Mind Your Language

Summary

Episodes

Cast and characters

Series 1–3

• Barry Evans as Jeremy Brown, the ESL teacher and focal point of most of the series. He is a good-natured, earnest single man in his thirties who lives alone and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Oxford University. He was hired in Series 1 Episode 1, Pilot, in which he was warned that the students drove the previous teacher insane. Mr Brown is up to the challenge but often exasperated by the students' creative interpretations of the English language.
• George Camiller as Giovanni Cupello, a stereotypical Italian Catholic chef, the class's spokesman and de facto class monitor. He is best friends with Max, who becomes his flatmate. Giovanni's main problem with English is understanding metaphors and long words, although he often answers wrongly on purpose to amuse the class. He often calls Mr Brown Professori. When shocked or surprised, he often uses catchphrases like "Santa Maria", "Whoops ada Daisy", "Okey cokey", "Buona sera" or "Holy ravioli". He apologises by saying scusi, which is Italian for "I'm sorry". He has an elaborate set of first names: Giovanni Vincenzo Marco Dino Alberto Leonardo etc. His last name is sometimes spelled "Capello" in the closing credits.
• Kevork Malikyan as Maximillian "Max" Andrea Archimedes Papandrious, stereotypical Greek Orthodox shipping agency worker from Athens who is often paired with Giovanni. He, like Giovanni, is attracted to Danielle, but as the show progresses, the three become friends. Max tends to misunderstand metaphors and long words. An example of a mistake was when Mr Brown asked him to give a word beginning with the letter l and he said 'elephant'. He also has a heavy accent, which causes him to add h to the beginning of almost every word that starts with a vowel sound. Later, he shares his flat with Giovanni, with whom he is close friends; these two characters have the best command of the English language of all the students in the series.
• Robert Lee as Taro Nagazumi, a Japanese electronics executive who works as a representative for the London branch of the fictional Japanese electronic company Bushido Electronics. He speaks English quite fluently, but has a habit of adding -o to almost every word he says and always replies "Ah so!" and bows whenever he is addressed. Early in the series he is at odds with Su-Lee due to Japan and China's own political differences in the 1970s but they become friends later on. Most of the time he is seen with his camera.
• Jamila Massey as Jamila Ranjha, a stereotypical Indian housewife from Shimla. When she first joins the class she barely speaks any English - she rants in Hindi when Mr Brown asks her name, and when she finally does understand, she writes her name on the blackboard in Urdu because she cannot write it in English. Although she needs Ali to translate for her in Series 1, by Series 3 she shows a marked improvement and is able to communicate in English without needing any help. She often calls Mr Brown "Masterji", and her catchphrase early in the series is "gud hefening". She often brings her knitting to class. She is shown to be a Christian in the episode "Guilty or Not Guilty", when she swears on the Bible to tell the truth. From "A Point of Honour" onward she wears a cross necklace, but in the same episode she suggests that Buddhism is the true religion when the students argue about it. Also, in the episode "I Belong to Glasgow", she crosses herself along with Juan, Danielle, Max and Giovanni.
• Pik-Sen Lim as Chung Su-Lee, a stereotypical Chinese communist woman who works as a secretary at the Chinese Embassy. She is never seen without her Little Red Book of Mao, from which she often quotes and constantly mixes up her r and l sounds. Early in the series, she had a fierce ideological rivalry with Taro, her Japanese classmate, but later in the series, he often rushes to her defence when a character insults her or China. When she quotes Chairman Mao, Mr Brown replies "That's a matter of opinion".
• Ricardo Montez as Juan Cervantes, a Spanish Catholic bartender with an optimistic outlook. Juan is always laughing at himself, confident of his answers even when they are completely wrong. Early in the series, Juan speaks almost no English and answers everything with "Por favor?", necessitating Giovanni to translate some key terms for him. Because of this, the two often get into arguments due to misunderstanding. His typical catchphrase is "S'all right!" and sometimes when he is corrected he says "Sorry". Juan's English improves as the series goes on, but he remains one of the worst speakers, often speaking a mix of English and Spanish. He cares a great deal for Mr Brown; he often calls him 'Señor Brown' and considers almost as part of his family.
• Albert Moses as Ranjeet Singh, an Indian London Underground employee from Punjab and a devout Sikh. In the first episode, Mr Brown mistook him for a Pakistani when he asked him to sit next to his "fellow countryman", Ali Nadim. He has a good vocabulary but tends to mix up his general knowledge, and upon being corrected he always puts his hands together and says "a thousand apologies". When angered, he threatens his tormenters with his kirpan. He usually comes late to class. In "A Fate Worse Than Death", a woman named Surinder appeared at the school and he told everyone that they had been betrothed to each other as children, but he no longer wished to marry her. He often clashes with Ali, but they become friends in the later episodes.
• Dino Shafeek as Ali Nadim, a Muslim from Lahore, Pakistan. Religious and cultural differences often bring him into conflict with Ranjeet. He is one of the most honest and hardworking students in the class, which sometimes gets Mr Brown and him into trouble. He used to work at the Taj Mahal Tandoori Restaurant in Putney, but is unemployed at the beginning of the series and later gets a job as a travelling salesman. He is married, and his wife Rehana appears in "Better to Have Loved and Lost" and "What a Tangled Web"; in the latter episode, they have had a child. His catchphrases are, "Yes, please." when being addressed, “Jolly good.” when something positive occurs or as an affirmative response, "Esqueeze me, please.", and "Oh, blimey!" when something wrong happens.
• Françoise Pascal as Danielle Favre, an amorous young French Catholic au pair who instantly grabs the attention of all the men, including Mr Brown. Her good looks often distract Giovanni and Max from their answers, while Mr Brown is often found in seemingly incriminating positions with her, and she is strongly attracted to him. She often makes sexual innuendos and regularly brings up the subject of love, even when irrelevant to the lesson. She is annoyed when Ingrid joins the class, instigating a rivalry for Mr Brown's attention.
• Jacki Harding as Anna Schmidt, a stereotypical West German who works as an au pair. In her introduction, she refers to "German efficiency"; accordingly, she's a hardworking student, occasionally asking legitimate questions, and as the series progresses, answering Mr Brown's questions correctly. Her main problem is mixing v and w sounds. She also punctuates her sentences with German words. She is shown to have exceptional physical strength and she is never reluctant to show it, often punching fellow students if they try to flirt with her. In one episode, she says that Lutheranism was the true religion while the students are having an argument, but in the episode "How's Your Father" she says that there's no life after death.
• Anna Bergman as Ingrid Svenson, a Swedish au pair who joins the class at the beginning of Series 2. She is attractive and straightforward about her attraction to Mr Brown, sparking a rivalry between her and Danielle. Her main problem with English is word order, often getting words mixed up, such as "you for I question answer". She transfers schools at the end of Series 2, but returns in the independently produced Series 4.
• Zara Nutley as Dolores Courtney, the stuffy, imperious principal of the school. Miss Courtney has a great dislike of the male gender, thinks women are superior to men, and prefers female teachers. She is hesitant about employing Mr Brown, but reluctantly puts him on a month's trial. She likes to drop in at the English classroom unannounced to check up on the progress of Mr Brown's students, and often leaves disappointed. She nearly eloped with a man in her early years, but was caught and sent home by her father. However, it was revealed that she was only six years old at the time and the "man" was eight. Her first name was mentioned only in the episode "Brief Re-Encounter". She has a Master of Arts from Oxford.
• Iris Sadler as Gladys, the tea lady in the school cafeteria, most often referred to as "Gladys the tea lady". She is a vivacious, friendly woman in her seventies. In Series 3, it is revealed that she is a widow. She has a friendly relationship with both Sidney and Mr Brown. She often cajoles Mr Brown and tattles on Miss Courtney.
• Tommy Godfrey as Sidney, the school caretaker, a rough, roguish Cockney in his sixties who speaks in rhyming slang. Only Miss Courtney calls him by his full name; everyone else calls him Sid. He dislikes his long-term partner and wears a black tie on their anniversary. Despite not being married, he routinely refers to her as his wife. He is hard of hearing, which often creates misunderstandings. He is very fond of alcohol and tricks the students into buying drinks for him and giving him money. He also steals supplies from the school and sells them. He is friendly with both Mr Brown and Gladys.
• Gabor Vernon as Zoltan Szabo, a Hungarian man from Budapest. He hardly speaks any English, constantly saying "Bocsánat?" and nearly always relying on his phrase book to help him communicate, especially in the beginning. Juan and Giovanni teach him many slang expressions, but he remains the worst speaker in the class. He has an English girlfriend in "All Present If Not Correct", but she beats him up after he gives her an insulting letter that Mr Brown had intended to deliver to Miss Courtney. He is fond of music and magic tricks, implying that he works as an entertainer, and returns to Hungary after Series 2 ends.