A British comedy-drama written by Jennifer Saunders, of French and Saunders and Absolutely Fabulous fame, with an all-star cast of British comic actors including David Mitchell, Dawn French, Sally Phillips, Simon Farnaby, Pauline McLynn, Joanna Lumley, Doreen Mantle, and Saunders herself. It ran between 2006 and 2009.
Widowed nurse and pillar of the community Sal (Sue Johnston), looking for something to occupy her suddenly abundant free time, finally bows to pressure to join the Ladies' Guild in the small village of Clatterford St. Mary.
In the United States, the show's known as Clatterford. The British title has nothing to do with the city of Jerusalem; "jam and Jerusalem" is a phrase often associated with the Women's Institute and similar ladies'-guild-type organizations in Britain, and refers to the cliché that such groups are fond of doing homey, quintessentially English things like sharing jam recipes and singing hymns like "Jerusalem" (a.k.a. "And did those feet in ancient time").
This show provides examples of:
- Afraid of Blood: Yasmeen is this, which makes life difficult since she's a nurse.
- Alliterative Title
- By "No", I Mean "Yes": Rosie uses this frequently when questioned about something she's done.
- Captive Audience: The entire Guild, every time Pauline gives one of her talks.
- Childhood Friend Romance: Tash and Marcus. The latter eventually becomes an Unlucky Childhood Friend.
- Earthy Barefoot Character: Tash thinks she is this.
- Eccentric Townsfolk: This is basically the main theme of the show.
- Emo Teen: Janine the cashier.
- Fictional Counterpart: The Guild is very clearly based on the Women's Institute
. - Gossipy Hens: Tip, the receptionist at the doctors' surgery, singlehandedly embodies this trope, and is quite happy to divulge her patients' medical problems to anyone she happens to be talking to.
- The Heart: Kate frequently tries to be this, much to the chagrin of her less emotionally open guildmates.
- Important Haircut: Tash's brushing out of her dreads after deciding to leave home signifies her Character Development and increasing level of independence and maturity.
- No Indoor Voice: Tim Brewer, a local politician, has some trouble with volume.
- Split Personality: Rosie, the awkward but friendly Cloud Cuckoo Lander, and her angry, intimidating alter-ego Margaret.
- This becomes much more poignant in the second series when it is revealed that Rosie was molested as a child; multiple personalities are common among trauma survivors, so this may be a possible explanation for Margaret.
- Team Mom: Sal is this - as well as actually being a mother to Tash and James, she takes care of everyone in the community, up to and including the vicar.
- Trademark Favourite Food: Rosie loves cheese, and frequently gives blocks of it to people as a gift or good luck token.
- War Reenactors: In Series 2, Episode 4, the people of Clatterford reenact the Clatterford Skirmish of 1646, after some wrangling with health and safety legislation.
