The Vicar of Dibley: Difference between revisions

The show ran from 1994 to 2007, and has been seen resurfacing for sketches or charity appeals. It was released at approximately the time of female ordination.

 

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=== The show is the [[Trope Namer]] for: ===

* [[Brick Joke]]: The human-sized puddle comes back to haunt Geraldine in the penultimate episode, after she [[Tempting Fate|specifically insists to Alice that she'll never fall for it again.]]

* [[British Brevity]]: Twenty episodes and four specials were made. Over thirteen years.

* [[Calling the Old Man Out]]: When David tells Hugo that, if he marries Alice, then "you will no longer be welcome in this house, you will no longer be my son, and as this will attests, you will have nothing!" Hugo actually stands up to David (a rare feat for him), shoves the will back at him, and says, respectfully but coldly, "On the contrary, sir, I shall have everything in the world that I desire."

* [[The Cameo]]: The series has featured some notable celebrity cameos, including [[Kylie Minogue]], [[Sean Bean]], and [[Johnny Depp]].

** In fact Dibley itself qualifies as a [[Cloudcuckooland]]. Regarding the council meetings, Geraldine at one point says: "We're getting a little close to the outskirts of Looney Land here." Later... "Ding ding, everybody off, Looney Land city center."

*** Some context: That last quote is in response to Hugo saying that the old (broken) church window depicted Jesus giving the Sermon on the Mount... from a boat. Or, he says, perhaps just a huge boat-shaped cigar.

{{quote| '''Geraldine:''' So what did he say?<br />

'''Hugo:''' Well, I can't tell you what he actually said because, because you're the vicar. But let's say a certain word is represented by another word that, that sounds a little like that word, like, uh... like... "duck," for instance. ''([[Beat]])'' He asked me what the duck I was playing at. He said he didn't give a flying duck if I ducking loved Alice ducking Tinker, and if I ducking kissed her again, he'd make sure that I was well and truly ducked.<br />

* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: David. Geraldine does this too, but she isn't as much of a jerk about it.

** Owen has his moments too

{{quote| '''Vicar''': Oh for Heaven's sake, JUST KISS YOU MORONS!}}

* [[Dirty Old Man]]: Jim.

** Geraldine's middle name is [[Julie Andrews]] [[Dick Van Dyke]] [[Mary Poppins|Supercalifragilisticexpealidocious Chim Chimeny Chim Chimeney Chim Chim Cher-ee]] (gasp).

* [[Establishing Character Moment]]: The second scene of the first episode (the first parish council meeting) was designed as this for the entire main cast, save Geraldine (who isn't present at this point) and Alice (who isn't on the council. They get their moments a couple of scenes later, at Geraldine's welcoming party.

* [[Fairytale Wedding Dress]]

* [[Falling in Love Montage]]: Parodied, with the famous puddle scene.

* [[Nobody Over Fifty Is Gay|Nobody Over 50 Is Gay]]: Frank came out partway through the series as a homosexual after forty years in the closet, and did so over the local radio show set up by the vicar. The only problem? Frank's normally so very, very dull that everyone in town turned off their radios as soon as he came on. He was thrilled with how accepting everyone was the next day.

* [[Only Sane Man]]: David and Geraldine are well aware that they are the only people in the village with more than two braincells. Before Geraldine arrived, David pretty much anchored the entire village on his own.

* [[Overly Long Name]]: The vicar's full name in the series final is Geraldine [[Mary Poppins|Julie Andrews Dick Van Dyke Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Chim Chiminey Chim Chiminey Chim Chim Cher-ee]] Granger. Unsurprisingly, she's [[Embarrassing Middle Name|horribly embarrassed by it]].

** An earlier episode reveals her name as [[Embarrassing First Name|Bodicea]] Geraldine Granger.

* [[Suddenly Sexuality]]: Frank showed multiple signs of interest in the opposite sex in the early episodes -- indeed, it is hinted that he may have even had an illegitimate child -- but then he became a lifelong homosexual/bisexual (which isn't specified) for the remainder of the series after a gag in which he comes out on the air with no one listening.

* [[Suspiciously Apropos Music]]: The Reverend Pottle was dead for the singing of The day thou gave us, Lord, has ended.

* [[The Tag]]: Each episode would end with Geraldine telling Alice a joke, which Alice would then [[Don't Explain the Joke|completely misinterpret]]. One episode broke this trend by having her tell the joke to David Horton, (Alice was on her honeymoon), who ''did'' get it and thought it was hilarious.

** It was hilarious, but the real joke was that Geraldine starts explaining it to him out of habit.