Top 5 Funniest Friends Episodes About Teaching

Our good friends at ESGI have kicked off their Friends TV campaign and we are here to support them and be a good “friend.”  So, we thought, how about a Top 5 list of the funniest episodes that had about teaching?

Many of these involved Ross, who was a professor of paleontology at New York University. Who can forget his English accent or his running across campus to two different classes? But our ThinkFives Friends archivist found episodes with every other Friends’ character as well.

But first, a few fun facts about Friends.

• Originally, Friends wasn’t called Friends. Suggested pilot names included: Six of One, Friends Like Us, and Insomnia Café.
• Not a single shot of Friends was filmed in New York. Except for the opening apartment shot, it was all filmed in Hollywood.
• Originally, Courtney Cox was considered for Rachel, while Jennifer Aniston was targeted for Monica. But Courtney felt she related more to Monica, and Jennifer agreed.
• The famous Friends sofa wasn’t bought for the show. Instead, someone found it in a studio basement in Hollywood.
• Monica and Chandler were just meant to get together in London as a one-off joke. However, it turned out that the audience liked it so much that the creators decided to keep them together.

Joey Learns French

Joey describes himself as a fluent French speaker on his CV but there’s just one problem: he doesn’t understand a word. And when Phoebe tries to teach him, it becomes clear he’s not going to pick it up any time soon.

Best Quote: Phoebe: “All right, it seems pretty simple. Your first line is “My name is Claude”, so, just repeat after me.” Joey: Je de coup Clow.”

Episode: “The One Where Joey Speaks French” (Season 10, Episode 13)

Watch The Clip Here

Monica and Rachel Go To the Prom

This bittersweet episode focuses on the main characters watching a video of Monica and Rachel getting ready for their high school prom. Monica, who was somewhat overweight when she was young, is the brunt of jokes but it’s the emotion that Ross shows in Rachel that is a harbinger of things to come.

Best Quote: Joey: “Some girl ate Monica!” Monica: “Shut up, the camera adds ten pounds.” Chandler: “Ah, so how many cameras are actually on you?”

Episode: “The One With The Prom Video” (Season 2, Episode 14)

Watch The Clip Here

Rachel and Phoebe Take a Literature Class

Phoebe and Rachel enroll in a literature class. While Phoebe is really interested in learning something, Rachel just wants to have some fun with her friend. Not surprisingly, Rachel does not have a chance to read the assigned book because she was “reading another book.”  Phoebe tries to help by giving Rachel her thoughts on Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, which are not exactly accurate.

Best Quote: Phoebe: “First of all. Jane Eyre. You think she’s a woman, but she’s a Cyborg.”

Episode: “The One with Ross’s Sandwich” (Season 5, Episode 9)

Watch The Clip Here

Ross Has a British Accent

This episode features Ross teaching in a fake British accent at New York University. The real comedy begins when Monica and Rachel sneak into his class and are amused to see him use a fake voice.

Ross decides to phase out his accent and confuses his students to the point where one of them asks what’s happening with his speech.

Best Quote: “So when Rigby got his samples back from the laboratory, he made a startling discovery. What he believed to be igneous was, in fact, sedimentary. Imagine his consternation when- Oh, bloody ‘ell.”

Episode: “The One Where Joey Loses His Insurance” (Season 6, Episode 4)

Watch The Clip Here

Ross Runs Between His Classes

Ross finds himself in a sticky situation when he agrees to teach an advanced class in a building located far from the regular one. With a period of fewer than 10 minutes between the two classes, Ross panics and makes his way through a crowd of students by yelling at them.

Ross’ awful time management results in a hilarious episode which ends with him skating to class.

Best Quote: “Sorry I’m late. Whoa, I’m a lot late. I’m professor Geller. [Bell rings] In summary, I’m Professor Geller. Good job today.”

Episode: “The One Where Joey Dates Rachel” (Season 8, Episode 12)

Watch The Clip Here

Honorable Mentions

• “The One With Joey’s Award.” Season 7 Episode 18  (Ross decides to imitate a velociraptor for his class.) 
• “The One With Rachel’s Book” Season 7 Episode 2 (Ross claims he had the idea for Jurassic Park first..)
• “The One in Barbados” Season 9 Episode 24 (Ross delivers a speech to fellow academics and it goes surprisingly well.)
• “The One with the Soap Opera Party” Season 9 Episode 20 (Joey throws a cast party on the roof of his building where he ends up making out with an attractive professor.)

Do you have a favorite Friends episode?