‘Friends’ scripts rescued from studio bin to be placed on auction

11 January, 2024

Original Friends scripts that were rescued from a studio bin are to be head to auction.

The season four finale drafts were recovered in 1998 by a staff member at the Fountain Studios in Wembley, where the two UK-set episodes were filmed.

The scripts – which are expected to sell for between £600 and £800 – were used for the two-part season finale entitled ‘The One With Ross’s Wedding’, in which Ross famously said Rachel’s name at the alter instead of Emily’s.

Amanda Butler, of Hanson Ross auctioneers in Royston, Hertfordshire, said the scripts should have been destroyed “so the ending wouldn’t be leaked”.

The unnamed seller worked at Fountain Studios until 1999, but kept hold of the scripts in a bedside drawer until recently unearthing them.

“I remember wondering which member of the cast they might have belonged to,” they said (via BBC News). “When I came to clear my desk I just swept everything into a big cardboard box. I forgot the scripts were there.

“They ended up in a bedside drawer and they’ve been there ever since. I could have quite easily have thrown them out. These scripts deserve to be owned by a big Friends fan.”

The scripts will be auctioned off on January 12 alongside a production hoodie and a Friends DVD box set.

Friends
David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc in ‘Friends’. CREDIT: Warner Bros. Television

Butler said it was unclear who the scripts belonged to before being discarded, but added: “There is a sticker for a chap called John Lanzer who is a set designer so they possibly could have been his.

Butler went on to admit that she’s a huge fan of Friends. “It’s just surreal to read it and see in writing what you’ve seen on the screen”.

Warning that dedicated fans could push the item way beyond its expected auction price, she added: “The sky’s the limit, if people want them they will bid for them,” she said.

In other news, it was recently reported that Friends cast members Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow are planning a special reunion to honour the late Matthew Perry.

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