# Irritating TV characters, past and present
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [December 31, 2009, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164 "2009-12-31T06:50:31Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/1 "2009-12-31T06:50:31Z")
For example:
Anthony Di Nozzo, _NCIS_
Patrick Jane, _The Mentalist_
Frank Barone, _Everybody Loves Raymond_
Maj. Frank Burns, _M_A_S_H\*
Carrie Sharples (Martha Raye), _Alice_
Archie Bunker, _All in the Family_
Frank Nelson, _The Jack Benny Show_
C. Montgomery Burns, _The Simpsons_
Post your annoying characters. đ
---
### Author:  [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/2 "2009-12-31T07:51:19Z")
I generally donât watch shows with characters that annoy me but I watched _Fawlty Towers_ when it first came out in England. Later when I returned to Australia it was shown here. I loved it.
A couple of years later when I saw it in re-runs it infuriated me. I found Basil Fawlty not at all funny, just the worst kind of insufferable idiot. I fumed at his every action and thought âhow does his wife put up with him?â so only watched a couple of episodes.
Years later I saw it yet again and once more Basil was hilarious.
Oh and I should add I love the way _Patrick Jane_âs dickishness is played for laughs. If it wasnât for that it would just be another smartass investigator show.
---
### Author:  [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/3 "2009-12-31T07:54:44Z")
[ul]
[li]Erkel[/li][li]Ray Romano in anything[/li][li]Anyone not named Meg or that sex crazed guy in Family Guy[/li]Dr. Zoidberg[/ul]
---
### Author:  [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/4 "2009-12-31T08:00:22Z")
Chatsworth Osborne, Jr. was a thorn in the side to both Dobie and Maynard
And who can forget Eddie Haskell?
---
### Author:  [@Justin\_Credible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Credible)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/5 "2009-12-31T08:08:43Z")
Kim Kelly from Freaks and Geeks. Hell, Lindsay too most of the time.
Lois Griffin. Her voice keeps getting more and more intolerable.
Crissy Snow. As a kid I thought she was funny, but now she seems shrill and annoying to me.
---
### Author:  [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/6 "2009-12-31T08:14:40Z")
Does the character have to be from a TV show specifically?
Because I freaking hate that [Robot](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpGQrtpvYFY) from the US cellular commercial. Hate him [BIG](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzcelLLahy4) time!!!
---
### Author:  [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/7 "2009-12-31T08:15:58Z")
Jane on Coupling (the original) was completely annoying to me, until the scene with Jake the Truth Snake. Gina Bellman is hysterical; it just made the whole character work from that point on.
---
### Author:  [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/8 "2009-12-31T08:17:07Z")
Mr. BURNS is who you choose for irritating on the Simpsons? Iâd choose Flanders well before Burns.
---
### Author:  [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/9 "2009-12-31T08:41:19Z")
Ted Baxter, _Mary Tyler Moore Show_
Q, _Star Trek: TNG_
Karen, _Will & Grace_
Roseanneâs mother, _Roseanne_
---
### Author:  [@FordTaurusSHO94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordTaurusSHO94)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/10 "2009-12-31T09:40:34Z")
Michael Scott on The Office.
---
### Author:  [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/11 "2009-12-31T12:48:19Z")
Michael Scott on The Office.
Paul Lassiter on Spin City. (And any other role that Richard Kind plays)
Kramer on Seinfeld - heck most of them.
All of them on Everybody Love Raymond.
---
### Author:  [@Eternal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eternal)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/12 "2009-12-31T13:06:48Z")
_Everyone_ on _The Office_.
_Everyone_ on _Will and Grace_.
_Everyone_ on _30 Rock_ except maybe Jack Donaghy.
_Everyone_ on _Seinfeld_.
Actually come to think of it annoyingness is almost inherent in any interesting character.
---
### Author:  [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/13 "2009-12-31T13:24:15Z")
Lt Columbo, from (duh!) _Columbo_, who seemed to make a career of annoying a suspect until they confessed just to get him to go away.
---
### Author:  [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/14 "2009-12-31T13:39:33Z")
David Spade in _Donât Shoot Me_.
Rob Schneider in _Men Behaving Badly_.
Oz in _Auf Wiedersehen, Pet_.
---
### Author:  [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/15 "2009-12-31T13:51:03Z")
Sandra Clark as portrayed by JackĂ©e Harry on _227_ is the one answer to this question that I will never forget, even as I forget most of the specifics about that show. I donât want to kick the actress, she was given a role, developed a character in conjunction with the director ⊠but, damn, that annoying âMaaaawwieâ, ugh, why, just why, was that considered entertaining.
Some would add Steve Urkel, I wouldnât, I think he took annoying and made it charming. But I might be too generous, and I didnât really watch that show.
Megan Mullally as Karen Walker on \*Will and Grace \* might also fit the bill. I only saw it for a few moments, but I got a quick feeling that this was another Jackée Harry-esque character. Again, actress was doing what she was supposed to do, I guess, but who decided to write a show around annoying?
Fawlty Towers is a tough one. Basil is an ass, but Sybyl doesnât actually work, Manuel is pleasant, but pretty incompetent. And Polly isnât really the voice of reason. I guess it is an entire show written around being annoying. So it can work.
---
### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/16 "2009-12-31T13:51:45Z")
> [@panache45](#):
>
> Q, _Star Trek: TNG_
Oh hell yeah.
David on _LA Law_. People people people!
---
### Author:  [@McGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/McGeek)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/17 "2009-12-31T13:55:05Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#):
>
> David Spade in _Donât Shoot Me_.
> Rob Schneider in _Men Behaving Badly_.
> Oz in _Auf Wiedersehen, Pet_.
btw, itâs âJust Shoot Meâ, an admittedly lame play-on-words re: camera=gun.
Actually, that show was the only place where I did NOT find David Spade annoying.
But back to my title question - seems like several posters talking about A) characters where their annoyingness ADDS to the show. Others are talking about B) characters that are not supposed to be annoying but are, and still others are talking about C) characters whose annoyingness is supposed to add to the show but they are just annoying. And frankly some posts I am not sure which of the 3 the poster thinks the character is in.
My C) list would be huge. A lot of people love the deliberately annoying characters, but they usually just annoy me. There are a few exceptions, e.g., I did find Karen Walker funny on Will&Grace, at least for a while, but after a couple seasons I ended up hating everyone on that show.
My most annoying TV characfter of all time is Gary Coleman on Diffârent Strokes. God I hated that show. I even hate that they spelled it âDiffârentâ.
---
### Author:  [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/18 "2009-12-31T14:04:04Z")
The Professor in _Gilliganâs Island_
---
### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/19 "2009-12-31T14:04:52Z")
For unintentionally annoying, Iâd have to go with Rachael on _Friends_. She was such a whiner.
---
### Author:  [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)
#### Post date: [December 31, 2009, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164/20 "2009-12-31T14:12:44Z")
I would draw a line between characters that are meant to be irritating to other characters, but that I find entertaining â Frank Burns, Michael Scott, Sheldon Cooper and Ted Baxter, e.g. â and characters that _I personally find irritating_.
An example of the latter, on a show I actually liked, was Mary (Nikki Cox) on _Las Vegas_. Insufferably whiny and needy. All the other characters on the show loved her, and I couldnât stand her.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irritating-tv-characters-past-and-present/523164.md?page=2)