S1.E8

The Christmas Lunch Incident

Name: The Christmas Lunch Incident
Genre: Comedy
Released: 1996-12-25
Duration: 44 min
Rating: 8.9
Cast: Dawn French, Gary Waldhorn, James Fleet

Episode aired Dec 25, 1996
TV-14
44m

IMDb RATING

8.9/10

497

YOUR RATING

John Bluthal, Dawn French, and Trevor Peacock in The Vicar of Dibley (1994)

Comedy

Geraldine is so popular that everybody wants her round for Christmas dinner so she won't be alone - Jim and Frank, Alice and her family, who are even more bizarre than Alice herself and the ... Read allGeraldine is so popular that everybody wants her round for Christmas dinner so she won't be alone - Jim and Frank, Alice and her family, who are even more bizarre than Alice herself and the Hortons. Geraldine is protective of Hugo when David bullies him and indulges in a sprout-e... Read allGeraldine is so popular that everybody wants her round for Christmas dinner so she won't be alone - Jim and Frank, Alice and her family, who are even more bizarre than Alice herself and the Hortons. Geraldine is protective of Hugo when David bullies him and indulges in a sprout-eating contest. And then Owen turns up wanting company since he has spent every Christmas a... Read all

Director
- Gareth Carrivick
Writers
- Richard Curtis
- Paul Mayhew-Archer
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

8.9/10

497

YOUR RATING

Director
- Gareth Carrivick
Writers
- Richard Curtis
- Paul Mayhew-Archer
Stars

5User reviews

See production info at IMDbPro

Trivia
In this episode Alice mentions she loves the Christmas Only Fools and Horses (1981-2003) Roger Lloyd Pack who plays Owen played Trigger in that show, in fact the special from that show Heroes and Villians (1996) premiered on BBC one before this episode aired on Christmas Night 1996 and Roger was in both this special and that special.

Goofs
In the scene when Tristram Campbell comes in and asks the Vicar to 'marry' him. She says that "love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage". She attributes that sentiment to Cole Porter. The song was actually written by Sammy Cahn and James Van Heusen.

Quotes
[first lines]
Alice Tinker: Vicar?
Geraldine Granger: Mm-hm?
Alice Tinker: What you looking forward to more than anything else at Christmas this year?
Geraldine Granger: Well, my highlights are going to be Jurassic Park and the Queen's speech, written this year by Ruby Wax, I believe. And what about you?
Alice Tinker: I'm totally excited about your first Christmas sermon; it, it's just going to be an experience I'll never forget.
Geraldine Granger: Alice, my *first* Christmas sermon was last Christmas.
Alice Tinker: Oh, yeah, I forgot.

Connections
Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Best Christmas-Themed TV Episodes (2014)

Soundtracks
Heavenly Voices
(uncredited)
Written by David Farnon

User reviews5

Review

Featured review

10/10

Classic comedy.

The Christmas Lunch Incident is contender for the best episode of Vicar of Dibley, it's possibly the best remembered. Who on Earth could forget a poor, well meaning Geraldine having to eat all of those lunches.

Each scene is brilliant, everyone is beautifully in character, each having Christmas dinner as you'd expect them to. You can't help but feel sick as you watch Geraldine having to eat more and more. Of course they save the best for last, as Geraldine dines with Alice.

Alice's family are of course bonkers, poor Mary is clearly mad as a box of frogs and as for the mum, another classic villager.

Just like Mary, The Spice Girls were once Virgins. That line was hilarious.

I'm not sure Christmas comedy gets much better, it even has Peter Capaldi, it's glorious, 10/10.