Gone for ten years, but still our Friends

When it comes to TV shows, I always seem to be late to the party. (Although sometimes it actually pays off because you don’t have to wait a whole week for the next one. Enjoying an all night DVD splurge instead can be rather satsfying). Like I was late to Gavin and Stacey, Frasier, The IT Crowd, Mad Men and The Bridge – all brilliant shows – I was also late to Friends.

Well, at first, I was a sceptic. Just another silly, glossy sitcom, I thought, with badly drawn characters, all of them shallow and superficial. But it seemed I was in the minority, with friends (both male and female) at school and uni and into university waxing lyrical about the latest escapades. They’d watch new episodes on a Friday night, and reruns all time (ferociously scheduled on E4). But I simply didn’t get it.

Then it happened. It don’t know how, but it did. Overnight, it seemed, I loved it. It must have been on one day, and I was finally able to appreciate the brilliance of the writing and the richness of the characters – so well defined and beautifully played, so much so that you had real empathy for them. And of course, the jokes were laugh out loud funny, so useful in a comedy, but surprisingly rare (I’m looking at you, My Family. And the recent Fast Show remake. Oh dear).

I obviously had a bit of catching up to do, having come to Friends in its last series or two, but the aforementioned repeats quickly saw to that.

Now, whenever I catch a Friends repeat, I know it’ll be 30 minutes well spent. And I know I’m not alone on that.

This week marked ten years since The Last One graced British TV screens, so I thought it would be worth looking at some of the best Friends moments. Fans of the show will watch every one of these clips and love them (even though you may not agree with the ten I’ve selected).

So here goes, in no particular order:

The One with Ross’ Sandwich

It’s the gravy-soaked bread that makes Ross’s moistmaker; he was absolutely furious when somebody at work not only nicks it, but throws half of it in the bin. Ross’s scream of “MY SANDWICH!” reverberates around New York city. Watch it:

The One with Ross’s Tan

Ross tries to get a fake tan, but it doesn’t quite go to plan. He keeps turning at the wrong time, and gets double sprayed on the front. He tries to put it right on a second visit, but only makes matters worse. Orange isn’t the word. Watch it:

The One Where Joey Speaks French

Here, Phoebe helps Joey prepare for an audition by teaching him how to speak French. He thinks he’s doing a great job. He isn’t. Hilarity ensues. Watch it:

The One with the Late Thanksgiving

Sick of everyone’s lateness and thoughtlessness on Thanksgiving, Monica and Chandler just decide to lock them out. With their tails between their legs, the four sheepishly peek their heads in through the chain on the door, but Joey's head gets stuck. In freeing themselves, the dinnertable is crashed into, but Monica doesn’t mind – she’s just had some great news. Watch it:

The One With All the Rugby

Ross nearly dies playing rugby, and Chandler can’t bring himself to break up with Janice, so makes an excuse that he’s moving to Yemen. He ends up flying to Yemen. Watch it:

The One With The Holiday Armadillo

Ross wants to teach his son Ben about their Jewish heritage, but feels dispensing with Santa would be too much of a punishment. So he lands on the idea of dressing up as Santa, and getting ‘him’ to tell him all about the festival of light. However, it’s too late to get a Santa suit, and henceforth the Holiday Armadillo is created... Watch it:

The One Where Everyone Finds Out

Everyone except Ross knows that his sister Monica is seeing Chandler. But Monica and Chandler thought they’d kept the whole thing secret from everyone “He doesn’t know we know they know we know,” says Phoebe to Rachel, as they plot against the pair. By the end, everyone knows as Ross sees them through his window. Cue more trademark Ross anger. Watch it:

The One with the Embryos

A classic, as the boys take on the girls in a trivia quiz to win the ‘big apartment’. The specialist subject is each other, and plenty of secrets are shared, and cans of worms spilled. At the end, discovers that she’s pregnant with her brother’s triplets. Watch it:

The One With the Prom Video

Right in the middle of Ross and Rachel’s breakup, the Friends come across an old video from Monica’s prom. In it, a young Ross is getting ready to accompany Rachel to the prom, but is spurned when someone else takes his place. He’s left alone, suited and booted. On seeing this, Rachel walks up to Ross and gives him a big kiss. It’s back on. Aaaah. Watch it:

The One After Ross Says Rachel

Oh em actual gee. He dittn’t? He dittn’t really say Rachel instead of Emily, did he? He did – on his wedding day. This episode deals with the fallout. Watch it:

The One With The Rumour

Will (played by Brad Pitt) is an old school friend of Ross's, and as he’s in town, Monica invites him round for Thanksgiving dinner. Rachel was horrible to him back in the schooldays, and it transpires that he set up a club called the "I-hate-Rachel-Greene-Club". There were only two members of this club; the other was Ross... Watch it:

Hope you enjoyed that trawl through some of the best Friends moments as voted for by, er, me. Feel free to disagree and add your own.