A Christmassy Ted
Encyclopedia
"A Christmassy Ted" is an episode of the Channel 4
sitcom Father Ted
. It is the 17th episode overall and was broadcast between the second and third series. This episode is 55 minutes long, as opposed to the usual 21-22 mins of all other Father Ted episodes. Graham Linehan
stated in the DVD
commentary of this episode that he thinks this is far too long and at moments expresses his boredom towards the end of the commentary track. It was aired on Christmas Eve
, seven months after the second series had ended.
, telling Assumpta that he is going to leave the priesthood for her. Just as they start to kiss, Dougal wakes Ted simply to offer him a peanut
, and Ted finds his dreams radically changed when he tries to sleep again: he is being chased by giant, snarling peanuts
. Apparently there is more to Ted's original dream than mere romantic fantasy, as he confesses the next day that he is dissatisfied with his current station in life; he doesn't get enough recognition or excitement. Moving past this, though, Ted wishes for an uneventful, ordinary Christmas. Seemingly on cue, the doorbell rings and Ted finds a baby on the doorstep; however, the mother quickly removes the baby, having mistaken Ted's house for someone else's. Ted wonders if having a baby around the house could have led a number of humorous situations, but Dougal quickly convinces him that nothing interesting would have come of it.
While Christmas shopping, Ted and Dougal accidentally wander into what turns out to be the largest lingerie section in Ireland
, prompting Ted to worry that there will be a scandal if they are discovered. As they try to find the exit, they run into six other priests, and Ted ultimately leads their escape in an unusually heroic fashion, after using the speaker system to tell Women at the exist the store is about to close. Soon after, Ted learns he will receive a coveted Golden Cleric award as recognition for his actions. Although disappointed that there is no cash prize, Ted is excited at the potential fame and prestige that come with winning the award. However, when Mrs. Doyle still only admits him to be the second-best priest in the country and talks about a Protestant Priest, he is thrown into a huff and goes off to muse on his future (inadvertently making an enemy of a fisherman on the way) and returning to find that in his absence, Mrs. Doyle has had Dougal perform a funeral he was meant to do (with predictably disastrous consequences).
As Ted gets over this, he gets a visit from an unknown priest who claims to be an old school friend of his. Mrs. Doyle, after nearly an hour of random guessing, correctly identifies him as Father Todd Unctious, and he is invited to stay for Christmas. Meanwhile Ted composes a vindictive acceptance speech for the award ceremony, pouncing on his chance to get back at everyone who's "fecked him over" in the past.
At the ceremony, Ted's speech goes on so long that all but a few attendees leave before he has finished, and the priests who Ted helped rescue from the lingerie section struggle to find excuses to leave Ted's party afterwards, including talking to someone on Death Row
, when they start watching an extended Latin mass on T.V. Only Todd Unctuous seems eager to stay. After Ted and Dougal go to bed, Unctious attempts to steal the award only to be discovered by Ted after the Dougal sneaks downstairs to watch a scary film on the television involving a Burglar breaking into someone's house. After he is caught and arrested, Unctuous explains that he had become overly obsessed with awards, which causes Ted to realise that he is suffering with the same problem. Ted resolves to become a better priest, but shows little signs of follow through on his resolution. However, he agrees to share the award with Dougal, who briefly goes mad with power.
Also in this episode, Jack is left in the kiddie playland while Ted and Dougal shop, Mrs. Doyle goes through a crisis when Ted gives her an automated tea-maker, and she has several ungraceful landings from a ledge while she puts up Christmas decorations.
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
sitcom Father Ted
Father Ted
Father Ted is a comedy series set in Ireland that was produced by Hat Trick Productions for British broadcaster Channel 4. Written jointly by Irish writers Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan and starring a predominantly Irish cast, it originally aired over three series from 21 April 1995 until 1 May...
. It is the 17th episode overall and was broadcast between the second and third series. This episode is 55 minutes long, as opposed to the usual 21-22 mins of all other Father Ted episodes. Graham Linehan
Graham Linehan
Graham Linehan is an Irish television writer, actor, comedian and director who, often in partnership with Arthur Mathews, has written or co-written a number of popular television comedies...
stated in the DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
commentary of this episode that he thinks this is far too long and at moments expresses his boredom towards the end of the commentary track. It was aired on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
, seven months after the second series had ended.
Synopsis
The episode opens with Ted dreaming himself into the plot of BallykissangelBallykissangel
Ballykissangel is a BBC television drama set in Ireland, produced in-house by BBC Northern Ireland. The original story revolved around a young English Roman Catholic priest as he became part of a rural community. It ran for six series, which were first broadcast on BBC One in the UK from 1996 to 2001...
, telling Assumpta that he is going to leave the priesthood for her. Just as they start to kiss, Dougal wakes Ted simply to offer him a peanut
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...
, and Ted finds his dreams radically changed when he tries to sleep again: he is being chased by giant, snarling peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
. Apparently there is more to Ted's original dream than mere romantic fantasy, as he confesses the next day that he is dissatisfied with his current station in life; he doesn't get enough recognition or excitement. Moving past this, though, Ted wishes for an uneventful, ordinary Christmas. Seemingly on cue, the doorbell rings and Ted finds a baby on the doorstep; however, the mother quickly removes the baby, having mistaken Ted's house for someone else's. Ted wonders if having a baby around the house could have led a number of humorous situations, but Dougal quickly convinces him that nothing interesting would have come of it.
While Christmas shopping, Ted and Dougal accidentally wander into what turns out to be the largest lingerie section in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, prompting Ted to worry that there will be a scandal if they are discovered. As they try to find the exit, they run into six other priests, and Ted ultimately leads their escape in an unusually heroic fashion, after using the speaker system to tell Women at the exist the store is about to close. Soon after, Ted learns he will receive a coveted Golden Cleric award as recognition for his actions. Although disappointed that there is no cash prize, Ted is excited at the potential fame and prestige that come with winning the award. However, when Mrs. Doyle still only admits him to be the second-best priest in the country and talks about a Protestant Priest, he is thrown into a huff and goes off to muse on his future (inadvertently making an enemy of a fisherman on the way) and returning to find that in his absence, Mrs. Doyle has had Dougal perform a funeral he was meant to do (with predictably disastrous consequences).
As Ted gets over this, he gets a visit from an unknown priest who claims to be an old school friend of his. Mrs. Doyle, after nearly an hour of random guessing, correctly identifies him as Father Todd Unctious, and he is invited to stay for Christmas. Meanwhile Ted composes a vindictive acceptance speech for the award ceremony, pouncing on his chance to get back at everyone who's "fecked him over" in the past.
At the ceremony, Ted's speech goes on so long that all but a few attendees leave before he has finished, and the priests who Ted helped rescue from the lingerie section struggle to find excuses to leave Ted's party afterwards, including talking to someone on Death Row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
, when they start watching an extended Latin mass on T.V. Only Todd Unctuous seems eager to stay. After Ted and Dougal go to bed, Unctious attempts to steal the award only to be discovered by Ted after the Dougal sneaks downstairs to watch a scary film on the television involving a Burglar breaking into someone's house. After he is caught and arrested, Unctuous explains that he had become overly obsessed with awards, which causes Ted to realise that he is suffering with the same problem. Ted resolves to become a better priest, but shows little signs of follow through on his resolution. However, he agrees to share the award with Dougal, who briefly goes mad with power.
Also in this episode, Jack is left in the kiddie playland while Ted and Dougal shop, Mrs. Doyle goes through a crisis when Ted gives her an automated tea-maker, and she has several ungraceful landings from a ledge while she puts up Christmas decorations.