Finger (Bottom episode)
Encyclopedia
Finger is the fifth episode of the third series of British
television
sitcom, Bottom
. It was first broadcast on February 3, 1995.
match despite being nowhere near the pitch, instead being in the clubhouse where he was being bought a pint by Spudgun (the captain of the opposite team to Richie). Richie then carries on complaining, this time about what happened in the second innings, where he was knocked out by the insane Welsh cricketer "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones, with a super-powerful delivery straight to Richie's forehead. Eddie consoles Richie with the fact that he stole most of the opposing team's clothing after the game, and while most of the clothes were filled with worthless junk, Eddie managed to obtain Taffy's car keys. Furthermore, Eddie reveals that Taffy is getting married that day, to a woman that works at the local abattoir
and is a dead ringer for Ted Rogers. Richie decides to break into Taffy's car and switch the passenger light to being permanently on, so that the battery will die "in a couple of weeks," and while Eddie regards the plan as being somewhat unambitious, he goes along with it.
That afternoon, Richie and Eddie arrive at the Church of St. Llllllllllll, where Taffy and his bride are getting married. The two get in the car, and Richie gets another idea - he'll park it around the corner, so as to confuse Taffy when he comes out of the church. Despite Richie not knowing anything about cars and Eddie's only knowledge of driving coming from drunkenly ram-raiding
the Post Office, they manage to get the car started; unfortunately their lack of motoring knowledge immediately shows as Richie leaves the car in reverse and inadvertently succeeds in ram-raiding the local off licence. After Eddie takes advantage by stealing some cans of lager, the two drive off into the countryside, where they nearly cause several accidents by drink-driving and driving on the wrong side of the road. While searching the car's glove compartment, Eddie finds the O'Jones's honeymoon
reservation at a hotel in glamorous (by their standards) Wolverhampton
, and the two decide to steal the honeymoon as well.
Eddie ends up having to dress up as a woman in order to get into the hotel, though this doesn't stop him trying to pull women by pretending to be a lesbian
. After the two run up a huge drinks bill, one of the hotel's waiters takes a fancy to Eddie. Richie, trying to maintain the illusion that they are a couple, challenges him to a fistfight, but the waiter suddenly calls attention to the (off-screen) presence of what looks like Ted Rogers in drag. Richie mistakes this for a diversionary tactic, but the waiter is adamant that Ted Rogers is really wearing a wedding dress and stood in the lobby, along with "a seven foot Neanderthal figure." Eddie takes a quick glance and says that it isn't Ted Rogers; just the woman from the abattoir that's getting married to "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones. Richie and Eddie then realise in horror that they've been tracked down, and Taffy confirms this by angrily branding them "ignorant English wankers" and knocking them out with a pair of high-speed cricket balls.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
sitcom, Bottom
Bottom (TV series)
Bottom was a British sitcom television series that originally aired on BBC2 between 1991 and 1995. It was written by comic duo Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson who star as Richie and Eddie, two flatmates living on the dole in Hammersmith, London...
. It was first broadcast on February 3, 1995.
Synopsis
Richie storms into the flat one day loudly complaining at Eddie, who ruled Richie out in the first innings of that morning's cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
match despite being nowhere near the pitch, instead being in the clubhouse where he was being bought a pint by Spudgun (the captain of the opposite team to Richie). Richie then carries on complaining, this time about what happened in the second innings, where he was knocked out by the insane Welsh cricketer "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones, with a super-powerful delivery straight to Richie's forehead. Eddie consoles Richie with the fact that he stole most of the opposing team's clothing after the game, and while most of the clothes were filled with worthless junk, Eddie managed to obtain Taffy's car keys. Furthermore, Eddie reveals that Taffy is getting married that day, to a woman that works at the local abattoir
Slaughterhouse
A slaughterhouse or abattoir is a facility where animals are killed for consumption as food products.Approximately 45-50% of the animal can be turned into edible products...
and is a dead ringer for Ted Rogers. Richie decides to break into Taffy's car and switch the passenger light to being permanently on, so that the battery will die "in a couple of weeks," and while Eddie regards the plan as being somewhat unambitious, he goes along with it.
That afternoon, Richie and Eddie arrive at the Church of St. Llllllllllll, where Taffy and his bride are getting married. The two get in the car, and Richie gets another idea - he'll park it around the corner, so as to confuse Taffy when he comes out of the church. Despite Richie not knowing anything about cars and Eddie's only knowledge of driving coming from drunkenly ram-raiding
Ram-raiding
Ram-raiding is a variation on burglary in which a van, SUV, car, or other heavy vehicle is driven through the windows or doors of a closed shop, usually a department store or jewellers shop, to allow the perpetrators to loot it....
the Post Office, they manage to get the car started; unfortunately their lack of motoring knowledge immediately shows as Richie leaves the car in reverse and inadvertently succeeds in ram-raiding the local off licence. After Eddie takes advantage by stealing some cans of lager, the two drive off into the countryside, where they nearly cause several accidents by drink-driving and driving on the wrong side of the road. While searching the car's glove compartment, Eddie finds the O'Jones's honeymoon
Honeymoon
-History:One early reference to a honeymoon is in Deuteronomy 24:5 “When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any public duty be imposed on him...
reservation at a hotel in glamorous (by their standards) Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, and the two decide to steal the honeymoon as well.
Eddie ends up having to dress up as a woman in order to get into the hotel, though this doesn't stop him trying to pull women by pretending to be a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
. After the two run up a huge drinks bill, one of the hotel's waiters takes a fancy to Eddie. Richie, trying to maintain the illusion that they are a couple, challenges him to a fistfight, but the waiter suddenly calls attention to the (off-screen) presence of what looks like Ted Rogers in drag. Richie mistakes this for a diversionary tactic, but the waiter is adamant that Ted Rogers is really wearing a wedding dress and stood in the lobby, along with "a seven foot Neanderthal figure." Eddie takes a quick glance and says that it isn't Ted Rogers; just the woman from the abattoir that's getting married to "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones. Richie and Eddie then realise in horror that they've been tracked down, and Taffy confirms this by angrily branding them "ignorant English wankers" and knocking them out with a pair of high-speed cricket balls.
Background
- Victor SpinettiVictor SpinettiVictor Spinetti is a Welsh comic actor.-Early life:Spinetti was born in Cwm, Ebbw Vale, Wales of Welsh and Italian heritage from a grandfather who was said to have walked from Italy to Wales to work as a coal miner...
appears briefly in this episode. He famously worked alongside The BeatlesThe BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
in their three movies A Hard Day's NightA Hard Day's Night (film)A Hard Day's Night is a 1964 British black-and-white comedy film directed by Richard Lester and starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—during the height of Beatlemania. It was written by Alun Owen and originally released by United Artists...
, Help!Help! (film)Help! is a 1965 film directed by Richard Lester, starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—and featuring Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, John Bluthal, Roy Kinnear and Patrick Cargill. Help! was the second feature film made by the Beatles and is a...
and Magical Mystery TourMagical Mystery Tour (film)Magical Mystery Tour is an hour-long British television film starring The Beatles that originally aired on BBC1 on 26 December 1967...
. - Kevin AllenKevin Allen (actor)Kevin Allen is a British screenwriter, film director, film producer and actor. He is best known for writing and directing the cult black comedy feature Twin Town set in Swansea . He also directed the films The Big Tease and Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London and hit UK TV series Benidorm...
is the younger brother of The Comic Strip Presents regular Keith Allen. He would later appear as Detective Constable Kray in Ben EltonBen EltonBenjamin Charles "Ben" Elton is an English comedian, author, playwright and director. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement of the 1980s, as a writer on such cult series as The Young Ones and Blackadder, as well as also a successful stand-up comedian on stage and TV....
's The Thin Blue LineThe Thin Blue Line (TV series)The Thin Blue Line is a British sitcom starring Rowan Atkinson set in a police station that ran for two series on the BBC from 1995 to 1996...
. - This episode provides a possible explanation for the look of disgust on Richie's face when eating the fish finger in "'s Up's Up"s Up" is the fifth episode of the first series of British sitcom Bottom. It was first broadcast on Tuesday 15 October 1991.-Synopsis:...
". It is revealed that Eddie often hollows out fish fingers and pokes in dog excrement, catching Richie out regularly.
Breaking the fourth wall
- Questionably, Richie impersonating "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones by shouting "You ignorant English wanker!" directly at the camera may qualify.
Continuity and Production Errors
- Richie and Eddie attempt to steal "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones's car wearing a pair of tights as a disguise. After Richie abandons his half of the disguise, the tights change place on Eddie's head twice. Outside the car, the one leg is above his right eye and the other below his left ear. Inside the car they have moved to one leg under his right ear and the other leg on his nose. When in the off licence, they have moved again to one leg above his right ear and the other in the middle of his forehead.
- When the Maitre d' is seating Eddie, there is a wide shot showing two men seated at the corner table behind. The camera angle changes to a close up of Eddie being tucked in, and a man hurries past the Maitre'd towards the corner table. A second later the shot changes back to the wide angle, and there are still only two men at the table behind.
- When Eddie orders a pint of mild ("Make it a double!"), Marcel turns around, browsing the shelves behind, before turning again, ducking under the bar. A moment later, he produces the pint. At no point does he actually pour the drink. He just finds it under the bar, looking decidedly flat.
- "Cannonball" Taffy O'Jones sounds distinctly like Marcel, only with a Welsh accent instead of French.
Cast
| Cast | Characters |
| Rik Mayall Rik Mayall Richard Michael "Rik" Mayall is an English comedian, writer, and actor. He is known for his comedy partnership with Ade Edmondson, his over-the-top, energetic portrayal of characters, and as a pioneer of alternative comedy in the early 1980s... |
Richie |
| Adrian Edmondson | Eddie |
| Victor Spinetti Victor Spinetti Victor Spinetti is a Welsh comic actor.-Early life:Spinetti was born in Cwm, Ebbw Vale, Wales of Welsh and Italian heritage from a grandfather who was said to have walked from Italy to Wales to work as a coal miner... |
Maitre'd |
| Kevin Allen Kevin Allen (actor) Kevin Allen is a British screenwriter, film director, film producer and actor. He is best known for writing and directing the cult black comedy feature Twin Town set in Swansea . He also directed the films The Big Tease and Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London and hit UK TV series Benidorm... |
Marcel |
| Caroline Gruber | Maid |
| Gareth Marks | Receptionist |
| Rupert Rainsford | Pierre |
| Sue Scott-Davison | Woman |