Alistair McGowan
Only an Excuse? (1993)
Specials
Only An Excuse? is an annual Scottish football comedy sketch show that airs each Hogmanay. Starring actor and comedian Jonathan Watson, the show features impressions of some of Scottish football's great characters such as Denis Law, Tommy Burns, Barry Ferguson, Sir Alex Ferguson, Frank McAvennie, Walter Smith and Graeme Souness, as well as caricatures of the "typical" Celtic and Rangers fan.
Released Dec. 31, 1993
Episode 42 min
None+
Genres: Comedy
Keywords: imdb.football, imdb.scotland, imdb.scottish, imdb.new-year-s, imdb.hogmanay, imdb.comedy-sketch, imdb.scottish-comedy + 4 more, imdb.scottish-football, imdb.sketch-comedy, imdb.new-year-s-eve, tmdb.sketch-show
Network: BBC One
Country: United Kingdom
Languages:
English
S0E1 - 1993 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson impersonates Scottish football's main characters of 1993, and the major talking points that occurred.
Dec. 31, 1993, midnight
S0E2 - 1994 World Cup Special
Jonathan Watson pokes fun at the Home Nations football teams - Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales - for failing to qualify for that year's World Cup tournament in the USA.
June 13, 1994, midnight
S0E3 - The Director's Cut
A special episode where the best of the Only An Excuse? sketches are aired once more.
Dec. 31, 1994, midnight
S0E4 - 1995 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson and co look back on the major talking points of Scottish football of 1995 in their own special way.
Dec. 31, 1995, midnight
S0E5 - 1996 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson impersonates some of Scottish football's important figures from the year, and takes a look back at Scotland's performance during Euro 1996.
Dec. 31, 1996, midnight
S0E6 - 1997 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson and co take their own look back at events of Scottish football's 1997.
Dec. 31, 1997, midnight
S0E7 - 1998 World Cup Special
Jonathan Watson and Alistair McGowan take a look forward to the events that took Scotland to the 1998 World Cup tournament in France.
June 8, 1998, midnight
S0E8 - 1998 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson takes his own look back at the major talking points of Scottish footballing in 1998, especially the World Cup tournament held in France.
Dec. 31, 1998, midnight
S0E9 - 1999 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson looks back at the year's Scottish footballing events, and looks forward to see what Scottish football will look like in the new millennium.
Dec. 31, 1999, midnight
S0E10 - 2000 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson takes a look back at the Scottish footballing major events of the new millenium.
Dec. 31, 2000, midnight
S0E11 - 2001 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson and co. take their own look at what happened in Scottish football in 2001.
Dec. 31, 2001, midnight
S0E12 - 2002 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson takes his own personal look at the major talking points and figures from Scottish football from the year.
Dec. 31, 2002, midnight
S0E13 - 2003 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson takes a look back at what happened in Scottish football from 2003, especially Celtic's UEFA cup run.
Dec. 31, 2003, midnight
S0E14 - 2004 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson takes a look back at Scottish football's main talking points, mainly Henrik Larsson leaving Celtic.
Dec. 31, 2004, midnight
S0E15 - 2005 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson and co. take a look back at what happened in Scottish football for this year, including the last day SPL title drama.
Dec. 31, 2005, midnight
S0E18 - 2008 Hogmanay Special
Scotland's premier football comedy team take their annual shot at the national obsession.
Dec. 31, 2008, midnight
S0E19 - 2009 Hogmanay Special
Scotland's premier football comedy team prepare to slide tackle the national obsession.
Dec. 31, 2009, midnight
S0E20 - 1998 -75 Years Of BBC Scotland
Scotland comedy team take at look back at BBC Scotland's football coverage of the last 75 years.
May 7, 1998, midnight
S0E21 - 2006 World Cup Special
World Cup 2006 Special.
June 7, 2006, midnight
S0E22 - 2010 Hogmanay Special
Football, football, wherefore art thou football? Scotland's premier comedy team provides the answer as they return to take another flying header at the beautiful game.
Dec. 31, 2010, midnight
S0E23 - Only An Excuse Live 1993
S0E24 - Only An Excuse Live 1994
S0E25 - Only An Excuse Live 1995
S0E26 - Only An Excuse Live 1996
S0E27 - Only An Excuse Live 1997
S0E28 - 1994 Hogmanay Special
S0E29 - 2011 Hogmany Special
Another year, another opportunity for Jonathan Watson and his handpicked squad to look back at the events that shaped football in 2011 and have a right good kick at them in the process.
Dec. 31, 2011, midnight
S0E30 - 2012 Hogmanay Special
Only an Excuse? starring Jonathan Watson. A half-hour selection of sketches gleefully putting the boot into the events of 2012. The team look back on a year of golden moments, dire predictions and the fickle fortunes of Scottish football. Featuring new faces, favourite characters and spot-on take-offs.
Dec. 31, 2012, midnight
S0E31 - 2013 Hogmanay Special
Scotland's premier comedy team take their annual flying header at events that have made the headlines both on and off the pitch.
Dec. 31, 2013, midnight
S0E36 - 2014 Hogmanay Special
Scotland's premier comedy team take a humorous look at the highs and lows of 2014.
Dec. 31, 2014, midnight
S0E37 - 2015 Hogmanay Special
An irreverent Hogmanay homage to the highs and lows of 2015, starring Jonathan Watson. The team take a humorous look at the biggest stories and characters in Scottish football and beyond. Packed with sketches, take-offs, wind-ups, gags, spoofs, quickies and a familiar face or two.
Dec. 31, 2015, midnight
S0E38 - 2016 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson and the team take in the highs and lows of 2016. Featuring the biggest stories in Scottish football, popular culture, news, showbiz and the wider world.
Dec. 31, 2016, midnight
S0E39 - 2017 Hogmanay Special
What a year it's been! So sit back and let Jonathan Watson and the team take 2017 apart. A hilarious Hogmanay look back at the past 12 months from a distinctively Scottish point of view. Mixing sketches, spoofs, quickies, one-liners and takeoffs. Featuring celebrated comic creations and brand new characters. Putting the spotlight on contemporary Scottish life and cheering everyone up, following the latest let-down from the national football team. A traditional Hogmanay tonic for the nation.
Dec. 31, 2017, midnight
S0E40 - 2018 Hogmanay Special
Starring Jonathan Watson. With the final whistle about to blow on 2018, Scotland's premier comedy team get together for one last kick of the ball. Featuring sketches, spoofs, gags and comic characters putting the boot into the headlines that have dominated Scottish football and Scottish life over the past 12 months
Dec. 31, 2018, midnight
S0E41 - 2019 Hogmanay Special
As 2019 rapidly approaches the final whistle, Scotland's premier comedy team line up for their annual kick of the ball. New signings join Jonathan in sketches, spoofs and comic characters that target not just the highs and lows of Scottish football but Scottish life too over the past 12 months. Starring Jonathan Watson with Alex Norton, Joy McAvoy and Louise McCarthy.
Dec. 31, 2019, midnight
S0E42 - 2020 Hogmanay Special
Jonathan Watson leads a hilarious mix of classic sketches, popular characters, famous faces and up-to-date skits tackling 2020 from a footballing perspective. Featuring nostalgic recollections from guest stars, plus fresh material covering Scottish football and the world in general.
Dec. 31, 2020, midnight
S0E43 - Best Of - Compilations: Episode 1
Discover just why they are bouncing so high in the Celtic dugout and see how the Rangers gaffer chooses his team. Frankie Boy rocks up at the petrol station, King Kenny dispenses managerial advice on the golf course and Sir Fergie lectures on leadership at Harvard. Find out the secrets of a Brechin pie and what the Thunbergs really get up to when Greta is away.
Feb. 11, 2021, midnight
S0E44 - Best Of - Compilations: Episode 2
Andre Rieu fiddles away to showcase his Scottish football collection, Line of Duty meets Taggart in the same police station, and Macca dons his whites for a tennis lesson from a national treasure. And, at the end of the day, Jim and Charlie discover you can never use too many cliches.
Feb. 11, 2021, midnight
S0E45 - Best Of - Compilations: Episode 3
Sir Fergie loses his cool with his goalie, Jim Spencey Spence quizzes a Scottish Olympic champion, and The Frankie Boy props up the bar to share memories that are so good he can barely remember them. Meanwhile, a top TV dating show comes to Glasgow to see if opposites really do attract.
Feb. 11, 2021, midnight
S0E46 - Best Of - Compilations: Episode 4
Scotland boss Stevie Clarke comes to terms with actually qualifying for something, King Kenny appears in a biopic and deconstructs cinema and ace-pundit Charlie Nick compares the Scotland team to a selection of puddings. Elsewhere a respected TV travelogue veteran discovers the joys of a rail-replacement bus service in Ayrshire, the Professor answers the people’s questions and a gonk washes-up on the beach in TV crime spoof Millport.
Feb. 11, 2021, midnight
BBC One
42 min/ep
42 min
Dec. 31, 1993
Returning Series
NR
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