Pardon the Expression was the first ever Coronation Street spin-off and the whole series is now available on DVD. The series follows the mixed fortunes of former Weatherfield boutique owner Leonard Swindley (Arthur Lowe).Featuring scripts from an award-winning team that included Coronation Street writers Harry Driver, Vince Powell, Geoffrey Lancashire and noted playwright Jack Rosenthal, the spin-off helped to define the type of comic role for which BAFTA winner Arthur Lowe would be most fondly remembered: that of the pompous, quietly floundering buffoon. Betty Driver - soon to be installed behind the bar of the Rover’s Return - also stars as canteen manageress Mrs. Edgeley in this first series of the popular sitcom, originally screened in 1965.
