F.R.I.E.N.D.S

When it comes to binge watching, there are some timeless shows which we always on replay, no matter which era we belong to. The NBC’s hit sitcom ‘Friends’ has been off air for over a decade now; yet it’s still number one on our favourite watch-list. From jokes to emotional moments, we connected so much to this show that we have made the show a part of our real life.

However, one of the fewer facts that we know about our most viewed show is about its name. It was not going to be called Friends initially; rather it was supposed to be called Insomnia Café as the six lead characters pretty much spend their entire lives at their local coffee shop, Central Perk.  With the coffee shop as a mise-en-scéne, we have over the seasons witnessed the characters’ lives revolve in that very place. We went on a roller coaster ride with Ross’s marriages and his mixed feelings for Rachel, from time to time in the show. But little did we know that writers opted for Monica and Joey to be the central romantic couple. During a flashback episode we get a glimpse of how the story would have taken a turn if that happened as they almost got together. Our favourite hippie character Phoebe played by Lisa Kudrow was supposed to be played by another person. It is very difficult for fans to perceive someone else as Phoebe because Lisa effortlessly took on the bohemian personality and took the role to a different stratum. When Monica and Chandler were involved in an infertility storyline and were in the process of adopting twins, Courteney Cox aka Monica was pregnant in her real-life and had to hide her baby bump with baggy clothing. Similarly, Lisa Kudrow was also pregnant during the show and that is when writers incorporated her pregnancy into the show via the surrogacy storyline. Friends is obviously one of the most-watched TV shows of all time, and still remains one of the most popular, even after all these years. And, when it finally came to an end in 2004, the finale became the fourth most-watched TV ending in history.