Fascht e Familie

Fascht e Familie
Swiss DVD cover of the season 5, published by Ex Libris
Created by	Charles Lewinsky
Starring	Trudi Roth Walter Andreas Müller Martin Schenkel Hanna Scheuring Andreas Matti Sandra Moser
Country of origin	Switzerland
Original language(s)	Swiss German
No. of seasons	5
No. of episodes	99+1
Production
Running time	25 minutes
Release
Original network	Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen SRF
Picture format	480i (4:3 SDTV)
Original release	1994 (1994) – 1999 (1999)

Fascht e Familie (German: Beinahe eine Familie) is a Swiss German language television comedy serial (sitcom) of the 1990s. It was filmed and produced at locations in Switzerland by Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen SRF.

The real estate agent Rolf Aebersold is trying to sell his aunt Martha's (Trudi Roth) house without her knowledge, but the ad has ended up in the section "Furnished rooms for rent". Nobody's fool, the tough old lady welcomes several lodgers, whose various problems are addressed by this new community, which is "almost a family". Unusual ideas result in confusion and mayhem in every episode. The main setting is the shared kitchen.

The series title means almost a family in Swiss German.

Tante Martha (meaning aunty Martha) is a good-hearted, somewhat old-fashioned old lady of endearing naivety, and is the owner of the house. Esoteric issues are her special hobby, and because she is always ready to think well of everybody, she is the perpertual victim of gurus of all kinds. Her temporary obsessions usually last for just one episode and then replaced by new ones. In the short term, her special interests result in highly complicated situations – especially when her nephew, the estate agent, tries to use her latest spleen to have Martha and the new 'family' evicted from her house. Trudi Roth' attended the Ernst Ginsberg drama school in Basel, followed by performances with the cabaret-doodle-doo and Cabaret Cornichon. Later she starred in comedies and musicals, radio plays and Swiss TV productions. Trudi Roth died on the night of 11 June 2016 in a nursing home in Zürich. According to her family, cause of death was her age of 86, and dementia.

Hans Meier (in his late forties) is a small, bustling waiter with a marked inclination to higher goals in his life, but he is good-natured. He has no doubt that he was born for the stage, and that someday someone will recognize his talent and give him the chance he needs for his 'breakthrough'. Until then, he shines as the star in amateur theatricals, where he always tries to play the lead roles. Hans, who is an excellent impersonator, takes every opportunity to take on a role, even in his private life.

Walter Andreas Müller is just as good an impersonator as Hans Meier. He worked at almost every major theatre in Switzerland, among them Bernhard-Theater Zürich, Theater am Hechtplatz and Theater an der Winkelwiese. Besides, Müller works as a freelance actor, comedian, radio host, impersonator and parodist.