James Burrows directed 11 of his 15 Friends episodes in the first season, and one that came up during the special was The One With All The Poker, which sees the gang, well, play poker, with Ross ultimately losing to Rachel (or at least letting her win). That episode actually stemmed from a real life scenario, and was very much a result of James Burrows' influence. With the cast members wanting to bond and become genuine friends (something that definitely happened and hasn't stopped since, OK GUYS), he allowed them to use his dressing room so that they could all play poker together in a bigger space (his room was larger than any of theirs, a sign of how unknown they were back then), and ultimately an episode was written about it, which Burrows directed. It's details like these that show how much of an impact Burrows must've had on the show, and in particular the cast.
NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far.
A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.
