Mr. Bean bests Alan Cumming on ‘Blind Date’ with Cilla Black
It’s really hard to believe but in 2015, we celebrate Mr. Bean’s 25th birthday. Looking back over the last quarter century, one can’t help but think of endless classic Bean moments from the series. Whether its seeing him tool around town in his iconic yellow-Mini, his difficulty in ‘dressing a turkey’, or his memorable take on the Christmas nativity scene at Harrods with miniature army men and Daleks as the principle players, no one can deny that Mr. Bean is timeless telly.
The character, Bean, was developed from the mind palace of Rowan Atkinson while studying for his master’s degree in electrical engineering at Queen’s College, Oxford. A sketch featuring the character was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in the early 1980s and then transformed into a television series in 1990 when Atkinson partnered with fellow University of Oxford student, Richard Curtis. One of the most memorable ‘Bean-moments’, however, didn’t occur during it’s run on ITV but rather as part of a Comic Relief sketch in 1993 with Cilla Black, host of Blind Date.
Blind Date was a British dating game show produced by London Weekend Television and hosted by English singer, Cilla Black. Blind Date ran on Saturday nights from 30 November 1985 to 31 May 2003. No episode was more memorable than the Comic Relief special with Mr. Bean appearing as bachelor #3 a special edition of Blind Date, and ends up enjoying a romantic English country getaway with lovely blonde Tracy. You might recognize Mr. Bean’s main competition as the future host of PBS’ Masterpiece Mystery series, Alan Cumming as Bachelor #2, Roddy from Edinburgh.
Bean’s Blind Date appearance was one of five Comic Relief sketches dating back to his first appearance in 1991 and culminating this past year to celebrate his 25th anniversary.
In: Comedy
