They were outrageously dressed and almost permanently in trouble. Thirty-four years ago, television met a pair of friends who made behaving badly an art form.
Forget the sensible cardigan. On November 12, 1992, Absolutely Fabulous arrived on BBC Two, introducing viewers to PR executive Edina Monsoon and her gloriously disreputable best friend, Patsy Stone.
Written by Jennifer Saunders, who also played Edina, the sitcom paired her with Joanna Lumley as Patsy.
For anyone who remembered Lumley as the polished Purdey in The New Avengers, the transformation was a delicious surprise.
The first episode, Fashion, opened with Edina nursing a hangover while her studious daughter, Saffron, supplied the disapproval. Played by Julia Sawalha, Saffy was the responsible one in a household where her mother seemed determined never to grow up.
That reversal gave the comedy its bite. Beneath the outrageous clothes was a sharp send-up of fashion’s obsession with status and the fear of getting older.
June Whitfield as Edina’s mother and Jane Horrocks as the bewildering Bubble completed a cast whose smallest reactions could steal a scene.
Eight years earlier, on November 12, 1984, Madonna released her second album, Like a Virgin. Produced by Nile Rodgers, it included Material Girl and Dress You Up, alongside the title track. The album helped turn the singer into a household name, eventually selling more than 10 million copies in the United States alone. Those songs would become enduring dance-floor favourites.
On November 12, 1981, space shuttle Columbia launched from Florida on its second mission, making it the first crewed orbital spacecraft to fly into space again. Astronauts Joe Engle and Richard Truly also tested the Canadian-built robotic arm during the flight. A fuel-cell failure cut the planned five-day mission to just over two days, but NASA reported that 90 per cent of its objectives were achieved.
Grace Kelly would have turned 97. The Rear Window and High Society star became Princess of Monaco.
Neil Young turns 81, with Heart of Gold among his best-loved songs.
Nadia Comăneci turns 65, 50 years after her historic perfect 10 at the Montreal Olympics.
Do you remember?
Who made you laugh most in Absolutely Fabulous – Edina, Patsy or long-suffering Saffy?
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