User Reviews

When I first saw the adverts for this show all that crossed my mind was the horror of another family sitcom full of clichés and ridiculous situations.

So I had to watch it. Everyone needs something to bitch about, right?

But when I started laughing and smiling, I realised that Outnumbered had cast away any doubters with brilliant performances from some very talented actors, Hugh Dennis and the children made it look like we were actually watching a real family.

The jokes were funny and realistic, you may argue that a child, who picks up a screwdriver and waves it about, is far fetched, I guarantee you its not.

The show should be boring and bland. Nothing happens except a family go about there day to day business and you cant help but wanting more.

Due to great acting, brilliant writing and ingenious improvisation you are left wondering exactly why you find yourself hooked to what your family is doing downstairs.

Don't listen to that t*** who gave it 1/10 this is an amazing sit-com and it is one of the reasons I am proud to be British. It may be predictable and clichéd but that is part of its charm. Karen and Ben (the younger ones) are the best part their clashes are so funny and their logic is insane. What I mean by that is Karen is so literal and Ben is borderline nuts and thats great. The fourth series is on soon (When this review was posted) and I for one can't wait to see it and if you see this before Friday WATCH IT. Oh and one more thing that guys says it 'depressing' but it's not it deals with issues that any English family would face and I think it is a good mould for parenting you will not believe how much stuff my parents has taken from it (except they don't work cos we know how to get around them)

Outnumbered is a sitcom orientated around family life - it is very accurate and very, very funny. The kid's lines - especially Ben and Karen's, are absolutely hilarious, and are something that a child would actually talk about. It does remind me of life as part of a family - though I'm only 17, I remember asking the kind of questions and explaining how I felt about the situation these children were in when I was their age. It's both realistic and hilarious. I'm glad I found this show, and was lucky to do so - I don't remember seeing any adverts on the BBC for this series. Which is a shame - the BBC have produced a sitcom that is of the same quality of Channel 4's Spaced. I believe it's one of Britain's sitcoms, and destined t be a cult classic, like Spaced. If the BBC showed more adverts for it, they'd have a bigger audience - this is the best show they've produced in years, comedy or otherwise.

There have been lots of attempts to show the comic side of so called "ordinary life" but they always fall into the trap of trying to create gags, as opposed to reflecting what we all know, which is that real life often throws up comic moments if only you let it. This is exactly what the producers, writers, directors, actors have got together to do. After watching 2 episodes I thought these kids are absolutely brilliant - they are being allowed to express themselves with none of the stiffness that a script would bring about. This is especially true for the young actors but it is also true for the excellent Claire Skinner and Hugh Dennis, and you can see the delight on their faces as they react to the children's spontaneity. It just shows how powerful the technique of improvised and semi-improvised filming can be, and whilst it's not a new device, I personally believe it's greatly underused. We all know about Mike Leigh, Ken Loach, Woody Allen etc, and we constantly hear about great moments which ended up in a film which were the result of some spontaneous improvisation, and yet we steer away from this dangerous approach. I don't want to put writers out of a job, and in Outnumbered we can see once again the originality and creativity of Andy Hamilton's and Guy Jenkin's style, but they appreciate that they are part of a creative team which produces an end product greater than the sum of its parts. Let's use the technique more in 'adult' drama and comedy and not think that it only works where there are cute kids!

A word too about the subject matter itself. It is so extraordinarily well-observed and accurate; I recognise 99% of what's going on on screen. Now I realise that this is a portrayal of one particular life style, and not all the truths are universal ones, but the fact that the choice of family is relatively specific should not lead to it being dismissed as a comedy for the chattering classes, as though that somehow negates its worth.

This is simply the best written sitcom of the year so far, certainly for the BBC, it plays like The Royle Family for the middle class each line is perfectly written and timed to perfection. Hugh Dennis is always good when he looks a little flustered and Claire Skinner is great as harassed mother while Samantha Bond proves their is life after well.. Bond as the ditzy aunt. But its the kids who really should be praised for the most realistic portrayals of children on T.V. ever. Mostly improvising their lines to avoid falling into the clichés - the elder boy is the antithesis of the eleven year old in his first weeks at secondary school keeping his head down, monosyllabic and trying to keep the fact he is being bullied under wraps. The younger boy plays for laughs as the constantly lying middle child he is full of energy and manages to be annoying and likable at the same time. While the little girl is really cute and asking any question that pops into her brain stumping the parents every five minutes. The show is also great with dealing with issues such political correctness, bullying, the class system and the elderly in such a breezy and non-preachy manner. After several years in the wilderness following the success of Drop the Dead Donkey, Guy Jenkins and Andy Hamilton have created another great sitcom which has been buried in the schedules by the BBC and therefore probably won't be noticed by most people who turn the TV off after the 10 o'clock news, this may find cult status on repeat viewing and come back for a second series in a new and improved time slot.

This is just a terrific series. Why the BBC saw fit to bury it with no fanfare is totally mystifying. It is beautifully put together by the writers, actors and director and works just about as well as it possibly could. Hugh Dennis and Clare Skinner are great as the long-suffering parents and are beautifully matched. It is the children though that make this unusual sitcom work. They deliver their lines with fantastic timing and a real sense of reality. Ramona Marquez is just wonderful and so funny - annoying and sweet at the same time - a very difficult thing to pull off. Daniel Roche and Tyger Drew-Honey (what a name!!) are just as good as seasoned professional actors twice their age. I am so glad a laugh track was not added - it makes the action seem so much more real plus it is so funny it does not need one. it needs to be promoted properly and it would achieve a greater status with the viewing public - the BBC are notorious for poor promotion, unless it is another sodding cookery programme!! Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkins are to be congratulated on the creation of this marvellous piece of work.

This easily overlooked series was given an extraordinarily late slot by the BBC. It was shown at around 11pm on three consecutive nights, with the final three episodes shown in a similar manner the following week. Here in the UK we are used to family comedy having a once a week slot at a decent hour. It gives the show time to build an audience through word of mouth. The Office built slowly by reputation. This little masterpiece should have been given the same chance.

There are several clips from Outnumbered on Youtube for those unfortunate enough to have missed it. The children are a revelation. With no actual 'jokes' and no laughter track it is refreshingly naturalistic. I look forward to a rerun at a proper hour and hope for a second series.

I came across this series by chance, after browsing the BBC I-player site. What a discovery.

The whole thing is so true to life, it's scary. Parents who are so involved in their own world they mostly overlook the gems of information their kids come out with. Kids who actually behave like real life kids rather than the usual spoilt little brats (or worse, sugar sweet fakers) that most shows portray.

For me, the star of the show is Karen. The brilliant Ramona Marquez deserves every TV award going..she steals the show every episode. (Her impression of Fiona Bruce in series 2 is hysterical!!) For someone so young she very clearly understands her character, and makes the most of every scene she is in.

IF you haven't seen this show yet, please please please take the time to watch..and then set aside a whole day to watch the full 2 series as I promise one episode won't be enough.

... the answer from me too is "No", especially if it ever clashes with "Outnumbered".

Every now and again the stars line up. This week we have had "Outnumbered" and "Gavin and Stacey". Two sitcoms that are the best since "The Office". In my view they both jump straight into the Top 10 BBC comedies.

I've never been the biggest fan of Hugh Dennis. Always thought he was part of the safer, slightly unfunny half of the Mary Whitehouse Experience with mate Steve Punt. How things turn around. David Baddiel seems to be in a vacuum, Rob Newman is now a single issue eco mega bore. With "Outnumbered" and his witty contributions to "Mock The Week" Dennis has come through with this fantastic funny performance.

Claire Skinner is also brilliant and the children .... well words cannot describe how good they are.

So it may seem odd when I say that I hope they never make another series of "Outnumbered". This series has been so perfect, such an accurate natural snapshot of a few weeks of one family's life that I want us to leave them and wonder how they turn out. A second series often has elements of the contrived.

Well done Andy Hamilton, Guy Jenkin and all the cast. A gem !

Honestly so funny. When I normally watch a sitcom, I enjoy it but I find it unrealistic and forced. This sitcom is the opposite😂. So many people can relate to it! The kids are so talented and they get the mannerisms of children on point! I love the way the parents react as well. Solid 10/10 and do not understand the bad reviews 😂they've obviously never met a normal British family😂

This TV show was absolutely brilliant from the start to to the end. It has some classic modern British comedy thrown in the mix from all angles and the Kids dropping lines that have you in fits of laughter. As a parent of both older and younger children I can relate to this hilarious series on a few levels, it is both Unforgettable and funny. Children winding up the parents and getting into mischief whilst running rings around the parents. Bits of this TV series at times remind me of another British sitcom ("My Family") and other scene's remind me of another British sitcom ("2.4 Children") another hilarious TV series that too was also unforgettable. I would rate this at 7/10.

This show has it's good bits but is essentially a comedy about middle class family in London. The humour is t there and a lot of it surrounds trying to be funny when it's not.

The fact that this show ran for as long as it did is surprising as it is really bad television down to the writing the individual actors are all great but this show really doesn't do them any justice.

If showing a couple of incompetent parents and a trio of gifted, totally out-of-control kids is comedy, then a Mensa reform school would be a riot. I will acknowledge the children are good actors, but ask yourself what you would do if these bright little menaces were in your face 24/7. I suggest the last thing we need is another example of an emasculated excuse for a father trying to prove he's in some way more intelligent than his offspring. The children show no responsibility, little consideration for other than themselves and a total disregard for any authority. In other words, the perfect example of miniature Rupert Murdochs. I'm writing this whilst getting away from the program until New Tricks comes on.

Stumbled across this on an Australian catch up TV website and was just so delighted by the whole series I have recommended it constantly to family and friends. All the characters are beautifully drawn, the children, so normal and so extraordinarily gifted in their portrayals, the adults all flailing helplessly under their skewering questions and inconvenient presence and trying desperately to manage the minutiae and constant throb of everyday "adult" issues. This is a fond and gentle study of a real family where irrational squabbles, thumps and bumps happen regardless of adult conversations and concerns. Unlike any other family sitcom, British or American, the grown up issues and conversations are not "encapsulated" in some weird vacuum where every room in the house is spotless and looks like it has sprung from the pages of a magazine, and where background noise is non existent and problems and issues are all sorted in under 30 minutes. I am a mother myself, and have had a "Ben" of my own, so I completely get the bemused and frustrated love of Dad, Pete, the tired and gentle patience of Mum, Sue, who is also coping with a rat bag sister with no sense of responsibility and a father drifting off into a world of dementia. I just want to give young "Jake" the biggest hug as he tries valiantly to support Mum and Dad quietly and carefully, whilst still needing to do a whole lot more growing up himself. And then there is Karen of the lively intelligence and the never ending quest to see clarity and certainty in a world where grown ups use words like "never" and "always" and just don't follow through. This is a real gem of a series and the writers have captured the real essence of modern family life for lots of parents and have been assisted faultlessly in their portrayal by gifted and intelligent actors who know when not to labour the point. Well done and can I have some more, please?

Ignore all the bad reviews, because 'Outnumbered' is amazing. It's so funny and realistic, and there's nothing I can fault it for, except the BBC never make enough episodes, and maybe series 4 hasn't been quite up to the same standard. Everything is exceptional, but the best thing by far are the children. Karen (Ramona Marquez) manages to be amusing, annoying and sweet all at once, Ben (Daniel Roche) is so mad and hilarious, and Jake (Tyger Drew-Honey) is very funny and sarcastic, and very good looking! So definitely don't overlook this brilliant programme, because there really is nothing like it. You won't be disappointed :-)

As a parent, I see bits of the raising of my own children - and now my grandchildren! - in this terrific show. The fact it's partly improvised, lend heaps of cred to this great comedy. As an Aussie, I've always loved British comedy; they're the best at it, and this one is right up there with the cream of the crop!

What makes 'Outnumbered' stand out to me is that it's a very realistic portrayal of what life is like for many working parents that are trying to navigate the day to day stresses and challenges that come with it. It's not dressed up or made to look fancy for TV, it's just a family being a family.

Sue and Pete, the parents, are constantly questioning their ability to parent (and what parent doesn't?), trying to do the best for their children whilst simultaneously worrying that they're failing them and all in all are very normal people that could easily be someone's neighbour, family friend or colleague.

Jake, Ben and Karen, the kids, are unique kids with their own personalities that all pose their parents with different challenges. Unlike kids on most other shows, Jake, Ben and Karen are actually allowed to be children. They're not given two or three lines and then told to play quietly in the background, they're central and important characters just as much as Pete and Sue (if not more so). The improvisation aspect of the show really works well with the kids and adds to the realness of the show by allowing the children to say and do what they feel is natural. I also enjoy the positive spin the show puts on the children by taking what would usually be stereotyped as naughtiness or bad behaviour, and instead portraying it as individuality and misunderstanding of character. Ben, who is considered a 'problematic' child in the early seasons proves himself to be a very kind, generous, intelligent young man whose over-zealousness, curiosity and enthusiasm for life causes him to get carried away. Karen, who is a 'diva' or 'brat' is a highly analytical, clever out-spoken and self-assured little girl who is determined to be exactly who she is.

And this is what 'Outnumbered' does so well - it shows that all children are their own people, with their own thoughts, feelings and opinions and although parents are there to guide and discipline their children, it's important to also let them grow into who they're going to be in their own time and in their own way.

Putting this aside, the comedy is subtle and effective, although not necessarily laugh out loud funny. The acting is good, even from the young actors that play the children and the dynamics between the family are extremely effective and feel very representative of a real family.

All in all, 'Outnumbered' has been my go to sitcom for many years when I simply need to switch off and have some relief from the stresses of life.

Myself and my wife were celebrating our golden wedding with a train across Canada tour.One hotel we stayed at was 'the Rundle Lodge in Banff As we were having breakfast on the first morning,a family of four- mum,dad,son and daughter sat at the table in front of us. It was the Marquez family whose daughter plays Karen in outnumbered We respected their privacy,so only had a quck word as they were leaving Strange who you meet 5000 miles away from home. We loved the series and Ramona is a very talented actress We hope for a new series but Ramona perhaps getting too old for the part Haven't seen the Kings Speech yet so i don't know what she's like in it

Outnumbered is surely one of the best Britcoms of the last few years, it's truly original, funny, and wonderfully true to life. We see The Brockman family literally grow up, the kids, who are undoubtedly the stars of the show each provide constant laughs, I understand that lots of the lines, particularly from the earlier years were off the cuff, the kids, together with the wonderful Hugh Dennis and Claire Skinner were allowed to be natural, it's that partial lack of scripting that makes the show so funny, most shows are so well polished and so precise, this brand of humour was truly refreshing. The show seemed so real, so relevant, everyday life occurences, small tribulations, but wasn't afraid to talk about things like weight issues, bullying, morals, but in a way that didn't preach to its audience. A much loved show.

I first saw Hugh Dennis on Taskmaster and I thought he was really funny. In Outnumbered Hugh plays Pete, a husband and father of three children who teaches history at a rough school. Tyger Drew-Honey plays Jake, the oldest child whose just started secondary school. I loved Tyger as Dylan in Cuckoo and it was great seeing him again but much younger. The two other kids completely ruined the show for me especially Ben as he is the most obnoxious character I've ever seen.

Outnumbered is a BBC sitcom about the Brockmans, a family consisting of a mother and father who are, apparently, "outnumbered" by their three unruly children. Now, it may not sound like an original premise, but what makes Outnumbered so unique is the way it presents itself in the most down to earth way.

Throughout each episode, we get a glimpse surrounding the family's life, whenever they're getting their children ready for school or sorting out their house. Many of these storylines sound basic and mundane, but once you watch them you're bound to be entertained during them. The way its filmed is unique, and there is no laugh track to be heard, which further adds to the realism factor. Whenever the children are on screen, this is where most of the comedy comes from; nearly all of their lines are improvised.

You know how in many sitcoms the child actors tend to learn their lines written by adults? Well, in Outnumbered, the child actors are only given a brief description on what will happen in their scenes, which means they're able to give a more convincing performance. I'd consider this to be a great move by the writers, because thanks to this method, the child actors act like they're just being themselves, and you also get some of the most original lines from them as well. Not to mention it helps makes the programme feel even more realistic too.

If you're about to watch this show, I'd recommend you to watch Series 2 first, because I believe it to be the strongest one out of the five. Highlights of the series include memorable episodes such as "The Wedding", "The Dead Mouse", and my personal favourite episode "The Airport". I should also point out that there is an ongoing storyline throughout each series, so I would probably advise you to watch each episode in order.

Spineless father, weak willed mom user wife, sullen morose older boy. whiney manipulative little girl. vile, offensive, cross young boy with no moral compass... old man a stumbling, bumbling, ambulatory blank of a person. sister understands nothing except her selfisheness.

This is a great favourite. Most parents with more than two children feel outnumbered, but when there are three as extrovert as Karen, Ben and Jake, the parents don't stand a chance. Every family crisis is magnified by the kids, who always hear everything that they shouldn't. Jake is the older one, and the most sensible. Ben has a fantasy mind filled with superheroes and extreme animals, and his flights of fantasy take him far beyond the suburban jungle that he lives in. Karen is very focused, and what makes it funny is that the questions she asks are so sensible, but adult as well, and inconvenient, so she asks about relationships, and why people do the things that they do, and the consequences, and then draws parallels with other situations. Above all the kids never stop talking, and the parents Pete and Sue have a constant battle to hold back the deluge of questions and comments. Pete (High Dennis) plays second fiddle to wife Sue (Claire Skinner), and they are both excellent in their parts. Neither of them successfully cope with all that life throws at them, and the dialogue is hilarious. Thanks, guys, for a first-rate show!!