"Competition Time" is the fourth episode of the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

Father Ted ''Father Ted'' is a sitcom created by Irish writers Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews (writer), Arthur Mathews and produced by British production company Hat Trick Productions for Channel 4. It aired over three series from 21 April 1995 until ...

''.

Synopsis

The annual "All Priests

Stars in Their Eyes ''Stars in Their Eyes'' is a British television talent series, based on Joop van den Ende's Dutch format ''Soundmixshow''. It featured a singing contest in which members of the public impersonate showbiz stars. The show premiered on 21 July 1 ...

Lookalike Competition" is approaching.

Ted TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depa ...

, Dougal and

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

are preparing for their entries, though Ted is dismayed to find Dougal and Jack dressed like

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

as that was his plan. Father Dick Byrne, Ted's rival from the Rugged Island parochial house, calls Ted and taunts him that the Rugged Island priests will win this year. Ted insists that he will have a better chance at winning since the guest judge, TV presenter Henry Sellers, is staying at the Craggy Island parochial house. Henry arrives with Father Barty Dunne, a priest who laughs continually at the slightest of things, as a result of which Henry is in a foul mood after the 4-hour drive. Ted attempts to offer Henry anything he wants to try to gain favour, but Henry appears unimpressed and considers staying at the Rugged Island house.

Mrs Doyle Mrs. (American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the most widely spoken language in the United States ...

and Ted offer Henry a drink of

sherry Sherry ( es, jerez ) is a fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versi ...

before bed, which he does his best to refuse but ends up succumbing to Mrs Doyle's persistence ("Go on, go on, GO ON!"). Henry then goes on a drunken rampage after the single drink, destroying the house's living room before jumping out the window. Barty explains that Henry has been a raging alcoholic, which led to him being sacked by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

, but had been sober for a year. Ted, Dougal and the police track down, tranquillise and return Henry to the house. After he regains consciousness, they tell him nothing happened. On the day of the contest, Dick calls Ted again and suggests a wager on the contest, which Ted accepts. However, they find Jack in a drunken stupor, seemingly unable to perform, but this gives Ted an idea. At the contest, Dick and his fellow priests (Cyril McDuff and Jim Johnson) perform as

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

and two of

the Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful ...

, scoring 9 out of 10. The Craggy Island parochial house act follows, paying tribute to the three ages of Elvis: the young version (performed by Dougal), the comeback version (by Ted) and his later years (by a half-awake Jack). Henry gives Craggy Island's show the victory with the maximum score: 10 out of 10. Back at the parochial house, Dick reluctantly pays Ted his winnings and leaves. Mrs Doyle offers everyone a glass of champagne but as soon as Henry takes a sip (despite Ted urging him not to) he goes on another drunken rampage. Ted tells Dougal they will look for Henry again in the morning and spends the rest of the evening appreciating the tiny trophy they received for winning.

Production

The character of Henry Sellers was based on a well-known English TV personality who enjoyed drink; writers

Graham Linehan Graham Linehan () (born 22 May 1968) is an Irish television writer and anti-transgender activist. He created or co-created the sitcoms ''Father Ted'' (1995–1998), ''Black Books'' (2000–2004) and '' The IT Crowd'' (2006–2013). He has also ...

and Arthur Mathews heard from a friend in

Hat Trick Productions Hat Trick Productions is an independent British production company that produces television and radio programmes, mainly specialising in comedy, based in London. History Hat Trick Productions was founded in 1986 by Rory McGrath, Jimmy Mulville ...

that they had seen the presenter come home drunk one day and fall into a bush. This gave them the idea of a presenter character who is powerfully affected by alcohol. Jean Ainslie, who plays a contestant on Sellers' game show, was cast based on her performance in ''

The Day Today ''The Day Today'' is a British comedy television show that parodies television news and current affairs programmes, broadcast in 1994 on BBC2. It was created by Armando Iannucci and Chris Morris and is an adaptation of the radio programme '' ...

''. Linehan regrets the storyline involving multiple characters dressing as

and considers it a typical sign of running out of ideas, and a particularly bad one in a programme's first series. One influence was ''

'', which was popular at the time of writing. This episode introduces Rugged Island's three priests: Dick Byrne, Cyril McDuff and Jim Johnson, and their housekeeper, who bear a close resemblance to Ted, Dougal, Jack and Mrs Doyle.

Maurice O'Donoghue Maurice Cornelius O'Donoghue (born 1950) is an Irish actor best known for his role as Father Dick Byrne on ''Father Ted''. His character in ''Father Ted'' is well known for his long running feud with Ted, mainly in Ludo competitions and the ov ...

, who plays Father Dick, was the writers' second choice for the role of Ted, being the right age and having a similar look and lightness. Mathews always preferred Dermot Morgan; Linehan was initially reluctant, fearing Morgan would play Ted the same as his previous character "Father Trendy", but Morgan lobbied hard for the role. Linehan stated that they would have named the character differently if the possible sexual connotations of "Dick Byrne" had occurred to them.

References

External links

"Competition Time" at the IMDB
{{Father Ted Father Ted episodes 1995 British television episodes Cultural depictions of Elvis Presley