episode ten. Janet is the only one to comment on his constant swearing, which offends her prim nature – although on the one occasion when she's driven to strong language, in Episode Nine, he is quick to criticise her for it. Len can be extremely gullible; for example, he fails to realise that his superior Ranjit is stealing from him and is happy to accept Ranjit's outrageous explanations of how his property keeps disappearing. On the other hand, he can be very incisive and worldly-wise, such as in Episode Two when he muses about the brevity of life. Age is becoming a source of concern for him. He is upset to see a picture of his younger self in episode twelve and complains that he is now falling apart. Lilian (Paula Wilcox) Lilian is 53 and divorced. Her ex-husband, Greg, was an alcoholic and there are suggestions that their marriage was unhappy. She thinks her terrible taste in men means she has a lot in common with Whitney Houston (with whom Lilian shares a birthday). It is explained she spent much of the eighties as a dowdy, overweight mum who put all her energy into raising her daughters (Laura and Julia) and forgot about herself. She lives alone and since her divorce is enjoying a new lease of life. When she agrees to appear in the firm's Christmas pantomime, she chooses to sing Cher's "Believe" and this could easily be her motto. Lilian dresses young and revealingly and is quite unreserved, fun-loving, optimistic and outspoken. She seems keen to find a man and will seize on virtually any suitable target. She is always bubbly and happy on the surface but this seems to mask a real sadness which she sometimes lets show, like when she admits she doesn't like living alone. She is a confirmed smoker, which is illustrated by her attempt to obtain an un-stubbed-out cigarette from the street outside and her near-revulsion when she thinks that Barry is giving up. At the Cigzowt conference, designed to help the smokers quit, she tells how cigarettes have supported her through all the highs and lows in her life and have been her only constant companion. Sadly, the fact that she smokes wrecks any chance of a new romance with the Cigzowt representative, Derek. Robin (Robert Webb) Robin is the closest to the series' central character and is present in the