OFI Sunday
Encyclopedia
OFI Sunday was an entertainment show hosted by Chris Evans. It aired Sunday's on ITV
at 10:30pm. The title officially stood for "Oh Flip It's Sunday", but as with his previous show TFI Friday
, whose title nominally stood for "Thank Four It's Friday", a less innocuous interpretation of the initials, "Oh Fuck It's Sunday", was clearly implied.
Critical reaction was extremely poor. Many considered it self indulgent and esoteric with Evans creating features that were clearly designed more for the amusement of the host and guest and/or studio audience than the viewers, notably when James Nesbitt
guested, Evans brought on a pub band that the pair had seen playing on a night out. While the pair clearly revelled in the situation, the audience was obviously not privy to the joke. Criticism was also levelled at the way Evans consistently played on events from his personal life. Most of the guests were also friends of Evans, with the first being his ex-wife Billie Piper
which further supported claims over Evans's self indulgence. Critics also slated Evans for asking live on the second show for celebrity-guests to call into the show while holding up a sign saying "Please", admitting they don't have anybody booked which was seen as an act of "desperation".
The series was cancelled after just five episodes, with another series planned depending on its reception. At first the debut show began with 5 million viewers at 10.30pm, but by the end of the 45-minute show, the audience had halved to 2.5 million, fewer than the 3.3 million watching Notting Hill
on Channel 4
between 11pm and 11:15pm. Due to the heavy drop in ratings during the progress of each show (the second started with 5 million which it inherited from I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, but ended up with a loss from the first show of 700,000 by 11:15pm) and falling ratings week-by-week, OFI Sunday was axed by ITV resulting in a second series never being made. It also never ranked in the ITV top 30 weekly BARB ratings and was another flop for UMTV
.
The sixth show was shown on 30 December 2005 which was on a Friday (as explained by Chris on the fifth show) and does not appear on "OFI Sunday" episode lists on various websites. Guests for the 30 December show were Will Young
, Katie Melua
and Ulrika Jonsson
. There were plans to have a tribute band who were picked by Evans as the best one in the country to appear on this edition, but this was scrapped by UMTV after the two unaired pilot episodes of the main series filmed in early November. The first pilot was filmed on the 6th November 2005 at ITV London Studios with Jodie Kidd
as the main guest and three U2
tribute bands: Us4//U2, Achtung Baby and Unforgettable Fire. The studio audience were in 70's fancy dress. Each tribute band played 90 seconds of a U2 song. Us4//U2 played "Beautiful Day", Achtung Baby played "Vertigo" and Unforgettable Fire played "New Years Day". The idea was that after all 3 bands had played their songs the audience would clap for each band in turn and a manikin dummy dressed as a rock guitarist in a black wig would register the claps on its clapometer guitar fret board. Us4//U2 were the winners of this pilot episode. The 27th November show was due to feature Oasis tribute bands; the idea was scrapped, however, though footage profiling each tribute act was filmed on the 8 November 2005 that was left unseen. Other tribute acts would have seen Robbie Williams being paid homage to. The winner would have played at Evans's end of year party, with the acts playing into the commercial breaks. The second unaired pilot episode featured the same three Oasis tribute acts as those that would have been on the 27th November show. Writer Allan Pease was interviewed for one of the pilots.
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
at 10:30pm. The title officially stood for "Oh Flip It's Sunday", but as with his previous show TFI Friday
TFI Friday
TFI Friday is an entertainment show broadcast on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 1996 to 2000. The show produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first 5 series. The final series was hosted by a number of Guest Presenters. It was broadcast on...
, whose title nominally stood for "Thank Four It's Friday", a less innocuous interpretation of the initials, "Oh Fuck It's Sunday", was clearly implied.
Critical reaction was extremely poor. Many considered it self indulgent and esoteric with Evans creating features that were clearly designed more for the amusement of the host and guest and/or studio audience than the viewers, notably when James Nesbitt
James Nesbitt
James Nesbitt is a Northern Irish actor. Born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Nesbitt grew up in the nearby village of Broughshane, before moving to Coleraine, County Londonderry. He wanted to become a teacher like his father, so he began a degree in French at the University of Ulster...
guested, Evans brought on a pub band that the pair had seen playing on a night out. While the pair clearly revelled in the situation, the audience was obviously not privy to the joke. Criticism was also levelled at the way Evans consistently played on events from his personal life. Most of the guests were also friends of Evans, with the first being his ex-wife Billie Piper
Billie Piper
Billie Paul Piper is an English singer and actress.She began her career in the late 1990s as a pop singer and then switched to acting. She started in acting and dancing and was talent spotted at the Sylvia Young stage school by Smash Hits magazine who wanted a "face" for their magazine...
which further supported claims over Evans's self indulgence. Critics also slated Evans for asking live on the second show for celebrity-guests to call into the show while holding up a sign saying "Please", admitting they don't have anybody booked which was seen as an act of "desperation".
The series was cancelled after just five episodes, with another series planned depending on its reception. At first the debut show began with 5 million viewers at 10.30pm, but by the end of the 45-minute show, the audience had halved to 2.5 million, fewer than the 3.3 million watching Notting Hill
Notting Hill (film)
Notting Hill is a 1999 British romantic comedy film set in Notting Hill, London, released on 21 May 1999. The screenplay was by Richard Curtis, who had written Four Weddings and a Funeral. It was produced by Duncan Kenworthy and directed by Roger Michell...
on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
between 11pm and 11:15pm. Due to the heavy drop in ratings during the progress of each show (the second started with 5 million which it inherited from I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, but ended up with a loss from the first show of 700,000 by 11:15pm) and falling ratings week-by-week, OFI Sunday was axed by ITV resulting in a second series never being made. It also never ranked in the ITV top 30 weekly BARB ratings and was another flop for UMTV
UMTV
Universal Music TV is a London-based record label that was formed in 1998.Owned by Universal Music Group, UMTV specialises in producing compilation albums and occasional single releases...
.
The sixth show was shown on 30 December 2005 which was on a Friday (as explained by Chris on the fifth show) and does not appear on "OFI Sunday" episode lists on various websites. Guests for the 30 December show were Will Young
Will Young
William Robert "Will" Young is a British singer-songwriter and actor who came to prominenceafter winning the 2002 inaugural series of the British music contest Pop Idol, making him the first winner of the now-worldwide Idols-format franchise...
, Katie Melua
Katie Melua
Ketevan "Katie" Melua is a British-Georgian singer, songwriter and musician. She moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then to England at fourteen. Melua is signed to the small Dramatico record label, under the management of composer Mike Batt, and made her musical debut in 2003...
and Ulrika Jonsson
Ulrika Jonsson
Eva Ulrika Jonsson is a Swedish television presenter in the UK, who became famous as a TV-am weather presenter and moved on to present Gladiators and became a team captain of the show Shooting Stars.-Early life:...
. There were plans to have a tribute band who were picked by Evans as the best one in the country to appear on this edition, but this was scrapped by UMTV after the two unaired pilot episodes of the main series filmed in early November. The first pilot was filmed on the 6th November 2005 at ITV London Studios with Jodie Kidd
Jodie Kidd
Jodie Kidd is an English television personality and fashion model.-Early life:Jodie was a showjumper as a child and attended St Michael's School, Petworth.-Family:Jodie is the granddaughter from Hon...
as the main guest and three U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
tribute bands: Us4//U2, Achtung Baby and Unforgettable Fire. The studio audience were in 70's fancy dress. Each tribute band played 90 seconds of a U2 song. Us4//U2 played "Beautiful Day", Achtung Baby played "Vertigo" and Unforgettable Fire played "New Years Day". The idea was that after all 3 bands had played their songs the audience would clap for each band in turn and a manikin dummy dressed as a rock guitarist in a black wig would register the claps on its clapometer guitar fret board. Us4//U2 were the winners of this pilot episode. The 27th November show was due to feature Oasis tribute bands; the idea was scrapped, however, though footage profiling each tribute act was filmed on the 8 November 2005 that was left unseen. Other tribute acts would have seen Robbie Williams being paid homage to. The winner would have played at Evans's end of year party, with the acts playing into the commercial breaks. The second unaired pilot episode featured the same three Oasis tribute acts as those that would have been on the 27th November show. Writer Allan Pease was interviewed for one of the pilots.
Guest stars
- 20 November 2005 - Billie PiperBillie PiperBillie Paul Piper is an English singer and actress.She began her career in the late 1990s as a pop singer and then switched to acting. She started in acting and dancing and was talent spotted at the Sylvia Young stage school by Smash Hits magazine who wanted a "face" for their magazine...
(Former singer, turned actor in Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, and Evans' ex-wife) - 27 November 2005 - James NesbittJames NesbittJames Nesbitt is a Northern Irish actor. Born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Nesbitt grew up in the nearby village of Broughshane, before moving to Coleraine, County Londonderry. He wanted to become a teacher like his father, so he began a degree in French at the University of Ulster...
(Actor, star of Cold FeetCold FeetCold Feet is a British comedy-drama television series produced by Granada Television for the ITV network. The series was created and principally written by Mike Bullen as a follow-up to his award-winning 1997 Comedy Premiere of the same name. The storyline follows three couples experiencing the...
) - 4 December 2005 - Zöe LuckerZöe LuckerZöe Elizabeth Lucker is an English actress best known for playing the roles of Tanya Turner on ITV's Footballers' Wives and Vanessa Gold in EastEnders.-Career:...
(Actress, star of Footballers' WivesFootballers' WivesFootballers' Wives is a British television drama surrounding the fictional Premier League Association football club Earls Park F.C., its players, and their wives. It was broadcast on the ITV network from 8 January 2002 to 14 April 2006...
), Danny JonesDanny JonesDaniel Alan David "Danny" Jones is an English musician who is one of the lead vocalists and guitarists for pop rock band McFly, alongside fellow members Tom Fletcher , Dougie Poynter and Harry Judd .-McFly:McFly rose to fame in 2004, in part due to their association with Busted who helped launch...
, Dougie PoynterDougie PoynterDougie Lee Poynter is an English musician and the bass guitarist and vocalist for the pop rock boyband McFly.- McFly :...
, Harry JuddHarry JuddHarry Mark Christopher Judd is an English musician who is best known as the drummer for British pop rock band McFly, along with fellow band members Tom Fletcher, Dougie Poynter and Danny Jones...
and Tom FletcherTom FletcherThomas Michael "Tom" Fletcher is an English singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He is best known as one of the lead vocalists and guitarists of English pop rock band McFly, in addition to being the group's founder and principal songwriter...
(The band, McFly) - 11 December 2005 - Bradley Walsh (Actor, star of Coronation StreetCoronation StreetCoronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
) and Sharleen SpiteriSharleen SpiteriSharleen Spiteri is a Scottish recording artist and songwriter, best known as being the lead singer of Scottish rock/blues band Texas. Texas began their career in 1986, and shot to fame in 1989 with their UK Top Ten single, "I Don't Want a Lover" released from Southside...
(Singer, member of the band TexasTexas (band)Texas are a Scottish pop band from Bearsden, near Glasgow, Scotland. They were founded by Johnny McElhone in 1986 and feature Sharleen Spiteri on lead vocals. Texas made their performing debut in March 1988 at Scotland's University of Dundee...
) - 18 December 2005 - Robbie WilliamsRobbie WilliamsRobert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
(British pop singer)
Features
- Secret Photo - Chris takes a photo of something before the show then shows it to the guest. He then doesn't tell anyone else what the photo was about and destroys the photo.
- Glad or sad - Audience members and the guest decide whether they are "glad" or "sad" about something in this week's news.
- Mine or not mine? - A viewer or audience member guesses if something belongs to Chris or someone else. If they are right they win a gadget.
- Gadgets and gizmos - Chris and co-presenter Tom show some gadgets and gizmos that the audience and viewers can win. Tom also rates the gadgets points out of 10.
- Laid Up - (only in the first episode) Three "laid up" contestants compete to win a classic car.
- Look-a-bit-likely - In the 5th episode Robbie WilliamsRobbie WilliamsRobert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
decides if people look a bit like famous celebrities.
Co-presenters
- Tom - Ex-navy officer (submariner) who presents and rates the gadgets and gizmos.
- Hiten - Chris' real life assistant for the show for the first two shows, but from the third episode would spin the caller/audience wheel for Mine or Not Mine in a wig.