Wooden Overcoats · Wooden Overcoats Ltd

Season 4 Episode 2: Old School Funn

January 20, 2022·40 min·3 clips

Georgie admits she taught the teachers to burn down her rough school to escape the children.

This episode of the sitcom "Wooden Overcoats" follows funeral home rivals Rudyard and Antigone Funn as they attend a careers fair at their old school, St. Clotilde's. Hosted by narrator Madeline, the episode delves into the twins' miserable childhood memories after they encounter their former headteacher. The story explores their formative school years, revealing why the headteacher still holds a grudge against Rudyard. At the fair, the unpopular Funns are ignored while their charismatic competitor, Eric Chapman, draws a crowd of eager students. Georgie, the Funns' assistant, recalls her own rough schooling where teachers allegedly burned down the building to escape the students. The narrative flashes back to the twins' first day, where they meet the eccentric English teacher Alan Sodbury and his fiancée, the science teacher Miss Cuttree. Rudyard immediately clashes with Mr. Sodbury's rule-free, poetry-focused teaching style, declaring shopping lists are not literature. Antigone, separated from her twin per school policy, finds encouragement in Miss Cuttree's science class, where she excels by answering questions about the seven characteristics of living organisms. Rudyard endures brutal P.E. lessons with the sadistic Mr. Askey, who forces children to run laps and once made them pay for a plumber when the shower pipes froze. Antigone, bullied by classmates who call her "Formaldehyde," is defended by Miss Cuttree, who predicts she could become a pioneering mortician. The crisis erupts when Antigone, inspired by Miss Cuttree, presents her first embalming project: her preserved gerbil, Jeffers, as a show-and-tell gift. Later, classmates stuff Rudyard into a bin, where he accidentally discovers the discarded, flattened gerbil. The twins' confrontations with their teachers lead to a dramatic revelation: Miss Cuttree breaks off her engagement to Mr. Sodbury, blaming his obsession with Rudyard, and is discovered in a supply cupboard with Mr. Askey. A furious Mr. Sodbury then chases Rudyard through the school, leading to the headteacher's lasting resentment. The episode's tone is a darkly comedic and farcical character study, blending witty dialogue with absurd flashbacks. Its style is narrative-driven, using the framing device of the careers fair to unpack layered, tragicomic backstory. Fans of dry British humor and character-driven sitcoms with a morbid edge will enjoy this exploration of the Funns' origins. Listeners who prefer straightforward plots without flashbacks or cringe comedy might find the schoolyard misery less engaging.

As heard by us

A school visit gives this episode a sharp, character-led look at family history and dry classroom chaos.

The episode returns to Piffling St. Clouture with a memory-lane feel, folding in family history and the Fun twins' school days. The school rule that separates twins, Antigone's eagerness for the right answer, and the teacher's offer of a gold star or chocolate keep the classroom…

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Why you'd press play

A return to the old school, twin mischief, and one biology lesson with too much enthusiasm.

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