"Smells" is the first episode of
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English ...
sitcom
A sitcom, a Portmanteau, portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troup ...
''
Bottom''. The episode was first transmitted on 17 September 1991.
Synopsis
Richie and Eddie are finding it impossible to attract women and they attempt to pick up women using sex spray supposedly loaded with
pheromones
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavi ...
.
Plot
One Friday night, Richie and Eddie return home from a disappointing night on the pull – Richie's bird lies to him, claiming to be a
lesbian, and he wastes half hour on two women by winking, clenching his buttocks, and prancing backwards & forwards to the gents, until the pair of women left with the other blokes and Eddie was kicked in the
testicles
A testicle or testis (plural testes) is the male reproductive gland or gonad in all bilaterians, including humans. It is homologous to the female ovary. The functions of the testes are to produce both sperm and androgens, primarily testostero ...
for stuffing a vodka bottle down his trousers shouting "Whoo-Hoo! Were you looking for the Eiffel Tower girls?". In a desperate attempt to get a girlfriend, the two write a "lonely hearts" advert for Richie to put in the local paper. After trying several ideas including "Ugly
Virgin
Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
Desperately Seeks Sex of Any Description", "Hot Young Buck", "Foxy Stoat Seeks Pig", "Foxy Stoat on the Prowl", "Musky Sly Old Foxy Stoat" and finally "Minky Musky Sly Old Stoaty Stoaty Stoat" the two give up. Richie then spots an advert for a revolutionary new sex spray. The next day the pair visit the local sex-shop in order to buy a can each.
That night the pair prepare to go out. Richie uses up his
biro
A ballpoint pen, also known as a biro (British English), ball pen (Hong Kong, Indian and Philippine English), or dot pen (Nepali) is a pen that dispenses ink (usually in paste form) over a metal ball at its point, i.e. over a "ball point". T ...
s drawing on chest hair; however, he has to use a green pen, as he has used all the black pens ink on his legs; while in the bathroom, Eddie shaves his tongue. Eddie attempts to remove Richie's nasal hair (at Richie's request) using a pair of pliers. However he ends up throwing Richie around the room, this in turn leads to a fight between the two, until Richie stops it by saying they should take it out on the 'birds' later. Both apply the sex spray liberally and Richie fantasises about finally "doing it". Eddie slowly becomes inebriated on the spray, after spraying it into his mouth.
The pair then venture to their local pub, "The Lamb and Flag", where Richie attempts to pick up the wife (
Harriet Thorpe
Harriet Amelia Thorpe (born 8 June 1957) is an English actress. Thorpe trained at London's Central School of Speech and Drama. She is known for her roles in the British sitcoms, ''The Brittas Empire'' (1991–97) and '' Absolutely Fabulous'' ( ...
) of a large man (
Clive Mantle
Clive Andrew Mantle (born 3 June 1957) is an English actor. He played general surgeon Mike Barratt in the BBC hospital drama series '' Casualty'' and ''Holby City'' in the 1990s, and Little John in the 1980s fantasy series '' Robin of Sherwoo ...
). He and Eddie pretend to be insane in order to prevent him from beating them up, but not before Richie has his testicles crushed by the man. They then pursue two young women (
Cindy Shelley
Cynthia Shelley (born 23 March 1960 in Barnet, Hertfordshire) is an English actress, known for her roles in two BBC television dramas of the 1980s: Alice Courtenay in '' Tenko'' and Abby Urquhart in ''Howards' Way''.
Career
Shelley made her telev ...
and
Carla Mendonça
Carla Mendonça (born 1961) in Coventry, Warwickshire is a British actress. She is known for playing Orla Crawshaw in ''Coronation Street'', Sophie Johnson in the CITV children's sitcom ''My Parents Are Aliens'' (2001–2006) and Mrs. Fitzgeral ...
) sat nearby, who are eager for them to leave. They leave them – in a less than subtle fashion – in order to buy
condom
A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of inte ...
s. In the toilet, Richie is punched by the large man.
When the duo return from the toilet, the girls have moved tables in the hope of avoiding them. When Richie confronts them, they claim to be lesbians and leave. Richie is disappointed, but this subsides when he realises a drunken Eddie is now attempting to seduce him, as he has become completely 'drunk' off the sex spray. The episode ends with Richie punching Eddie in the face.
Trivia
During the beginning of the episode while Eddie is eating
lard
Lard is a semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering the fatty tissue of a pig.[Lard]
entry in the ...
because he's "Too drunk to cook", the actor Ade Edmondson actually ate real lard. Edmondson's reason for doing so was "You couldn't really fake it could you?".
Recurring themes
This episode introduces a few themes that recur throughout the series:
*
Lee Cornes
Lee Cornes is an English television actor and writer born in Worcester.
A stand up comedian since 1980, he was a regular compere at London's Comedy Store throughout the 1980s and won best Stand Up Comedian at the Charrington London Fringe ...
makes the first of three appearances as Dick Head, the landlord at "The Lamb and Flag" public house.
* The unseen dogs outside "The Lamb and Flag" attack Eddie and Richie on the way in. In this episode it is explained that they are attracted to the sex spray. However, from this point on, every time they enter the pub they are attacked by the dogs.
* Richie's favourite, and only, pick-up line: "My, what a smashing blouse you have on".
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smells (Bottom Episode)
1991 British television episodes
Bottom (TV series)
British LGBT-related television episodes