Sep 18, 2009

Vicar of Dibley ~A Holy Wholly Happy Ending

I have a new addition to my "fictional characters hottie list"...
Harry Jasper Kennedy


I saw the Vicar of Dibley episodes “Handsome Stranger” and “Vicar in White” for the first time this week and enjoyed them immensely! I’d been wanting to see them ever since viewing the VoD montages on YouTube (which I posted HERE) but didn’t think Netflix had them in stock. I must’ve been spelling something wrong before because the DO have them! (So hurry and put it on your list, Netflix customers.) Anyway, those YT vids don't even do it justice... you have to see the entire episodes to fully appreciate it.

*WARNING: THIS CONTAINS SPOILERS!*

Here are some of my favorite things about these episodes:
1) Richard as Harry. I do love the brooding, darker characters RA portrays,
but it was so refreshing to see RA as a sweet, happy, smiling guy
wearing blue jeans and occasionally glasses.  Even his sometimes tacky sweaters are adorable.

2) Dawn French as Geraldine Granger is cute as a button!
She’s funny, sassy and kind. I want to hang out with Geraldine in real life.

3) The quirky side characters are hilarious. Her ditzy friend, Alice and the gang of old guys… awesome. (This isn't a picture from the right season, but you get the idea of "the gang.")

4) I love how there are so many funny tid-bits crammed into it, it’s like Seinfeld or The Princess Bride, where you can talk about all the funny stuff with other fans that they might have forgotten.
“Remember when Geraldine pulled the huge candy bar out of a secret slot in a bible?” or
“Remember those old guys and the nude model?” or
“Remember when Geraldine saw Harry, ran down the hill and somersaulted over fences?”

Here are some of my favorite scenes: (In order of appearance.)
1) The first scene with Harry, when Geraldine and Alice are going to tell off the new “townie” only to immediately swoon when he opens the door and smiles. I melted right along with them!


2) When Geraldine is stalking Harry and the unknown beauty.
The whole scene is great, but I laughed out loud when she jumped into the puddle.


 3) The "Should Have Been Me" fantasy. I’d only seen the Harry-and-blonde-bride pictures before.
I didn’t know it was a musical! The whole thing was great, especially the gang of old guys as back up dancers… classic.

4) The proposal scene. Harry is SO. DARN. CUTE. all nervous and awkward.
Then there’s another LOL moment when she starts making “that noise” from Sense and Sensibility
and running around the town screaming at the top of her lungs and ringing the church bell.
(My 3-year-old saw this part with me and was giggling too.)

5) The wedding itself... Geraldine in her pj's, the vegetable canopies, the bridesdmaids dressed like
Star Wars characters (update: I was told they were actually Dr. Who characters... can you tell I'm not British?), the "bombs" of confetti exploding, the Vicar marrying them wanting Geraldine for himself...
so good!



I have so many other favorite scenes... but too many to mention here!
And by the way... isn't the little village of Dibley adorable!? I want to live there, in Geraldine's cottage. :)

11 comments:

Maria Grazia said...

I've seen these two episodes of VoD so many times that I know the dialogues between Harry and Geraldine by heart. I LOVE them! I'd add two scenes to the ones you've chosen, hich are my favourite ones: 1.The door scene after the first rendez-vous 2.The Sense and Sensibility re-watching+"one kiss ...with tongues" scene.

VB said...

and 3. The kiss at the door as he is leaving after the "you owe me one kiss...." scene!



Just one thing - the bridesmaids are dressed as Dr Who characters.

Nat at RA FanBlog said...

HAHA! That explains why I couldn't figure out which Star Wars characters they were. :)
I've never seen "Dr. Who."

Mulubinba said...

My first introduction to RA was as Harry. I melted with Geraldine and Alice when he answered the door too. I had to ask my son "Who is this actor? - he looks familiar..". Answer "He's Guy of Gisborne, mum!!" .

From the moment I set eyes on Harry, I really wanted Geraldine to have her feelings returned having seen all the previous series of VoD where she did not have her love returned. The proposal scene was great and reminded us of the first ever VoD Christmas special where the presenter of "Songs of Praise" (Julian?) asked her to marry him and she mistakenly thought he was proposing to her. (He wanted her to be the celebrant). This is why she can't believe that Harry is actually asking her to marry him and why we all cheered when he kissed her. The people in the audience mentioned that G and H didn't kiss until that final scene in the actual filming. I also loved RA trying not to laugh when she went out screaming after he had proposed.

I asked this question on the forums years ago - is Harry wearing a brussel sprout in his buttonhole in the final wedding scene? It looks like a little cabbage. No one has been able to tell me.

WitchyWoman said...

I love the Vicar of Dibley but wasnt a Richard admirer then like I am now (I know there must be something wrong with me)but I was pleased that he was going to be the Vicars man for 2 reasons. 1-He is good looking and I know Dawn wanted whoever was going to play her love interest to be just that. 2- because I'd only seen Richard playing Guy of Gisbourne, so to see him do comedy was going to be interesting.

I loved it and my fave scenes are the dinner in the pub when Harry finds out shes a vicar.

The hand holding scene awwww.

The "one Kiss with.." scene. Richard looks so cute in glasses and I truly believe that Dawn crept under his arms on purpose (see his face when she does that).

The wedding list "most of the tine I'll be saying Yes"(cue me melting when he says Yes).
Also when the vicar shows him the wedding magazines "Busty Brides" lol.

The pyjamas "I just want to get them off" LOL

Oh and the wedding rehearsal when you see the vicar jump up and down because Harry is so tall next to her ( a cute moment)

VB said...

WitchyWoman - I loved that "one kiss with ..." scene too. Do you think that Dawn creeping under his arms was not scripted and she just added it in on the spur? I had never thought of that before - I do love his expressoion then!

Mulubinba - the button hole does look like a little cabbage, doesn't it. I wonder if it is some exotic sprout!

My question - can anyone work out what Geraldine mouths to Harry at the alter just after they have been married and kissed ..... I just can't work it out!

Nat at RA FanBlog said...

I think Harry IS wearing a cabbage or coliflower as his boutineer. It would fit with the rest of the reception decor- the vegetable archways and vegetable greenery below the candles. (No doubt, Alice's idea.)

WitchyWoman said...

VB I do think the under arm thing wasnt scripted I think Dawn did it on purpose. Its just the look Richard gives like he's laughing along with the audience.

I'll have to watch it again but I think Geraldine mouths "we did it" after she and Harry are married.

Oh and what cracks me up about the puddle scene is that the vicar has been in that puddle before when she was going out with David Hortons brother. Thats why it got such a big laugh. The vicar nearly walks into it but stops and thinks back to what happened only for Harry and Rosie to climb over the fence and Geraldine has nowhere to go so she has no choice but to jump in.

Another scene that cracks me up is when Geraldine is stalking Harry and Rosie in the woods and Harry lets go of the tree branch and it smacks Geraldine in the face.

I think it would have been easier to say I love it all LOL.

Longhairedtoad said...

That two parter was one of the funniest things I had ever seen. Richard was just perfect as the shy but gorgeous townie.

I love his broody, dark roles too, but it was a pleasure to see him in this comic role, tacky sweaters and all. LOL

flandersdreamer said...

Another gorgeous moment is when they kiss and all of a sudden Harry pulls her really close and hugs her!
So RA, that one!
I think he must be the sweetest of men in real life too, because I don't think that was in the script either.
It came right form his heart!

Rita Wood said...

What are the books Harry lists as favorites? I think that is RA's list. He has read John Le Carre, Birdsong is a war novel. Do he list another book before he says "Birdsong"?
The laughs RA has in th "Debt" scene I believe was rehearsed. Dawn is so cute, and they kept changing the script even up to the day of the taping. Richard said the shooting and 3 weeks of rehearsals was the most he'd laughed in a long time. You can tell they really enjoyed it. The camera is set for her to slip into his arms. It is sweet and so romantic. Do matter how many times I watch it, I still laugh. It's my favorite mood lifted.