10 Episodes That Turned Good TV Shows Into Classics

British sitcom writers have it tough. Whereas their American counterparts often have twenty-plus episode-seasons to perfect their shows, over in merry old England they may only have six episodes to establish the show’s world, characters and gags. While some succeed in doing this, countless of others have fallen to the wayside, never to return to the TV schedule. So for every Fawlty Towers, you have a dozen one-series wonders - who could forget Davinia McCall’s short-lived sitcom Sam’s Game? Oh, everyone? Carry on then.

Of course, Father Ted is far from your conventional British sitcom, not withstanding the fact it's written by two Irishmen and features a cast of mostly Irish actors and comedians. The show centres on three priests and their housekeeper Mrs Doyle, with the action taking place on the fictional Craggy Island. The first series provided plenty of laughs; but it was the opening episode of Series 2, simply titled “Hell”, that truly etched the show’s name in the pantheon of Britcom greats. The premise is simple - Fathers Ted, Dougal and Jack go on their annual holiday to a caravan park, which features such attractions as St. Kevin’s Stump and the Magic Road. Hilarity ensues as the priests have run-ins with a romancing couple, raw sewage and the madcap Father Noel Furlong (played by none other than a young Graham Norton).

If you’ve never had the pleasure of watching Father Ted before, I would implore you to start with “Hell”. Writers Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan have previously pointed to The Simpsons as a major influence on their creation, and this episode encapsulates that sense of cartoonish mania perfectly.