- Mr. Humphries
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Mr. Humphries Are You Being Served?
& Grace and FavourPortrayed by John Inman Duration 1972–1985; 1992-1993 First appearance Are You Being Served? (1972) Last appearance Grace and Favour (1993) Created by Jeremy Lloyd
David CroftProfile Occupation Salesman Relationships Mr Wilberforce Clayborne Humphries is a fictional character from the BBC One comedy show, Are You Being Served?. He was played by John Inman[1] from 1972-1993.
Contents
Role
Mr Humphries is the senior menswear assistant, and later becomes head of the Gentleman's Department. His ambiguous sexuality is used as a catalyst for many comedic situations and one-liners.[2] Mr. Humphries is particularly noted for his mincing walk and his high pitched voice, which he discards when answering the phone. He had one of the most famous catchphrases of the era: when asked by a colleague, "Mr. Humphries, are you free? (to serve someone)", he always gives the camp response, "I'm free!" He often arrives at work in outrageous attire, ranging from punk rock clothing and hair, motorcycle leather jacket and chaps and sailor uniform, with an equally outrageous accounting of his previous night's activities and efforts to nonetheless make it to work on time. Mr. Humphries frequently speaks of a companion or companions referred to only as "my friend." The precise status of this friend is never elaborated upon.[2]
Though Mr. Humphries exhibits many of the behaviors typical of a gay stereotype, his true sexual orientation is never explicitly confirmed in the series. Many jokes throw Mr Humphries into heterosexual clinches.[2] At one point he is asked to fill in for Mrs. Slocombe at the ladies' counter when a female customer approaches and complains about the stockings she is wearing, lifting up her skirt to show them to him, which caused him to remark that he is "rooted to the spot" and is considering "a new way of life". In "The Agent", Mr. Humphries, in an attempt to get himself fired in order to take a higher paying position elsewhere, he makes a pass at a female customer, only to find out later that she calls his bluff to meet him outside at 5:30. At the end of the episode, while counting his wage packet, he remarks to Mrs. Slocombe that he's got a date at 5:30 and dashes off excitedly. In "The Erotic Dreams of Mrs. Slocombe", Miss Brahms attempted to teach him how to seduce Mrs. Slocombe in order to shake her out of a deep depression. However the lessons works too well and in the end Mr. Humphries passionately throws himself at Miss Brahms. In "Conduct Unbecoming", Mr. Humphries is accused of stealing money from his department's till. When he is vindicated (due to the till being faulty), Mr. Rumbold's beautiful blonde secretary throws her arms around him and gives him a passionate kiss, stating "I was always on your side." Mr. Humphries quickly replies that if the kiss had lasted any longer, he would have "gone over to your side."
Mr. Humphries is also often quite eager to wait on male customers, particularly those with a seemingly homoerotic request. When asked to wait on a gentleman who wanted to buy a dress to wear (at a fancy dress party), the previously busy Mr. Humphries suddenly becomes available. When he is to direct a commercial for Grace Brothers, Mr. Humphries flirts quite openly with the (similarly camp) cameraman. In "The Apartment", Mrs. Slocombe attempts to seduce an obviously nervous Mr. Humphries. When her attempt fails due to extenuating circumstances, she asks Mr. Humphries if he is "relieved or disappointed". He replies, "I'm neither one way nor the other." Mr. Humphries also makes numerous references to events in his childhood, usually connected to his mother.
Mr. Humphries is rarely shown to have a serious disagreement with his colleagues. Potential disciplinary measures against him are usually the result of a misunderstanding rather than out of any actual wrongdoing or malice. He is the subject of derisory comments or jokes about his "orientation" from Mr. Grainger and Captain Peacock on occasion.[2] In one episode Mrs Slocombe calls him "fairy cake" and Mr Humphries replies in a hurt voice, "It's all coming out now!" Later in the same episode, the employees are to vote on which of them should be made redundant; each employee receives exactly one nomination with the exception of Mr. Humphries, who simply writes "don't know". As Mr. Rumbold points out, this indicated that Mr. Humphries is the "most popular" person in the department, as nobody voted for him to be made redundant.
In a few episodes Mr. Humphries claims to have served briefly in the Royal Navy, and at times mentioned being rejected for both the Army and the Royal Marines. He also mentions attending Scouts meetings (with the implication that he was never actually in the Scouts). Mr Humphries often acknowledges the presence of the audience and breaks the fourth wall by occasionally smiling or winking at, or addressing, the audience.
Mr. Humphries is the only character from the original series to be featured in the Australian version of Are You Being Served?, produced in 1981.
Grace and Favour
John Inman reprised the role of Mr. Humphries for the spin-off show, Grace and Favour, in 1992.
Other references
The character is mentioned in sketch comedy series Little Britain. In episode 1 of season 1 Daffyd asks "Who was the gay character in Are You Being Served?" to which everyone in the pub replies "Mr. Humphries." Daffyd replies "Really, I thought it was Captain Peacock. He's the one with the moustache." In episode 5 of Ashes to Ashes (set in 1981), DS Carling requests advice on how to act during an undercover investigation in a gay bar, prompting DC Skelton to imitate the trademark exchange: "Are you free, Mr. Humphries? I'm freeeee."
References
- ^ "Obituary - John Inman". The Times. 9 March 2007. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article1490146.ece.
- ^ a b c d "I'm Free! - The Complete Are You Being Served?". Orion Books. 1999.
External links
- Are You Being Served? at BBC Online
- Are You Being Served? at the British Film Institute
- Mr. Humphries at the BFI's Screenonline
- Are You Being Served? at the Internet Movie Database
David Croft sitcoms Dad's Army (1968) • Birds in the Bush (1972) • Are You Being Served? (1972) • It Ain't Half Hot Mum (1974) • Come Back Mrs. Noah (1977) • Hi-de-Hi! (1980) • Oh Happy Band! (1980) • 'Allo 'Allo! (1982) • You Rang, M'Lord? (1988) • Grace & Favour (1992) • Which Way to the War (1994) • Oh, Doctor Beeching! (1995) • Here Comes the Queen (2008)Categories:- Are You Being Served?
- Fictional salespeople
- Fictional English people
- Fictional characters introduced in 1972
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