Britain's Best Sitcom Episode
I have covered the greatest British sitcoms in my evolving list. Now it is time to consider the greatest individual episodes from British sitcom history. To appear in this list is indeed illustrious; to top it, a grand honour indeed! Like my list of greatest sitcoms, this list is dynamic and will be edited as my thoughts change. Each sitcom is only allowed a single submission, otherwise there would be at least two more from Dad's Army! The sitcom doesn't have to be listed in the Top Ten itself to have an episode appear here. Here it is, then. The greatest British sitcom episodes of all time:
| # | Episode | Sitcom | Sequence | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Desperate Hours" | Steptoe and Son | Series 7, Episode 7 | 26 March 1972 |
| 2 | "Room at the Bottom" | Dad's Army | Series 3, Episode 6 | 16 October 1969 |
| 3 | "The Ant and the Grasshopper" | Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? | Series 2, Episode 3 | 15 January 1974 |
| 4 | "Men Without Women" | Porridge | Series 1, Episode 7 | 10 October 1974 |
| 5 | "The Natives Are Revolting" | It Ain't Half Hot Mum | Series 2, Episode 3 | 16 January 1975 |
| 6 | "Sunday Lunch" | The Royle Family | Series 2, Episode 2 | 30 September 1999 |
| 7 | "The New Slave" | Plebs | Series 2, Episode 5 | 13 October 2014 |
| 8 | "Marooned" | Red Dwarf | Series 3, Episode 2 | 21 November 1989 |
| 9 | "Cigarettes and Alcohol and Rollerblading" | Father Ted | Series 2, Episode 8 | 26 April 1996 |
| 10 | "Chain Gang" | Only Fools and Horses | Series 6, Episode 3 | 15 January 1989 |
As stated in my best sitcom article, comedy dramas are excluded. However, this creates a grey area for series six and seven of Only Fools and Horses; at approximately 50 minutes, these episodes ran longer than the traditional sitcom format.
Last updated: 12 February 2026