Keeping Up Appearances

- Season 4

(1993)

When Hyacinth sees an advertisement in the newspaper for a senior position in frozen foods, she jumps at the chance to get Richard a dignified job position. But of course Richard will not apply through the normal channels; Hyacinth insists that he must win over Frosticles on the golf course!

Hyacinth has her heart set on buying a cozy charismatic cottage in the country. So she and Richard head out in search of the perfect home away from home. However finding the most suitable, and affordable, cottage could be harder than Hyacinth imagined.

Hyacinth is elated to find out that Richard is an acquaintance of the famed garden centre proprietor, C.P. Benedict, so decides to have an "indoors outdoors luxury barbeque" with C.P. as the guest of honor. Meanwhile, Daisy is convinced that Onslow is seeing another woman.

Acting on her moral sense of duty, Hyacinth volunteers to pick up the guest speaker for the ladies' luncheon. But finding the seafaring commodore turns out to be a little harder than expected.

Hyacinth delegates Richard to go and collect Daddy from the police station, incognito of course. While Richard is on this special mission, Hyacinth manages to convince Elizabeth (with some help from Emmett) to take her on a tour around the countryside looking for a property to buy. Richard however is terrified that Hyacinth will get carried away and buy something they can't afford.

Now that Hyacinth is a part-owner of a mansion, she has begun her endless preparations to invite friends and relatives to visit her new home away from home. But Hyacinth doesn't seem to realize that while the house may be a mansion, their apartment is most certainly not.

Hyacinth promises the vicar's wife Richard will fix the electricity supply problem in the church hall. While Richard tries his best, Daddy thinks the war is still on.

Hyacinth prepares for her holiday cruise on the QE2 and after a bumpy journey to board the ship, she soon realizes she'll be staying in a most elegant ship. But then, to her horror, she discovers that Onslow and Daisy are also on board the ship. Hyacinth assumes they must have snuck on board and makes plans to get rid of them before the captain realizes they're related.

Richard discovers that he has a fungus infection while Hyacinth is in the midst of creating her new dream kitchen. Horrified at Richard's condition, Hyacinth insists that their friends and family must be told it is gout, one of the more aristocratic ailments.