Same procedure as last year?
Millions of Germans will tune in to a little-known English-language sketch called “Dinner For One” this New Year’s Eve.
Filmed in 1963 with British comedians Freddie Frinton and May Warden, it has become a traditional part of the evening and is shown in several versions (colour, original, etc.) on different television stations. As such, it used to have an entry in the Guiness Book of Records for the most frequently repeated TV programme.
The sketch is simple: Miss Sophie is celebrating her 90th Birthday. Unfornately, the companions of her own generation are long since deceased, so it is up to her butler, James, to take on their roles. As the meal progresses, James becomes more and more drunk and outrageous, whilst Miss Sophie calmly orders the next course with the appropriate drinks.
However, even though the sketch is performed in English, almost no-one in England these days has ever heard of it.
Want to see what you’re missing? Watch the clip at the NDR homepage.
December 31st, 2007 at 12:02 am
[...] most well-known television programme on this day must, however, surely be Dinner for One – a 20-minute sketch with Freddie Frinten and May Warden which is shown every year on several [...]
December 31st, 2007 at 12:07 am
[...] most well-known television programme on this day must, however, surely be Dinner for One – a 20-minute sketch with Freddie Frinten and May Warden which is shown every year on several [...]
December 23rd, 2008 at 9:15 pm
[...] ein, und man freut sich auf Silvester. Auch wenn dies in England gar nicht so groß gefeiert wird wie in Deutschland. Die große Feiern finden eher in Schottland [...]
December 31st, 2008 at 12:52 pm
[...] that is not a reference to “Dinner for One“, which millions of people in Germany will be watching this evening, but to the sign in our [...]
January 18th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
[...] I could use one of my favourite quotes today: “Same Procedure as Last Year?” [...]
July 8th, 2009 at 11:43 pm
[...] This post was Twitted by WoodsieGirl [...]