Final ep for Desperate Housewives

The final episode of Desperate Housewives - the show that made US suburbia sexy, funny and murderous - is being screened in the US on Sunday.

The series about the messy lives within Wisteria Lane's tidy houses proved to viewers that low comedy and high drama could be a TV marriage made in heaven and showed that women of a certain age could be alluring and compelling.

For eight years the series followed the lives of Teri Hatcher's Susan, Felicity Huffman's Lynette, Marcia Cross' Bree and Eva Longoria's Gabrielle.

As the end nears, the foursome are keeping a secret and dealing with the ups and downs of their husbands and families - no change from when the series began with a buried body and the suicide of Mary Alice (Brenda Strong), whose narration from the afterlife guided viewers through Wisteria Lane's many plot twists and turns.

Creator Marc Cherry, who was persuaded by ABC to extend the show into year eight, is ready and willing to say goodbye.

"It's time," he said in a recent interview. "We had a wonderful ride and I've enjoyed it, but I really felt this should be the last season. People keep asking me if it's bittersweet, and I keep saying, 'Mostly sweet.' ... I feel really good about my decision."

The audience embraced Desperate Housewives when it debuted in 2004. It was an instant hit, quickly gaining more than 17 million viewers and finishing among the top-rated shows for the season.

Even more eye-catching was the off-screen drama, starting with a 2005 Vanity Fair poolside cover shoot that reportedly sparked diva-esque competition among some cast members.