Iconic Royle Family episode was almost cancelled after £100,000 disaster

A beloved episode of almost never aired after a costly blunder left producers and the cast scrambling.

The 2009 Christmas special was done and dusted when the cast and crew wrapped up filming after a long few days. Exhausted, they all headed home.

But their hopes for a few days of rest and recuperation would soon be dashed as once the playback videos of the filming came back from processing, producers were left gobsmacked by what they saw.

All the actors' heads were missing from every frame. Days worth of filming for The Golden Egg Cup episode was ruined.

The never-before occurrence meant that the entire cast had to not only be brought back to the Manchester set to painstakingly reshoot, but the whole thing cost a staggering £100,000.

"When we looked at the footage, it was like my holiday photographs - everyone's head was cut off. Everything was lost. We were absolutely gutted," explained co-writer Phil Mealey.

A small object had dropped into the lens and destroyed the film leading to the star studded cast and crew having wasted their time.

"The camera had been checked and what was coming through on the monitors in the studio was fine," added Mealer. "But a ground glass piece or something had dropped in the lens. It was like going to Boots with your wedding snaps ruined but on a massive scale."

"We had to drag everyone back to film it again. It was one of the most expensive rehearsals in the history of television. "I've spoken to quite a few people in TV and nobody has ever experienced that amount of footage completely lost."

The cast included writers Caroline Aherne, who passed away in 2016 and Craig Cash, as well as Ricky Tomlinson, Sue Johnston and Ralf Little. Jessica Hynes, who played neighbour Cheryl, had already returned to London where she was appearing on stage at the Royal Court Theatre.

The reshooting of the episode was crammed into a stressful and hectic day. However, they managed to recapture the essence of the show, which became one of viewer's most loved episodes.

since BBC's The Royle Family first graced our screens. In the beloved sitcom, lead character Tomlinson's Jim Royle won the hearts of the nation despite his cantankerous demeanour.

Tomlinson shared memories of Caroline Aherne, who passed away, noting her penchant for risque jokes. "There's a million stories but you can't tell them on the air because Caroline was one for playing pranks, but they were always a little bit rude," he reminisced. "But she was wonderful and so, so missed."

The Royle Family, while not royalty themselves, certainly caught the attention of the real-life Royal household. Ralf Little, who portrayed Antony, disclosed that both the late Queen and Prince Harry were among the show's admirers.