Hiatus, Changes & Disputes

A period of three years elapsed between series VI and VII, partly due to the imprisonment and subsequent exoneration of Craig Charles on a rape charge, but also due to cast and crew working on other projects (notably Chris Barrie in The Brittas Empire) and disputes over pay. When the series returned, it was filmised and no longer shot in front of a live audience (a common misconception is that canned laughter was used, when in fact the completed episodes were later shown to an audience), allowing for greater use of four-walled sets, location shooting and single camera techniques. Although some critics praised the higher production values, many fans disliked the series (see "Mixed reactions"), and when the show returned for its eighth series two years later, it had dropped use of the filmising process and restored the live audience.