On the Buses

Mum and Olive are both bedridden with the flu, which leaves the household short‑handed on help. Consequently, Stan and Arthur have to take on every single chore, from cooking to cleaning, and manage all household tasks completely within the house themselves.

Family Flu is a television programme presented as a single episode. It falls within the comedy‑drama genre and is listed simply as an episode of the series. The show’s format follows the everyday lives of a family dealing with ordinary setbacks, and it is packaged as a short, self‑contained story. In this particular instalment, both Mum and Olive come down with the flu. Their illness means they’re unable to carry out their usual household tasks, which leaves the remaining family members to pick up the slack. The narrative focuses on how the flu disrupts the normal routine of the home. With Mum and Olive confined to bed, Stan and Arthur are thrust into the role of primary caretakers for the house. They find themselves responsible for all the chores that would normally be shared, from cooking to cleaning, and they must manage these duties while coping with the chaos that a sudden illness can bring. The episode therefore centres on the shift in responsibilities caused by the flu. It highlights how Stan and Arthur adapt to the unexpected workload, illustrating the way a simple bout of sickness can reshape the dynamics within a family for the duration of the episode.