Come Fly with Me is a British mockumentary television comedy series created by and starring Matt Lucas and David Walliams. Narrated by Lindsay Duncan, the series launched on 25 December 2010 on BBC One. A spoof of British documentaries Airport and Airline, the series follows the activity at a major airport and three fictional airlines: low-cost British airline ‘FlyLo’ (a parody of Flybe), low-cost Irish airline ‘Our Lady Air’ (a parody of Ryanair and Aer Lingus), and major British airline ‘Great British Air’ (a parody of British Airways).
Lucas and Walliams portray many of the focal airline and airport staff, as well as some passengers, whose comments and experiences are featured in one or more of the series episodes in the style of a "fly on the wall documentary". Despite announcing a second series, Walliams confirmed in January 2013 that a second series would not air, after Lucas refused to make a second series and the show was cancelled indefinitely.
Production
In June 2010, it was announced that Little Britain stars Lucas and Walliams had reunited to star in a new comedy series set in an airport, a spoof of British documentaries Airport and Airline.[1][2] Filming for Come Fly with Me began in August, with the duo spending two weeks at Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield.[3][4] A further three weeks were spent shooting at London Stansted Airport, with scenes also being filmed at Liverpool John Lennon Airport and Pinewood Studios.[5] A "making of" documentary titled Come Fly on the Wall aired on BBC One on 8 February 2011.[6] On 28 January 2011, the BBC announced it had commissioned a second series,[7][8] but Walliams confirmed in January 2013 that a second series was not going to air.
Airlines
FlyLo is a low-cost, no frills airline owned by Omar Baba. Providing service across Europe and selected destinations across the Atlantic and South East Asia, it uses many hidden charges and unorthodox schemes in order to cut costs. These include £1 flights to New York City with a £480 booking fee, upright flatbeds in economy class, and a very small hand baggage allowance. FlyLo also offers budget package holidays that do not go down very well with its passengers.
Our Lady Air is an Irish low-cost airline, providing routes across Europe. It saves money by flying to airports further away from the actual city centre, such as landing a flight to Barcelona in Ireland. Our Lady Air offers business class, in-flight meals, and no hidden charges.
Great British Air (callsign: Swiftbird) is a major British flag carrier airline, providing a high class service around the world from the United Kingdom. The airline is renowned for having the finest first-class service in the world, with champagne and chocolates on boarding, and well-cooked meals on long haul flights. On short-haul flights, both first and economy class passengers are given a small glass of fresh orange juice and a complimentary browse of The Daily Mail.
Characters
Main characters
Omar Baba (Walliams) – The double-chinned, flamboyantly asinine Arab owner of low-cost airline FlyLo. Baba is a parody of the Greek-Cypriot "low-cost flying" entrepreneur Stelios Haji-Ioannou (the founder of easyJet).[9]
Precious Little (Lucas) – A Jamaican woman in her 50s who professes to be a devout Christian, she is the manager of the airport's coffee kiosk. Precious deliberately causes problems that force the closure of the kiosk, allowing her to take the day off. Her main catchphrase is shouting "praise the Lord!"
Moses Beacon (Walliams) – The gushing, effeminate executive passenger liaison officer for Great British Air. Moses also runs a charity called WishWings which supposedly funds holidays for sick children, but usually involves Moses simply using the money to enjoy the local gay nightlife, leaving the child in the hotel or even at home. His catch phrase is "if you'll pardon the pun" when he has not made a pun.
Ian Foot (Walliams) – The pompous, racist, and bigoted chief immigration officer who often comes up with ridiculous reasons not to allow a foreign person into the country, which includes people such as the Polish ambassador to the United Kingdom.[10]
Tommy Reid (Lucas) – A young, obtuse Scottish man working at Happy Burger, one of the airport's fast-food eateries. He hopes to work his way up to becoming a pilot, unaware that the two jobs are completely unrelated.
Taaj Manzoor (Lucas) – Taaj is a young British-Pakistani man who works as part of the roving ground crew for FlyLo. He sports a shaved head and a chin curtain beard.
Melody Baines (Walliams) and Keeley St Clair (Lucas) – Two snarky check in girls for FlyLo who hail from Liverpool. Later on in the series, the girls fight for the position of check-in manager and it is later revealed that Keeley got the job, only to lose it when Omar replaces his whole staff with children to cut costs.
Mickey Minchin (Lucas) and Buster Bell (Walliams) – Two shady paparazzi who haunt the airport's hallways, constantly messing up in their photo-shooting activities.
Fearghal O'Farrell (Lucas) – A homosexual air steward for Irish airline Our Lady Air, who leads a destructive campaign in order to become Employee of the Year.
Ben Roberts (Walliams) and James Stewart (Lucas) – Two British airport customs officers, with rather extreme methods of cataloguing the illegal substances they find, such as sampling drugs.
Simon (Lucas) and Jackie Trent (Walliams) – A husband and wife pilot team, flying for Great British Air. Jackie constantly brings up the fact that Simon committed adultery with a stewardess, which is the reason they now fly together.
Peter (Lucas) and Judith Surname (Walliams) – Married holidaymakers who have suffered several horrific and surreal trips abroad after buying destination packages from FlyLo, dubbing them "The holiday from Hell". Peter is forced to take a subordinate stance to Judith's overbearing, bossy personality and is usually silenced by her. They have had many unfortunate events on their travels, such as a cruise where they contract a disease and then have pirates attack the ship, surviving a plane crash in Peru and having to eat Peter's leg to survive, a holiday to Cyprus to a hotel that hasn't been built yet, and visiting a small African island where they are kidnapped by a local tribe. Despite the traumatic nature of these experiences, they usually relate the stories in a calm, deadpan tone, as if they were a collection of minor inconveniences. In the final episode, Peter leaves Judith and returns to his last destination, where he was hypnotised into having sex with an entire tribe of women.
Penny Carter (Walliams) – A very elitist first-class stewardess for Great British Air's long haul flights who despises people who have first class tickets but are not upper-class.
John (Lucas) and Terry (Walliams) – Father-and-son baggage handlers who steal from passengers' luggage and are generally less than careful with it. Their name is a reference to controversial footballer John Terry.
Helen Baker (Sally Rogers) – The check-in staff manager for FlyLo who later goes on maternity leave.
Lisa (Pippa Bennett-Warner) – Check-in staff for FlyLo. She receives several complaints from regular FlyLo passengers, Peter and Judith.
Additional characters
Hetty Wolf (Lucas) – A 92-year-old passenger who pretends to be on her first flight, scamming Moses Beacon into buying her a number of luxury products, including an Yves Saint Laurent scarf and an iPad, and getting her a seat in first class, before revealing she has flown many times before. (Appears in: Episode 1)
Sue (Lucas) and Geoff Stott (Walliams) – A couple who are flying to Disneyland to get married. (Appear in: Episode 1)
Asuka and Nanako (Walliams & Lucas) – Two Japanese girls who have flown to the airport to see their idol, Martin Clunes. (Appear in: Episode 1)
Geri Halliwell (herself) - whose photo resident paparazzi Mickey and Buster are waiting to take as she disembarks a plane, only to miss the shot as they're too busy comparing the virtues of each of the Spice Girls to camera. (Appears in: Episode 1)
Mrs. Mbutu (Ellen Thomas) – Liberian passenger whom Ian accuses of making up her country. (Appears in: Episode 2)
Ashley (Walliams) – The supervisor who is there to help Tommy serve his first customer at Happy Burger.
Lee Lodge (Walliams) – Trainee steward for Our Lady Air. He has a girlfriend and is heterosexual, but has homosexual intercourse with Fearghal whilst in a hotel in Dublin. (Appears in: Episode 2)
Captain Stirrick (Ted Robbins) – A drunk airline pilot who causes a commotion. (Appears in: Episode 2)
David Schwimmer (himself) – Stopped by customs whilst trying to smuggle transsexual porn DVDs into the UK, which he blames on his Friends co-stars Matt LeBlanc and Jennifer Aniston. (Appears in: Episode 2)
Mr Akhmed (Stewart Scudamore) – A Muslim passenger that orders the halal meal option on the flight to Rome, but instead was given the kosher meal (intended for a Jewish passenger) by Fearghal. (Appears in: Episode 3).
Trainee (Joe Cole) - Taking a customer's order under the supervision of Tommy Reid at Happy Burger (Appears in: Episode 3)
Rupert Grint (himself) – Taaj gives Rupert his script for Future Cop 2000 when meeting him whilst he disembarked the plane from Los Angeles. Taaj asks Grint to pass it on to Daniel Radcliffe. (Appears in: Episode 3).
The Woods Family – A family who turn up for their flight a week early. They stay at the airport for a week, then end up missing their flight. (Appears in: Episode 4)
Kenneth (Lucas) – A border-patrol worker who instantly recognizes Ian Foot in disguise. (Appears in: Episode 4)
Barbara Windsor (herself) – Moses is asked to escort Barbara to her departure gate, but actually wants her to help him get a knighthood or an OBE. In the guise of an autograph, he even gives her an insulting letter to sign addressed to the Queen. Windsor is offended after reading the letter and she tells Moses to "piss off." (Appears in: Episode 4)
Steve Downes (Lucas) – A police dog handler whose previous canine companions have mostly ended up in rehab. His current drug sniffer dog is called Bobo. (Appears in: Episode 5)
George Spires (Lucas) – A Welsh toilet cleaner who is a fan of opera singing and sings to the people who come in. (Appears in: Episode 5)
Colin (Walliams) and Gavin (Lucas) – Battle re-enactors who are not allowed to take swords to a re-enactment of the Battle of Agincourt; Colin later says he has killed only three people in the trade. (Appear in: Episode 5)
'Mr Nuts' (Alex MacQueen) – A passenger of Our Lady Air who suffers from a nut allergy. Fearghal appears to save him from dying, but Fearghal had actually induced the reaction himself by discreetly dropping a handful of hot nuts into his mouth on his way past in order to appear heroic. (Appear in: Episode 5)
Corinne Oliver (Walliams) – The airport's officer of special needs. She is disabled herself and is pushed around by her helper, Bob (Lucas). (Appears in: Episode 6)
Flying School Instructor (Walliams) – Employee for the BAC who interviews Tommy Reid for the chance to become a pilot. (Appears in: Episode 6)
Ray (Walliams) and Anne Wilkins (Lucas) – Owners of the airport pub. They are known to chase departing customers through the airport in a bid for someone to stay "more than twelve minutes". (Appear in: Episode 6)
Mary O'Mara (Aisling Bea) – Air stewardess for Irish airline Our Lady Air, who wins the Steward of the Year title in a draw with Fearghal O'Farrell. (Appears in: Episode 6)
Dale Winton (himself) – The host of Our Lady Air's annual Steward of the year competition. (Appears in: Episode 6)
Mr Dubrowski (Valentine Pelka) – The Polish Ambassador to the United Kingdom, whom Ian Foot accuses of working illegally in the United Kingdom because he is Polish.
George Allen (himself) - A baggage handler for Great British Air.
Episodes
Series 1 (2010–2011)
Series 1 of Come Fly with Me began airing on Christmas Day 2010 to mixed reviews from critics, and gained over 12.47 million viewers.[11] The second episode, which aired on New Year's Day 2011, gained over 8.80 million viewers,[12] while the remaining four episodes averaged around 7 million viewers throughout the rest of the series.[13][14][15][16] The series began airing in the United States on BBC America on 18 June 2011, edited to fit a 30-minute time slot with commercials.[17]
No.
Episode title
Directed by
Original air date
Production code
United Kingdom Viewers (millions)
1
"Episode 1"
Paul King
25 December 2010 (2010-12-25)
101
12.47
Omar Baba responds to criticism of FlyLo's safety practices while husband-and-wife pilots Simon and Jackie argue about flying together, and Simon's affair. Moses Beacon is tasked with explaining to a first-class passenger that her dog has died in-flight after a heating malfunction in the cargo hold caused it to freeze to death, and later finds himself charged with escorting Hetty Wolf, a 92-year-old German woman who claims she has never flown before. She scams Moses into buying her many luxury items that she says are presents for her grandson in Florida, whom she is going to visit, as well as upgrading her seat to first class. Just as she is boarding the plane, Hetty reveals to Moses that she has actually flown many times, angering Moses.
A man that doesn't work at the airport is caught 'patting down' the passengers. Ian Foot investigates a case of an elderly gentleman attempting to enter the country using the passport of a 12-year-old girl. Taaj Manzoor describes his duties on an airport buggy, which he sees as a chick magnet.
Melody and Keeley learn that there may be a supervisor's opening. Mickey and Buster attempt to get a photograph of Geri Halliwell but miss her after doing a rendition of Spice Girls songs. Fearghal assists a young mother by putting her three-month old baby in the overhead locker. Precious Little closes The Coffee Hut early after claiming it has run out of coffee, then does her shopping at the airport. Sue and Geoff Stott check in for their flight to Disneyland California, and Sue talks about her love for Disney. Asuka and Nanako try to catch a glimpse of Martin Clunes returning, but he finds out they are waiting for him, and has the plane diverted to RAF Northolt.
2
"Episode 2"
Paul King
1 January 2011 (2011-01-01)
102
8.80
Omar Baba reveals Flylo's latest schemes: flights to New York for £1 with a big catch, and upright "flat" beds in coach. Moses Beacon attempts to help a nervous passenger, but only worries her more by telling her statistics about plane accidents. Ian Foot detains a woman with a "suspicious" passport, believing Liberia is not an actual country. Taaj Manzoor must diplomatically tell passengers that their flight is delayed when a wing falls off the plane.
Melody must enforce FlyLo's new baggage allowances and Keeley acquaints a passenger with the company website. Mickey and Buster receive a tip-off that Queen Elizabeth II is at the airport. Fearghal works with trainee steward Lee Lodge. Tommy has ambitions to be a pilot, and tries to work his way up from the airport burger bar.
Precious Little closes her stall early claiming that there are no paper cups, and spends the day playing the fruit machines with petty cash. Peter and Judith describe their FlyLo Holidays 'cruise from hell'. First Officer Jackie flirts with a member of air-traffic control, annoying Simon. Captain Stirrick is arrested for being drunk. Ben and James detain David Schwimmer for bringing illegal transsexual pornographic DVDs into the United Kingdom, whom he makes up that they are for his Friends co star Matt LeBlanc.
3
"Episode 3"
Paul King
6 January 2011 (2011-01-06)
103
7.81
Omar Baba creates a new FlyLo advert with dwarves in after reports that there is no leg room. Flylo ground crew Taaj Manzoor bumps into Harry Potter actor Rupert Grint, and tries to show him his movie script. Customs Officers Roberts and Stewart try to work out what to do with a truly massive drugs haul. Ian Foot road tests his new board game 'Keep Em Out'. We also meet Penny, Great British Air's snobbiest employee, as she attempts to throw out some passengers that she deems unworthy of the First Class cabin.
Meanwhile, Precious has got fake nails which are too long for her so she cannot grip onto anything and is forced to close the coffee shop early. She then uses a wheelchair when she has her toes done. Peter and Judith remember another of their 'holidays from hell' that included there being no hotel, and Peter getting an upset stomach. Pilots Simon and Jackie are going on different flights, so Jackie's mum accompanies Simon on his flight to Las Vegas. Moses tells us about his charity WishWings, but then jets off to Mykonos, saying that he will call the ill child when there.
4
"Episode 4"
Paul King
13 January 2011 (2011-01-13)
104
7.43
Melody and Keeley deal with a large man, and end up giving him two separate seats on the plane. Omar Baba goes green by planting a single tree on a roundabout, but insults Daybreak in the process. Baba also shows us inside the new FlyLo 'Loveatory'. Peter and Judith's next 'Holiday from Hell' ended with Peter facing a twelve year minimum prison sentence.
The stewardess that Simon had an affair with acts as cabin crew on Jackie and Simon's latest flight. Moses is challenged with a Chinese man, and tries to get Barbara Windsor to have him knighted. The water in Precious' coffee stall has mysteriously been cut off, so she has to close the stall early, and decides to go and see Dirty Dancing with her sisters. The plumber then fixes the pipe, annoying Precious.
Penny is delighted when she finds out that Princess Anne will be travelling with Great British Air, but is not so delighted when she meets up with a representative of the Royal Family to discuss her requirements. Tommy tries to ask Melody out on a date, but ends up accidentally buying tickets to Prague. Ian Foot dresses up as the type of people that try to enter the country, including South American, Scotsmen and Lady Gaga. The Woods family have their flight booked in for the next week instead of when they thought, so they stay at the airport for that time. In the end, it turns out that they miss their flight.
5
"Episode 5"
Paul King
20 January 2011 (2011-01-20)
107
7.11
Taaj reveals to some disgruntled passengers that their plane departed an hour before, and Mickey and Buster go their separate ways when Buster loses his photographic license. Fearghal force feeds an allergic passenger nuts to allow him to administer a life saving injection and appear a hero, in an attempt to win the title of Steward of the Year. Police dog handler Steve Downes reveals the history of his previous dogs, that usually ended up with them going into rehab with drug addictions.
Battle re enactors Colin and Gavin are furious with Francoise when they are not allowed to bring their swords to a reenactment of the Battle of Agincourt, and baggage handler John believes he has psychic powers. Ian Foot does a spot check on Taaj Manzoor. Omar Baba denies sexually harassing Helen, Melody and Taaj, so he calls Keeley to come to the rescue at a press conference.
Peter and Judith talk about their most recent 'holiday from hell', which included being trapped in the Andes, and barbecuing Peter's leg. Moses meets Anna Friel, who reveals she is bald. Moses tries to find replacements for her lost wig. George Spires sings opera to frightened users of the toilet. Mickey and Buster make up again, and it is revealed that Keeley has been given the role of check in manager.
6
"Episode 6"
Paul King
27 January 2011 (2011-01-27)
106
7.22
Keeley is the only one who is left at the check in desk, because she is now check-in manager and other FlyLo crew members are on strike. Ian Foot gets suspended after interviewing (and insulting) the Polish Ambassador for the United Kingdom. Moses is collecting for charity, and shows us his charity video for Flying Without Wings, but collapses after blowing up a balloon.
Tommy attends flying school to try to be a pilot, but fails due to his lack of experience as well as revealing he has a fear of flying. He then resigns from Happy Burger, walking through the airport in just his underpants after handing the uniform back and tells of his new ambitions to become a spaceman. Fearghal is nominated for the Steward of the Year award, hosted by Dale Winton, but after winning it in a tie, and having an enormous strop, he gets fired from Our Lady Air.
On a Great British Air flight to Orlando, Penny settles in for a relaxing flight with no First Class passengers, but to her irritation, she is made to work in economy. Omar fires all his staff after the strike, and replaces them with Vietnamese children. Judith and Peter have another 'Holiday from Hell', and are disgusted to find because of the FlyLo strike, there is nobody manning the complaints desk, except Peter goes back to the island where they practised Voodoo art.
Precious finally has all the supplies for the coffee hut, but closes early because there were no customers, and eager bar owners chase after people after leaving the bar during their pub quiz. In special services, wheelchair user Corinne Oliver looks after other wheelchair users and is pushed round by helper Bob. Bob then hurts his back and also has to take to a wheelchair. This creates a train of wheelchair users pushing each other around.
Come Fly on the Wall (2011)
Come Fly on the Wall discussed the making of Come Fly with Me with Walliams and Lucas. The programme featured clips from filming, outtakes and interviews with the show's creators as they developed the series. It featured pre production discussions and rehearsals, and showed the actors filming at some of the United Kingdom's busiest airports. It also showed Walliams and Lucas transforming into their new characters in the make up chair, and bringing them to life in front of the camera.
The programme was broadcast on BBC One on 8 February 2011.[18][19]
Cancellation
On 28 January 2011, BBC announced that the show had been commissioned for a second series. The new series was set to air during early 2013. In January 2013, Walliams confirmed that a second series would not air, stating that Lucas did not wish to continue the show.[20][21]
In conjunction with the television episodes, a selection of extra online content was published on the programme website.[26] The extra content, featuring some of the main characters played by Matt Lucas and David Walliams, was presented as spoof versions of real life airline websites, for example an on line check in service for fictional airline FlyLo, with Melody and Keeley.[27] The content was written by Kevin Cecil, who also contributed to the television scripts. Cecil was inspired by his own work on comedy tie in books over the years.[28]
Reception
Come Fly with Me received mixed reviews, with the Daily Express calling it "the worst sketch show, or sitcom to have ever gone out on a Christmas Day" and expressed concern over its screening on the day, considering the perceived lack of quality.[29] The Daily Mirror, however, claimed it was a resounding success and the claims of racism and lack of humour made by the Express were unfounded and hypocritical.[30]
The show was the most watched comedy of 2010, with ten million viewers,[31] but also had thousands of viewer complaints, and criticism for perceived racist content.[32] It was the third most-watched show on Christmas Day in the United Kingdom.[33]
Controversy
In June 2020, Come Fly with Me, alongside Little Britain, was removed from Netflix for its use of blackface, brownface and yellowface; six months prior it had also been removed from BritBox. It had not been available on iPlayer.[34][35] A spokesperson for the BBC said: "There’s a lot of historical programming available on BBC iPlayer, which we regularly review". On its decision to remove the shows, BritBox added: "Times have changed since Little Britain first aired, so it is not currently available on BritBox. Come Fly With Me has not been available on the service for six months".[36]
A Dutch version of the show was created, using an almost exact copy of the script and characters (translated to Dutch). It was broadcast on RTL 4 from August 2011.
^"Come Fly With Me: fasten your seatbelts"The Daily Telegraph, 20 December 2010 Walliams cocks a blatant snook at easyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou through his flamboyantly asinine, money-raking turn as low-budget airline boss Omar Baba of FlyLo.
