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With the country on lockdown and the news showing no signs of getting any less bleak any time soon, you’d certainly be forgiven if you were feeling a little bit glum at the moment.
To be honest, we’re right there with you, and we’re finding we’ll take all the laughs we can get at the moment just to lighten our mood, even just for a minute or so.
During that time, we’ve been turning to some old faithful clips from the TV vaults, of moments that never fail to make us laugh out loud.
So, whether you feel like flying through the whole list or rationing them out for whenever you’re feeling a little blue, here are some of our most cherished hilarious TV moments…
1. Let’s start off with an obvious one, shall we?
It was the moment that truly kept on giving, as not one but two of Professor Robert Kelly’s children joined him during a live video-link on BBC News, followed very quickly by their panicked mother. Sidenote: after two weeks of lockdown, we’ve never been more convinced he was wearing pyjama bottoms during this call.
2. “How’s Adam?”
The definition of “live TV, eh?”. Jo Joyner’s face when she realised she’d referred to actor Adam Woodyatt, rather than his EastEnders character Ian Beale, said more than we ever could.
3. And while we’re on the subject of soaps
The late, great Maggie Jones’ delivery as Blanche Hunt never faltered, but her shining moment came during this scene, when her Coronation Street character joined Peter Barlow at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, and wasted no time in tearing into absolutely everyone, including her own family.
4. Sharon Osbourne walking into a door on The X Factor
Watching Sharon Osbourne losing it usually sparks a laugh from us, but the sight of her absent-mindedly walking into a door after being sent out of the room by Simon Cowell is an undeniable classic X Factor moment.
5. This unfortunately-named athlete becomes a golden moment on The Chase
“Mr Walsh, would you like to share with the class what you find so funny about the name Fanny Chmelar?”
6. And who could forget this Pointless contestant’s reaction to her teammate’s wrong answer?
The eye-roll felt around the nation.
7. It feels like literal years, but it’s actually only been a few months since Iris made her This Morning debut and became a national treasure
Iris’ revelations about her first night with her much younger fiancé are seriously the stuff of TV legend.
8. And speaking of iconic This Morning pensioners
Ainsley Harriott tip-toeing into this lady’s living room brandishing a frying pan and bellowing “why hellooooo, Jill!” is still one of the best things to ever happen on daytime television.
9. This absolute tirade on Come Dine With Me
This speech just gets increasingly cringe as it goes on, and we love every second of it.
10. Adele tricking everyone into thinking she’s actually an Adele impersonator
Alright even if this one doesn’t have you laughing out loud per se, it’s still so adorable and heart-warming and lovely that it deserves its place on this list.
11. That time Amanda Holden got pranked by Ant and Dec on Saturday Night Takeaway
Amanda – or should we say “Mandy Pandy” – not suspecting anything until the very, very end just makes for hilarious viewing.
12. Not to mention every single ‘Get Out Of Me Ear’ sketch
Here’s Cheryl’s, but honestly they’re all brilliant.
13. Lee inadvertently eating Jenny’s face pack on Gogglebox
Sometimes the best bits of Gogglebox come when they’re not even watching the TV.
14. Richard Blackwood clearly having no idea what zest is and no intention of asking anyone
Styling it out doesn’t always work, Richard.
15. Rylan losing it at judges’ houses on The X Factor
The alarming thing is, Rylan has since claimed this went on for even longer in real life than it did on TV. We can only imagine how dehydrated he must have been at the end of it all.
16. This stunning speech from Alison Steadman in Gavin And Stacey
We’ve spoken at length in the past about why Pam Shipman is the true Queen of Essex, and this scene alone proves why.
17. Every time Miss Vanjie was on screen during her time on RuPaul’s Drag Race
We couldn’t narrow it down to just one moment, so here’s a stunning compilation.
18. Whenever Holly and Phillip review drawings from viewers’ children on This Morning
Has anyone’s laugh ever been as infectious as these two?
19. This positively Shakespearean moment from Celebrity Big Brother in 2016
The drama! The twists! The turns! The black hair ribbons!
20. In fact, let’s just take a moment to remember Gemma Collins’ time in the CBB house
The queen of memays is born.
21. But we all know that’s not Gemma Collins’ most iconic moment
Don’t worry, folks, she was fine.
22. OK, so it’s not *strictly* a TV moment, but trust us when we say this clip of Elaine Paige struggling to talk about Moby Dick on her Radio 2 show will put a smile on your face
Not exactly high-brow comedy but it’s still exactly the sort of laugh we need in our life right now.
23. And if you enjoyed that, then this chat about Dick Van Dyke is probably one for you as well
We take back what we said about Holly and Phil, this is the most infectious laugh we’ve ever heard.
24. And no round-up of hilarious TV moments is complete without Alison Hammond, so here she is bringing a smile to even Harrison Ford’s face…
It’s worth watching right till the very end, for Alison’s “I don’t even drink!” declaration, followed her infamous cackle.
25. …here she is getting stuck in a door in a caravan…
Again, followed by an enormous laugh from the woman herself.
26. …here she is accidentally pushing a man into a canal live on air…
“Get ready, guys!” Reader, they were not ready.
27. …here she is almost getting arrested when presenting in front of the leaning tower of Pisa…
“Guys, my holiday has turned into The Bourne Identity,” she joked from her hotel room afterwards.
28. …and here she is breaking a table in the Big Brother house back in 2002
Proving she’s been a joy to watch from the moment she first arrived on our screens.
29. And finally, as if we could end without a mention of this absolute TV gold
The OG This Morning innuendo.
