I was and am thoroughly dejected at the news that Channel 4 and E4 are to stop airing Friends from 2011. After 15 years, 236 episodes, Friends will finally cease to be a fixture in the E4 constant repeats calendar. The show has become a mainstay in the daily schedule of many, with the show itself still proving to be relevant, entertaining and as endearing as it ever was. C4 however, disagree. They believe the show which still pulls in 400,000 viewers per episode will be better spent on the scrap heap. Their reasoning behind ridding the show is that they feel the airtime can be better spent with new UK and USA based sitcoms and dramas.
At 11am / 5 or 6pm?
Really?
I can’t see myself sitting down with either a throbbing hangover or after a hard day of work wanting to watch a nice light hearted re-run of Boston Legal or the sorts.
I’m afraid that I feel C4 have taken two steps backward with this move and the uproar that has surrounded the decision is tribute to this. I concur as much as anyone that new shows should be welcomed and given an equal chance, but when one of the best loved shows of the past 20 years is still pulling in such viewing figures it makes little sense to ditch it. The only logic I can see in the move is that C4 have some sure fire shows in the pipeline that they are confident that will draw in higher ratings; if this is the case then touché to the masterminds at the channel – but do they really think they can launch a new hit TV show at the times Friends occupies in the listings? Debatable.
However, Fear not Friends fans. Comedy Central has had the good sense to seize the opportunity and have acquired the rights to the show for the next four years. So Friends will be joining the Scrubs, Two and a half men and South Park line up for years to come.
Yet this is where my problem lies.
Friends isn’t a show that should be surrounded by such contemporary comedies. Friends was the last great sitcom and acted as a reminder of the times when Friday night TV was worth watching. In a line up that included the likes of Will and Grace and Frasier, it was the star attraction in a pool of high quality (pre-reality TV) comedies and should be treated as comedy royalty. The love between Ross and Rachel, the friendship of Joey and Chandler, Phoebe’s quirkiness or Monica’s obsessive nature – all were effortless and even now offer a great insight into the social dynamics of people’s lives. It provided the kind of easy but enjoyable viewing that few shows are able to do, and did so without feeling dated. But now, seemingly on its last legs, Friends is being made to abandon its roots and seek pastures new...
And so come 2011, when C4 show the final scenes of the show and the group decides to go grab one last coffee. Only for Chandler to utter those near immortal words ‘Sure! Where?’ Will we then see Friends change homes from C4 to Comedy Central. But much like Chandlers irony about finding a new coffee shop, it is with great scepticism that I feel Friends is changing channels. Because in my eyes, C4 is to Friends, what Central Perk coffee shop was to the cast – a secure and welcoming residence, where the roots of the show’s success stem from. And now as a result of the move, it is resigned to live out its final days on a satellite TV channel, as opposed to its terrestrial roots.
It really is the end of an era.
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