German New Year Customs: “Dinner for One”
The Cult Sketch TV Broadcast

„DER 90. GEBURTSTAG ODER DINNER FOR ONE“

“The same procedure as every year”

It’s a bit bizarre when you think about it. A short British cabaret sketch from the 1920s has become a German New Year’s tradition. Yet, although “The 90th Birthday or Dinner for One” is a famous cult classic in Germany and several other European countries, it is virtually unknown in the English-speaking world, including Britain, its birthplace.

Freddie Frinton plays the butler in this classic scene from “Dinner for One” – with the tiger-fur rug that he constantly trips over while serving dinner. PHOTO: NDR

In fact, besides long ago entering the 2003 Guiness Book of Records as the most-repeated television show of all time (over 230 times at that time), the New Year’s TV sketch has become such an institution of German culture, that Deutsche Post, the German postal service, decided to release a 45-euro-cents commemorative stamp for the 55th anniversary of the first broadcast of the cult classic by the NDR (Norddeutscher Rundfunk) public channel in Hamburg. The very first time the sketch aired on NDR TV was on 8 March 1963. The first New Year’s telecast didn’t happen until 1972 – and the rest is history. The new stamp was ceremoniously introduced, complete with a special first day cover, at NDR’s studios in Hamburg on 11 October 2018.

Amazon.de sells this replica of the tiger-fur rug featured in “Dinner for One.” See ordering info below.

Although newer renditions of “Dinner for One” have been produced – including a colorized video version, a Plattdeutsch radio version, and audio versions in other dialects – every year around Silvester (New Year’s Eve), German public television broadcasts the classic, black-and-white English-language version filmed with a live audience in Hamburg back in 1963. All across Germany, from the 31st of December to January 1st, Germans know it’s the beginning of a new year when they watch this annual television event. (You can view the full video below.)

Besides Austria and Switzerland, other countries where “Dinner for One” is also a New Year’s TV tradition include Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Luxembourg, and Sweden. In all of those places the sketch is shown with its original British English soundtrack.

Freddie Frinton and May Warden
The British actor Freddie Frinton (1909-1968) played the tipsy butler James in the 1963 German NDR TV production. Frinton died of a heart attack at 59, only five years after the Hamburg filming, and never got to enjoy his international success. May Warden (1891-1978) played the role of Miss Sophie, who is celebrating her 90th birthday. The only problem is… all of her party “guests” are imaginary friends who died years ago. A German New Year’s Eve just doesn’t seem right without hearing the lines known to just about any living German: “The same procedure as last year, Madam? – The same procedure as every year, James.”

The 2018 German commemorative postage stamp for “Dinner for One” was issued 55 years after the first telecast of the now classic sketch. It depicts Miss Sophie (May Warden) and James (Freddie Frinton) toasting each other – in classic black and white. PHOTO: Deutsche Post AG

In these more politically-correct times, the sketch – in which Miss Sophie and her butler proceed to get thoroughly sloshed – has come under some criticism. But so popular is the perennial “Dinner for One” that some German airlines show the 17-minute sketch on flights between Dec. 28 and Jan. 2, just so passengers won’t miss out on the annual tradition. With the advent of video streaming services, it is now possible to watch “Dinner for One” in North America and elsewhere around the globe at any time. YouTube alone offers many versions.

Below you’ll find two videos of the classic “Dinner for One” and some related links, including the 2011/2012 satiric version, “Euros for No One” from ARD. Also see the “Dinner for One” books and CD below.

Here’s a brief excerpt from the opening scene of “Dinner for One”:

James: You are looking very well this evening, Miss Sophie.
James: Sie sehen heute Abend sehr gut aus, Miss Sophie.
Miss Sophie: Well, I am feeling very much better, thank you, James.
Miss Sophie: Nun ich fühle mich auch sehr viel besser. Danke James.
James: Gut, gut …
Miss Sophie: Also, ich muss sagen, dass alles sehr nett aussieht.
James: Danke sehr, Miss Sophie. Danke.
Miss Sophie: Sind alle da?
James: In der Tat. Jawohl, ja … Alle sind zu Ihrem Geburtstag hier, Miss Sophie.

– From “Dinner for One” (NOTE: Except for the 2-minute German-language introduction (spoken by Heinz Piper), the original is in English only!)

MORE > “Dinner for One” – Full Script (in English)
MORE > Dinner for One – Alles zum Kult-Sketch (NDR.de, auf Deutsch) – Am 8. März 1963 lief der Klassiker erstmals im deutschen Fernsehen.

“Dinner for One” Videos

Video 1 – The full 17-minute classic sketch as broadcast by ARD TV
VIDEO LINK > Dinner for One (ARD) from the ARD Mediathek (opens in a new window)

Video 2 – Satire: “Euros for No One” (ARD) – A 3-minute satirical version with Angela Merkel and the French president at the time, M. Sarkozy

Books – DVDs

Dinner for One von A-Z: Das Lexikon zum Kult-Vergnügen
Kindle or paperback book from Amazon.de
Everything you wanted to know about DfO: “WELL JAMES, IT’S BEEN REALLY A WONDERFUL PARTY.” Alle kennen “Dinner for One”. Aber wer kennt die entscheidenden Details: Woher die Namen der stummen Gäste stammen. Wer “Dinner for One” nach Deutschland brachte – und wie schwierig das war. Wie viele Pannen bei der Aufzeichnung passierten.

‘Dinner for One’ – DVD
This DVD is in the PAL Region 2 format. (Will not play on regular US or Canadian VCRs or DVD players.) From Amazon.de. Note: ‘Dinner for One’ is not available on NTSC DVD for the US and Canada. However, the German DVD will play on a North American computer with a DVD drive. – “Miss Sophie (May Warden) feiert ihren 90. Geburtstag. Wie in jedem Jahr lädt sie dazu ihre vier engsten Freunde ein: Sir Toby, Admiral von Schneider, Mr. Pommeroy und Mr. Winterbottom. Da jeder dieser Herren jedoch bereits verstorben ist, muss Butler James (Freddie Frinton) die Rollen aller Gäste selbst übernehmen.”

Dinner for One: Freddie Frinton, Miss Sophie und der 90. Geburtstag (Buch/book, 2012)
Unabhängig von der Sendezeit im Fernsehen erlaubt dieses Buch den Zugang zu dem berühmten kleinen Kosmos des Humors. Charmante Beitexte über Entdeckung und Interpretationsmöglichkeiten des Sketches runden das unerläßliche Kompendium dieses Evergreens des skurrilen Humors ab. – Amazon.de

Tigerfell Teppich – Faux tiger-fur rug from Amazon.de
You can order this replica of the tiger rug featured in “Dinner for One.” (See photo above.) It can be used as a wall decoration or a rug. (Größe des Tigerfells incl. Füße: ca. 90 x 74 cm; Höhe des Kopfes: ca. 14 cm, Länge mit Schwanz: ca. 140 cm)

More | Silvester: New Year’s Eve in Germany

Related Pages
AT THE GERMAN WAY

• Silvester: New Year’s Eve in Germany – How do Germans welcome the new year?
• And the sky became a sea of light – Silvester in the Hauptstadt – from the GW Expat Blog
• How to Survive a Berlin New Year’s – from the GW Expat Blog
• Christmas from A to Z – German Christmas traditions and terms
• Christmas in the USA and Germany– A comparison chart
• Epiphany and the Sternsinger – About January 6 in the Germanic Christmas tradition
• Holidays and Celebrations in Austria, Germany and Switzerland

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