The Optimist (TV series)

The Optimist is a British television comedy series starring Enn Reitel and produced by Robert Sidaway. Each episode tells a separate comic adventure in the life of an everyday man who, whether it turns out a success or a failure, always remains optimistic. The stories made a feature of fantasy and dream sequences.

Citing the influences of Jacques Tati, Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin, as well as the character of Walter Mitty, the series was designed as a silent comedy, with original music and enhanced sound effects. Shooting on 16mm, it was made on location in Cabo San Lucas, Los Angeles and London. A total of thirteen episodes were produced. Guest stars who featured in the program include Martin Kove, Tracy Scoggins, and Robert Davi.

The series debuted on 14 April 1983 and the final episode was broadcast on 5 January 1985.

Series 1
After producer Robert Sidaway raised the finance independently, the pilot Sea Dreams was filmed on location in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, during summer 1981 with post-production taking place in Los Angeles and London.

After a private screening in Wardour Street, Cecil Korer, Programme Purchaser and Commissioning Editor for Light Entertainment at Channel 4, subsequently commissioned a further six episodes.

Each half-hour episode starred Enn Reitel in the title role of The Optimist with the remainder of the cast specific to the requirements of the separate stories. In addition, every episode featured a different British actress as part of the romantic interest.

Filming took place in various locations in Los Angeles during summer 1982 under the direction of Peter Ellis. Director of photography was Peter Appleton, the art director was Mike Porter and the costume designer was Jo Korer.

Composer David Spear wrote and recorded the main theme and extensive score in Los Angeles while the remainder of post-production was completed in London. The editor was John Daniels.

Announced in the press and previewed on Channel 4's opening night (2 November 1982), series one was broadcast on Channel 4 at 8 pm on consecutive Thursdays between 14 April and 26 May 1983.

Series 2
Further to the broadcast of series 1, Channel 4 commissioned a second series of six new episodes. The stories were shot on location in London during the summer of 1984 under the direction of Robert Fuest. The new Director of Photography was Francis de Groote, who worked as Assistant Cameraman on the first series, while Mike Porter and Jo Korer repeated their roles as Art Director and Costume Designer respectively.

Utilizing the original main theme, John Cameron joined the production to write the new music scores.

Series 2 was broadcast on Channel 4 at 8 pm on consecutive nights between 31 December 1984 and 5 January 1985.

The episode The Fool of the House of Esher was nominated for the Golden Rose of Montreux in 1985

DVD & streaming releases
A 2-disc set containing all 13 episodes was released on DVD by Kaleidoscope in 2023. The set includes scripts from the first series, and an unbroadcast version of the pilot episode. The program is also featured on the Tubi, Roku and Plex streaming platforms   In May 2024 The Optimist was announced as part of the launch schedule of the UK television channel Rewind TV