Friday Night Dinner

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Friday Night Dinner
Friday night dinner.png
Main title screen
GenreSitcom
Black comedy
Farce
Created byRobert Popper
Written byRobert Popper
Directed bySteve Bendelack (series 1)
Martin Dennis (series 2–6)
StarringTamsin Greig
Paul Ritter
Simon Bird
Tom Rosenthal
Mark Heap
Music by"Meddle" by Little Boots
"Fot i hose" by Casiokids
"1901" by Phoenix
"Believe E.S.P." by Deerhoof
"Walk The Line" (Original Mix) by Dani Siciliano (series 4–6)
Opening theme"Animal" (Punks Jump Up Remix) by Miike Snow
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series6
No. of episodes37 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersNira Park
Caroline Leddy
Kenton Allen
ProducerRobert Popper
Production locationLondon
Running time21–25 minutes
Production companiesPopper Pictures
Big Talk Productions
DistributorBBC Studios
Release
Original networkChannel 4
Picture format1080i (HDTV)
Audio formatStereo
Original release25 February 2011 (2011-02-25) –
1 May 2020 (2020-05-01)

Friday Night Dinner is a British television sitcom written by Robert Popper and starring Tamsin Greig, Paul Ritter, Simon Bird, Tom Rosenthal, and Mark Heap.[1] The comedy is focused on the regular dinner experience of the middle-class British Jewish Goodman family every Friday night. The series aired from 2011 to 2020 on Channel 4. Following the conclusion of the sixth series and Paul Ritter's death in 2021, it was announced that the show would not return.[2][3]

The show received two BAFTA nominations in 2012. The first series was nominated for Best Situation Comedy, while Greig was nominated for Best Female Comedy Performance.[4] In 2021, for his performance in the final series of the show, Ritter received a posthumous BAFTA nomination for Best Male Comedy Performance.[5]

Premise[]

Friday Night Dinner depicts Shabbat dinner in the middle-class secular Jewish Goodman family, reflecting writer and producer Robert Popper's own secular Jewish upbringing.[6] It is set in suburban North London,[7] and filmed there, in Mill Hill.[8] The family consists of mother Jackie Goodman (Tamsin Greig), father Martin (Paul Ritter), elder son and musician Adam (Simon Bird), and younger son and estate agent Jonny (Tom Rosenthal). The episodes follow the family as the sons arrive at the family home and proceed to their dinner, which is often interrupted by numerous things. Most frequently, it is disrupted by Adam and Jonny pranking each other, Martin's oddities and their strange neighbour Jim Bell (Mark Heap), who is attracted to Jackie. Jim visits the Goodmans frequently, due to his loneliness, in most cases accompanied by his dog – of whom he is afraid.

Jackie's best friend, Valerie "Auntie Val" Lewis (Tracy-Ann Oberman), is also a frequent visitor, as was Jackie's mother, Eleanor "Nellie" Buller (Frances Cuka). Martin's mother, Cynthia Goodman (Rosalind Knight), referred to as Horrible Grandma, was an occasional guest to the Goodman household.

Cast and characters[]

Main[]

  • Tamsin Greig as Jacqueline "Jackie" Goodman, the mother of the family.
  • Paul Ritter as Martin Goodman, the father of the family.
  • Simon Bird as Adam Goodman, the elder son of the family, a musician and advert jingle composer.
  • Tom Rosenthal as Jonathan "Jonny" Goodman, the younger son, an estate agent.
  • Mark Heap as James "Jim" Bell, the Goodmans' bizarre, dog-fearing neighbour. He has had two dogs, Wilson (series 1–5) and Milson (series 6).

Recurring[]

  • Frances Cuka as Eleanor "Nellie" Buller, Jackie's mother, referred to as Grandma.
  • Tracy-Ann Oberman as Valerie "Val" Lewis, Jackie's neurotic best friend, known as "Auntie Val" to the boys.

Guest[]

Episode list[]

Main article: List of Friday Night Dinner episodes
SeriesEpisodesOriginally airedAverage UK viewers
(millions)[a]
First airedLast aired
1625 February 2011 (2011-02-25)8 April 2011 (2011-04-08)N/A
267 October 2012 (2012-10-07)11 November 2012 (2012-11-11)N/A
Special24 December 2012 (2012-12-24)1.54
3620 June 2014 (2014-06-20)25 July 2014 (2014-07-25)1.45
4622 July 2016 (2016-07-22)26 August 2016 (2016-08-26)1.66
564 May 2018 (2018-05-04)8 June 2018 (2018-06-08)2.09
6627 March 2020 (2020-03-27)1 May 2020 (2020-05-01)4.70
  1. ^ The average rating for the first three series have been calculated using 7-day viewing figures, while the ratings for the latter three series use 28-day viewing figures.

Legacy[]

For the 10th anniversary of the show, a special 90-minute documentary episode aired on Channel 4 on 28 May 2021, entitled Friday Night Dinner: Ten Years and A Lovely Bit of Squirrel.[10] The documentary was dedicated to Paul Ritter.[11]

The American version[]

In September 2011, Deadline Hollywood announced that Greg Daniels, who had adapted The Office for American television, would spearhead an American remake of the series for the broadcast network NBC.[12] The remake was picked up for a pilot, written by Daniels and directed by Ken Kwapis[13] and starring Allison Janney and Tony Shalhoub as the parents.[14] The pilot did not go to series.

In 2014, CBS bought an adaptation of the British show for the American market, as a "put pilot".[15]

In 2016 a third attempt at an American remake was under development by CBS, with the title Sunday Night Dinner.[16][17]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Plunkett, John (12 February 2010). "Tamsin Greig and Pulling's Paul Ritter to star in Channel 4 comedy". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
  2. ^ "Friday Night Dinner documentary dedicated to Paul Ritter". The List. 8 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Season Six Of Friday Night Dinner Was The Last One, Creator Robert Popper Confirms". Lad Bible. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  4. ^ "Television Awards Winners in 2012". BAFTA. 24 April 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  5. ^ "BAFTA TV 2021: The Winners and Nominations for the Virgin Media British Academy Television Awards and British Academy Television Craft Awards". BAFTA. 28 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  6. ^ Saner, Emine (4 March 2011). "Tamsin Greig: 'I always think I'll never work again'". The Guardian.
  7. ^ "Friday Night Dinner. House, Cast and why we won't get another series. • Dailytap". Dailytap. 19 June 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  8. ^ Friday Night Dinner stars Simon Bird and Tom Rosenthal talk returning to the show
  9. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Harry Landis". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  10. ^ "'Friday Night Dinner' anniversary documentary to air this spring". NME. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  11. ^ West, Amy (7 April 2021). "Friday Night Dinner documentary to be dedicated to late star Paul Ritter". Digital Spy. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  12. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (6 September 2011). "Greg Daniels To Adapt British Comedy 'Friday Night Dinner' For NBC". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  13. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (3 February 2012). "Ken Kwapis Set To Direct NBC Pilot 'Friday Night Dinner', Reunites With Greg Daniels". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  14. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (7 February 2012). "Allison Janney & Tony Shalhoub To Star in Greg Daniels' NBC Pilot 'Friday Night Dinner'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
  15. ^ Nellie Andreeva (21 August 2014). "CBS Buys Adaptation Of British Comedy 'Friday Night Dinner' As Put Pilot". Deadline. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  16. ^ Nellie Andreeva (30 August 2016). "CBS Developing New Adaptation Of UK Comedy Series 'Friday Night Dinner'". Deadline. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  17. ^ Jeffery, Morgan (31 August 2016). "They're remaking Friday Night Dinner for the US – again". DigitalSpy. Retrieved 4 April 2020.

External links[]

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