Amazon.com

The most British of British sitcoms, The Vicar of Dibley has well earned its success, which had nothing to do with the whoops-mind-my-bosoms potential in casting Dawn French in the role of a female vicar foisted upon a sleepy and ultra-conservative English village. Rather this series, set in a rural, largely middle-class environment, is essentially the flip side of, say, Inspector Morse. It's resolutely un-dumbed down, with scalpel-sharp dialogue and a standard of humor that owes more to Tom Stoppard than to mainstream primetime comedy. This release includes the entire first series, in which the vicar has to deal with the inevitable bemusement caused by her arrival and her well-intentioned involvement in the affairs of the community, together with the superbly funny episode in which she realizes she's accepted several invitations to Christmas lunch and can't bring herself to disappoint any of the hosts (never before has a sprout-eating contest provoked so much mirth). Above all, though, watch out for the episode that features Kylie Minogue giving the kind of hands-on performance usually associated with classic Morecambe and Wise or Ab Fab--when stars of this stature are happy to send themselves up in a television comedy, you know it's a good sign. --Roger Thomas ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Couldn't stop laughing...
The Church of England has only recently begun allowing women to be vicars. When my now husband and I decided to affirm our vows in his parent's church, we were pleased to be working with one of the first female vicars in the country. She related to us some of the challenges she faced, and said her life mirrored the vicar of dibley in many ways....

The series is hilarious top to bottom. Some of the episodes contain mature themes that may not be suitable for children. Be sure to watch for the joke after the credits...
b

the hilarious first season; with the "heavenly" Dawn French!
THE VICAR OF DIBLEY finally makes it to DVD, with the hilarious first season. Join Dawn French & Co. for six superb episodes of the BBC comedy hit written by Richard Curtis (FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL).

Welcome to Dibley, filled with some perfectly-peculiar characters like Letitia Cropley (Liz Smith), Frank Pickle (John Bluthal), Jim Trott (Trevor Peacock) and Owen Newitt (Roger Lloyd Pack). Governing Dibley with an iron fist and a sealed wallet is snooty David Horton (Gary Waldhorn) and his young dimwit son Hugo (James Fleet). Last but not least is the truly-terrifying Alice Tinker (Emma Chambers), the resident verger of the church.

"Arrival" - After the 102-year-old Reverend Pottle carks it, the town of Dibley awaits its new vicar for St. Barnabus Church. When the totally-unexpected Reverend Geraldine Boadicea Granger (Dawn French) arrives in town, no-one is prepared for what is to follow.

"Songs of Praise" - Geraldine discovers that the BBC wish to film an episode of 'Songs of Praise' at the local church. There's only one problem: there's no choir. Whilst Gerry and Alice quickly arrange auditions for the prospective choir, the rest of the town quickly starts becoming stage-struck...

"Community Spirit" - With the annual Autumn Fayre looming, Gerry decides to get some more publicity for the event by getting a big celebrity to open it. An idea more easily said than actually achieved. When Alice casually mentions she has a long-lost cousin called Reg Dwight, Gerry puts two and two together and thinks she is referring to Elton John...

"The Window and the Weather" - A big storm, arguably the biggest the town has ever known, has destroyed the beautiful stained-glass window of the church. While the jury's still out on what Biblical scene the window actually depicted, Gerry decides to canvas all the rich people she can for donations to get a replacement.

"Election" - David Horton and Gerry find themselves competing in the local elections, and two guesses who everyone is voting for...

"Animals" - Unwittingly, Gerry finds herself performing a mass for all the animals of the village. When the national press gets wind of the event, Gerry starts thinking twice about her actions...

If you love BBC comedy in the best sense of the word, you'll adore Dawn French and a superb cast in THE VICAR OF DIBLEY. Single-sided, dual-layer disc. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The adorable Dawn French returns as the female vicar of a small Englishvillage in cherished Britcom The Vicar of Dibley. These fourextended episodes center around love: Hugo (James Fleet) and Alice (EmmaChambers), the most dimwitted newlyweds of all time, get pregnant, whileGerry (French) falls in love with the prodigal brother of the wealthylandowner David--only to have David (Gary Waldhorn) himself propose to herlater. In the final episode, a new reservoir threatens the entire village.While there's always been a taste of the absurd in The Vicar ofDibley (Kylie Minogue popping up in the first series, for example),the third series stretches reality a bit too much at times--but even themost improbable ideas are rescued by one of the best comic ensembles intelevision comedy, wonderfully anchored by French. From the writer ofFour Weddings and a Funeral and Love Actually. --BretFetzer ... Read more

Amazon.com

It's hard to believe, but the second series of British sitcom The Vicarof Dibley is even more charming and delightful than the first. As thevicar of a small town in the English countryside, Gerry (the sharp yetadorable Dawn French, of the comedy duo French & Saunders) pretends to bethe Easter Bunny, plays Cupid with her two utterly dimwitted friends Alice(Emma Chambers) and Hugo (James Fleet), fends off the advances of lonelyand hygienically challenged shepherd Owen (Roger Lloyd Pack), achieves 15minutes of celebrity fame, and more. It's not just French's engagingcharisma and the sly writing (headed by Richard Curtis, screenwriter ofFour Weddings and a Funeral) that make The Vicar of Dibleysuch a treat; it's the superb ensemble of character actors who bring thisvillage of eccentrics to full, vibrant life, skewering their parochialobsessions without a hint of condescension. --Bret Fetzer ... Read more