First telecast over the BBC on January 20, 2000, the weekly, 60-minute dramedy At Home with the Braithwaites zeroed in on a fractious family. Upon winning the national lottery, novice millionaire Alison Braithwaite (Amanda Redman) realized that the money would be ill used by her husband, David (Peter Davison), a mean-spirited loan shark and philanderer; by her lesbian college-student daughter, Virginia (Sarah Smart); and by her other daughters, the whiny Sarah (Sarah Churm) and the bizarre Charlotte (Keely Fawcett), who bought the lottery ticket in the first place. Thus, Alison keeps her newfound wealth a secret from her family, preferring instead to invest the money in "good works." The complications that resulted from this decision were plentiful enough to stretch the series' premise across three seasons. It was during season three that At Home with the Braithwaites made its U.S. bow by way of the BBC America satellite service on September 5, 2003.
by Hal Erickson
synopsis
