From Mrs Merton to Scorchio! It’s Caroline Aherne’s 10 best moments
She radiated love as the narrator of Gogglebox, created one of the most emotional sitcom moments of all time and asked Debbie McGee a question she’ll never forget. Ten years on from her untimely death, we remember the TV legend
From Mrs Merton to Scorchio! It’s Caroline Aherne’s 10 best moments
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It’s 10 years since the tragic loss of TV genius Caroline Aherne. The brilliant but too brief career of the actor, comedian, writer and director was cut heartbreakingly short on 2 July 2016 when she died at 52 from lung cancer.
Aherne’s blue-rinsed, cardigan-clad pensioner character was first developed in the late 80s. By 1994, Mrs Dorothy Merton landed her own spoof BBC Two chatshow. Real-life celebrities would find themselves asked outrageous mock-innocent questions that a less cosy interviewer would never get away with. The peak came with her opening salvo to magician’s wife, Debbie McGee: “So what first attracted you to the millionaire Paul Daniels?” An all-time classic, still oft-quoted today.
Other memorable inquiries from the Bafta-winning series included alcoholic footballer George Best (“Do you ever think, if you hadn’t done all that running around playing football, you wouldn’t have been so thirsty?”) and boxer Chris Eubank (“Were you surprised when Steve Collins came from behind and licked you in the ring?”).
Scorchio!(1994-1997)
The recent heatwave gave it fresh meme-worthy momentum. Aherne’s most quotable character on quick-fire sketch show The Fast Show was meteorologist Poula Fisch from low-budget Mediterranean broadcaster Chanel 9. After the news bulletin was delivered in generic faux-foreign gibberish (“Boutros Boutros Ghali, sminky pinky, Chris Waddle”), Poula’s weather forecast would invariably predict temperatures of 45C across the region.
Every time, she would exclaim “Scorchio!” with apparent surprise. Except on one occasion when there was a single cloud on the coast, which was immediately declared a national disaster.
The Queen of Sheba(2006)
Aherne’s most beloved creation is BBC gem The Royle Family, co-written with her longtime collaborator Craig Cash. Its high point came with bittersweet, Bafta-winning special The Queen of Sheba. One of the most emotional hours of sitcom ever made, it helped haul Aherne out of a deep depression and process her grief for her own grandmother.
Bed-bound Nana (Liz Smith) had moved into the Royles’ sitting room. As her health declined, we watched each character caring for her in their own unique way – whether it was reading Mills & Boon romances aloud or tenderly brushing her hair. A devastating final act saw Denise (Aherne) give birth to a daughter and name her Norma after her great-grandma, who soon slipped away as the family kept vigil by her bedside.
Proceedings climaxed with the clan “putting the fun into funeral”, as per Nana’s wish, complete with “volly-vents” on the “buffy”. In the ultimate mark of respect, son-in-law Jim (Ricky Tomlinson) solemnly placed her ashes on top of the telly. After all, her final words had been “Trevor McDonald”.
Second to nun (1991)
“People ask me, ‘Where does the Bible stand on homosexuality?’ Well, three times in the Bible, Jesus said: ‘Get thee behind me Satan.’” Aherne’s convent school education provided the inspiration for Sister Mary Immaculate, a character first performed on the Manchester comedy circuit with an accent copied from her Irish parents.
Introduced with church organ music, wearing a full nun’s habit and carrying a Bible, the sexually voracious nun dispensed deadpan digs at religion. Her ambition was to “kiss the pope’s ring”, and she asked: “How many Protestants does it take to change a lightbulb? None. They live in eternal darkness.”
Mrs Merton skewers Bernard Manning (1998)
It became a defining moment in comic history when Bernard Manning braved The Mrs Merton Show and found his offensive brand of humour challenged throughout. He ultimately admitted he was a racist, which was booed by the studio audience.
Running rings around the unreconstructed standup, Aherne called boorish Manning “the devil’s work” and begged fellow guest Richard Wilson to “hit him with something”. She said she laughed upon visiting his venue The Embassy Club (“It was the night it burnt down”) and asked, “Who do you vote for now that Hitler’s dead?”.
Checkout girl (1994-1997)
An underrated Fast Show creation was Aherne’s no-filter supermarket till worker. She would pass comment with brutal honesty on every product she scanned, no matter how personal.
“Brown bread, very posh. Keeps you regular, though, don’t it? … Ribbed condoms. Very thoughtful … Anti-dandruff shampoo. Nowt wrong with a scabby scalp … K-Y Jelly. Bit of vaginal dryness?”
Stealing the show at the Brits(1997)
TheBrit awards was must-see TV in the Britpop era, but all the rock’n’roll stars found themselves upstaged by a little old lady. After poking fun at host Ben Elton, Mrs Merton made an important announcement: “Charlie, wherever you are, can you make yourself known? They’re all asking for you backstage.”
Aherne would return to the bash three years later, this time as herself, and say of gong-winner Robbie Williams that he was “a little bit common … I’d have a little go on him but not forever”. Fair.
Denise’s Christmas dinner(2008)
As a woman who tends to eat crisps, Dairylea on toast or spaghetti for tea (“Bolognese?” “No, hoops”), Denise Royle was somewhat ambitious to cook Christmas dinner for the extended family in festive special The New Sofa. Inspired by Nigella Lawson, she optimistically offered four guests a turkey leg until dad Jim asked: “Bloody hell, love, are we having an octopus?”
Sadly, the poultry centrepiece was still deep-frozen, despite having been in a bubble bath, kicked around the lounge, wrapped in a Manchester City shirt in the airing cupboard and attacked with various power tools. After offering to hack bits off and put them in the toaster, Wythenshawe’s own domestic goddess instead served Cup a Soup (“with a twist – it’s in a bowl!”), followed by her signature “carrot crush” and a traditional dessert of Wall’s Viennetta.
The voice of Gogglebox(2013-2016)
The Royle Family was a major inspiration for Gogglebox, the reality show in which regular families sit in front of the TV and react to what they’re watching. Aherne was the first choice for narrator, and her warm, twinkly tones helped to make it a surprise hit. As the nation’s unseen sofa companion, she radiated love for the medium she clearly adored.
Aherne would narrate the Channel 4 favourite from its inception in 2013 until April 2016, when she became too unwell. Her friend and Royle Family co-creator Craig Cash agreed to fill in for her, temporarily at first, and still does the job a decade later. “Gogglebox is a gift that Caroline left me,” says Cash, adding that he often feels Aherne’s “presence” when recording his voiceovers.
What did I say, Roy?(1994-1997)
Aherne teamed up with John Thomson to play northern couple Renée and Roy in a series of acutely observed Fast Show skits. Smug Renée would chatter endlessly to strangers, occasionally turning to ask “What did I say, Roy?” in the expectation that her submissive husband would meekly agree. Each conversation ended with Roy embarrassing her and being chastised with: “That’s not what I said, Roy!”
In the 25th anniversary documentary Just a Load of Blooming Catchphrases, made in 2020, after Aherne’s death, a poignant callback saw Roy sitting alone at home, heartbreakingly mute for 20 seconds. His occasional glances at the empty sofa cushion next to him made it evident that Renée was no longer there to reprimand him.
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