The 90s sitcom The Nanny entertained fans for six seasons. But which quotes from Niles, Fran and the rest of the cast were best? Let’s examine.
The Nanny had fans bust out laughing for six seasons with its wacky plots and entertaining characters. But along with the laughter, fans also learned some valuable life lessons like if you layer two pieces of pizza together then your body will only count it as one and it’s not really on sale unless it’s 50% off.
The Nanny gave fans not only humor but also touching moments and inspiring scenes. Throughout The Nanny’s six seasons fans were bestowed Fran Fine’s relatable wisdom as well as a few other hilarious and valuable lessons from Niles, Mr. Sheffield, and the rest of the hilarious cast. Here are the 10 best quotes from The Nanny:
“The best years of my life are gone. And they sucked.” – C.C.
While Miss Babcock is not exactly a fan favorite, fans have to admit that she did have a few good lines. One of her most relatable lines was in season 6, episode 17 “The Dummy Twins” when C.C. announced, “The best years of my life are gone. And they sucked.”
This has to be one of the most humorous lines of the show because it’s painfully true for many people. Fans adore Miss Fine’s positive attitude and consistent hopeful outlook on life, but sometimes people need a dose of realistic cynicism. This is where Miss Babcock comes in, C.C. Babcock, the ever cynical woman of realism.
“That’s Democracy in action.” – Fran
To which Mr. Sheffield replies, “Meaning I do what you want and compromise my integrity.” This is when Fran came back with, “That’s democracy in action.” Miss Fine should have run for office.
“You spend so much time up this creek, I should think by now you’d have a bought a paddle.” – Niles
Many fans of The Nanny are big fans of Fran and Mr. Sheffield, but the secret star of the show was Niles. Niles has been the real fan favorite of the show ever since season 1. Niles was consistently full of witty comments that made fans fall over laughing.
One of his best lines was in season 1, episode 14 “Family Plumbing” when Miss Fine was yet again afraid she would be fired. When Fran told Niles, “I’m gonna be canned for sure.”, Niles replied with, “Ms. Fine, you spend so much time up this creek, I should think by now you’d have bought a paddle.” Niles, ladies and gentlemen, the constant comedian of the series.
“The plants would have loved the fertilizer.” – Fran
Miss Fine was never one to hold back what she thought and that included her hysterical witty comments. One of Fran’s best responses was in season 1, episode 18 “Sunday in the Park with Fran” when she lets everyone know what she’s thinking by stating, “Too bad we didn’t have this conversation in the garden. The plants would have loved the fertilizer.”
Even though Fran is technically only the nanny, she never blindly follows what Mr. Sheffield says and often tells him what her opinion is. This one of the reasons there will never be another nanny quite like Nanny Fine.
“But I’ve got style, I’ve got flair.” – Fran
Miss Fine was no ordinary nanny as she was full of sass and glamour. She reminded fans of this when in season 3 when Mr. Sheffield had to remind her that she is only his nanny and her purpose there is to take care of his kids. To that Fran responded, “But I’ve got style, I’ve got flair. How did I become the nanny?”
But it was because of her style and flair that she was everyone’s favorite nanny. Fran was able to be the best nanny to Maggie, Brighton, and Gracie, all while looking fabulous.
“Just shake it up, sir!” – Niles
While fans loved Mr. Sheffield, they have to admit that sometimes he needed a swift kick in the pants and luckily Niles was there to get the job done. In season 3, episode 17 “The Grandmas” when Mr. Sheffield is feeling bad for being predictable and he’s trying to think of a way to make sure Miss Fine is happy, Niles is there to provide the answer.
Niles tells him, “Just shake it up, sir! Do something wild, out there, totally unexpected, I don’t know. Give me a bonus!” Niles was just answering Mr. Sheffield, but he also reminded fans that it’s okay to shake it up from time to time.
“I just wanted to eat bacon.” – Fran
One thing fans adored about Fran was her relatable and hilarious honesty. In season 4, episode 2 “The Cradle Robbers” Mr. Sheffield was upset about Maggie’s dating life, but not to worry Fran came to the rescue to comfort him.
She explained to Mr. Sheffield, “I was 17 once too. I snuck out all the time. Of course, I didn’t have a boyfriend. I just wanted to eat bacon.” This didn’t really help ease Mr. Sheffield’s concern, but it did make fans laugh and relate to Miss Fine even more as most of us have been there.
“Fran, he’ll be able to see your liver in that.” – Val
Val was never given enough credit for her role on The Nanny and was often written off as the series’ nitwit. But throughout the six seasons, Val did have a few good lines like in season 4, episode 9 “Tattoo” when Fran needed Val’s help picking out a bathing suit for her trip with Mr. Sheffield.
When Fran asked, “Do you think Mr. Sheffield will be able to see my tattoo in this?”, Val hilariously replied, “Fran, he’ll be able to see your liver in that.” Val is always the honest friend and never holds back what’s on her mind since she’s not great at tuning into social cues; but fans lover her anyways.
“Good things come to those who wait, sir.” – Niles
Niles is a master of subtle hints and he proved this when he told Mr. Sheffield, “Good things come to those who wait, sir. Unless they wait too long and then they slip through their namby-pamby fingers.” Niles had been desperately attempting to push Mr. Sheffield and Miss Fine together for four years so by the time season 4 came, his hints started to get stronger and more aggressive.
No one wanted the two to get together more than Niles, except maybe Sylvia, and fans loved him for it. That and his hilarious sarcastic comments directed at Miss Babcock.
“For that alone, I’ll love you forever.” – Mr. Sheffield
When Mr. Sheffield told Fran, “You blew into our lives five years ago like a whirlwind; made us all feel alive again. For that alone, I’ll love you forever”, fans could not help but burst into sappy tears. Fans had waited for Mr. Sheffield to fall in love with Miss Fine for five years.
They had to deal with his back and forth emotions, telling Fran he loved her and then taking it back. So when he said this beautiful quote to Fran in season 5, fans could not have been more overfilled with love for the long-awaited happy couple.
