French returns with Vicar of Dibley ‘sermons’

Geraldine Granger. Like Captain Mainwaring, Mr Bean, Norma Stanley Fletcher, Margo Leadbetter and other household names, she is one of the stalwarts of the sitcom, a national treasure we can always trust to raise a smile – or even a guffaw.

It’s hard to imagine anybody other than Dawn French playing her, but what many fans probably don’t realise is that she had to break one of her staunchest vows to take the role – French had always promised she wouldn’t tackle a situation comedy until she was 50, and yet here she was, adjusting her dog collar and stepping into Geraldine’s dignified shoes 13 years early.

“I didn’t feel I was ready to tackle one,” she says when discussing why she almost turned down the opportunity to play one of TV’s most beloved characters. However, reading Richard Curtis original script back in 1994 immediately changed her mind. Richard wanted to write this character for such a long time. But he had to wait until the laws were changed so women could be vicars.”

As Geraldine, the “spunky rock ‘n’ roller” with a zealous mission to bring her eccentric parish councillors into the 20th (and now 21st) century, she put across a strong contemporary message in the form of a good old-fashioned British comedy.

“It was such a long time coming, which is absurd,” says French of women in the priesthood. “If we’re going to have stereotypes, women are apparently the nurturers and sensitive ones, so it’s ludicrous that they hadn’t been in these roles in the church.”

When Dibley came into her life, French was already a star thanks to her partnership with Jennifer Saunders and for other solo ventures, including Murder Most Horrid. But Geraldine helped seal her position as a genuine national treasure. In the years since, she’s continued to tackle intriguing roles in a variety of productions, including Lark Rise to Candleford, Psychoville, Roger & Val Have Just Got In, The Wrong Mans, Delicious and The Trouble with Maggie Cole; she also has a role in Kenneth Branagh’s forthcoming big screen version of Death on the Nile.

But Geraldine is the character who keeps coming back for more. Only two full series of the sitcom were ever made, but French has returned in various specials over the years, including one earlier in 2020 when she popped up in the charity fundraising telethon The Big Night In.

Now she’s back again with a collection of three 10-minute ‘sermons’ following repeats of classic episodes.

“Back in the dog collar, back in Dibley and back on your telly at Christmas,” smiles French. “I couldn’t be happier. Bless you!”

“Like every village in the country, there’s been a lot happening in Dibley this year – and Geraldine has got a lot to say about it,” adds writer Curtis.

Geraldine will be assisted by Hugo Horton (James Fleet) and local schoolchildren while imparting such sage advice as never let Owen Newitt cut your hair or make home-made wine.

As for French, after Christmas she will no doubt be throwing herself into another project; as she once said: “The thing is, I just enjoy myself too much when I’m working, and I’m really afraid of being found out and the whole thing taken away from me…”

That, we’re sure, will never happen.

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