Sharon: It's the Health Service cuts apparently, but I said to 'im, I said "I want someone t'pull my tooth out today", but he said "That's not modern dental practice, oh, no, no, current thinking is to just leave the toothache alone an' it'll disappear after a few days".
Tracey: I thought you didn't 'ave a toothache?
Sharon: See? Workin' already!
— Sharon Theodopolopodous trying to convince Tracey Stubbs that she doesn't need to go to the dentist.
- Date First Aired: 24/10/1993
Tracey has found a spider down the toilet in her and Sharon's house, a spider which she decides to adopt and name after Norman Lamont. Meanwhile, Sharon has a spot of toothache. At the prison, Chris is hoping to bet at the races and manages to rope Sharon into it. Eventually, Tracey has had enough and decides to book Sharon in for the dentist. However, Sharon is Afraid of Doctors and refuses to go. When Sharon says this to Dorien, she reveals that she has a fear of spiders and reveals that she knows a hypnotist. However, when Sharon still refuses to go despite Dorien facing her fears, Dorien does the hypnotism for her. Unfortunately, she messes up the hypnotism and hypnotizes Sharon into believing that she was an employee from McDonald's.
Tracey and Dorien are worried and take Sharon to Robert, Dorien's hypno-dentist, who manages to get her out of the hypnotism. Luckily, they also manage to get Sharon's tooth out and they celebrate. Meanwhile, Chris wins the horse race. Unfortunately, thanks to Sharon being hypnotized the whole time, she forgets what Chris' winnings were for and blows the lot at Enrico's, although she doesn't seem to mind. Oh, and she accidentally kills Norman the spider.
Tropes Featured In This Episode:
- Accidental Misnaming: One of Chris' mates calls him "Theodopolopolous" instead of "Theodopolopodous".
- Afraid of Doctors: Sharon has a fear of dentists, which is why she refuses to go there to get her tooth fixed.
- Alliterative Name:
- Chris mentions a fellow prisoner known as Terry the Torturer.
- One of the horses mentioned on the radio is Baby Bounds.
- All There in the Script: Inverted; Robert is only credited as "Dentist".
- Baby Talk: Sharon speaks in this fashion when looking for Norman.
- Black Comedy Pet Death: Sharon accidentally kills Tracey's pet spider Norman by sitting on him.
- Blatant Lies: Sharon claims that her toothache has cleared up. She then proceeds to turn down the offer of toast and winces upon taking a bite of a banana.
- Bungled Hypnotism: Dorien's attempts to cure Sharon's fear of the dentist via hypnosis results in making her think she works at McDonald's.
- Call-Back: Dorien claims to have learnt the basics of hypnotism on her psychology course, but it all goes wrong and ends up leaving Sharon thinking she works at McDonald's.
- Continuity Nod:
- Chris wears the same The Blues Brothers T-shirt he was seen wearing in "Non-Starter" when he listens to the horse race.
- Darryl makes a comment on Chris having one testicle, as Chris had had it removed back in "Parting".
- Deadpan Snarker: Sharon gives Chris her usual amount of sarcasm on her visit:Chris: Listen, about this 'orse, right. You'll never guess what me an' the lads are gonna do.Sharon: Form a string quartet?
- The Dentist Episode: The episode revolves around Sharon putting off a trip to the dentist to have her toothache checked out. Her fear of the dentist is what stops her, so Dorien tries to hypnotise her into getting over her fear, only for it to cause Sharon to end up believing she works at a McDonald's.
- Double Entendre: When Chris tells Sharon about a tip he got on the horse races:Chris: 'E gave me a red-'ot tip this morning.Sharon: Surprised you can sit down, Chris.
- Eye Scream: Dorien warns Sharon that if she doesn't take her arm off her shoulder, then she'll stab her in the eye with her nail.
- Face Your Fears: Both Sharon and Dorien do this, with the spider-fearing Dorien being forced to look at Tracey's new spider, and the dentist-fearing Sharon being hypnotized into going to the dentist. Sharon's attempt doesn't go as well as Dorien's however when she is hypnotized into thinking she is a McDonald's employee.
- Fictional Document: Robert is a fan of Dentist's Weekly.
- Fun with Flushing: The episode begins with Tracey trying to flush a spider down the toilet. However, it doesn't work; the spider keeps crawling back up again.
- The Ghost: We never see Norman the spider onscreen.
- Groin Attack: One of Chris' mates threatens that he'll have no balls if Sharon failed to put the winning bet on.
- Hypno Fool: Dorien puts Sharon under hypnotism in an attempt to cure her phobia of dentists. This doesn't work and makes Sharon think she's working at a McDonald's.Tracey: Dorien, you've turned my sister into a brain-dead zombie!Dorien: "Turned"?
- I Ate WHAT?!: Sharon is horrified when she learns from Tracey that the nuts that she was consuming have had the chocolate sucked out of them beforehand by Tracey.
- More Hypnotizable Than He Thinks: Sharon doesn't believe in hypnotism until she is put under by Dorien.
- Noodle Incident: Sharon was once caught with a hypnotist at a hen night, who had proceeded to show her Polaroid of her munching raw onions and doing impressions of Adolf Hitler.
- Not Brainwashed: At first Tracey thinks Sharon isn't hypnotized and only pretending to be so to mess with Dorien.
- Obnoxious In-Laws: Sharon compares her in-laws to spiders because they both have horrible eyes, big legs, hairy bodies and clamber all over you when you're not looking.
- One-Shot Character: Robert Andrews.
- Pet's Homage Name: Tracey decides to name a spider she found in the toilet Norman, after Norman Lamont.
- Pun:
- Sharon has had an ache in her tooth for the second time, so she remarks that he has had an "identical twinge". Tracey isn't amused.
- When Tracey says she'll stay and watch Sharon have her tooth taken out, Robert remarks she doesn't look like an extraction fan.Robert: Joke of the week in Dentist's Weekly.
- Shout-Out:
- Tracey compares Norman's climbing skills to "Shelley Winters out The Poseidon Adventure".
- Chris wears a The Blues Brothers T-shirt.
- Darryl asks Chris if he plans to bet on Cindy Crawford winning a knobbly knees contest.
- Chris correctly answers a question on which year Richard of Cornwall was elected Holy Roman Emperor:Chris: Read that on the back of a crisp packet.
- Chris and one of his mates sing "The Gold Diggers' Song (We're in the Money)" from Gold Diggers of 1933 after My Aunt Nellie wins.
- Spelling for Emphasis: Dorien is so terrified of spiders that she can't even say the word.Dorien: I'm trying to tell you I've always had an enormous fear of... of... S-P-I-D-E-R-S's.Sharon: Spidders? (Beat) Oh! Spiders.
- Take That!:
- Norman Lamont is the namesake of Tracey's pet spider and Sharon comments on his large ears:Sharon: Eurgh! Tha's sick, that is!Tracey: I think I might call him Norman.Sharon: Why?Tracey: Coz he reminds me o' Norman Lamont.Sharon: 'Asn't got any ears.
- After Sharon's Pun, Tracey sarcastically remarks that she's amazed she hasn't been asked to write speeches for John Major.
- Tracey remarks Dorien would be terrified if she had to shop at Argos.
- Sharon is disgusted that she was hypnotized to do impressions of Adolf Hitler.
- Sharon tells Dorien she trusts her as much as she trusts Ben Johnson in a chemist.
- Dorien is disgusted by the idea of swilling back Tizer.
- Norman Lamont is the namesake of Tracey's pet spider and Sharon comments on his large ears:
- Too Kinky to Torture: Dorien is turned on by all the things that terrify Sharon about the dentist:Sharon: It's just that... rubber mask comin' down over ya face an'... the big leather chair an'... that feelin' o' bein' totally 'elpless.Dorien: Oh, stop it, Sharon. You're turning me on.
- The Tooth Hurts: Sharon spends the episode having a sore tooth, although she is too scared of the dentist to check it out.
- What You Are in the Dark: Sharon gives her true thoughts on Dorien when hypnotized:Dorien: Right, I'm going to ask you about Dorien.Sharon: Yes.Dorien: Now... think hard, and tell me truthfully what you really think of her.Sharon: I think...Dorien: Yes?Sharon: I think she's... warm-hearted an'... an' gen'rous.Dorien: Really?Sharon: An' she's been a really good friend t'me and Tracey.Dorien: Ooh.Sharon: She can be a vain, snobby, stuck-up cow sometimes.Dorien: Yes, thank you, Sharon.Sharon: Bitchy, conniving.Dorien: Yes, and you're a fat Cockney slut!
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Sharon and Dorien are both scared of spiders and Sharon is also terrified by the dentist and piranhas.
