List of French and Saunders episodes
The following is a list of episodes for the British sketch comedy series French and Saunders, which first broadcast on BBC Two on 9 March 1987. The series, written by and starring comedy duo and namesake Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, lasted for six series and nine specials, airing a total of 48 episodes between 1987 and 2005. Several compilation episodes were also broadcast; the 1995 two-part special, "French and Saunders Go To the Movies", the six-part 2007 series, "A Bucket o' "French and Saunders", which marked the 20th anniversary of the series,[1] and "300 Years of French and Saunders", which was screened on 25 December 2017 to mark the 30th anniversary of the series.[2]
Series overview
| # | Episodes | Airdate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | ||||
| Regular series | |||||
| Series 1 | 6 | 9 March 1987 | 13 April 1987 | ||
| Series 2 | 6 | 4 March 1988 | 15 April 1988 | ||
| Series 3 | 7 | 15 March 1990 | 26 April 1990 | ||
| Series 4 | 7 | 18 February 1993 | 1 April 1993 | ||
| Series 5 | 7 | 4 January 1996 | 29 February 1996 | ||
| Series 6 | 6 | 15 October 2004 | 26 November 2004 | ||
| Specials | |||||
| Special 1 | 1 | 28 December 1988 | |||
| Special 2 | 1 | 30 December 1994 | |||
| Special 3 | 1 | 26 December 1998 | |||
| Special 4 | 1 | 2 May 1999 | |||
| Special 5 | 1 | 28 December 1999 | |||
| Special 6 | 1 | 29 March 2002 | |||
| Special 7 | 1 | 25 December 2002 | |||
| Special 8 | 1 | 26 December 2003 | |||
| Special 9 | 1 | 27 December 2005 | |||
| Compilation | |||||
| Specials (1995) | 2 | 31 March 1995 | 7 June 1995 | ||
| Specials (2005) | 2 | 1 April 2005 | 7 April 2005 | ||
| Series (2007) | 6 | 7 September 2007 | 24 December 2007 | ||
| Special (2017) | 1 | 25 December 2017 | |||
Series 1 (1987)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Beauty and the Beast"[3] | Geoff Posner | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 9 March 1987 | |
| Special guest: Alison Moyet (performing "Ordinary Girl") | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Tricks"[3] | Kevin Bishop | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 16 March 1987 | |
| Special guest: Roy Castle | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Julie Walters"[3] | Kevin Bishop | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 23 March 1987 | |
| Special guest: Julie T. Wallace | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Ratings"[3] | Kevin Bishop | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 30 March 1987 | |
| Special guest: Michael Grade | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Blue Peter"[3] | Geoff Posner | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 6 April 1987 | |
| Special guests: Jools Holland, Rik Mayall, and Harry Enfield | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Killing Time"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 13 April 1987 | |
| Special guests: Joan Armatrading (performing "Killing Time") and Harriet Thorpe | ||||||
Series 2 (1988)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | "Decades"[3] | Kevin Bishop | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 4 March 1988 | |
| Special guests: Joan Bakewell, Squeeze (performing "853-5937" ) | ||||||
| 8 | 2 | "Cable TV"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 11 March 1988 | |
| Special guests: Toyah Willcox (performing "Because the Night"), Steve O'Donnell | ||||||
| 9 | 3 | "Removals"[3] | Kevin Bishop | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 18 March 1988 | |
| Special guests: Helen Lederer, Kirsty MacColl | ||||||
| 10 | 4 | "Languages"[3] | Kevin Bishop | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 25 March 1988 | |
| Special guest: Ben Elton | ||||||
| 11 | 5 | "Potholing"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 8 April 1988 | |
| Special guests: Adrian Edmondson, Lenny Henry, Stephanie Beacham, The Proclaimers (performing "Make My Heart Fly" ) | ||||||
| 12 | 6 | "Nose"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 15 April 1988 | |
| Special guests: Robbie Coltrane, June Whitfield, Lulu | ||||||
Christmas Special (1988)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | — | "Christmas Special" | Geoff Posner & Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 28 December 1988 | |
| Special guests: Kathy Burke, Harriet Thorpe | ||||||
Series 3 (1990)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 1 | "The Sound of Music"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 15 March 1990 | |
| Special guest: Jerry Hall, Kirsty MacColl (performing "Fifteen Minutes") | ||||||
| 15 | 2 | "Whatever Happened to Baby Dawn"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 22 March 1990 | |
| Special guest: Mac McDonald, Kirsty MacColl (performing "Somethin' Stupid") | ||||||
| 16 | 3 | "The Exorcist"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 29 March 1990 | |
| Special guest: Kathy Burke, Kirsty MacColl (performing "Ride") | ||||||
| 17 | 4 | "Dangerous Liaisons"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 5 April 1990 | |
| Special guests: Nigel Planer, Eleanor Bron, Joan Bakewell | ||||||
| 18 | 5 | "Gone With the Wind"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 12 April 1990 | |
| Special guests: Kirsty MacColl (performing "Don't Come the Cowboy with Me Sonny Jim!") | ||||||
| 19 | 6 | "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 19 April 1990 | |
| Special guests: Harriet Thorpe, Mac McDonald, David Gilmour, Mark King, Mark Knopfler, Lemmy, Ralph McTell, Gary Moore, Kirsty MacColl (performing "Still Life") | ||||||
| 20 | 7 | "Casting Agency"[3] | Bob Spiers | Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders & Richard Curtis | 26 April 1990 | |
| Special guests: Jane Asher, Patrick Barlow, Carl Davis, Sarah Walker (performing "I Should Be So Lucky") | ||||||
Series 4 (1993)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 1 | "Misery" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 18 February 1993 |
| 22 | 2 | "The Silence of the Lambs" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 25 February 1993 |
| 23 | 3 | "The Seventh Seal" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 4 March 1993 |
| 24 | 4 | "In Bed with French and Saunders" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 11 March 1993 |
| 25 | 5 | "French and Saunders: The Special Edition" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 18 March 1993 |
| 26 | 6 | "Thelma & Louise" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 25 March 1993 |
| 27 | 7 | "The House of Idiot" | Bob Spiers | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 1 April 1993 |
Christmas Special (1994)
With this episode, French and Saunders moves from BBC Two to BBC One.
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | — | "French and Saunders Christmas Carol" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 30 December 1994 | |
| Special guests: Adrian Edmondson, Chris Ryan, Harriet Thorpe, Richard Briers | ||||||
Series 5 (1996)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | 1 | "Baywatch" | John Birkin | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 4 January 1996 | |
| Special guests: Julia Sawalha, Helen Mirren, Dusty Springfield, Mossie Smith, Janet McTeer, Ann Mitchell, Lynda La Plante, Patrick Barlow, Kevin Allen | ||||||
| 30 | 2 | "Loveheart" | John Birkin | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 11 January 1996 | |
| Special guests: Patrick Barlow, Kevin Allen, Patsy Kensit, Muriel Gray, Sue Perkins, Mel Giedroyc | ||||||
| 31 | 3 | "Franco e Sandro" | John Birkin | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 18 January 1996 | |
| Special guests: Felicity Kendal, Sue Barker, Kate Moss, Sue Perkins, Mel Giedroyc | ||||||
| 32 | 4 | "Batman" | John Birkin | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 25 January 1996 | |
| Special guests: The Krankies, Patsy Kensit, Patrick Barlow, Kate Moss | ||||||
| 33 | 5 | "Pulp Fiction" | John Birkin | Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, | 1 February 1996 | |
| Special guests: Lulu, Kate Moss, Clare Francis | ||||||
| 34 | 6 | "The Quick and the Dead" | John Birkin | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 8 February 1996 | |
| Special guests: Lenny Henry, Clarke Peters, Rosemary Leach, Sean Chapman, Gary Waldhorn, Lisa Coleman, Sue Perkins, Mel Giedroyc, Patrick Barlow, Kevin Allen, Miranda Forbes | ||||||
| 35 | 7 | "Dr. Quimn, Mad Woman" | John Birkin | Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders | 29 February 1996 | |
| Special guests: Michael Praed, Kate Moss, Patsy Kensit, Sue Perkins, Mel Giedroyc | ||||||
Specials (1998–2003)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36 | — | "The Making of Titanic" | Edgar Wright | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 26 December 1998 | 10.30 |
| 37 | — | "Witless Silence (Bank Holiday Special)" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 2 May 1999 | <6.11 |
| 38 | — | "French and Saunders: The Phantom Millennium" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 28 December 1999 | 8.10 |
| 39 | — | "The Egg" | Ed Bye | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 29 March 2002 | 6.05 |
| 40 | — | "Celebrity Christmas Puddings" | Tristram Shapeero | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 25 December 2002 | 8.02 |
| 41 | — | "French and Saunders: Actually" | Nick Wood | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 26 December 2003 | <5.88 |
Series 6 (2004)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 42 | 1 | "Back at the BBC"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 15 October 2004 | 6.42 | |
| Dawn and Jennifer meet their new producer and sign a contract, unknowingly locking themselves into a six-part series deal. | |||||||
| 43 | 2 | "Three-Letter Words"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 22 October 2004 | 5.54 | |
| Dawn attempts to find the chocolate lime to evoke childhood memories, Jennifer searches porn on the computer and a new director general of the BBC drops round. | |||||||
| 44 | 3 | "The Queen"[3] | Ed Bye | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 29 October 2004 | <4.70 | |
| Jennifer has been selected for a royal award, while Dawn is aghast at not being selected, as well as Mark Lamarr's rudeness. Episode one of the series is, apparently, drafted by the pair – albeit hastily. | |||||||
| 45 | 4 | "Offers"[3] | Ed Bye | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 5 November 2004 | <5.00 | |
| Dawn and Jennifer attempt to get funding for a series via the internal BBC process of offers. | |||||||
| 46 | 5 | "Minutes"[3] | Ed Bye | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 12 November 2004 | <4.83 | |
| With 5 of the 6 episodes for the new series' soon-approaching deadline; Dawn and Jennifer cut their ideas down to a manageable portion. The episode ends with a guest appearance from Anastacia. | |||||||
| 47 | 6 | "After Show Party"[3] | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 26 November 2004 | <4.40 | |
| Episode one of the new series starts filming. Dawn and Jennifer delay production, through a combination of pedanticism and constantly getting lost. The episode ends with the party for the start of the new series. | |||||||
Christmas Special (2005)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 | — | "Celebrity Christmas Special" | Ed Bye | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 27 December 2005 | 6.06 |
Compilation series and specials
French and Saunders Go To the Movies (1995)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | "French and Saunders Go To the Movies (Part 1)" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 31 March 1995 |
| — | — | "French and Saunders Go To the Movies (Part 2)" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 7 June 1995 |
Music Specials (2005)
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | "I Can't Believe it's Music" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 1 April 2005 | 4.36 | |
| First part of the compilation of music parody performances seen through the series. Featuring an Abba spoof, C'est la vie, and The White Stripes. | |||||||
| — | — | "I Can't Believe it's Not Music" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 7 April 2005 | <4.77 | |
| Part two of the compilation of music parody performances seen through the series. Featuring parodies of Alanis Morissette, The Bangles, Boyzone, and Guns N'Roses. | |||||||
A Bucket o' French and Saunders (2007)
A Bucket O' French and Saunders[1] was shown from 7 September till 5 October (the sixth episode not being shown). The series was shown as a retrospective, showing 20 years of the French and Saunders sketch show. The older material was interspersed with new sketches, which had been recorded in June 2007 at BBC Television Centre. New material included parodies of America's Next Top Model, The Apprentice, Gordon Ramsay's The F-Word, The Academy Awards (featuring a cameo appearance by Dame Helen Mirren), X Factor, Big Brother, Fame Academy and a parody of disgraced celebrities Amy Winehouse and Britney Spears.
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) [4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 1 | "Episode 1" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 7 September 2007 | 4.07 | |
|
Episode 1 sees the return of the hapless documentary presenter (Joanna Lumley), introducing the sketches. Old Material: Who Is It?/Dawn's Entrances, The Two Fat Men, ABBA (C'est La Vie), 60s Dance, Marilyn and Jane, The Exorcist, The Extras, Britney & Madonna (Remixed), Titanic, Dawn at the Doctor, F&S Teenagers, Music montage of old clips to The Black Eyed Peas' "My Humps". New Material: The F-Word featuring Jemima, Humpty Dumpty and Little Ted. | |||||||
| — | 2 | "Episode 2" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 14 September 2007 | 4.11 | |
|
Old Material:French and Saunders "get" a BAFTA, The Menopatsy Sisters, F&S Dancing, Cassie's Dance Audition (featuring Harriet Thorpe), Jen's Reactions to Dawn, Generation Gap (featuring Julia Sawalha, Presenters Academy (featuring Davina McCall, Dana and Mary Hopkin, Dickens' Daughter, The Mamas & the Papas, George Michael and Boy George, Florida Retirees, The Sound of Music, Music montage of old clips to Arctic Monkeys' "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor", Montage set to Dmitri in Paris' Une Very Stylish Fille New Material: The French and Saunders Academy Awards featuring Dame Helen Mirren | |||||||
| — | 3 | "Episode 3" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 21 September 2007 | <3.87 | |
|
Old Material: Alien, Gone with the Wind, Cold Turkey, Loveheart, Look at my baby!, Poo Stripes, BoyZone, Aimless Morris-Minor, Chris Martin's Mother/"Apple", West Country Maids, Silence of the Lambs, Women's Programming, Lucky Bitches, 20's Dance, 90's Dance, Music montage of old clips to Gorillaz "Feel Good Inc.". New Material: Jennifer's "Reality TV Tour" featuring Dawn as Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sir Alan Sugar, Tyra Banks and Simon Cowell | |||||||
| — | 4 | "Episode 4" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 28 September 2007 | <3.99 | |
|
Old Material: Dawn's entrance, Bros Star Test, Insane Housewife "Nibbles" (featuring Lenny Henry and Adrian Edmondson), The Extra's at the Tate Modern, Witless Silence, Batman (featuring Patsy Kensit), Star Wars, The Two Fat Women, Jackie and Brigitte (featuring Tanya Byron), Elton John with Kiki Dee, Music montage of old clips to Basement Jaxx' "Where's Your Head At?", Montage to Just Jack's Stars in Their Eyes. New Material: Dawn the Meter Checker, Amy Winehouse and Britney Spears | |||||||
| — | 5 | "Episode 5" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 5 October 2007 | <3.91 | |
|
Old Material: Lananeeneenoonoo, Catherine Zeta-Spartacus-Jones "President" and "Pregnant", Hurrah for Hollywood, Horse Riding, Kill Bill, Dot and May, Pulp Fiction, Thelma & Louise, Music montage of old clips to Lulu's "Shout", Montage on 20 years of "F&S" set to Dawn and Jennifer's rendition of Barbra Streisand's "The Way We Were". New Material: Location, Relocation, Property Under the Sun featuring Kirstie Allsopp and Big Brother in the French and Saunders House | |||||||
| — | 6 | "Episode 6" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | See episode 5 | See episode 5 | |
| Due to low ratings, the run was shortened and episodes five and six were edited down together into one show, so this scheduled broadcast was cancelled. Surprisingly, none of the leftover new material (including a Doctor Who parody, their second spoof of the show and also their second never to air) made it into the following Christmas special. | |||||||
| — | 7 | "Episode 7" | TBA | Dawn French & Jennifer Saunders | 24 December 2007 | <5.40 | |
|
Old Material: Dawn Modelling with Kate Moss, The Two Fat Men at Christmas, The Two Fat Women at Christmas, 'Don't Sit There!', La Belle Dame Sans Chapeau (with Darcey Bussell), Whatever Happened to Baby Dawn?, The Chamber Maids, F&S at Richard and Judy's House, Ding Dong Merrily on High (with Alison Moyet), Prosthetics with F&S, Computer Troubles, Cher, Ride with F&S, Imagine: Parkour (with Alan Yentob), Catherine Zeta-Spartacus-Douglas-Jones' Christmas Message, 1920's Dance, F&S in Prison, Christmas in the White Room, The Opera Divas (featuring Sarah Walker), Montage of old clips to Shirley Bassey and The Propellerheads, "History Repeating". New Material: White Room: Still Can't Get In to the BBC | |||||||
Other appearances
- Alison Moyet – Love Letters (promo video – F&S appearance) (1987)
- Jim Henson's The Storyteller – the bad sisters in Sapsorrow (1988)[5]
- Hysteria 2 (live appearance C4 (Tiger Television), Standup/sketch, colour (1989)
- The Secret Policeman's Biggest Ball – ITV (Central), Standup/sketch (1989)
- Little Pig Robinson (Beatrix Potter) (1990)
- French and Saunders Live! (1990 Tour) Home video release (non-BBC) (1990)
- Hysteria III (UK, C4 (Noel Gay Television), Standup/sketch, colour) (1991)
- Amnesty International's Big 30 (ITV (Working Title Television for Central), Standup/sketch (1991)
- Dusty Springfield – Full Circle (BBC Interview/Documentary) (1994)
- Alison Moyet – Whispering Your Name (promo video – Dawn appearance) (1994)
- Dawn, a parody of Oprah-style chat-shows featuring Dawn French and Victoria Wood/ F&S Sketch (1995)
Comic Relief
- Comic Relief (1988)
- Comic Relief 2: A Night of Comic Relief 2 (1989)[6]
- Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo – Help! Promo video (Comic Relief single) (1989)
- Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo – Help! Comic Relief '89 Live performance (1989)[7]
- Comic Relief '91: F&S and Birds of a Feather – Mistaken Identity (1991)[8]
- Comic Relief' 93: Total Relief (1993)[9]
- Comic Relief '95: The Night of Comic Relief (BBC, Sketch/standup) (1995)[10]
- Comic Relief '97 (1997)[11]
- Spice Girls & The Sugar Lumps – Who Do You Think You Are – Promo video (Comic Relief) (1997)[12]
- Comic Relief Special (Video Only) – The Extras On Doctor Who (unaired extended sketch recorded 13 years previously for series 1 episode 6 and eventually released as a short special as part of the Doctor Who Comic Relief video compilation) (2000)
- Comic Relief Special – Harry Potter and The Secret Chamberpot of Azerbaijan (2003)[13]
- Comic Relief Special – Gimme, Gimme, Gimmick (Mamma Mia: The Movie) (13 March 2009)[14]
- Comic Relief Special – French and Saunders' Carpool Karaoke (24 March 2017)[15]
References
- "A Bucket O' French and Saunders". frenchandsaunders.com. 30 August 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- Moreland, Alex"300 Years Of French And Saunders: Everything you need to know". Metro. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "British Comedy: French & Saunders". listal.com. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
- "Weekly top 30 programmes". BARB. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "The Storyteller - Straggletag aka Sapsorrow". YouTube. 9 February 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Red Nose Day 1989". Comic Relief. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo - Help! Live On Red Nose Day 1989 Comic Relief". YouTube. 25 March 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Comic Relief 1991". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Comic Relief 1993". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Comic Relief 1995". Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Comic Relief 1997". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Spice Girls - Who Do You Think You Are(Comic Relief Version)". YouTube. 9 December 2008. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Comic Relief Red Nose Night 2003". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- "Comic Relief - Funny for Money (2009)". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- Walford, Jessica"Comic Relief 2017: French and Saunders took on Skepta in their own Carpool Karaoke". Metro. 25 March 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.