The BEST episodes of The Nanny
Every episode of The Nanny ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of The Nanny!
When she appears on the doorstep of wealthy widower Maxwell Sheffield's New York home, cosmetics saleswoman Fran Fine unexpectedly gets a job as the nanny for the Broadway producer's three children, Maggie, Brighton and Grace. Fran brings her no-nonsense honesty, sharp sense of humour and "Queens logic" into the Sheffield household, helping them become a happy, healthy family.
#1 - The Dummy Twins
Season 6 - Episode 19 - Aired 6/16/1999
Ms. Babcock finds Niles's proposal pathetic and laughable. Fran tries to contour the situation and teaches Niles a better way for him to start things with Ms. Babcock – call her by her first name, or take her out to a romantic dinner. During the dinner, Niles gets nervous and proposes two more times. C.C. won't let it go and keeps rubbing it into his face, until Niles is fed up and decides to quit, for he can no longer live under such humiliating circumstances. Neither Fran nor Maxwell can do anything to make him stay, and even C.C.'s promise to let it go count for nothing. Finally, Niles tells C.C. she's pathetic and lonely, and will spend the rest of her life waiting for a man that will never come, until one day she looks back and sees she wasted her entire life. Niles storms out and C.C. realizes what he said is true. She decides to move on and quit too. At night, while fighting over some dummy twins the doctor gave Fran, she and Max go to Niles's room and find him and C.C. sleeping
#2 - Strange Bedfellows
Season 2 - Episode 24 - Aired 5/8/1995
Fran attends the nanny retirement party for one of her friends. After drinking too much, she ends up in Mr. Sheffield's bedroom that night. The two try to determine whether or not anything happened between them.
#3 - Fran's Gotta Have It
Season 4 - Episode 26 - Aired 5/21/1997
Mr. Sheffield is going to London to convince Celine Dion into doing Broadway. Fran decides to go after him and take advantage of the romantic scenario to solve their situation once and for all. After a romantic afternoon together, Max and Fran go back to the hotel and almost sleep together, if it wasn't for him backing out in the last minute. Insulted, offended and tired of all the cat and mouse play, Fran decides to leave him before it's too late for her to marry anybody. But they receive a phone call from NY saying that Niles just suffered a heart attack. Fran decides to stay and help while Niles recovers, giving Mr. Sheffield another chance to make a commitment. Meanwhile, C.C. is surprisingly sad after Niles's attack and even drops by at the hospital to bring him some flowers. She reveals to Fran that deep down she doesn't hate Niles as much as it seems.
#4 - The Cradle Robbers
Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/25/1996
Mr. Sheffield is furious when he finds out Maggie is seeing a 25 year-old boy. He wants Fran to make it stop, but won't listen to her when she tells him to see a doctor for his hearing problem. Fran decides to chaperone Maggie on her (last) date with John, but she completely forgets Mr. Sheffield's orders when she meets John's gorgeous friend Mark, who is interested in Fran. Still, she has to fix Maggie's problem, so she decides to let it flow and wait until she gets tired of John, which doesn't take long to happen. Too bad it means that Fran will have to drop her 25 year-old as well. Meanwhile, C.C. misses an incredible opportunity of dinner with Max when she falls asleep (the result of a caffeine trick Niles pulled on her).
#5 - Yetta's Letters
Season 6 - Episode 20 - Aired 6/16/1999
While still shocked about finding out Niles and C.C.'s secret affair, Fran and Maxwell worry about something else: it seems like Max's biggest chance to beat Andrew Lloyd Weber at the Tonys is going to be wasted, since he can't get a decent play script and thus won't open any new shows. Fran shows him Yetta's old love letters she wrote to a waiter she met on the ship that brought her from Romania, but Maxwell doesn't think those will make a good play. The letters get accidentally sent to Andrew Lloyd Weber's office and he tries to buy the play rights for Yetta's letters, but Maxwell steps in – thanks to Sylvia's power of attorney – and opens one of the most exciting plays of the season!
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#6 - Tattoo
Season 4 - Episode 9 - Aired 11/20/1996
While Fran is trying to convince Maggie not to get a tattoo, Val slips in front of everybody that Fran got herself a tattoo when they were teenagers. Sylvia tells Fran she'll have to have it removed if she wants to be buried in a Jewish cemetery when she dies; and Mr. Sehffield is dying to know where her tattoo is. Fran, of course, faces that as another opportunity for romance with Mr. Sheffield, so she arranges the whole family to go on a trip to the Bermudas, where she can put on a tiny bikini and reveal where her tattoo is. But in the last minute she changes her mind, and the two have a very exciting ping pong game instead.
#7 - The Facts of Lice
Season 4 - Episode 18 - Aired 3/5/1997
After Niles is depressed about his life as a butler, he begins to act strange and while he is cleaning, he drops a piece of paper containing a list of items that convinces Fran that Niles is possibly a murderer due to his recent strange behavior and the contents of his list. A search of his room confirms her suspicions. During a stormy night, Maxwell takes the children out for dinner leaving Fran and Niles alone. Niles approaches Fran and she thinks Niles is about to murder her. He confronts Fran about how she knows what he is up to when in fact he is simply writing a play.
#8 - The Ex-Niles
Season 5 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/29/1997
Fran and C.C. agree to let Dr. Joyce Brothers decide who's the better woman for Maxwell; Niles quits after he's denied a raise, a demand based on his faulty impression of Fran's salary.
#9 - The Baby Shower
Season 6 - Episode 22 - Aired 6/23/1999
When Libby, the Chatterbox hairdresser/fortune teller, predicts Val will hook up with Fred the pharmacist and it happens, Fran worries her prediction might come true too. Libby said she saw Maxwell in bed with a leggy blonde in Beverly Hills. Coincidentally, Max has to fly to L.A. because his pilot was picked up. Fran and Niles assume the leggy blonde is Ms. Babcock and fly after them. After meeting Fran Drescher at the hotel lobby, they discover C.C. and Max changed rooms after Niles crawls up Max's bed! Turns out he's the leggy blonde! Meanwhile, Brighton has problems telling his father he doesn't want to go to Harvard and wants to take a year off instead.
#10 - One False Mole and You're Dead
Season 5 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/14/1998
Margo Lange, the famous actress, is starring in one of Maxwell's plays, and Ms. Fine disguises as a gardener so she can spy on them. After being busted by Mr. Sheffield, Fran accidently sprays water on Margo, and as she tries to dry her, Margo's famous Marilyn-Monroe-like mole comes out. Fran takes her mom to the doctor, and as they were talking on the waiting room, Cindy Adams, the columnist, overhears the story about Margo's fake mole, and announces it on her show, which makes Margo quit the play. Now Fran has to make things up to Mr. Sheffield, and in order to do so, she comes up with the idea of selling fake moles on the internet with Margo. But the whole plan falls through after Maxwell blabs about it to Mel Brooks, who steals it. Maxwell asks Fran to marry him so he can be forgiven, but she says no to it because she doesn't want to marry a man out of guilt. But he actually meant it this time...
#11 - Maggie's Wedding
Season 6 - Episode 21 - Aired 6/23/1999
Michael got a modeling job in Japan, so he proposes to Maggie so they don't have to be apart. Maxwell has a hard time accepting the fact that his little daughter has grown into a mature woman, but eventually comes to terms with Michael. On the wedding day, Fran finds out Michael's cousin is James Brolin, Barbara Streisand's husband, and that Barbara herself is coming to the ceremony. Fran is in such shock for finally meeting her idol that has contractions and is rushed to the hospital. It's all a false alarm, but Fran does not want to stay in the hospital while Barbara is at her house. She sneaks out, but when she gets home there's nobody there. Max calls the house and reveals Fran he planned a little surprise for her: he took Barbara to the hospital. Fran doesn't forgive her, but the wedding goes on and Maggie finally marries the man of her life.
#12 - Call Me Fran
Season 5 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/21/1998
Fran decides to take her father to a basketball game, but he refuses to go knowing the tickets came from Mr. Sheffield. Confused, Fran goes to Dr. Miller for advice, and he tells her she's always looking for men like her father – that will keep a distance between them. Fran decides then to make Mr. Sheffield change, and when that doesn't work, she decides quit her job and change herself. Not wanting to let her go, Mr. Sheffield – Maxwell – calls her Fran. Although they agree on not doing it in front of others yet, Max and Fran take their first step on the road of commitment.
#13 - Oy to the World
Season 3 - Episode 14 - Aired 12/18/1995
An animated Christmas fantasy in which Fran and Brighton are magically whisked to the North Pole, where they must protect Christmas against the wrath of ice princess "C.C. the Abominable Babcock."
#14 - Canasta Master
Season 2 - Episode 16 - Aired 1/9/1995
Mr. Sheffield wants Brighton to play more sports, so Fran takes him to play baseball in Flushing. At Sylvia's, he shows an incredible talent for playing canasta, so he joins Yetta's canasta team to play in Atlantic city. Fran is soon kicked out of the team, but at the very last minute Brighton realizes that he doesn't belong to a group of Jewish women from Flushing and gives his place to Fran.
#15 - Love Is a Many Blundered Thing
Season 3 - Episode 19 - Aired 2/12/1996
Fran's upset because Valentine's day is approaching, but she quickly turns to happy when she scores a date with Jeff, the cop. She encourages Mr. Sheffield to get a date himself, and shortly after an anonymous valentine's card appears on Fran's purse. She automatically thinks it's from Mr. Sheffield and gets a huge billboard sign asking for Mr. Sheffield to be her valentine. When she discovers the card was from Brighton's friend, Fran and Val rush to Times Square to try to erase the billboard before Mr. Sheffield sees it. Due to an accident, Fran is left hanging from a rope and Mr. Sheffield's the one that comes for the rescue.
#16 - A Fine Friendship
Season 2 - Episode 19 - Aired 2/6/1995
Grace has a friend over and Fran meets his nanny. It's Kurt Jacobs, a very attractive man, who Fran treats as one of her girlfriends because she thinks he's gay. When he makes a move on her she freaks out (after all, this is a guy who's seen her without makeup on!). They still go out on a few dates, but it doesn't work out. Meanwhile, Gracie thinks she's pregnant after being late to watch The Lion King and overhearing Fran say women who are late are pregnant. And Niles tries to point out to both Fran and Mr. Sheffield how "the last apple is only missed after it's gone".
#17 - The Boca Story
Season 4 - Episode 25 - Aired 5/14/1997
Sylvia decides to invest in a condo in Boca. This much anticipated fact that should come as a blessing for Fran upsets her deeply, and Dr. Miller says it's because deep down she doesn't want her mother to leave. Mr. Sheffield thinks if he takes Fran to see the condo she'll accept the idea, and just when Fran finally realized how much peace she'd get from that, they discover there isn't any condo, only a swamp. Fran's devastated (specially when Sylvia interrupts her fantasy from coming true), but at least she won't have to separate from her mother yet. Meanwhile, Niles feels bad for being the only one of his friends who's still single.
#18 - The Unkindest Cut
Season 3 - Episode 11 - Aired 11/27/1995
Sylvia hires Brighton to film one of Fran's cousin's bris. But Brighton didn't know what bris was and passes out during the most important moment of the party. Fran sends his video to "America's Wackiest Home Videos", and they are picked to go to the show. The entire family goes to Hollywood and tour around some filming lots. Fran, of course, gets lost while looking for a bathroom and ends up on the Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman set. After being thrown out several times (and trying to get back in just as many times), they return to NY to discover that Mr. Sheffield's book is going to be published. Just another result of Fran's work (and U$2.500 she paid to have it published!)
#19 - Making Whoopi
Season 6 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/18/1998
Fran's devastated after hearing from Dr. Reynolds she was never pregnant at all, that it was a false positive. Maxwell keeps hiding her pregnancy tests to avoid further sadness, and even invites Fran and her relatives to join him on his special appearance on the Hollywood Squares. Val, Sylvia and Yetta advise Fran to go see a herbalist to help Maxwell's swimmers. At the herbal store, Fran buys a special shake that will help Maxwell's little swimmers swim faster and some special cookies that will make them hot for each other. The shake doesn't help, so Dr. Reynolds prescribes hormones for Fran, who also buys an ovulation kit. Her timing couldn't be worse when she starts ovulating right when Maxwell is up on the squares. But nothing that Whoopi Goldberg's dressing room can't fix. Meanwhile, C.C. and Niles accidentally eat the special cookies and feel hot for each other, and Val quits her brightness pills because it was making her too gassy.
#20 - The Best Man
Season 5 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/6/1998
Maxwell's brother, Nigel, is back to throw him a bachelor party, and Fran is terrified because Maxwell doesn't know that she almost married Nigel a year and a half ago. She tries to keep it a secret, but after Nigel gets drunk at the party, he tells Maxwell, just as Fran comes out of the cake in a surprise for him (after Sylvia confessed that Morty cancelled his wedding and ran off with the cake girl - Sylvia!). Fran and Maxwell have a fight over it, and they end up calling the wedding off, until C.C. (under the influence of Prozac) tells Fran that Maxwell didn't spend 5 years "doing the one man show". So Fran gets Marla Maples, who had a quick fling with Maxwell a year and a half ago, and confronts Maxwell. They finally realize they love each other and call the wedding back on.
#21 - The Cantor Show
Season 3 - Episode 24 - Aired 4/29/1996
Fran goes out with the new temple cantor, Gary. When Mr. Sheffield listens him singing, he hires him to be on his next play. He quickly promotes the cantor to the lead of the play after the original actor is run over by a bus, and Gary decides to quit the temple to dedicate his time to his Broadway career. Everyone blames Sylvia and Fran for it, and they start to be ignored at temple. Sylvia throws a curse on Fran and everything starts to backfire until Fran donates the $500 she got from the air company to temple.
#22 - Frannie's Choice
Season 1 - Episode 21 - Aired 4/27/1994
Fran must choose whether to stay with the Sheffields or not when her ex-boyfriend Danny returns, and proposes to Fran.
#23 - Whine Cellar
Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 11/14/1994
Fran and C.C. ends up locked inside Maxwell's wine cellar.
#24 - Kissing Cousins
Season 4 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/15/1997
Fran meets an incredible man at a singles bar. He's Jewish, he's a doctor, he's rich, he's everything Fran ever dreamed of in a man. But during her cousin's wedding - where she was a bridesmaid - Fran discovers that Mr. Perfect is her cousin! Seeing Fran devastated, Mr. Sheffield decides to send her to a therapist, and the therapist says Fran has an obsession about getting married. Fran decides to stop chasing men around, just to make Mr. Sheffield guilty.
#25 - Fran's Roots
Season 4 - Episode 19 - Aired 3/12/1997
A woman calls Fran saying she might be her mother due to a mix up that happened in the hospital the day she was born. Doubtful, Fran goes to Sylvia to ask her about the day she was born, and finds out the story might be true after Sylvia says she left her for a moment while chasing for food. Terrified that her whole life might have been a lie, Fran invites the strange woman to her house, and for her surprise, she turns out to be black. Still, after Fran pays a visit to Lila Baker's huge mansion, Fran insists that she might be her daughter, since her late husband was Jewish, but the DNA test proofs not. Fran is really Sylvia's daughter, which is something Sylvia only gets after spending some time pleasuring herself with the wonderful food Lila has at her house. Meanwhile, Niles tries to convince Maxwell to sell one of his plays to CBS so C.C. has to move to LA.