Recap / Birds of a Feather CS4: The Chigwell Connection

Sharon: So, d'you reckon I look sporty enough?

Tracey: Oh yeah, if eatin' mince pies counts a' a sport.

— Tracey Stubbs putting down Sharon Theodopolopodous.

• Date First Aired: 25/12/1992

When doubt is cast on the integrity of Detective Inspector Tatum, the officer who arrested Chris and Darryl, the sisters start a campaign to "Free the Chigwell Two". Dorien, meanwhile, suffers humiliation at the hands of tennis-playing gossip queen Melanie Fishman, after Marcus is accused of drug-running.

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Tropes In This Episode:

• All There in the Script:
  • Jacinthe's name is only seen in the credits. Sam's full name is also given here.
  • Also Inverted. Despite one of the tennis players and the detective receiving names, they're only referred to as "Tennis Pro" and "Detective" in the credits.
• Aluminum Christmas Trees: invoked Tracey doesn't realise All the President's Men was based on an actual event.
• And I'm the Queen of Sheba: After Sharon tells Tracey there's a chance Trevor could get off, Tracey remarks that if that happens then she's Tina Turner.
• As Himself: Robert Kilroy-Silk and David Lloyd.
• Auto Erotica: Tracey remarks Dorien's in a bad mood because she had to drive her and Sharon home rather than get a leg over in Trevor's Suzuki.
• Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Dorien gets Tracey and Sharon expensive watches for Christmas for helping her out while Marcus was locked up.
  Dorien: You're my best friends, I love you.
• Book Dumb: Chris doesn't know that four twenties make eighty.
• The Bus Came Back: This episode marks the first appearance of Detective Inspector Tatum since "Nicked", the first episode of the show.
• Celebrity Crush:
  • Sharon's always wanted to get on Kilroy, but not the program.
  • Sharon also hopes that Mel Gibson is at the door with a case of the rampant hots.
• Christmas Episode: The fourth in total, although most of the plot has little to do with the holiday.
• Diegetic Soundtrack Usage: A piano cover of the theme plays as Tracey and Sharon leave the prison.
• Dirty Cop: Although it happens after he is suspended, Detective Inspector Tatum constantly follows Tracey around to make her uncomfortable and has Garth briefly arrested.
• End-of-Episode Silliness: The episode ends with Tracey realising Sharon put the money-stuffed turkey into the oven and having to frantically retrieve it.
• Extra-Long Episode: This episode is 50 minutes, rather than the standard 30.
• Funny Background Event: As Dorien leaves the police station, a Constable can be seen dragging in an inebriated man dressed as Santa Claus.
• The Ghost: Roland, Bruce, Jerry, Alan and Kurt, Melanie Fishman's toyboys.
• Gold Digger: Tracey (rightfully) accuses Dorien and Melanie for being ones, but Dorien remarks they just got lucky.
• Gratuitous Foreign Language: Sharon says "Gesundheit" to Melanie Fishman.
• Handbag of Hurt: After Dorien writes on the "Free the Chigwell 2" poster to change the "2" to a "3", she whacks it with her handbag.
• He Who Must Not Be Seen: Michael Tidding is only heard as a voice on Tracey's answering machine.
• Hilarious Outtakes:
  • Linda Robson (Tracey) cracks up during the scene in the café after mentioning Darryl erects conservatories.
  • Linda Robson and Pauline Quirke (Sharon) burst out laughing when Sharon tells Tracey about someone at the door right ahead of the doorbell sound effect being played.
• Immediate Self-Contradiction: Mrs. Mimms mixes up the words "pasteurise" and "patronise" just after telling Tracey she isn't simple.
• It's All About Me: When Tracey and Sharon move the conversation away from her, Dorien cuts them off and reminds them she's still in a state of shock.
• Lady Drunk: Mrs. Mimms becomes so to celebrate Trevor going free.
  Mrs. Mimms: Well, if you can't get smashed out of your 'ead on a night like this, what's the point, eh?
• Lysistrata Gambit: Dorien complains she can't do this to punish Marcus for not putting any money in her accounts simply because they don't have sex anymore.
• Malaproper: Mrs. Mimms says "pasteurise" instead of "patronise" just after telling Tracey she's not simple.
• Never Lend to a Friend: Dorien tells Tracey and Sharon you should never lend money to a friend.
• One-Shot Character: Bruce, Mrs. Mimms, Trevor Mimms, Detective Sergeant Bloomfield, Samantha, Robert Kilroy-Silk, Rodney Smithson, Ernesto, Jacinthe, David Lloyd and Michael Tidding.
• One-Steve Limit:
  • Mrs. Mimms' son's name is Trevor, which was also the name of a One-Shot Character in "We'll Always Have Majorca".
  • Before Rodney Smithson, there was a One-Shot Character named Rodney Kauffman in "Women's Troubles".
• Pop-Culture Pun Episode Title: The title is a play on the film The French Connection.
• Really Gets Around: Melanie Fishman loves the lads as much as Dorien does.
  Melanie: I'll have five.
  Dorien: Five?
  Melanie: Well, there's Roland, Bruce, Jerry, Alan and Kurt.
  Dorien: Oh, I was forgetting Kurt.
• Remember the New Guy?: This is the first appearance of Trevor and Mrs. Mimms, yet Tracey and Sharon have apparently known them since Darryl and Chris were convicted.
• Rhymes on a Dime: Sharon when turning down a fella at Trevor's party.
  Sharon: No thanks. Want a bloke, not a joke.
• Rule of Three: Sharon assures Tracey that good things come in threes.
• Season Finale: Of Series 4.
• Series Continuity Error: Despite Dorien telling Tracey and Sharon you should never lend money to a friend, only last episode in "Loyalty" she was offering to lend a large sum of money to Sharon to keep her café running.
• Ship Tease: Detective Inspector Tatum offers to take Tracey out for a curry, although Tracey would rather die.
• Shout-Out:
  • Sharon wears an Atlanta Falcons cap in the first scene.
  • Tracey compares herself to Tina Turner.
  • Sharon mentions a recording of Chris being sentenced to prison would be one of her Desert Island Discs.
  • When Melanie goes off for a shower after insulting Dorien, Dorien claps back at her with:
    Dorien: Make sure you don't melt, Wicked Witch of the West.
  • Detective Inspector Tatum mockingly tells Mrs. Mimms that another one bites the dust as Trevor is about to be sent to jail.
  • Sharon mentions these days it'd be hard for the police to get a conviction against Jack the Ripper.
  • Tracey talks about All the President's Men and gives mention to Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford starring in it and taking down Richard Nixon.
  • Sharon hopes Darryl and Chris will be freed and get an apology from Elizabeth II.
  • Samantha wants to know if Marcus was involved with Robert Maxwell.
  • Tracey goes on Kilroy on BBC One to spread the word about the Chigwell Two.
  • Sharon hopes that when she tapes Tracey's Kilroy appearance she doesn't tape over Dirty Dancing.
  • After Dorien tells her about her terrible time at her brother's house, Sharon remarks it won't be making the Good Hotel Guide.
  • Sharon compares Tracey to Miss Marple.
  • Sharon sings funny lyrics to "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" while preparing the turkey.
    Sharon: Hark, the herald angels sing. I can't stuff this blooming thing!
  • Sharon hopes that Mel Gibson is at the door and hot for her.
• Song Parody: Sharon sings a version of "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" about stuffing turkeys when preparing dinner.
• Status Quo Is God: It seems Darryl and Chris have a chance to be freed while Marcus may go to prison, however in the end Darryl and Chris remain inside while Marcus stays a free man.
• Stealing from the Hotel: Sharon hopes the jury will take a long time to reach their verdict so they can get put up in a nouve hotel where she'll be able to steal a complimentary shower cap.
• Take That!:
  • Sharon makes a snide remark about Michael Jackson's plastic surgery.
  • Trevor writes off Garth's campaign posters, calling them "a bit Blue Peter".
  • Tracey complains about Sharon recording a David Lloyd commercial instead of her Kilroy appearance.
  • Sharon tells Tracey she's lucky she's not in hospital being visited by Noel Edmonds.
• Tempting Fate: Dorien tells Tracey and Sharon that her Marcus would never get locked up because she is a law-abiding member of the community. Guess who briefly gets arrested this episode?
• Title Drop: By Sharon after finding out Marcus will be freed from prison.
  Sharon: Right Dor, you get in the vintage champagne, an' we won't tell Marcus that you had him written off as the Chigwell connection.
• Unseen No More: Dorien's been mentioning her since Series 2, but this episode marks the first onscreen appearance of Melanie Fishman.
• Yiddish as a Second Language: Dorien calls Tracey's "Free the Chigwell Two" campaign "outrageous chutzpah".

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