Friends scripts of iconic Ross wedding episodes sell for £22,000 after being found in bin 25 years ago
A pair of Friends scripts found in a bin 25 years ago have sold at auction for £22,000, despite their value previously estimated to stand at no more than £800.
Auctioneers at Hanson Ross in Hertfordshire said they were “flabbergasted” by the “phenomenal global interest” in the scripts of The One With Ross’ Wedding, season four’s famous two-part finale.
The saleroom’s head of operations, Amanda Butler, told Sky News their phonelines were swamped with bids far exceeding the initial valuation on Thursday, the day before the auction.
But bidders “went crazy” for the scripts – which were meant to be destroyed after filming for the episodes in 1998 – and went beyond expectations.
“I just can’t believe the result and the impact this find has had,” she said on Friday. “The global interest was phenomenal, we’ve all been flabbergasted.”
A total of 219 bids were made in advance of the sale on Friday afternoon, with interest from all over the world, including the US, Germany, Spain, Australia, Ukraine, Dubai and Switzerland.
While it is not clear who the scripts belonged to, they have the name John Lanzer on them, who was a British set designer.
Part 2 of the script. Pic: Hanson Ross
Both episodes were filmed and set in London and the scripts were found a couple of weeks after all the scenes had been wrapped up at Fountain Studios in Wembley by a now-retired Londoner.
“It was part of my job to ensure everything was tidy and no rubbish was left around,” said the 60-year-old, who worked in admin support and helped to distribute tickets for the studio audience.
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“I wasn’t sure what to do with them so just put them in my office drawer. I remember wondering which member of the cast they might have belonged to.”
The seller left her job in 1999 and “swept everything into a big cardboard box” when clearing her desk, admitting she forgot the scripts were among the pile of paperwork.
Part of the script. Pic: Hanson Ross
They had remained in her bedside drawer ever since.
“I could have quite easily thrown them out,” she said.
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“Recently I’ve been clearing my house ahead of a move and I came across them again.”
The unnamed 60-year-old discoverer said the scripts “deserve to be owned by a huge Friends fan”, as she admitted she’s not crazy about the show as American humour is “different to ours”.
Entertainment
Gregg Wallace: Over half of allegations against MasterChef presenter substantiated, including one of unwanted physical contact
An investigation into Gregg Wallace’s “inappropriate behaviour” on MasterChef has found that more than half of the allegations against him have been substantiated, including one of “unwanted physical contact”.
MasterChef’s production company Banijay UK shared a summary of its report into historical allegations of misconduct against the 60-year-old presenter, carried out by independent law firm Lewis Silkin over seven months.
The report also said the number of sustained allegations made Wallace’s return to MasterChef “untenable”.
The investigation heard evidence from 78 witnesses, including 41 complainants.
There were 83 allegations against Wallace, and 45 of them were substantiated. All were related to MasterChef.
While the majority of the substantiated allegations related to inappropriate sexual language and humour, a smaller number of allegations of other inappropriate language and being in a state of undress were also substantiated.
One allegation of unwanted physical contact was substantiated.
Nearly all the allegations against Wallace were related to behaviour which is said to have occurred between 2005 and 2018, with just one substantiated allegation taking place post-2018.
Wallace and Anne-Marie Sterpini in 2014
Ahead of the publication of the summary, Wallace had said he had been “cleared of the most serious and sensational accusations” made against him.
Additionally, the report summary found that there were also 10 standalone allegations about other people between 2012 and 2018/2019, two of which were substantiated. Those people were not named in the summary.
The investigation found that complaints had previously been raised with the production company between 2005 and 2024.
Gregg Wallace on MasterChef. Pic: BBC/ Shine TV 2024
While the report flagged inadequate reporting procedures prior to 2016, when Endemol merged with Shine ahead of Banijay acquiring Endemol Shine in 2020, it said there were significant improvements to HR processes and training after 2016.
While the investigation said some formal action was taken by the BBC in 2017, it also noted the corporation held no information regarding concerns raised over Wallace centrally, resulting in issues being addressed as a first offence.
Sky News has tried to contact Gregg Wallace for contact today.
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