I saw this drama a couple of years ago now on YouTube... alas it has disappeared. What a wonderful story of the growing friendship and later love between two gentleman in the later years of their life. With all the rubbish that is put out on DVD though the question has to be asked why this excellent drama has never been released on DVD.

This is one of the better programmes that the BBC have been responsible for over the last ten years. This show was both brave and groundbreaking. Not only did it show that people over sixty weren't going to be content with sitting by the fire and drinking cups of cocoa, but it shows us that your life is not set in stone. There is always the possibility that one day something will happen to make you re-evaluate your' life. Focusing on the relationship between Ray the Cabbie and Jim the retired school-teacher, this drama made me both laugh and cry. At first there was real tension, showing that these two were complete opposites in the other's world. But the friendship develops into something beautiful. I enjoyed watching how they went from being friendly to realising that they had a much more physical attraction to each other.(It was beautiful the way they had their first kiss, both sensual and nervous) You also cheer when Ray's children realise that he is going to start living his life, not just be around for them. The ending will have you both jumping for joy and crying with tears of happiness, but also shouting with frustration that it is only a one-off show. Well done, Auntie. You've set the precedent, now it's time to give us plenty more worthwhile programmes!

It's never too late for love. That's the theme behind essentially every senior romance film. The same questions tend to come up in most of them. Will s/he be able to move on from the loss of the previous partner? Will the adult children accept dad/mom's new love? Will a grandchild do something adorable? All these questions are answered in the winning comedy When I'm 64. Though a formula film if there ever was one, it's formula terrifically executed.Opening with a soccer brawl we are introduced to Ray (Paul Freeman), a working class "geriatric hooligan." His semiretirement is spent whiling away the hours at the pub and driving his taxi. The routine is punctuated by the occasional very public soccer brawl, much to the chagrin of his adult children. At 64, his children think he might have better things to do with his time. Ray tends to agree but as a widower, he's reluctant to try to find a new love now that the love of his life is gone. Jim (Alun Armstrong) has spent his entire life at one school. First as a student, Jim stayed on at various faculty positions eventually becoming the headmaster. A lifetime bachelor he's now reached the UK's retirement age and is set to leave the school, essentially for the first time. After spending his entire life in a regimented institution, he's ready for a change. His plan is now "to not have a plan". Without a plan his two remaining goals in life might seem a little lofty but perhaps a plan is not needed to; 1. See the world and, 2. Fall in love. First things first though, Jim has to fix the reason he's been called "Beaky" for more than a half-century.Coincidences keep Jim and Ray bumping into each other. Jim's plans for travel are upset when his elderly father falls ill. Knowing that his son is 65, the hospitalized father suggest that perhaps, "we should ask for a double room." With Ray offering support for Jim their friendship grows and begins to test the boundaries of Ray's lifetime heterosexuality. Funny and touching events ensue leading to a somewhat corny, though totally satisfactory punch line.The path followed by Ray brings up some interesting family issues that often appear in gay cinema. The main one is, how great is the need for family support? Ray is faced with the fact that one of his children is abhorred by the idea of homosexuality. In many films there's a struggle of some sort that ends up with one of the parties hurt or both sides happily rid of previous prejudices. It's refreshing to see a film where the protagonist doesn't have to justify himself to others in order to justify himself to himself.

Ageing footie thug and Cockney cabbie Ray (Paul Freeman), a widower with grasping kids, meets refined retired teacher Jim (Alun Armstrong) and strikes up an unusual friendship which forces him to reassess his priorities, his feelings and his prejudices. The BBC drama took what is still a thorny subject and treated it with class and sensitivity, helped enormously by the playing of Armstrong in particular. As Ray's kids, Jason Flemyng and Tamsin Outhwaite have little to do but do it well. As the terminally-ill friend and fellow ex-thug Billy, Karl Johnson is also very good. A well-written, well-directed piece of drama which only lets itself down by the enforced contrast between the backgrounds of the two lead characters, and with the (almost) cop-out ending.