"Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean" is the Christmas episode of the live-action Mr. Bean series.
Synopsis
Act 1: Christmas Shopping
On Christmas Eve, Mr. Bean visits Harrods during a busy shopping spree. After parking directly in front of the store and harassing a man dressed as Father Christmas by pulling his fake beard, he goes inside and tests out two Christmas baubles, choosing that bounces after the other one smashes on the floor. He also tests some Christmas lights using the same socket used for all of the exterior lights, plunging the entire outside of the store into darkness in the process. As the cashier sorts out Bean's purchases, Bean notices a Nativity display and uses it to act out a creative yet inaccurate Nativity scene with several other toys, until a Dalek, two army tanks, a Tyrannosaurus Rex, and a helicopter. His fun is soon halted when the store manager brings a toy policeman into the scene and gives him his bag, prompting Bean to leave.
In the town square, Bean meets his girlfriend, Irma Gobb. She takes him to a jewelry shop and points to the ring she wants in the window, but Bean thinks she is pointing to a picture of a couple sitting next to the ring and goes to buy that instead.
Bean then volunteers to collect money for a Salvation Army brass band performing in the square. He catches a young pickpocket stealing from people and forces him to give up all of his stolen valuables, then gives the loot to the conductor. Bean ends up conducting the band in a ridiculous way while the conductor tries on some of the jewelry that the pickpocket stole.
Afterwards, Bean wants to buy a Christmas tree, but he gets to the stand just as the last two trees are being purchased. He chops down the town's Christmas tree and drives away with it strapped to the top of his car, while everyone in the square remains oblivious.
Act 2: Christmas Eve
When Bean gets home, he cuts the top off of the stolen Christmas tree and sets it up in his flat. He then mails himself numerous Christmas cards (all of the same design) and puts out three stockings: one for himself, one for Teddy, and a tiny one for a mouse. He also finds a box of old Christmas crackers and stuffs all the fuses into one, creating a "super cracker."
While having a glass of wine, Bean tries to find something good to watch on TV, but finds only war films and horror films. Shortly after, a group of young carolers arrive at his door, singing "Away in a Manger." He sits down to listen to them while eating chocolates from a box, but after a while he gets drowsy. He walks over to the door with the chocolate box, but then rudely slams it in the childrens' faces without giving them anything and goes to bed.
Act 3: Christmas Day
The next morning, Bean wakes up in excitement and proceeds to check his stockings. He finds that Teddy got two new glass eyes to replace his button ones, and that his stocking is just an ordinary sock with a matching one inside. The mouse has also received a piece of cheese, which Bean ironically places on a mousetrap.
That afternoon, Bean goes into the kitchen to prepare the turkey, but he loses his watch while stuffing it. He pokes his head inside to look for it, and the turkey becomes stuck on his head just as Irma arrives at the door. He tries to prevent she from seeing his predicament, but ends up scaring her when he takes a crosscut saw to try and remove the turkey. Eventually, she helps him by attaching a coat scuttle to it and throwing the scuttle out the window. The turkey is lost, but Bean gets his watch back.
After they have dinner (cranberry sauce sandwiches and carrot slices), Irma gives Bean his present. He opens it to find a modelling ship and marvels at all the guns in their plastic frames. He then remembers to give her her present, but her excitement quickly turns to disappointment when she finds out that instead of the ring she wanted, he bought her the picture of the couple that was used as part of its display.
As Bean continues happily playing with his ship, Irma sits on his bed and starts to cry. He goes over to console her, but then realizes that he "forgot the main bit." He then produces a small present from his coat pocket; thinking that this is the ring she wanted, she happily hugs him and eagerly opens it to find what appears to be a sparkly ring inside. However, upon taking it out of the box, she finds that it is actually a screw-in hook meant for hanging up the picture. As he shows her how to put it on the wall, a very angry Irma storms out of the flat, slamming the door.
Bean is puzzled at this, looking at the picture and wondering "What was wrong with it?" before he sadly picks up his "super cracker" he made earlier and says Merry Christmas to himself. The episode ends with an outside view of his window as he pulls the cracker, which produces a loud bang and a bright flash that can be seen through the curtains.
Deleted scene
The original broadcast of this episode featured a scene showing how Bean won the turkey he eventually gets stuck on his head. He partakes in a contest to win it by guessing how much it weighs and sneaks a set of bathroom scales onto the counter. After weighing himself with the turkey, he subtracts his own weight and submits the correct answer. He wins the turkey and goes to put it in the boot of his car, while the next person in the contest trips on the scales he left behind. This scene is cut in the A&E DVD release for unknown reasons.
Broadcast history and availability
The cover to the 2010 DVD release.
The episode was first broadcast on British television in 1992, where its ratings were close to 18.48 million viewers.
It has since been released on VHS and DVD, including within a series box set. The episode can also been bought as part of a Mr. Bean DVD package called Three Beantastic Adventures, which also contained the theatrical films Bean and Mr. Bean's Holiday.
Cast
| Actor/actress | Character |
|---|---|
| Rowan Atkinson | Mr. Bean |
| Matilda Ziegler | Irma Gobb |
| Owen Brenman | Store Clerk |
External links
| This page about a Christmas special or an episode from a television series with a Christmas theme is a stub. Please help the Christmas Special Wiki by expanding this article. |