TFI Friday - Regular Features

Regular Features

Features on the show included:

• Freak or Unique – Every week, there would be five people waiting outside the studio, of whom three would be selected to show off a special if freakish talent (such as juicing an orange with their shoulders, or drinking milk which they then forced out of their tear ducts). A running gag throughout the run was the 'Incredibly Tall Old Lady' who would always be waiting outside the studio. She was never nominated (mainly because it was obviously an old woman standing on a box)
• Baby Left Baby Right: A small child was placed on a cushion and the guest was asked which way it might fall
• Fat lookalikes – People who looked like fat versions of celebrities which was then followed in later series by Asian lookalikes
• What Does The Fat Bloke Do? – An overweight man was invited on set and asked about his occupation, before dancing and leaving
• Comment From The Cafe – Evans would rope in Cedric (the proprietor of a local eatery) to perform various embarrassing skits. Cedric became famous for his catchphrase "Hellooooooooo!" and wooden acting
• Ugly Blokes – Unattractive gentlemen would have the opportunity to turn down the amorous advances of a 'gorgeous girl' (Catalina Guirado). A photo of footballer Peter Beardsley was shown during the 'Ugly Bloke' theme tune
• It's Your Letters – A wide assortment of viewers' letters (this was introduced by a burst of Reef's "Place Your Hands", re-recorded for the show with the words "It's Your Letters" replacing the original chorus of "Put our hands on").
• Fishbowl Challenge: A goldfish in a bowl would have two toy bridges for company. Which would it swim under first?
• Another running gag was directed at the show's producer, Will MacDonald (aka Wicked Will, of MTV's Most Wanted fame), where everyone in the bar would point their fingers, begin to swivel them and chant 'Wiiillll' very creepily
• Will: Pub Genius – Will MacDonald would demonstrate a trick that could be performed using tools commonly found in a pub
• Wooden Bird with Purple Hair – Chris Evans would amuse the audience with a small nodding wooden woodpecker (with purple hair), that slid down a pole whilst an accompanying song was played.
• The Lord of Love – The veteran actor Ronald Fraser dressed in a quilted smoking jacket would recite love poems to girls in the audience.
• Wurthers – The shows cue card man. He became a frequent star of the show alongside Chris, during the last series of the show in which he was host. At the start of every show, they would both engage in telling a joke working alongside each other, with Wurthers finishing the joke with "I'm only joking of course!", with Chris then replying "He's only joking of course!". This became a frequent running gag before eventually fading out, with this being replaced with Chris sending Wurthers out on a task. The first and most memorable of these was sending him outside to look for a mini driver, while it was raining. Near the end of the show he found one and told her to say hello to the actor Minnie Driver, by waving at the camera who was at the same time being interviewed on the show with David Duchovny. The segment was originally a one-off, before being made a regular feature on the show.
• Show Us Your Face Then – someone in a football mascot outfit is introduced to the audience and invited to show them their real face.
• Sink or Swim – The studio audience (and viewers) were invited to speculate as to whether a chosen animal (e.g. a mouse or a snake) would sink or swim in a fishtank. To gasps of concern from the audience, the mouse turned out to be a good swimmer.