To the Manor Born observance.") In "To the Manor Born", Penelope Keith, who was known for her role as Margo Leadbetter in the suburban sitcom "The Good Life", plays Audrey fforbes-Hamilton, an upper-class woman who, upon the death of her husband, has to move out of her beloved manor house to the estate's old lodge. She manages, however, to keep her butler, and her much loved Rolls-Royce 20/25 motorcar. The manor is then bought by Richard DeVere (played by Peter Bowles), a nouveau riche millionaire supermarket owner originally from Czechoslovakia. DeVere and fforbes-Hamilton have a love-hate relationship which is eventually resolved in the final
To the Manor Born the programmes that Spence wrote for featured a Cockney comedian, who had recently bought a manor house in an English country village. When holding a housewarming party, the comedian invited the previous occupant, a widow who could not afford to keep the house up and had moved to a smaller house in the village. The comedian's account of the lady, and the conversation he had with her, Spence later described as a "perfect description" of Audrey. A few years later, following the success of "The Good Life", Spence was asked by BBC Radio to come up with an idea for