Mr. Bean

This article is about the original television programme. For the title character, see Mr. Bean (character). For other uses, see Mr. Bean (disambiguation).

Mr. Bean
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	Rowan Atkinson Richard Curtis
Written by	Ben Elton (Episode 1) Robin Driscoll (Episodes 2–14) Richard Curtis (Episodes 1–7) Rowan Atkinson
Directed by	John Howard Davies (Episodes 1–3, 15) John Birkin (Episodes 4–7, 10–14) Paul Weiland (Episodes 4–9)
Starring	Rowan Atkinson
Composer	Howard Goodall
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of episodes	15 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer	Peter Bennett-Jones
Producers	John Howard Davies (Episodes 1–3) Sue Vertue (Episodes 4–9, 12–14) Peter Bennett-Jones (Episodes 10–11)
Running time	26 minutes
Production company	Tiger Aspect Productions
Original release
Network	ITV
Release	1 January 1990 (1990-01-01) – 15 December 1995 (1995-12-15)

Mr. Bean is a British sitcom created by Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, produced by Tiger Aspect Productions, and starring Atkinson as the title character. The sitcom consisted of 16 episodes that were co-written by Atkinson, alongside Curtis and Robin Driscoll; for the pilot, it was co-written by Ben Elton. 14 of the episodes were broadcast on ITV, beginning with the pilot on 1 January 1990, until "The Best Bits of Mr. Bean", a compilation episode, on 15 December 1995. The fifteenth episode, "Hair by Mr. Bean of London", was not broadcast on television, until 25 August 2006 on Nickelodeon.

Based on a character originally developed by Atkinson while he was studying for his master's degree at Oxford University, the series follows the exploits of Mr. Bean, described by Atkinson as "a child in a grown man's body", in solving various problems presented by everyday tasks and often causing disruption in the process. Bean rarely speaks, and the largely physical humour of the series is derived from his interactions with other people and his unusual solutions to situations. The series was influenced by physical performers such as Jacques Tati and comic actors from silent films.

During its five-year run, Mr. Bean was viewed by as many as 18.74 million for the 1992 episode "The Trouble with Mr. Bean". The series has received a number of international awards, including the Rose d'Or. The show has been sold in 245 territories worldwide and has inspired an animated cartoon spin-off, and two feature films, along with Atkinson reprising his role as Mr. Bean for a performance at the London 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, a commercial for Snickers in 2014, and a number of sketches for Comic Relief.

Background and influences

The character of Mr. Bean was developed while Rowan Atkinson was studying for his master's degree in electrical engineering at Queen's College, Oxford. A sketch featuring Bean was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in the early 1980s. A similar character called Robert Box, played by Atkinson himself, appeared in the one-off 1979 ITV sitcom Canned Laughter, which also featured routines used in the feature film in 1997.

One of Bean's earliest appearances occurred at the "Just for Laughs" comedy festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1987. When programme co-ordinators were scheduling him into the festival programme, Atkinson insisted that he perform on the French-speaking bill rather than the English-speaking programme. Having no French dialogue in his act at all, programme co-ordinators could not understand why Atkinson wanted to perform on the French bill instead. As it turned out, Atkinson's act at the festival was a test platform for the Mr. Bean character, and Atkinson wanted to see how his character's physical comedy would fare on an international stage with a non-English speaking audience.

The character's name was not decided until after the first programme had been produced; a number of other vegetable-influenced names, such as "Mr. Cauliflower", were explored. Atkinson cited the earlier comedy character Monsieur Hulot, created by French comedian and director Jacques Tati, as an influence on the character. Stylistically, Mr. Bean is also very similar to early silent films, relying purely upon physical comedy, with Mr. Bean speaking very little dialogue (although like other live-action TV series of the time, it features a laugh track). This has allowed the series to be sold worldwide without any significant changes to dialogue. In November 2012, Atkinson told The Daily Telegraph of his intentions to retire the character, stating that "someone in their 50s being childlike becomes a little sad."

Characters and recurring props

Mr. Bean

Main article: Mr. Bean (character)

The title character, played by Rowan Atkinson, is a childish buffoon who brings various unusual schemes and contrivances to everyday tasks. He lives alone at the address of Flat 2, 12 Arbour Road, Highbury, and is almost always seen in his trademark tweed jacket and a skinny red tie. He also usually wears a digital calculator watch. Mr. Bean rarely speaks, and when he does, it is generally only a few mumbled words which are in a comically low-pitched voice. His first name (he names himself "Bean" to others) and profession, if any, are never mentioned. In the first film adaptation, "Mr." appears on his passport in the "first name" field, and he is shown employed as a guard at London's National Gallery.

Mr. Bean often seems unaware of basic aspects of the way the world works, and the programme usually features his attempts at what would normally be considered simple activities, such as going swimming, using a television set, interior decorating, or going to church. The humour largely comes from his original (and often absurd) solutions to problems and his total disregard for others when solving them, his pettiness, and occasional malevolence.

At the beginning of episode two onwards, as part of the opening credits, Mr. Bean falls from the sky in a beam of light, accompanied by a choir singing Ecce homo qui est faba ("Behold the man who is a bean"), recorded by Southwark Cathedral Choir in 1990. These opening sequences were initially in black and white in episodes two and three, and were intended by the producers to show his status as an "ordinary man cast into the spotlight". However, later episodes showed Mr. Bean dropping from the night sky in a deserted London street against the backdrop of St Paul's Cathedral. At the end of episodes three and six he is also shown being sucked right back up into the sky in the respective background scenes (black scene in episode 3 and street scene in episode 6). Atkinson has acknowledged that Bean "has a slightly alien aspect to him". In an episode of the animated series, "Double Trouble", the alien aspect of him was used in a storyline, in which he is taken inside a spacecraft with "aliens" who look exactly like him and even have their own plushy toys. In an obvious homage towards the end, the aliens send him back home in a beam of light and music similar to the opening of the original Mr. Bean series. Whether Bean is an extraterrestrial is not made clear.

In an interview in 2016, Atkinson stated that he would never retire the character.

Irma Gobb

Mr. Bean's girlfriend, Irma Gobb (played by Matilda Ziegler), appears in three episodes. In "The Curse of Mr. Bean" and "Mr. Bean Goes to Town", the character is simply credited as "the girlfriend". She is treated relatively inconsiderately by Bean, who appears to regard her more as a friend and companion than as a love interest. However, he does become jealous when she dances with another man at a disco in "Mr. Bean Goes to Town", and she certainly expects him to propose to her on Christmas Day in "Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean"; with his failure to do so resulting in her leaving him for good. The character does not appear in any subsequent episodes; however, she later appears in the animated series. The spin-off book Mr. Bean's Diary (1993) states that Mr. Bean met Irma Gobb at a local library. Ziegler has also played a waitress, a mother and a policewoman.

In the Comic Relief extra "Torvill and Bean", Bean is accompanied by a female companion portrayed by Sophie Thompson, whose overall appearance resembles Gobb's.

Teddy

File:Beanandteddy.jpg

Mr. Bean and Teddy

Teddy is Mr. Bean's teddy bear and perhaps Mr. Bean's best friend. The little brown bear is a knitted oddity with button eyes and sausage-shaped limbs, which invariably end up broken in half or in various other states of destruction and disfiguration. Although Teddy is inanimate, Mr. Bean often pretends it is alive. For example, when Mr. Bean hypnotises Teddy, he snaps his fingers and the bear's head falls backwards as if it had fallen asleep instantly (Bean used his finger to prop Teddy's head up). Mr. Bean behaves as if the bear is real, buying it a Christmas present or trying not to wake it in the mornings. The bear is often privy to Mr. Bean's various schemes and doubles as a tool or other items in emergencies; it has been decapitated ("Mr. Bean in Room 426"), used as his paint brush ("Do-It-Yourself Mr. Bean"), and shrunk in the wash ("Tee Off, Mr. Bean"). Teddy is also Mr. Bean's "pet" in "Hair by Mr. Bean of London" and is used to win a pet show.

The Teddy used in filming sits in the windscreen of the replica of Mr. Bean's Mini that is on display at the National Motor Museum. Over the years, Teddy has undergone several changes. When it debuted on "The Trouble with Mr. Bean", it had a smaller head. Two episodes later, its head reached its current size, but its "eyes" were not present until Bean placed gold thumb tacks on its face. The "eyes" have since been replaced with two small white buttons sewn over Teddy's face, giving it a distinct image.

Mr Bean's car

Rowan Atkinson demonstrating a famous scene from the episode "Do-It-Yourself Mr. Bean" on a Mini at Goodwood Circuit

The 1976 British Leyland Mini 1000

Mr. Bean's car, a green 1976 British Leyland Mini 1000 Mark 3 hardtop with a black hood, was central to several antics, such as Mr. Bean's getting dressed in it, driving while sitting in an armchair strapped to the roof, or attempting to avoid a car park fee by driving out through the entrance. In the pilot, the car used was an orange 1969 BMC Morris Mini 1000 Mark 2 hardtop (registration RNT 996H), but this was destroyed in an off-screen crash at the end of the episode. From then on, the car was a 1976 model (registration SLW 287R), Austin Citron Green in colour with a matte black bonnet. Throughout the sitcom, Bean keeps it locked with a bolt-latch and padlock, rather than the lock fitted to the car, which formed a running joke in several episodes; in two episode, he demonstrated an additional, innovative security measure, in that he removes the steering wheel instead of the key, which in one episode deterred a car thief. In "Back to School Mr. Bean", Bean's Mini is crushed by a tank as part of a demonstration, after he replaced an identical Mini (registration ACW 497V), meant for the demonstration, with his own to secure a parking space. Despite losing it, he later removes his padlock and bolt-latch from it, and finds another to use sometime after the episode.

After filming ended, one of the original Minis was sold to Kariker Kars to be hired for various events, whereupon it was then temporarily displayed as a major attraction at the Rover Group's museum. In 1997, it was purchased by the Cars of the Stars Motor Museum and displayed for a while, later being sold on to a private buyer in the United States. One other is privately owned and nearing the end of a restoration in the south of England. BMW Germany has built a replica, and another replica — the one used to promote the animated series — is on display at National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.

The car was initially slated to feature as part of the film Bean (1997), under the registration C607 EUW, in which as part of a sequence, it was driven through Harrods Department Store by Mr. Bean. Although the sequence was filmed, it was not included in the final cut. The car eventually had its debut on the big-screen when it featured in the film Mr. Bean's Holiday, with the registration YGL 572T. The film featured a second version, with exactly the same colour scheme, but with left-hand drive, driven by a character befriended by Bean.

When the sitcom was revived as an animated series, the Mini was given the same design as the live-action show, but with the registration STE 952R. In 2015, Mr. Bean returned in a sketch for Comic Relief to celebrate his 25th anniversary, in which he drives his Mini to attend it, which bore the same registration as the one in the animated series.

The Reliant

Starting with the first episode, Mr. Bean has a long-running feud with the unseen driver of a light blue 1972 Reliant Regal Supervan III (registration GRA 26K), which will usually get turned over, crashed out of its parking space, and so forth by Mr. Bean in his Mini, who is usually oblivious to the results. These mishaps became a running joke throughout the series. In "Tee Off, Mr. Bean", Bean is hitchhiking and the Reliant pulls over for him, but Bean, who recognises the car, pretends to not see it, until it leaves.

The Reliant reappears in the animated series, again victimised by Mr Bean in his Mini. In the animated series episode, "Young Bean", the identity of the Reliant driver is revealed for the first time (albeit shown in a flashback as a child). In an episode of the animated series entitled "Car Wars", the driver becomes fed up with years of abuse by Mr. Bean, and decides to get his payback on Bean.

Other characters

Although Mr. Bean is the only significant character in the programme, others appear, usually as foils for his various antics. Other than his girlfriend there are more characters in each episode. However, several notable British actors and comedians appear alongside Atkinson in sketches as various one-off supporting characters, including Owen Brenman, Richard Briers, Angus Deayton, Stephen Frost, Nick Hancock, Christopher Ryan, Paul Bown, Caroline Quentin, Danny La Rue, Roger Lloyd-Pack, David Schneider and Richard Wilson.

Episodes

Main article: List of Mr. Bean episodes

All 14 episodes of Mr. Bean were produced by Tiger Aspect Productions. Additionally, the character has been used in one-off sketches, guest appearances and television commercials in the United Kingdom.

Music

Mr. Bean features a choral theme tune in the key of C major written by Howard Goodall and performed by the Choir of Southwark Cathedral (later Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford). The words sung during the title sequences are in Latin:

• "Ecce homo qui est faba" – "Behold the man who is a bean" (sung at beginning)
• "Finis partis primae" – "End of part one" (sung before the advertisement break)
• "Pars secunda" – "Part two" (sung after the advertisement break)
• "Vale homo qui est faba" – "Farewell, man who is a bean" (sung at end)

The theme was later released on Goodall's album Choral Works. Goodall also wrote an accompanying music track for many episodes. The first episode of Mr. Bean did not feature the choral theme tune, but instead an up-beat instrumental piece, also composed by Howard Goodall, which was more an incidental tune than a theme. It was used while Bean drove between locations intimidating the blue Reliant, and as such, was sometimes heard in later episodes whenever Bean's nemesis is seen. The instrumental of the theme tune was used in animated Mr. Bean in the original series finale "Double Trouble".

In the episode "Tee Off, Mr. Bean", Howard Goodall's choral theme tune for another Richard Curtis comedy, The Vicar of Dibley, is heard playing on a car stereo. In Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean, while playing with Queen's Royal Guards figurines and the nativity set, he hums "The British Grenadiers", which was quoted in the theme to Blackadder Goes Forth.

Mr. Bean appears in a music video made for the 1991 Comic Relief fund raising single by Hale and Pace called "The Stonk". Mr. Bean also appeared in the music video for Boyzone's single "Picture of You" in 1997. The song was featured on the soundtrack to the first Bean movie.

Mr. Bean also made a Comic Relief record in 1992. This was "(I Want To Be) Elected" and was credited to 'Mr. Bean and Smear Campaign featuring Bruce Dickinson'. This was a cover of an Alice Cooper song and reached number 9 in the UK singles chart.

Awards

The first episode won the Golden Rose, as well as two other major prizes at the 1991 Rose d'Or Light Entertainment Festival in Montreux. In the UK, the episode "The Curse of Mr. Bean" was nominated for a number of BAFTA awards; "Best Light Entertainment Programme" in 1991, "Best Comedy" (Programme or Series) in 1991, and Atkinson was nominated three times for "Best Light Entertainment Performance" in 1991 and 1994.

Spin-offs

File:Mr bean anime.jpg

Mr. Bean in the animation along with his landlady Mrs. Wicket, at left and his girlfriend, Irma Gobb

Animated series

Main article: Mr. Bean (animated TV series)

In February 2001, Mr. Bean was revived to form part of an animated cartoon series, with Rowan Atkinson reprising his role as the title character providing references for all of Bean's animated actions. Much like the live-action series, the animated series features little dialogue; although some words are spoken, most is either little soundbites or mumbling. The spin-off introduced a list of new characters, alongside regulars in the live-action (such as Teddy, and Irma Gobb), including an unpleasant landlady of Mr. Bean, Mrs. Wicket, and her evil one-eyed cat, Scrapper. Other characters' voices are provided by Jon Glover, Rupert Degas, Gary Martin and Lorelei King.

Between 2002-2004, 63 episodes were broadcast, each consisting of 2 stories. In 2015, CITV commissioned a brand new series of episodes. The new series amended the format, in which some episodes featured stories where Bean had more dialogue than he normally did. 52 episodes were broadcast between 2015-2016.

Mr. Bean's Wacky World, a video game based on the animated series, was released on 14 December 2007 and was a third-person platformer. The games were released on PAL only for PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii.

Several official Mr. Bean games have been released, including Mr. Bean: Around the World and Mr. Bean: Flying Teddy. Both are available on the Apple App Store, Google Play and Amazon Marketplace.

Film adaptations

Main articles: Bean (film) and Mr. Bean's Holiday

Two films featuring Bean have been released, with Atkinson reprising his role as the character in both. The first film, Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie, was directed by Mel Smith and released in 1997, and followed the misadventures of Mr. Bean, as he oversaw the transfer of Whistler's Mother to a Los Angeles art gallery. The film broke from the program's traditional narrative, by using a subplot with more developed characters, whereby Bean was not the sole centre of attention, but interacted with a suburban Californian family that he stays with during the film. The film grossed more than US$250 million globally ($45 million in the USA) on a budget estimated at $22 million.

The second film, Mr. Bean's Holiday, was announced to be in development in March 2005, and would see Mr. Bean going to France, despite an earlier rumor in February 2001 stating that unproduced script outline by screenwriter Richard Curtis would see him on an Australian misadventure. Work on the film occurred during 2006 and was directed by Steve Bendelack, with its released in the United Kingdom on 30 March 2007; it premiered in North America on 17 July that year, at the Just for Laughs festival in Canada where the character had been launched 20 years earlier, before being released nationwide over a month later on 24 August. The film follows Bean on an eventful journey across France for a holiday in the French Riviera, which after a number of misfortunes culminates in an unscheduled screening of his video diary at the Cannes Film Festival. The film is notable for a mixture of traditional movie filmography, and home-shot video camera filmography. The film grossed nearly US$230 million globally ($33 million in the United States).

The second film was the last live-action appearance of the character, until the 2012 London Olympics.

London 2012 Olympic Summer Games opening ceremony

In 2012, Atkinson reprised his character for a live performance as part of the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony. In the scene, Mr. Bean works within the London Symphony Orchestra in its performance of "Chariots of Fire", conducted by Simon Rattle. For this scene, Bean does not wear his usual brown tweed sports jacket, but the traditional clothing of the musician - white tie and tails. As they perform the piece, Bean is mostly bored with playing the same note repeatedly on the synthesiser and gets jealous of the more interesting part being played on the grand piano. Still bored, he takes out his mobile phone and takes a picture of himself, looking proud. He then sneezes in a comical fashion and tries to retrieve his handkerchief from his bag behind him, finding he cannot reach it while at the synthesizer, until he uses an umbrella to maintain his performance. When he finally blows his nose with his handerchief, he throws it into the grand piano.

He then falls asleep continuing to play the note. A dream sequence of the opening scene of the film Chariots of Fire shows the characters running across a beach, though Mr. Bean dreams he is running with them. He begins to fall behind, until he hails a car to overtake all the others. Now running in front, Bean ensures he wins the race on the beach by tripping one of the runners trying to overtake him, whereupon he crosses the line with elation, and then wakes up. Finding that the rest of the orchestra have stopped playing while he continued his one recurring note, Bean, with encouragement from Rattle, plays an extended flourish and lastly touches a note that makes a flatulent sound, then stops.

Books

Two books were released related to the original series: Mr. Bean's Diary in 1992 and Mr. Bean's Pocket Diary in 1994. The two books have identical content and differ only in the format in which they are printed. The content of both is a template diary with handwritten content scrawled in by Mr. Bean. They provide some additional information on the setting: for example, they establish that Mr. Bean lives in Highbury and rents his flat from a landlady named Mrs. Wicket.

They confirm the name of Mr. Bean's girlfriend as "Irma Gobb", and also give the name of the other man she actually dances with in Mr. Bean Goes to Town (Giles Gummer). An additional book, also called Mr. Bean's Diary was released in 2002 to accompany the animated series; this book was also graded as a children's reader.

Other appearances

Rowan Atkinson has appeared in character as Bean in many normally factual television broadcasts, sometimes as a publicity stunt to promote a new episode, DVD or film.

#	Event/Title	Directed by	Written by	Original airdate
1	Going Live!	Amanda Gabbitas	TBD	1991 (1991)
Mr. Bean answers question about himself on the Saturday morning magazine show Going Live! with Phillip Schofield.
2	This Morning	TBD	TBD	1995 (1995)
Bean arrives at the Albert Dock car park in time for filming a special TV appearance, however, is unable to find a suitable space. He then accidentally reverses his Mini into a car belonging to Richard and Judy, hurling it into the river. He is then taken into the studio to be interviewed by the pair, where they realise what he has done. They then invite him into the This Morning kitchen, where he causes mayhem while trying to prepare his favourite meal.
3	The National Lottery Draws	TBD	TBD	1997 (1997)
Aired on BBC One's National Lottery Results Show. Bean arrives in the studio, and informs the viewers that he is heading to the United States to star in his film all about his adventures. He then introduces his creation, which is used to select the exact balls on his lottery ticket. He is then refused the winnings by host Bob Monkhouse.
4	Interview on Japanese television	TBD	TBD	1999 (1999)
Only ever aired in Japan. Bean appears on Japanese television for an interview, and instead of embracing the culture, manages to embarrass himself by sticking chopsticks up his nose and falsely translating the Japanese language. He is then escorted off set for his tomfoolery and is told never to return to Japan.
5	Blue Peter Safety film	TBD	TBD	2004 (2004)
Bean enlists the help of the Blue Peter team in order to help him construct a fireworks safety film for a new evening class project he is undertaking. When he later arrives at the class, he disposes of the film and instead begins to plug a series of new DVDs featuring himself.
6	The Dame Edna Treatment	TBD	TBD	2007 (2007)
Aired during the first episode of The Dame Edna Treatment. Bean arrives at a local spa, and poses as a doctor in an attempt to gain access to the sauna and relaxation room. First, Bean pulls the hose out forcibly from underneath the customer. Then he sets another hose and puts it underneath the customer. After that, he connects the hose into the vacuum tube and he turns on the vacuum cleaner. The smoke emerges from the vacuum and Bean tries to fix it up. As the nurse comes in, he accidentally squirts her in dirt. However, the receptionist works out what he is up to and manages to subdue him before he gets a chance to speak to Dame Edna.
7	Blue Peter – Mr. Bean's Holiday Promotion	TBD	TBD	2007 (2007)
Aired during a 2007 episode of Blue Peter. Bean invites the Blue Peter team to look at his holiday snaps he had taken while he was filming on the set of Mr. Bean's Holiday. However, Bean's camera breaks down, and instead shows a series of clips from the film. Mr. Bean's Holiday is in French Rivera.
8	2012 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony	Unknown	Unknown	27 July 2012 (2012-07-27)
Rowan Atkinson made a special appearance, in character, as Mr. Bean (though without the suit, tie and brown hair) at the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony. He pretended to accompany the London Symphony Orchestra in performing the theme from Chariots of Fire while taking pictures with his phone and blowing his nose. In a filmed sequence shown during the performance, Bean daydreams of joining the runners in the movie's iconic scene along West Sands at St. Andrews. He is shown beating the other runners by riding in a car, and then tripping the front runner.
9	Dragon TV Tonight 80s Talk Show	Unknown	Unknown	14 September 2014 (2014-09-14)
Rowan Atkinson went to Shanghai, in character, as Mr. Bean. He was on the Tonight 80s Talk Show with Wang Zijian. It was his first visit to China.
10	Red Nose Day	Unknown	Unknown	13 March 2015 (2015-03-13)
Rowan Atkinson performed a sketch, in character, as Mr. Bean. He was on Red Nose Day attending a funeral.
11	Top Funny Comedian: The Movie	TBD	TBD	2017 (2017)
Bean is set to appear in the Chinese film known as 《歡樂喜劇人》先行版電影預告片 郭德綱主演 (Top Funny Comedian: The Movie). He can be seen in the trailer. Mr. Bean also appeared at the premiere on 19 March and on 9 April 2017 in an episode

Music videos

#	Title	Directed by	Written by	Released
1	Hale and Pace, "The Stonk"	TBD	TBD	1991 (1991)
Bean is seen playing the drums in the music video to the official Comic Relief song for the 1991 telethon.
2	Mr. Bean and Smear Campaign featuring Bruce Dickinson, "I Want to Be Elected"	Paul Weiland	TBD	1992 (1992)
This video was made to accompany the single that was released in support of Comic Relief and aired during the run-up to the general election. In the sketch, Bean stands for Parliament as the single member of "The Bean Party". He makes fun of the ruthless campaigning used by some activists, and forces his way into peoples' homes or buys their votes by offering them money or televisions. He also ticks his poster on a coffin that is being taken to a waiting hearse, and after being spotted by a press photographer, gives a lollipop to a random child, then forcibly takes it back after the photographer departs. While Bean is addressing for his platforms, the wall behind him opens, revealing the toilet room and he told to the man there to go away. And finally replaces the ballot box with the one bought by himself, full of votes for him only — the other five running candidates receive a vote of zero while Bean receives more than 24,000 votes. In the background a band called 'Smear Campaign', featuring Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, plays the Alice Cooper song "Elected".
3	Boyzone, "Picture of You"	TBD	TBD	1997 (1997)
Bean was featured in the music video for "Picture of You", a song performed by Boyzone, which was featured as the main theme song for the film Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie. In the video, the band arrives on a street, dressed as look-alikes of Bean, ready to perform the song. However, Bean turns up and starts to cause havoc.
4	Matt Willis, "Crash"	TBD	TBD	2007 (2007)
Official music video of Matt Willis's version of the song "Crash" originally performed by The Primitives first broadcast on Popworld in 2007; used in Mr. Bean's Holiday

Commercials

#	Product	Directed by	Written by	Original broadcast
1	REMA 1000	TBD	TBD	1994 (1994)
Commercials for Scandinavian supermarket chain in Norway. The first sees walking around a store, physically comparing the products he has already bought from another store with those in the store. A second features Bean at the till but he doesn't have enough money. He collects coins from his mini and the floor using a hand-held vacuum cleaner and presents the contents to the cashier but still doesn't have enough. He almost steals a lolly, but when spotted, he pretends that he is giving it to the child in the queue behind him. Bean waits until the child is leaving before stealing it back however the child has already eaten it. A third sees Bean using a home made contraption to scan for cheaper prices while annoying the customers.
2	M&M's	TBD	TBD	1997 (1997)
Aired regularly during advert breaks on ITV during the summer of 1998. Bean arrives at a bowling alley, only to be heckled by the M&M's 'spokescandies' Red and Yellow due to his poor bowling ability (leaving a 2-pin split). Bean then decides to pick Red up and bowl him like a bowling ball, which results in a spare.
3	Fujifilm	TBD	TBD	1999 (1999)
Aired regularly during advert breaks on ITV during the summer of 1999. Bean goes to a photo shop in order to buy a new camera. When he gets home, he tries to take a photo of Teddy, who subsequently keeps falling out of shot. He then decides to turn his attentions to a budgerigar, but instead only succeeds in trapping it in its cage. Different adverts for the same product also appeared in Japan.
4	Nissan Tino	TBD	TBD	1999 (1999)
Only ever aired in Japan. Bean drives around the streets of Japan showing off his new Nissan Tino, but manages to offend the hierarchy's security guards when he smirks at them while driving past. He later takes the car back to the showroom and asks for a refund, despite claiming it is a fantastic car.
5	Snickers	Daniel Kleinman	Unknown	9 October 2014 (2014-10-09)
One in a series of Snickers adverts where the protagonist doesn't perform or behave at their best until they've eaten a Snickers and appears as a completely different person until they've done so. In this one, Bean appears as the pre-Snickers alterego of a martial arts expert almost foiling a raid.

Home media

The series was available on a number of Thames Television VHS compilations. In the United Kingdom (Region 2), episodes of Mr. Bean were released on a yearly basis by Universal Pictures UK from 2004. The complete collection is now available, including the two feature films and other extras. The episodes were released on VHS by A&E Home Video in the United States in the 1990s. In the United States (Region 1), the complete series has been available since 2003 on A&E Home Video as "The Whole Bean". The documentary "The Story of Mr. Bean" is edited on both the UK and USA DVD sets: It was originally 52 minutes when broadcast on TV. However, it is 48 minutes on the UK DVD while only 40 on the American DVD. Most notably, in the UK version, the section detailing "The Tall Guy" has humorous clips from the film removed. The American DVD features the same edits as the British DVD but is also missing comments by Burt Reynolds on the set of Bean, comments by Jeff Goldblum, some clips from the show Mr. Bean and many others.

The record-selling UK videos were withdrawn shortly before the release of Bean, and DVDs were released on an annual basis as of 2004.

In August 2009 an official YouTube channel was launched featuring content from the live action and animated series.

The series was re-released by Shout Factory in North America on 24 March 2015 on DVD, to coincide with its 25th anniversary. This set contains digitally remastered episodes (similar to the 2010 British release), the 40 minute "The Story of Mr. Bean", additional scenes: "Turkey Weight," "Armchair Sale," "Marching" & "Playing With Matches", "Bus Stop" and "Library" sketches, a trailer for "Mr. Bean: The Animated Series", and "The Best Bits of Mr. Bean", a 72-minute clip show.

VHS format

Title	No. of episodes
The Amazing Adventures of Mr. Bean	2
The Exciting Escapades of Mr. Bean	2
The Terrible Tales of Mr. Bean	2
The Merry Mishaps of Mr. Bean	2
The Perilous Pursuits of Mr. Bean	2
Unseen Bean	2
The Final Frolics of Mr. Bean	2
The Best Bits of Mr. Bean	Episode clips
The Complete Mr. Bean (Volume 1)	7
The Complete Mr. Bean (Volume 2)	7
Merry Christmas Mr. Bean	1
Mr. Bean – Vol. 1	3
Mr. Bean – Vol. 2	3

DVD format

Title	No. of episodes	Release date	Notes
Mr. Bean: The Whole Bean	14 + 4 (special ep.)	29 April 2003	Region 1. Contains all 14 episodes, two Comic Relief sketches and two director's cut sketches. Plus, The Story of Mr. Bean (40-min. documentary), Mr. Bean The Animated Series Trailer and Rowan Atkinson Biography & Filmography
Mr Bean: Series 1, Volumes 1-4 (Digitally Remastered 20th Anniversary Edition)	14 + 4 (special ep.)	6 September 2010	Contains all 14 episodes
Mr Bean — The Complete Collection	14 + 4 (special ep.)	28 November 2011	Contains all 14 episodes (Digitally Remastered) + animation episodes + movies.

Volumes

Title	No. of episodes	Release date	Notes
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 1	3	1 November 2004	Episodes: Episode 1: Mr. Bean, Episode 2: The Return of Mr. Bean, Episode 14: Hair by Mr. Bean of London. Bonus Features: In the Pink, The Library.
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 2	3	31 October 2005	Episodes: Episode 3: The Curse of Mr. Bean, Episode 4: Mr. Bean Goes to Town, Episode 5: The Trouble with Mr. Bean. Bonus Features: Royal Bean.
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 3	3	13 November 2006	Episodes: Episode 10: Mind the Baby, Mr. Bean, Episode 8: Mr Bean in Room 426, Episode 6: Mr. Bean Rides Again. Bonus Features: Behind the scenes of Mr. Bean's Holiday.
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 4	3	19 March 2007	Episodes: Episode 9: Do-It-Yourself Mr. Bean, Episode 11: Back to School Mr. Bean, Episode 12: Tee Off, Mr. Bean. Bonus Features: Treasure!.
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 5	2	12 November 2007	Episodes: Episode 7: Merry Christmas Mr. Bean, Episode 13: Goodnight Mr. Bean. Extra Features: 2007 Comic Relief Sketch, Art Thief, Scaredy Bean, Haircut.
Mr. Bean: Beantastic Complete Collection	14 + 26 (cartoon) + 2 (movies)	12 November 2007	All 14 TV episodes, all 26 episodes of the Mr. Bean Animated TV Series, Mr. Bean's Holiday & Bean – The Ultimate Disaster Movie
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: The Complete Collection of the Classic TV Series (5 DVD Set)	14	18 November 2008	Contains: Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 1 and 2 (2 DVD Set), Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 3 and 4 (2 DVD Set) and Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: 5.
Mr. Bean: Best Bits		17 November 2008	Highlights
Mr. Bean: Vol. 1 (Digitally Remastered 20th Anniversary Edition)	5	6 September 2010	Universal Pictures UK
Mr. Bean: Vol. 2 (Digitally Remastered 20th Anniversary Edition)	5	6 September 2010	Universal Pictures UK
Mr. Bean: Vol. 3 (Digitally Remastered 20th Anniversary Edition)	4	6 September 2010	Universal Pictures UK
Mr. Bean: Vol. 4 (Digitally Remastered 20th Anniversary Edition)	The Best Bits, The Story of Mr. Bean, Interviews with Rowan Atkinson	6 September 2010	Universal Pictures UK
Rowan Atkinson in Mr. Bean: Bean's Brilliant Boxset (Digitally Remastered 20th Anniversary Edition)	14	6 September 2010	Universal Pictures UK
Happy Birthday Mr. Bean	3	6 September 2010	Contains: The Restaurant from The Return of Mr. Bean, Birthday Bear (Animated Episode), The Disco from Mr. Bean Goes to Town, Dinner for Two (Animated Episode), The FunFair from Mind the Baby, Mr. Bean, The Restaurant (Animated Episode).
Merry Christmas Mr. Bean	1	1 November 2010	Episode 7: Merry Christmas Mr. Bean.
Holiday Havoc With Mr. Bean	9 Sketches	8 August 2011
Back to School Mr. Bean	3	4 August 2014	Contains: Episode 11 Back to School Mr. Bean, The Library, The Exam.
Mr. Bean: Funny Faces	2	4 May 2015

DVD re-release

Mr. Bean: The Whole Bean was re-released on 24 March 2015 on DVD digitally re-mastered to coincide with the series' 25th anniversary.

In popular culture

• The sale of Mr Bean worldwide has enabled his character to secure a place in the popular culture of several countries. Notably, a number of public figures have been compared to the character, usually as an insult. Tony Blair, then-Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, was identified by Homer Simpson as "Mr. Bean" when his cartoon form greeted the Simpsons upon their arrival to the United Kingdom in an episode of the eponymous programme, allegedly demonstrating the stereotypical view of the British by Americans.
• Arthur Batchelor, one of the Royal Navy captives held by Iran during the 2007 Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel, has stated that some of his captors had mocked him calling him "Mr. Bean".
• NRL Referee Sean Hampstead is regularly nicknamed "Mr. Bean" in nationally broadcast commentary by Australian television/radio personality Ray Warren as a result of his similar appearance.
• In 2007, Vincent Cable, the acting leader of the Liberal Democrats at the time, described the recent decline in Prime Minister Gordon Brown's fortunes as his "remarkable transformation in the last few weeks from Stalin to Mr. Bean".
• The former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is often mocked in his own country for his facial resemblance to Mr. Bean, and a computer hacker broke into Spain's official website for its presidency of the European Union, inserting the character on the front page of the website. Satirists have also compared Zapatero to Mr. Bean when discussing government policies that are deemed to have been unsuccessful.
• Several of the visual jokes in the series have been used as experiments on the Discovery Channel's MythBusters series. In episode 52 – "Mind Control", the idea of painting a room with a stick of explosives (firework, or other) placed in a tin of paint, as in the episode "Do-It-Yourself Mr. Bean", was tested and deemed impossible, as adequate coverage was not achieved.
• An image of Mr. Bean has also been used as an internet meme usually accompanied by the statement, "If you know what I mean."
• Though Rowan Atkinson is not typecast to characters like Mr. Bean, he has played similar characters in other works, such as Enrico in the 2001 film Rat Race.
• In Tetsuo Hara and Buronson's manga Souten no Ken, a parody of Mr. Bean can be found in a minor character appearing in Chapter 45, contained in Vol. 5. In it, a barman identical to Mr. Bean tends the main character Kenshiro Kasumi, for comic relief.
• In the video game Resident Evil 2, during the opening sequence in the streets of Raccoon City, Mr. Bean's British Leyland Mini 1000 can be seen parked against a barricade.
• Mr. Bean has also been influential on later series, such as The World of Lee Evans.
• Private Eye magazine in the UK, features a cartoon strip, The Adventures of Mr Milibean; in which the-then Labour Party leader Ed Miliband is drawn as Bean. Milliband was depicted as Bean by cartoonists.
• Rowan Atkinson reprised his role of Bean at the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympics during "Chariots of Fire" with the London Symphony Orchestra.
• The image of Mr. Bean is employed on the cybercrime website "Mr. Bin."

See also

• List of films based on British sitcoms
• Uncle Max
• Ernest P. Worrell
• Brian O'Brian

External links

• Official website
• Mr. Bean at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com show
• Mr. Bean: The Animated Series at IMDb
• Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie at IMDb
• Mr. Bean's Holiday at IMDb
• Filming locations from Mr Bean
• Mr Bean Guest Characters