History Series / FatherTed

* {{Crossover}}: With Series/{{Ballykissangel}}. Ted has a dream about leaving the clergy for Assumpta with Father Peter also appearing. At least until Dougal ruins the entire thing by waking him to offer him a peanut, which causes Ted to dream about giant peanuts instead.

Flame wars can break out over whether the show should be considered Irish (its writers, cast, settings, exterior locations and humour were all Irish) or British (it was produced by a British company for Creator/Channel4). Though it was long said that Irish national broadcaster Creator/{{RTE}} had turned it down [[MoralGuardians for fear of offending the Church]], Linehan and Mathews have always maintained they never even considered offering it to RTE ''[[TakeThat because they wanted it to succeed]]'' - it's not for nothing that the British Channel 4 has been affectionately/sarcastically dubbed "the home of Irish comedy".

[[quoteright:286:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fatherted01_7472.png]]
[[caption-width-right:286: This picture is just resting on this page before Ted moves it on. L-R: [[AntiHero Fr. Ted Crilly]], [[TheAlcoholic Fr. Jack Hackett]], [[ManChild Fr. Dougal Maguire]], [[CloudCuckoolander Mrs. Doyle]].]]

An unhinged Anglo-Irish {{sitcom}} (or perhaps more accurately, an Irish sitcom paid for with British money) by Creator/GrahamLinehan and Creator/ArthurMathews, about a tiny parish on a miserable little island off the coast of Ireland where the Catholic Church has exiled three of its most embarrassing members: the [[{{Schemer}} embezzler]] Father Ted Crilly (Creator/DermotMorgan), the idiotic ManChild Father Dougal [=McGuire=] (Creator/ArdalOHanlon), and the [[DirtyOldMan drunken, violent, foul-mouthed skirt-chaser]] Father Jack Hackett (Creator/FrankKelly). Their housekeeper is Mrs. Doyle (Creator/PaulineMcLynn), who is ''[[SeriousBusiness really]]'' dedicated to [[BritsLoveTea serving tea]]. The majority of episodes were [[FawltyTowersPlot Fawlty Towers Plots]] that involved Ted's efforts to either [[CardboardPrison escape from the island]] or [[GetRichQuickScheme make a nice pile of cash]], neither of which he [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ever succeeded in doing]].

An unhinged Anglo-Irish {{sitcom}} (or perhaps more accurately, an Irish sitcom paid for with British money) by Creator/GrahamLinehan and Creator/ArthurMathews, about a tiny parish on a miserable little island off the coast of Ireland where the Catholic Church has exiled three of its most embarrassing members: the [[{{Schemer}} embezzler]] Father Ted Crilly (Creator/DermotMorgan), the idiotic ManChild Father Dougal [=McGuire=] (Creator/ArdalOHanlon), and the [[DirtyOldMan drunken, violent, foul-mouthed skirt-chaser]] Father Jack Hackett (Creator/FrankKelly). Their housekeeper is Mrs. Doyle (Pauline [=McLynn=]), who is ''[[SeriousBusiness really]]'' dedicated to [[BritsLoveTea serving tea]]. The majority of episodes were [[FawltyTowersPlot Fawlty Towers Plots]] that involved Ted's efforts to either [[CardboardPrison escape from the island]] or [[GetRichQuickScheme make a nice pile of cash]], neither of which he [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ever succeeded in doing]].

** Pauline [=McLynn=] nearly didn't get the part of Mrs Doyle, because they felt she was [[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/books/article-1105883/Pauline-McLynn-What-Book-.html too pretty.]] She turned up to a later audition with a terrible case of the flu, and the rest is history.

--->'''Mrs Doyle:''' "Ride me sideways" was another one![[note]] That line was actually ad-libbed by Pauline [=McLynn=] and caused Dermot Morgan to break up. If you watch closely, you can see that the scene is cut just as he is about to laugh out loud.[[/note]]

An unhinged Anglo-Irish {{sitcom}} (or perhaps more accurately, an Irish sitcom paid for with British money) by Creator/GrahamLinehan and Creator/ArthurMathews, about a tiny parish on a miserable little island off the coast of Ireland where the Catholic Church has exiled three of its most embarrassing members: the [[{{Schemer}} embezzler]] Father Ted Crilly (Creator/DermotMorgan), the idiotic ManChild Father Dougal [=McGuire=] (Creator/ArdalOHanlon), and the [[DirtyOldMan drunken, violent, foul-mouthed skirt-chaser]] Father Jack Hackett (Frank Kelly). Their housekeeper is Mrs. Doyle (Pauline [=McLynn=]), who is ''[[SeriousBusiness really]]'' dedicated to [[BritsLoveTea serving tea]]. The majority of episodes were [[FawltyTowersPlot Fawlty Towers Plots]] that involved Ted's efforts to either [[CardboardPrison escape from the island]] or [[GetRichQuickScheme make a nice pile of cash]], neither of which he [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ever succeeded in doing]].

** The make-up work on Father Jack, including white and grey blue eyes, crusty lips, strange ruddy spots, stringy hair, and a perpetual snarl makes him quite possibly the ugliest thing to ever appear on TV. Frank Kelly has said that people wouldn't talk to him with his makeup on[[note]]and fellow actors would avoid him during meals because the makeup was very realistic and bits would ''fall off'' into everyone's food[[/note]], and ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' actually based an alien priest on his appearance in the episode 'A Prefect Murder', of which a picture can be found [[http://farscape.wikia.com/wiki/Paroos here]].

An unhinged Anglo-Irish {{sitcom}} (or perhaps more accurately, an Irish sitcom paid for with British money) by Creator/GrahamLinehan and Creator/ArthurMathews, about a tiny parish on a miserable little island off the coast of Ireland where the Catholic Church has exiled three of its most embarrassing members: the [[{{Schemer}} embezzler]] Father Ted Crilly, the idiotic ManChild Father Dougal [=McGuire=], and the [[DirtyOldMan drunken, violent, foul-mouthed skirt-chaser]] Father Jack Hackett. Their housekeeper is Mrs. Doyle, who is ''[[SeriousBusiness really]]'' dedicated to [[BritsLoveTea serving tea]]. The majority of episodes were [[FawltyTowersPlot Fawlty Towers Plots]] that involved Ted's efforts to either [[CardboardPrison escape from the island]] or [[GetRichQuickScheme make a nice pile of cash]], neither of which he [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ever succeeded in doing]].

* HypotheticalFightDebate: A meta example. [[WordOfSaintPaul Ardal O'Hanlon]] was once asked who would win in a fight between Dougal and [[Series/MyHero2000 Thermoman]]. He responded that it would be a tough call, with both characters being good-natured pacifists, but ultimately backed Dougal to win since he has God on his side.

** It's pretty clear, though, that all three priests [[ArtisticLicenseReligion know very little about Catholicism]]. Jack is permanently drunk, Dougal is the resident [[TheDitz ditz]] and even Ted refers to God in a context that hints that he believes that other gods exist, in addition to flouting or contradicting Catholic views on homosexuality, contraception and papal infallibility. At one point, it's made clear that he doesn't even know the birth name of ''the Pope''.

** Many of the [[OneShotCharacter one shot clergy members]] crank this up to eleven. Examples include Father Williams, who was caught with a box of machineguns in his house and is shot by the Army over it, Father Billy, "The Spinmaster", a gambling addict who owes some dodgy types a large amount of money and ends up stealing the Craggy Island Parochial House new roof fund, Father "Todd Unctious", who tries to steal Ted's golden cleric award and steals another priest's clothing "because it seemed to be the way things were going", and the thoroughly vile Father Fintan Stack.

** After Ted fixes the toilet at the beginning of "Tentacles of Doom", he flushes it to make sure it works. The scene cuts to outside the house, where water shoots up out of a square vent. [[spoiler: Later on, Bishop Jordan is standing in the front yard directly over said vent as Ted uses the restroom.]]

** After seemingly getting away with kicking Bishop Brennan up the arse, a completely inebriated Ted orders Dougal to make hundreds of copies of the photograph he took of the deed, including a 10-by-10, blown-up copy. [[spoiler: When Brennan returns to Craggy Island, he eventually sees the incriminating photo, propped up against the side of the parochial house (because Dougal thought that meant 10-by-10 ''feet''), and he realises that Ted did indeed kick him up the arse.]]

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* GoneHorriblyWrong: In "Tentacles of Doom", Ted's main concern is that the Bishops finish blessing a relic and be on their way without noticing any of the ridiculous nonsense that usually happens on Craggy Island. By the end of ''one day'', [[spoiler: Bishop Jordan dies of a heart attack indirectly caused by Father Ted, Father Dougal accidentally pokes so many holes in Bishop O'Neill's beliefs that the bishop renounces his faith and becomes a hippy, and Father Jack has become so irritated with Bishop Facks that he has ''shoved the relic they were blessing up his backside''.]]

-->'''Eugene''': Father, that sermon today. [[BrutalHonesty frankly, it]] ''[[BrutalHonesty bored the arse off me]]!''

** The priest with the boring voice in "A Christmassy Ted". Actually comes in useful to distract shoppers so that the priests can escape the lingerie section.

An unhinged Anglo-Irish {{sitcom}} (or perhaps more accurately, an Irish sitcom paid for with British money) by Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews, about a tiny parish on a miserable little island off the coast of Ireland where the Catholic Church has exiled three of its most embarrassing members: the [[{{Schemer}} embezzler]] Father Ted Crilly, the idiotic ManChild Father Dougal [=McGuire=], and the [[DirtyOldMan drunken, violent, foul-mouthed skirt-chaser]] Father Jack Hackett. Their housekeeper is Mrs. Doyle, who is ''[[SeriousBusiness really]]'' dedicated to [[BritsLoveTea serving tea]]. The majority of episodes were [[FawltyTowersPlot Fawlty Towers Plots]] that involved Ted's efforts to either [[CardboardPrison escape from the island]] or [[GetRichQuickScheme make a nice pile of cash]], neither of which he [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ever succeeded in doing]].

** Mrs. Doyle's constant tea offering is one of the most famous running gags. Her dedication to tea making is frankly disturbing. She asks over and over and over. Once, she asked via a very large series of written signs when the music was up too loud to talk. Another time when Ted came downstairs in the middle of the night, she was standing perfectly still next to the door holding a tray of tea, six inches from Ted's face when he turned the light on. She also offered tea to a man who had just explained he was deathly allergic to it, although he left before she could really press him. In fact, she tends to aggressively push various foods and drinks on people, but tea is the go-to.