RATHER like tortilla with or without onions or, if you're British, Marmite, hardly anyone is 'neither here nor there' about the late-1990s sitcom Friends.
Love the series or hate it, you can't deny Friends' Central Perk is the most iconic fictional café in the universe (photo: Warner Bros)
You either had the telly on and the phone off the hook half an hour beforehand in anticipation and would cancel your own wedding if it clashed with the latest episode, or you'd switch channels in disgust and would happily watch three hours of back-to-back washing powder ads in a minority language from the opposite hemisphere than sit through three minutes of Joey, Chandler, Rachel et al.
Probably more polarised than a general election in any western country, the Friends versus Non-Friends camps would, nevertheless, be hard-pushed to disagree that the Central Perk was the most famous fictional café in the universe.
Even the washing-powder-ad faction would instantly recognise that famous orangey-red sofa and low-slung wooden table with Jennifer Aniston in front of a coffee cup.
Given the chance to take a selfie on that same sofa, Team Detergent would probably give in to the temptation, even if they never admitted to it or pretended the subject of the photo was their hitherto-unintroduced twin.
And now, whether you're a Friends nerd or a channel-switcher-over, you (or your twin) can do just that: In Madrid's Warner Park.
Friends with Perks
We can't promise Phoebe, Monica, Ross and pals will be there, too – which might be a bad or a good thing depending upon which extreme of the Friends spectrum you occupy – but Warner Park in Spain's capital has, however, promised that its very-own Central Perk is a complete clone of the original and that you wouldn't know the difference if nobody told you first.
Friends enamel brooches - an example of the official souvenirs on sale at Warner Park. The ideal present for your best Friend or your worst enemy, depending upon which camp you're in (photos: Friendsmerchandise.com)
And as well as lounging around with a cuppa as though you're just another member of Lisa Kudrow's and Courtney Cox's gang, the Friendzone includes a souvenir shop where you can buy authentic, authorised and official memorabilia to show the world that no-one else can ever achieve your dizzy peaks of fan-hood - or as presents for a fellow fan of unachievable peaks of dizziness to ensure they'll be your best Friend forever.
Or perhaps as the perfect gift for your worst enemy, if you happen to know they're more Laundromat than Matt LeBlanc.
Central to a milestone Warner birthday
Madrid's Warner Park turns 20 this year, and the replica Central Perk and tied gift shop is part of its celebrations – along with two new water-park rides in the Warner Beach section, an extra rollercoaster due to open in 2023 and, as one of Warner Bros' cutest characters, Tweety-Pie, will be joining the complex in marking a 'zero' birthday, a huge mural of the big-footed, big-eyed little yellow birdie is now in place, showing he's wearing very well for an 80-year-old.
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