Caroline Aherne

Documentary celebrating the British sitcom and taking a look at the social and political context from which our favourite sitcoms grew. We enjoy a trip through the comedy archive in the company of the people who made some of the very best British sitcoms. From The Likely Lads to I'm Alan Partridge, we find out the inspiration behind some of the most-loved characters and how they reflect the times they were living in.

Georgie Godwin is the fattest man in Britain. A tourist attraction, thanks to greedy 'agent, cabbie Morris. Devoted neighbour Janice is Georgie's only other regular outside contact until he meets Amy, a pregnant teenager fleeing a violent boyfriend ,whom he takes in as a lodger. Amy tries to help Georgie change his lifestyle, but Morris is more than keen to stop her ruining his tourist attraction.

The Yo-yo knickered slags get the blues when randy romeo Baz marries their love rival Thelma. But it's during their disastrous honeymoon at the sinister Paradise Park that the action really turns blue!

Christmas is coming but Barbara is not happy. Not only has she lost her wedding ring but Jim has won on a scratch card she found down the back of the sofa whilst looking for the ring and has kept quiet about his hundred pounds winnings. Nor is he especially sympathetic about Dave's impotency problem, though the entire Royle family unite to help recently widowed Joe from next door enjoy a restaurant-style evening in their house with the equally scatty Philomena, whom he has met through a want ad. On Christmas Day Barbara lashes out at Jim for his laziness and juvenile antics - though his description of a busty barmaid cures Dave's problem. However she is in for a pleasant surprise when she discovers just how he spent his scratch card winnings.

Bono estente! It's been over 25 years since quickfire sketch show classic The Fast Show first hit our screens, and what better way to celebrate its enduring success than with a two-hour extravaganza of archive clips, cast interviews and rarely seen footage?

A group of night security guards working at the fictional Whittington shopping centre in Greater Manchester must create an elaborate scheme to hide a robbery that has taken place on their watch.

On Jim and Barbara's wedding anniversary, Jim is frustrated because Barbara wants to celebrate abroad. However, she ends up settling for a stay at a caravan park in the 'Pearl of Prestatyn.' The trip is full of mishaps but…… is it about about The Golden Egg Cup.

Festive special edition of the hit family sitcom. Inspired by Nigella Lawson, Denise decides to cook Christmas dinner for the family. Jim provides the yuletide log and, much to his dismay, Dave's mum and dad are invited to join the festivities.

It is Christmas Day in the Royle household and Barbara is up to her eyes in it, as Jim is out of action following an unfortunate incident in the precinct while Dave and Denise are feeling the effects of the recession the most, and worry that Anthony's lavish gifts will eclipse their gift of a fridge magnet.

Ricky Tomlinson sits back in his chair and takes a fond look back at the much-loved comedy series The Royle Family, sharing his memories of playing head of the family Jim Royle and his experiences working with the show’s co-creator Caroline Aherne, who, as well as writing the show with co-star Craig Cash, also played Jim’s daughter Denise. Ricky talks about how a chance encounter helped him get the part of Jim, recounts what it was like filming some of the show’s most iconic moments, and tries to get the bottom of the origins of Jim’s famous, below-the-belt catchphrase.

Actor and comedian John Thomson looks back at the life and work of his friend and comedy colleague, the late and greatly missed Caroline Aherne. From rarely seen early routines from Caroline’s days on the Manchester stand-up circuit, through to some favourite moments from The Fast Show, Mrs Merton and The Royle Family, John is our guide as we wallow in a special selection of clips, characters and magic moments. To misquote Mrs Merton’s famous line to Debbie McGee – this is a collection that reveals exactly what it was that first attracted us to one of British television’s best-loved writers and performers.

TFI Friday was an entertainment show broadcast on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 1996 to 2000. The show was produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first 5 series. The final series was hosted by a number of guest presenters. It was broadcast on Fridays at 6pm from 9 February 1996 to 22 December 2000, with a repeat later that night. The title officially stood for "Thank Four It's Friday", but was widely understood to mean "Thank Fuck It's Friday" and was a reference to the popular phrase "Thank God it's Friday". The show's theme tune was Ron Grainer's theme from Man in a Suitcase, in keeping with Evans's frequent use of 1960s television themes in his work.

The Royle Family is a British sitcom created by Caroline Aherne and Craig Cash, and produced by Granada Television for BBC Two (series 1) and BBC One (series 2 and 3). It centres on the lives of a television-fixated Manchester family, the Royles, comprising lazy patriarch Jim, his hard-working wife Barbara, their entitled daughter Denise, their put-upon son Antony, and Denise's lad fiancé–later husband–David.

The Fast Show is a multi BAFTA award winning sketch comedy show written and produced by Paul Whitehouse and Charlie Higson.

Gogglebox is an entertaining television review programme in which some of Britain's most opinionated and avid telly viewers comment freely on the best and worst television shows of the past week, from the comfort of their sofas.

The Mrs Merton Show is a mock chat show starring Caroline Aherne as the elderly host Mrs Merton. It ran from 10 February 1995 to 2 April 1998 and was produced by Granada Television and aired on the BBC. The writers included Aherne, Craig Cash, Dave Gorman and Henry Normal. Prior to TV success, Aherne's Mrs Merton character appeared on Frank Sidebottom's album "5/9/88", then made her TV debut on the 1991 Channel 4 gameshow Remote Control, hosted by Anthony H Wilson. The chat show was followed up by a sitcom, Mrs Merton and Malcolm, based on Mrs Merton and her son Malcolm, who was played by Craig Cash.

Mitchell, Becky, and Templeton set out to discover their school's many mysteries and secrets, along the way encountering monsters, paradoxes, and timely winery nonsense as they try to avoid the headmaster and Mitchell's worst enemy, Mr. Abercrombie.

Sunshine is a three-part comedy drama that began on 7 October 2008 on BBC1 from the co-writers of The Royle Family and Early Doors. These co-writers, Craig Cash and Phil Mealey, also appear in the series.

Frank Sidebottom's very own TV show, broadcast from the converted shed that functioned as his showbiz HQ. Also featuring diminutive sidekick Little Frank, the shows include Frank’s take on Crimewatch, Timperley’s contribution to Manchester’s Olympic bid, pioneering rocket science in the back garden, and even a staging of Live Aid 2!

TV sketch comedy featuring Caroline Aherne, John Thomson, and Steve Coogan.

The World of Lee Evans was a BAFTA nominated TV show written by and starring Lee Evans and a range of actors, it followed Lee around getting stuck in tight situations and originally aired on Channel 4. The series was released on Channel 4 DVD in 2006 and features all episodes. The humour, which differs greatly from Evans' later stand-up humour, contains many elements of slapstick, and the show is similar in style to Mr. Bean. The series was a Granada Production in 1995 for Channel 4, and as Granada had adopted a new endboard cap at the end of their programs at this time, The World of Lee Evans was amongst the first ever shows to use the endboard. The series was quite popular though has had a very mixed reception in retrospect, some critics and Lee Evans fans saying the series is not as good as his other work. The series' slogan is If Lee Evans "needs to get from A to B, he starts at Z...".

Mrs Merton and Malcolm was a six-episode BBC One sitcom produced by Granada Television, and transmitted by BBC One in 1999. The series was written by Caroline Aherne, Craig Cash and Henry Normal. Network DVD published the series on DVD in 2008.