horses....1981

The definitive British sitcom about working-class life and friendship. Del Boy and Rodney's schemes and bickering have the same heart and humor as Desmond's, grounded in real character dynamics rather than just gags.

But It's very long—seven series—and some storylines drag. The later episodes lose some of the original magic, though the earlier seasons are nearly perfect.

The Cosby Show1984

Both are ensemble comedies built on family and community warmth, with multiple generations finding humor in everyday life. Smart, character-driven, never punching down. A genuine influence on how sitcoms could work.

But It's American and more domestic-focused. Also, the cloud over it now makes revisiting difficult for many viewers, which is fair.

Steptoe and Son1962

An earlier British sitcom about two working-class men sharing a space, finding infinite comedy and frustration in proximity. The writing is sharp and the relationship feels lived-in, much like Desmond's ensemble.

But It's in black and white and from the 1960s, so the pacing feels slower. The humor is gentler than modern comedy, which some find dated.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Desmond's

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Harder They Come1972

Both center Caribbean and West Indian life as complex and dignified, refusing exoticism or patronization. Both say: this is how we live, take it seriously.

A Jamaican reggae-inflected film about a young man trying to make it in Kingston. It has the same unflinching look at Caribbean immigrant and diaspora experience, but from the source. Raw, musical, urgent in ways sitcom cannot be.

But It's a drama, not a comedy, and fairly violent. The film stock is degraded in some prints. It's also deeply rooted in 1970s Jamaica, so the cultural specificity is dense.

Auf Wiedersehen, Pet1983

A comedy-drama about working-class men away from home, bonding over shared experience and struggle. It has Desmond's warmth but with more genuine emotional stakes, and the ensemble cast work with real chemistry.

But It's longer and moodier than a straight sitcom. Some viewers find the dramatic beats undercut the comedy, or vice versa.

Red Dwarf1988

A sitcom built on ensemble chemistry—four characters in a confined space, learning to live together. The humor ranges from broad to clever, and the cast clearly loved working together, which shows on screen.

But It's sci-fi comedy, so if you want grounded realism, this isn't it. Some series get buried under effects and lose the character focus that made it work early on.

Father Ted1995

Another ensemble sitcom about a tight community, set in an Irish parish. Warm, absurd, deeply affectionate toward its characters even when mocking them. The writing is crisp and the cast is impeccable.

But It's very silly—broader and more surreal than Desmond's. If you want grounded realism, the cartoonish Irish stereotypes might annoy you.

My Family2000

Both are about how domestic and community spaces become the real stage for life. Both trust that ordinary people are interesting enough to carry a show for years.

A British sitcom about a multigenerational household, where the barber shop gathering becomes a family living room. It has Desmond's warmth and ensemble focus, but stretched across thirty years of television, proving the format works long-term.

But It runs for nine series and loses focus toward the end. The later seasons feel like they're going through motions. You'd want the early ones.

Pressure1976

Both are about Black British life in its specificity. Desmond's is the warm community response to the isolation Pressure documents. They're in conversation across a decade.

A low-budget British film about a young Black man in London navigating racism, identity, and alienation. It's unflinching in ways Desmond's could never be—harder, angrier, more urgent. Essential viewing for understanding what Desmond's inherited and chose to soften.

But It's a difficult watch—bleak, sometimes slow, shot in grainy 16mm. Not entertaining in the traditional sense. Some find it dated, though it doesn't feel that way.