Father Ted - The Definitive Collection [1995] [DVD]

I can review the show itself in five words; it's the best comedy of all time.
This review is for those wondering whether or not to buy this so-called definitive edition, and what sets it apart from previous releases.

Well, for a start, it's bigger. It comes in one of those bookish-type DVD boxes, which has turnable 'pages' for each disc, with five in total. Series 1 takes up a disc while 2 and 3 are on two each. The real reason for the reissue of this series is the inclusion of the extra features (as well as groovy new artwork).

The set includes BBC's Ted episode of Comedy Connections, featuring all the key players apart from of course Dermot Morgan. The half-hour show serves as a great making-of supplement and deals with how the show came about, how it was initially disliked (!) and the legacy it left. Very concise and insightful, with no fluff. Also included are Ted and Dougal's in-character appearances for Comic Relief, worth watching to see them creasing up with the giggles once or twice. A two part, 40-minute interview with the creators is also very insightful, and details much of how the show was influenced, and influential, featuring some very rare footage of them performing years before the fame of Father Ted.

The only let-down of the extras is the footage of Ireland's annual "Ted-Fest", which seems to me very much like an event where people go to get drunk and shout catchphrases rather than celebrate how great the show was. All the superfluous features (sound effects, clip segments) from the original DVDs are carried over too.

In summary, I think this is the treatment Father Ted has always deserved, and the show is well worth the price of an upgrade as the extras are fantastically informative (and often hilarious) without crossing that line into having too much. I would strongly recommend buying it, whether you have the older DVDs or not (you don't? Shame).

Fantastic characters and fantastic writing come together to create a hilarious and timeless comedy.

Feck! who would think that this is 15 years old, and to be honest who would think that anyone over 15 years of age would be in fits of laughter at the tought of a group of priests getting lost in "Ireland's largest lingerie section", but I was.

I missed Father Ted first time around on the TV so this collection has allowed me to catch up on missed episodes, and there's not a poor one among them.

An added bonus is that this collection includes the Christmas Special, although this isn't clear from the blurb and as a result I bought that as well!

I bought this earlier in the year so that I had something to watch while living in France...and it's easily the funniest comedy I've ever seen! It's difficult to pick my favourite episode, as they're all sheer genius...although the milkman one is definitely up there! The extras are reasonably good, especially the greatest moments of each character (including the video for "My Lovely Horse"), and the Comic Relief part is rather funny as well. Quote of the whole thing has to go to Father Jack..."Don't tell me I'm still on that feckin' island!"...well thank goodness you are, it wouldn't have been the same without him!