Meet the British superfans who built their lives around Friends

It's the show that's always been there for her, and 30 years on, Nikki Hardy is still hooked.

She fell instantly in love when Friends landed on UK TV screens in 1995 and, since then, has watched episodes thousands of times.

Now 40, the mum-of-three is as obsessed with the iconic show as ever and is one of the UK's biggest superfans.

She followed Friends across Channel Four, Comedy Central and Netflix - flying into a panic when it was dropped from the streaming service earlier this year.

This is because Nikki, from Aberdeen, relies on Chandler, Joey, Monica, Phoebe, Rachel and Ross' voices to get her to sleep.

"It started in lockdown, I was really struggling with sleeping because of the uncertainty of everything, and was just feeling really wired," the self-employed nail technician says.

"So one night, because it's so familiar and I don't have to concentrate on it, I put Friends on for comfort."

It helped her drop off and became a habit that stuck. Now Nikki pops an episode on her iPad every night - having had to buy them on Amazon Prime - just to nod off. Her 13-year-old Josh does the same, playing it on his computer.

"It's the warmth and humour. It's so comforting. They've been in my life now for so long that I just feel a real connection with the characters," she says.

Nikki has been all around the world in honour of her love for the show - visiting the apartments in New York in 2008 and 2024, and visiting the Warner Brothers Studio in LA to see the set with husband Kris.

"We've seen the stage and the original fountain, the sofa, and Central Perk Cafe. It was really cool," she adds.

And Nikki's love of the show is even written on her body, where she has two Friends tattoos.

Nikki's bedroom is home to a Friends shrine, crowded with memorabilia: bags, books, T-shirts, colouring sets and Funko Pop toys. She bought them all on Vinted before learning that McDonald's is giving away collectibles along with the Friends Meal as part of a new campaign.

But she will be heading back to the restaurant to get more collectibles, thanks to the new McDonald's Friends Meal.

"When I was pregnant with my two youngest, I was obsessed with McDonald's meals. I couldn't get enough of them," she laughs.

The limited-edition meal features one of six collectible characters for diners ordering a Bic Mac, nine McNuggets or a McPlant in restaurants nationwide.

There is also a chance to win four exclusive Friends-inspired mugs, each with an iconic design, when you purchase the McDonald's Friends Meal using the MyMcDonald's Rewards app. The competition is open until March 16.

Like Nikki, Lucy Wilkinson has also been hooked on the TV show since she was a child, and she has interrupted her new year diet to visit McDonald's to get her hands on a Friends Meal.

At primary school, Lucy got the Rachel haircut and would sit down every Friday night to watch the show in the days before binge-watching was a possibility.

"I loved it. I had all the pencil cases and the board games, and even now, the first thing I do when I get home is put it on the TV," the mortgage advisor from Sheffield says.

Lucy - who is hyper organised and exceptionally tidy - self-identifies as Monica, and her love affair with the show has infiltrated her own relationships.

Friends and family buy her Friends-themed gifts for birthdays and Christmas, she has a Friends shrine in her utility room, and her hen party and wedding in 2018 were dominated by the show. She's even won a Friends quiz at the UK Central Perk tour in 2009.

"I even put it on when we're on holiday. My husband, Will, says, 'I can't believe we're abroad and we're still watching Friends,'" Lucy, 39, says.

At her hen party in Tenerife six years ago, all her guests were given name badges in honour of Monica's fastidiousness, and a laminated itinerary was pulled out.

"It was called 'the one where Lucy got married,' everyone was given their own Friends character to be and it was so much fun," she remembers.

And at the couple's wedding, guests were offered slices of cheese and pork pie cake, which bore the topper "he's my lobster", in reference to Phoebe Buffay's description of Ross and Rachel's relationship.

They signed the register to the background music of U2's With or Without You - the song Ross and Rachel first kissed to - but Will drew the line at entering the reception to the Friends theme tune.

"He put his foot down on that," she laughs, before admitting it did get played at the end of the night.

"When we got back to the bridal suite, there were pinecones and fake fruit everywhere. I didn't realise why until the next morning, when I worked out my friends had put them there in reference to Ross stealing them from a hotel lobby as a child.

"My whole life has revolved around this TV show. Even though we were trying not to eat fast food in February, we gave ourselves permission to have a Friends Big Mac meal. I was really pleased to get the Monica character, as she's my favourite."

The McDonald's Friends Meal will be available in restaurants until March 16 while stocks last.