Original artwork, not a still
I'm no good at judging the size of crowds, but I'd say there's around seventeen million of them out there.
— Father Ted ‧ 1995
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
Dougal's gift is to sound reasonable while being wildly wrong, and a number that big for a handful of housekeepers on a Craggy Island lawn is the joke. Fans use it as the go-to exaggeration for any crowd, from a packed pub to a few people at the door.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Father TedShow the scene
In "Night of the Nearly Dead" (Father Ted, series 3, 1998), pop star Eoin McLove, a gentle parody of Daniel O'Donnell, visits the parochial house after Mrs Doyle wins his poetry competition. Word of the visit races round Craggy Island, and his devoted older women fans swarm onto the lawn, and Dougal glances out of the window and offers his estimate of the crowd. The mob then lays siege to the house, in a spoof of Night of the Living Dead.
Sources (2)
- Wikiquote: Father Tedsection: Night of the Nearly DeadReference checked
- Father Ted Wiki: Night of the Nearly DeadStory and TriviaReference checked
Context reviewed
